The Half-Ton Diesel Market

Ford’s Aluminum Gamble

Few diesel industry news, other than the price of oil, was perhaps as prevelant in the last half of January of 2015 than that of the new aluminum body of the F-150. Coupled with the news that Ford is seriously considering offering an economy diesel for their iconic half-ton truck, we are excited to see the changes this could bring to the industry.

Adding a little rain on the parade, though, are statements from Ford hinting that the aluminum body might be a limited offering:

Among trucks, the new F-150’s aluminum body represents an unusually advanced and expensive manufacturing process in a segment that profits from relatively low-tech, cheap construction. It’s a huge gamble—the raw alloy is costlier than high-strength steel and requires an entirely new process for assembly and repair—but Ford is banking on absurdly high sales volumes to pay the overhead. Last year, it sold 754,000 F-series trucks.

Knowing that Ford is looking for new venues to increase their revenue, its not surprising that they are considering tackling both the lightweight diesel truck market, and the hybrid market.