Ford Planning V6 Diesel For F-150, Super Duty Stays With Steel

Derek Kreindler
by Derek Kreindler

TTAC was the first to bring you news of the F-150’s move to aluminum construction, the 2.7L Ecoboost and the delays with the aluminum body panel production. And now we’ve got another bounty of information about upcoming engines, transmissions and other technology for the new F-Series trucks and their full-size SUVs.

TTAC’s sources tell us that even though the next-generation F-150 hasn’t even launched yet, there are already early-cycle and mid-cycle updates in the cards. According to them, Ford is feeling the sting of losing out to Ram on the first half-ton diesel pickup race. A diesel F-150 was in the works, but became a casualty of the recession in 2008. Now Ford is apparently at work on a 3.0L V6 diesel, codenamed “Lion”, that is set to appear by 2018. In other powertrain developments, we’ve learned that the 2.7L Ecoboost will have somewhere in the ballpark of 290-300 horsepower, though torque numbers remain unknown.

Around this time, we’ll also see a number of major developments for Ford’s truck line. A new 10-speed transmission will debut in both trucks and body-on-frame SUVs, as well as a new, aluminum bodied version of the Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator. While production will take place in America, development is currently going on at Ford’s Mexican arm.

Despite the push for aluminum bodies, one product that won’t be making the transition is the next-generation of Super Duty trucks. Our source indicates that these trucks will stick with steel bodies, though the reasons behind it are unknown.

Derek Kreindler
Derek Kreindler

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  • Lou_BC Lou_BC on Feb 01, 2014

    @Kincaid - correct. Nothing like a truck blog to bring out all of the bloggers compensating for a wee schmeckle. @Carlson Fan - Who makes that engine in the Dodge er Ram er FCA truck? That would be Cummins. Ever look up who Cummins sells engines to? Ford uses Cummins and Allison in their commercial trucks along with other drivetrains. It would make sense to swap a dead shitty 6.0 Cornbinder engine for a CUMMINS I6. @Z71_Silvy - on the subject of incompetence, GMC has the record for the worse corporate losses of any USA company. 3 of the bottom 10 (or top 10 worst losses depending on your point of view) were from GMC. Most fleet trucks do not sell with diesels. Big fleets tend to buy what ever is the cheapest and a 10K price premium rules out diesel. Fastlane Truck did a quick comparison of the 2014 Ram 6.4 coil spring 4x4 against the 6.2 Ford and the 6.0 Chevy. It was embarrassing for Ram. Both the Ford 6.2 and Chevy 6.0 had better acceleration times. One tester felt that the Chevy rode better than the Ram.

  • FleetFilter FleetFilter on Feb 01, 2014

    Okay, now I want a Raptor SUV made of aluminum with a 3.0 diesel. I'll sell my Suburban 2500 4x4 for one.

  • Kyjoe1 Kyjoe1 on Mar 14, 2014

    I work at the Kentucky Truck Plant body shop where the Super Duty is built. We also heard the rumors about staying steel. I asked our manager that is in charge of launching new products in the body shop and he assured me that we will be going to aluminum. It is too far into the works to turn back now. We are getting ready to build a whole new body shop just for this reason.

    • Bball40dtw Bball40dtw on Jan 28, 2016

      They are going aluminum now. Derek's article was about the "new" for 2015 SuperDuty. Which was basically just a refresh.

  • Shedkept Shedkept on Jan 28, 2016

    I hope they do a better job than what the created in the 6.7 Scorpion. You couldn't give me one. The list of unhappy owners is long but a friend's nephew has been through 3 engines, 3 sets of head and when it does FINALLY go out of warranty it's gone. International-Navistar made the last good engine in the 7.3 and you'd be surprised what they bring on the open market with the last one being installed in 2002. Contractors are also shying away from diesel engines in fleet operation. The up front costs and maintenance required doesn't work out in the end. Gasoline is cheaper too. A recent discussion I had with the owner of a medium size landscaping and grounds maintenance company revealed the same thinking. He cannot justify a diesel truck unless it is 100% dedicated to pulling heavy loads.

    • Drzhivago138 Drzhivago138 on Jan 28, 2016

      The 6.0L+ monsters used in HD pickups and the engines being used in 1/2-tons and midsizers are two different breeds of animal. EDIT: Wait, why are we commenting on a two-year-old article?

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