FORD
TRUCKS |
Trucks
built by Ford Motor Company represent the top
sellers for every segment of pickups - compact,
full-size and super-size. The line's leader -
the full-size F-150 - year after year out-paces
all other nameplates, car or truck, to rank as
top-selling vehicle in America.
In
the 2005 line, Ford unveils a new generation of designs for super-size Super Duty
trucks riding on reinforced chassis with three big engine options and tow ratings
climbing to the top of the hefty class. | Ford
F-150 | New designs
for Ford's full-size and light-duty (half-ton) F-150 emerged in 2004 with V8 engine
options, three cab styles and three box lengths. These trucks extend into 2005
with five series, including a deluxe new F-150 Lariat King Ranch edition lined
with leather. Posed in tall stance and projecting a bold face, the F-150 reveals
curvy bulges around wheel wells and squared headlamp clusters on front corners
flanking a big grille. Cab designs consist of a Regular Cab, SuperCab and SuperCrew,
all now with four doors.
Two-wheel-drive
(2WD) traction mode is standard but four-wheel-drive (4WD) is available across
the board with manual or electronic switching. Two different Triton V8 engines
link to a four-speed electronic automatic transmission, while a 4.2-liter V6 is
now available on F-150 with a manual five-speed stick. The new V6 nets 202 hp.
A 4.6-liter Triton V8 delivers 231 hp, with the 5.4-liter Triton V8 kicked to
300 hp. High power and torque ratings for the larger engine make it the choice
for towing a trailer, as maximum tow capacity rises up to 9900 pounds. Trim tiers
for the F-150 reach from the base XL and STX to a well-equipped XLT, the off-road
FX4 and the luxurious Lariat. | Ford
Super Duty Trucks | The new
generation of Super Duty designs for 2005 arrive with boosted capacity and tow
ratings rising to the top of class at 17,000 pounds. Ford's big trucks hit the
market in F-250 Super Duty (three-quarter ton) and F-350 (one-ton) sizes. Gross
vehicle weight rating for F-250 rises to 8,800 pounds, but F-350 begins at 10,200
pounds and ranges through options to 13,000 pounds. The Super Duty trucks use
gasoline-power engines in V8 and V10 sizes or a torque-monster Power Stroke V8
turbo diesel.
Ford's
Triton 5.4-liter V8 is the base plant, producing 300 hp. A Triton 6.8-liter V10
climbs on top of the class to 355 hp, and Ford's Power Stroke Turbo Diesel, a
6.0-liter V8 with turbo-charger and hydraulic rail fuel injection, produces best-in-class
325 hp plus 570 lb.-ft. of torque. All three plants offer a manual six-speed ZF
shifter or optional four-speed TorqShift automatic. Fresh exterior styling looks
as strong as performance figures suggest. Cabins have been revised with interiors
that seem more like a comfortable car than a working-class truck. Most use cloth
fabric upholstery for seats, although leather comes with Lariat trim, and packages
include deluxe King Ranch and special edition Harley-Davidson. |
Ford
Ranger | Ford's
Ranger has been the best-selling compact truck for 17 years. For 2005, the line
expands with new models like XLT Regular Cab toting a seven-foot box, the Edge
with two-door SuperCab and 4WD traction, and a Tremor package for Edge with 510-watt
Pioneer audio kit containing a six-disc CD/MP3 player and four coaxial speakers
to blow the doors off. Total models include XL, Edge, XLT, Tremor and FX4. The
Edge edition dresses Ranger in a monochromatic color scheme, and a 2WD Edge stands
as high as the 4WD Ranger since 4WD suspension elements are in place.
Ranger
FX4 presents the serious look of a tough off-road truck and supports that image
with hardware designed to take trail abuse. With the four-door SuperCab and deluxe
XLT trim the FX4 Level II adds 4WD equipment like Bilstein off-road shocks, a
Torsen limited-slip rear differential- plus undercarriage skid plates, tow hooks
and forged aluminum wheels. Three engines go with Ranger for 2005 but an optional
V6 crowns the chart and boosts the truck's trailer-towing ability. The 4.0-liter
V6 musters best-in-class performance of 207 hp. Coupled to the six-pack is a heavy-duty
five-speed manual or optional five-speed automatic. |
[MORE
INFORMATION FROM FORD]
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