Are You Built Ford Tough?

What it means to be "Built Ford Tough"

"Built Ford Tough" is more than just a tagline for Ford Motor Company's full-size pickups. For nearly 30 years, the phrase has served as Ford's promise to customers about the quality, durability and dependability of its trucks.
This powerful and consistent message paves the way for Ford's truck leadership that, with a 133,000-unit sales lead this year alone, is nearly secured for a 30th consecutive year.

"'Built Ford Tough' is one of the most enduring brand and product philosophies of any automaker, or any company anywhere," says Ben Poore, Ford Truck group marketing manager. "Customers believe 'Built Ford Tough' is synonymous with the best trucks, much like 'Intel Inside' has become the standard for computers."

The definition of "Built Ford Tough" is rooted in a series of grueling tests in the hot Arizona desert. For example, before the all-new 2008 F-Series Super Duty reaches Ford dealers early next year, prototypes of America's work truck logged 10 million miles of testing in all types of conditions, including nearly 3 million miles of real-world customer durability testing in some of the most extreme conditions possible.

At Ford's Arizona Proving Ground (APG) in western Arizona, Super Duty test vehicles were driven thousands of times over 50 miles of torturous terrain specifically developed to shake, twist, rattle and batter the trucks.
Furthermore, the trucks were tested during the summer when the average temperature was 103 degrees Fahrenheit with peak heat reaching 120 degrees.

"We build and test the most capable pickup trucks on the planet. We prove out our vehicles by running worst-case driving conditions that our most extreme customers experience," said John Wagner, Ford North American Durability manager. "These grueling tests prove out the structure of the truck, including the suspension, powertrain and body. We want to ensure that nothing breaks for our customers. We test them and have a pile of their broken parts to prove it."

One of the severe tests is named Power Hop Hill. Its washboard-type surface batters a truck's suspension system. Twist Ditch is a series of angled ditches that puts a truck's full weight on opposing wheels, applying maximum torsional loading on the body and frame structure.

Silver Creek combines two extremely rough roads. "Silver Creek is foot-for-foot the roughest man-made durability test road in the world," said Charlie Tegarden, Ford durability engineering supervisor.

All Super Duty durability tests at APG are done with maximum loads on the front and rear axles. For example, to allow for the customer who puts a snow plow on the front end, the front axle is loaded up. In addition, a maximum load is placed on the rear axle for the customer who loads to capacity on the rear of a truck, explained Wagner.

Considering more than 90 percent of Super Duty customers tow with their trucks, that capability also is pushed to the limit at APG. One of several tests for towing involves a highway road with a challenging incline. Loaded at maximum gross combined weight -- the weight of the trailer and the truck -- the grade of the road acts as an additional load, further taxing the truck's powertrain and towing components.
Super Duty has no equal," Wagner said.

A deep bed of loose sand named Sand Wash is used to test Super Duty's tow hooks, the strongest in the industry. Trucks are loaded to maximum weight, buried in the sand with the front wheels turned to lock position and pulled out by one tow hook. Sand Wash is also used to test four-wheel-drive systems.
Another four-wheel-drive challenge is Mud Bath. As the name suggests, this test involves coating Super Duty moving parts and filling all nooks and crannies with a slimy clay.

Are F-Series trucks living up the challenge of being Built Ford Tough? "I've got customers with 200,000, 300,000 miles on 'em. It literally is built Ford tough. You cannot beat the Ford truck, chassis-wise or pickup box-wise," said Rosner.
Built Ford Tough' or Just More Stuff?

The 2009 F-150 Platinum will be the company's third stab at the high-end truck segment, following the short and disappointing runs of two Lincoln pickups (Lincoln is Ford’s domestic luxury brand). The Lincoln Mark LT is based on the Ford F-150. Ford may be taking some risk out of the equation by proceeding with care, production-wise. “The F-150 Platinum is not expected to be a high-volume model,” says Stephanie Brinkley, industry analyst with Auto Pacific in Southfield, Mich. “There is a market for this kind of ultra-luxury truck. Ford has done well with their other luxury models like the Lariat and King Ranch.”

Others agree that one luxury hauler is apparently not enough for Ford's lineup. “There seems to be a real appetite out there for high-end, luxury pickups,” says Erich Merkle, vice president of forecasting at IRN in Grand Rapids, Mich.
“Look at the King Ranch; [Ford] couldn’t get rid of it, even though they thought it would be a one-time deal,” he says, referring to Ford’s continual production of the vehicle because of buyer interest.

The $35,825 King Ranch edition is currently the most luxurious Ford pickup, with a leather-trimmed interior, DVD navigation system, and gold-colored running boards.

Merkle predicts F-150 Platinum sales of a relatively meager 15,000 units a year, but he believes Ford has hit upon an untapped market. Many feel the Lincoln Mark LT was not successful because, unlike Ford, Lincoln is not a pickup-truck brand. The same problem haunts the Cadillac Escalade EXT, which is an Escalade SUV with a short cargo bed. Borrowing some visual cues from the Lincoln fleet, the F-150 Platinum will be adorned with satin chrome accents, mirror caps, tailgate trim, and an egg-crate grille with three big horizontal bars — think of the styling as Bentley meets forklift. Elaborately named “Satin Gloss Rippled Lacrosse Ash” wood inserts also cover some interior surfaces. Raised contrast stitching on the leather seats, embroidered logos, and 10-way power adjustable captain's chairs round out what Ford calls “the most luxurious F-150 ever.”

Also standard on the Platinum are Ford's across-the-board upgrades to the 2009 F-150 line: traction control, the Sync communication and entertainment system, voice-activated navigation, an integrated cargo box, and a 700-watt Sony audio system.

Luxury cars are usually well insulated from the noises of the outside world, and Ford has gone to some lengths to quiet their flagship pickup. “The F-150 Platinum is quieter inside than the Lexus LX 470, according to tests that combined scores for wind noise, road noise, and harshness measured at highway speeds,” says Ford chief engineer Matt O'Leary.

Ford achieved the noise reduction with a laminated windshield, carpeting that is more sound absorptive, and additional insulation in the dash panels, doors, and rear cabin panel. “Ford may not have much credibility on luxury, but [the F-150 Platinum] will do well with a certain group. Think Texas — the pickup and shotgun buyer,” says Milton Pedraza, CEO of the Luxury Institute in New York. He attributes the Ford F-150 Platinum to a "premiumization" trend permeating the auto industry, where vehicles in every class are spun with some sort of high-end appeal.
“No one really needs a Platinum pickup. Ford has not made any sales projections, but the Ford F-150 Platinum will be more scarce than other variants in the F-series line, says Ford spokesperson George Pipas. “So much of the pickup truck market is tied to the home construction [industry]. With the home construction market not doing well right now, it’s not likely that the pickup truck market is going to rebound in the next year.”

Even if the market doesn't make a comeback, with the release of the Platinum, Ford may open the sales doors to a high-end market segment it has previously been shut out of — or plain uninterested in. Whether it succeeds, or, as Pedraza says, produces a “fad, not a trend,” could depend on buyers' willingness to pay luxury prices for a truck that doesn't bear the company's Lincoln luxury badge. The Ford F-150 Platinum is expected to be priced around $40,000.