2015 Ford F-150 Aluminum Bed

MARKW8 wrote:

otrfun wrote:

MARKW8 wrote:

otrfun wrote:

MARKW8 wrote:
I want to see one after 5+ years in the rust belt. See how it holds up against corrosion.

Mark

Don't need to wait. Look around the salt-infested parking lot of any boat ramp on the east and west coast. The difference in corrosion between steel and aluminum trailers is pretty hard to miss--especially on the boat trailers that use a combination of steel and aluminum components.

I would expect Ford to make more effort than most any trailer mfg to deter corrosion.

Mark

Aluminum deters corrosion all by itself without any help from Ford :)

But the truck isn't likely assembled with only aluminum or stainless fasteners. And we'll have to see how well they isolate the aluminum parts from the steel frame. I expect they won't get it all right the first time.

Mark

Point taken. I'm sure there will be some growing pains.

However, I think what matters more than all this technical what-if, is what the general buying public "feels" or perceives about the aluminum F150 when they walk into a typical showroom. Most consumers know that aluminum is light, corrodes much more gracefully than steel, and it bends easily. Lightweight is good, "graceful" corrosion a plus, but bending easily (or strength) could be a possible issue. However, I believe there are two things that will make this a non-issue very quickly. First, this latest Ford video showing the 200 mph golf balls smacking the aluminum F150 beds while suffering less damage than the standard steel beds is massively effective and will surely erase concerns for the vast majority of consumers. Second, when a consumer walks into the showroom the first thing they're going to do is tap or push on some of the aluminum body panels. I did this myself a few days ago. I was very impressed. When you tap on the F150's aluminum body panels they respond with a much lower pitch (like a thud) vs. the standard steel body panels. It also has much less "give" when pushed. Overall, the 2015 F150 aluminum panels give the impression they're more substantial and thicker than the steel 2014 F150's body panels . . . IMO this hands-on experience, in itself, is gonna sell a lot of trucks.

Sure, there's gonna be some growing pains, especially in terms of technical expertise to effect repairs. But, again, the average consumer is just gonna be impressed with this truck on the showroom floor. If there are going to be growing pains in terms of accident repairs, they won't surface for quite a few months. Enough time for Ford to get a lot of marketing momentum going--enough time for all the good things about the aluminum to far outweigh any bad that may surface.

Bottom line, I'm not a big Ford fan, but in my mind, Ford has a real winner on their hands.