Why the new Ford 150 has an aluminum body

[planosteve]

The bottom line is that Ford is going over to aluminum chiefly to make it politically feasible to continue building a mass-market full-size truck. As I have ranted about previously, the “driver” is not market demand so much as government mandate. A little more than a year from now (in 2016) the government has decreed that all vehicles (including trucks, which used to be subject to a more forgiving standard) shall average 35.5 MPG – or else. The “or else” being monetary penalties rained down on any recalcitrant manufacturer, which will then be passed on to you, dear consumer. These penalties are figured on the basis of “fleet averages” – and Ford sells a fleet of F-trucks. Hundreds of thousands of them each year. A 4 MPG uptick matters hugely – as far as the government’s “fleet average” calculations – when the model in question is Ford’s best-selling/highest-volume model.

Ford – any automaker – can “get away” with selling a low-volume/specialty vehicle that doesn’t quite make the MPG cut. Because its contributions (its substractions) to the automaker’s “fleet average” MPG numbers are negligible. But not a half-a-million-each-year seller like the F-truck. Which is why that 4 MPG uptick matters so much. Which is the real reason why the new F-truck has an aluminum-body. And a twice-turbo’d V-6.

Just so you know.

http://ericpetersautos.com/2014/11/13/alloy-ally/

[PlanoSooner]

i participated in a study with gm on trucks and suvs

as an owner, they wanted to know if i would take a 6 banger, basically.

after the study was over they invited me and 2 others to stay behind. they were more candid with us than with the whole group. they basically said: deal with it... v-8 is dead soon.

[planosteve]

The govt.wants us to believe they can cause industry to improve or create new technology by mandating it. If they want better gas milage all they have to do is issue an edict and it will happen. This is defacto socialism.

[John in Plano]

I have no problem with the 40 plus years of Uncle Sam pushing the auto industry , via unleaded fuel at first, into building a better product. The Opec embargo & Datsun/Honda/Toyota forced domestic manufacturers to play catch up, first in mpg then in quality.

[Jay Weaver]

I don't think the V-8 will be dead, but GM's V-8's may be dead.
Toyota is making some V-8's using hi-performance features that enhance the performance of a much smaller engine then GM has decided they won't or can't build. About ten or twelve years ago, GM announced they would not look at any other valve performance designs and decide to stay with lifters, pushrods and
traditional cams for their engines. In the meantime, Nissan and Toyota have gone the route of overhead cams. Not only is performance much better, but emission control is keeping them in "the race".