Ford Kills F-100 (Downsized F-150)

Robert Farago
by Robert Farago

Do The Detroit News' headline writers have a daily cheerleading contest? Or is it more of an intellectual challenge thing: let's see if we can outspin the spinners? Why else would the Motown paper bury the fact that Ford's killed plans for a downsized version of their full-sized F-150 pickup in the text of an article titled "Ford high on fuel sippers?" Drug-related snickers aside, the meat of the matter arrives in paragraph seven, where we learn Ford reckons a more fuel-efficient, EcoBoosted F-150 obviates the need for the F-100. "The Detroit News has learned, the automaker has put aside plans to build the F-100, a smaller, lighter version of the F-150. The new truck was to have been built at the Michigan Truck Plant in Wayne, but Ford has decided to retool that plant to produce small cars. It could still build the F-100 at one of its other truck plants if it later determines there is a need for the product. Ford has also taken steps to ensure that it can quickly change its mind if it decides it needs to bring a new global version of the Ranger to the United States." Cost-cutting, smart move or cost cutting disguised as a smart move? "The small pickup segment doesn't really provide a lot of benefit," analyst Erich Merkle told the DetN. "You buy a pickup truck for bed space and towing. There really isn't much substitute for a full-size pickup. But it all depends on what happens to the price of fuel." Now I'm really confused…

Robert Farago
Robert Farago

More by Robert Farago

Comments
Join the conversation
4 of 28 comments
  • John Horner John Horner on Aug 08, 2008

    With some of the Transit family coming to the US and a new lease on life for the Ranger, it makes sense to not do a slightly shrunken F-100 version of the F-150.

  • Westhighgoalie Westhighgoalie on Aug 08, 2008

    I Think killing the F-100 is a terrible idea! Here's why... - The Ford Ranger platform is ancient, My neighbor had a 1995 Ford Ranger and guess what, It was 99.98% the same as a 2008 Ford Ranger. - The truck isn't safe for crash tests... at all! It's just been allowed to rot... It really is a crying shame, If you look at the truck for what it does, it's a soldier, but because it has been neglected for so long, its lost all the edges it once had. - Someone said that the only profitable small truck they knew about was the Nissan Frontier, WRONG! The Toyota Tacoma is an excellent small truck! Well, it was before It became about 1 foot shorter than the previous generation Tundra! - The fact is that we... I mean my family and millions like it would LOVE a small Pick me up Truck that could tow 4,000 Lbs, and carry a load of 750 to 1000 lbs... AND get 30 mpg Highway! - A truck that is a "Weekend Warrior" that can handle all of your landscaping or light off-roading needs, but also be your every day commuter if you work 45 miles away. - Its not a ridiculously hard job! I would love to be able to look at a ford product and be able to say. It does everything I need it to. YOU CAN DO IT FO.MO.CO ... I have faith in you!! Please, DO NOT MAKE ME EAT MY OWN WORDS IN 3 YEARS OR LESS!

  • Rspaight Rspaight on Aug 08, 2008

    "The small pickup segment doesn't really provide a lot of benefit." OK, that was the statement that made this lurker break down and register. We've got a 1993 Toyota extended cab pickup that gets mid-20s fuel economy and satisfies all our modest hauling needs. We're not contractors, but my wife gardens (and so needs to carry dirty stuff like topsoil, mulch, etc.) and we need to carry the occasional large object that won't fit in our Protege5. The truck works great. So this "analyst" thinks what I really want is some huge F-150 or Tundra that gets 10 MPG less and can't be parked without a spotter? (Or, as was pointed out above, loaded without a stepladder?) I sometimes think about replacing the truck, since it's getting up there and has never been the same since it was nearly totaled. But there's nothing out there to replace it with, other than crude antiques from Ford and GM and enormous bloated offerings from Toyota and Nissan. Is it too obvious to observe that the automakers could recapture a good portion of the non-"professional" buyers that have fled full-size trucks this year with a modern efficient compact truck?

  • Redbarchetta Redbarchetta on Aug 08, 2008
    Rspaight What he said +1. I want a truck like my dad's old Mazda B2000, just made for the 21 century, and that doesn't mean a gigantic gas hog. Come on Ford you could do it, and I would seriously consider your brand even though I hate the Ford family. And you would have a monopoly on the market, well until M&M get their small truck here. I'm game for experimenting with an Indian brand at the right low price so you better hurry.
Next