Ford is taking heavy-duty trucks to the next level with the all-new 2017 F-Series Super Duty.
Super Duty’s enhanced capability starts with high-strength, military-grade, aluminum alloy and high-strength steel that help reduce weight by up to 350 pounds. Ford reinvested that weight savings in more robust components everywhere it counts to give customers more towing and hauling capability than ever before.
Foundational improvements for every Super Duty pickup truck include an all-new, fully boxed frame that is more than 95 percent high-strength steel and up to 24 times stiffer than the previous frame to support increased towing and hauling. The all-new high-strength, military-grade, aluminum-alloy body is more dent and ding resistant than the previous steel body.
“This is the best heavy-duty truck we’ve ever made,” says Doug Scott, Ford truck marketing manager. “We listened to our customers and created the toughest, smartest and most capable Super Duty ever.”
The future of towing is now
The 2017 Super Duty is the undisputed leader in towing, offering available best-in-class performance in all towing categories, plus smart technology no other competitor has to enable greater confidence when towing.
Ford F-450 Super Duty SuperCrew 4x4 now features a maximum gooseneck tow rating of 32,500 pounds – 1,290 pounds more than its nearest competitor, a regular cab two-door pickup. Maximum fifth-wheel towing is increased to 27,500 – 2,500 pounds better than the nearest competitor.
Maximum conventional towing is increased to 21,000 pounds – which according to Ford is 1,000 pounds better than the nearest competitors’ trucks and without the need for a weight-distributing hitch. Maximum conventional towing with F-250, with the all-new trailer tow package, and F-350 single-rear wheel are increased to a class-leading 18,000 pounds.
Maximum gross combined weight rating for truck and trailer now tops out at a class-leading 41,800 pounds. That is more than half the maximum weight of an 18-wheeler semi-tractor trailer combination on most federal highways.
This industry-defining capability is matched by never-before-seen towing technology. Super Duty is the first truck to offer adaptive cruise control and collision warning with brake support for heavy trailers, allowing truckers to traverse steep mountain grades while maintaining speed – even with a trailer weighing 32,500 pounds.
A centre high-mounted stop lamp camera provides visibility into the cargo box, which is especially helpful when hooking up gooseneck and fifth-wheel trailers. An Ultimate Trailer Tow Camera System uses four digital, high-definition cameras to give the driver a 360-degree bird’s-eye view surrounding Super Duty. Trailer Reverse Guidance provides visual cues and tips to help ease backing up a trailer. A first-ever factory-available trailer camera can be custom-placed on a trailer to improve visibility backing up.
Trailer towing customers benefit from a segment-first in-cab trailer tire pressure monitoring system, accessible from the comfort of the cab while stopped or on the highway. Blind Spot Information System with trailer tow is optimized for Super Duty to include the length of the trailer up to 33 feet long; BLIS uses radar sensors in the taillamps to monitor areas that may not be visible to the driver.
Payload dominance
Maximum payload of the 2017 Ford Super Duty F-350 is 7,630 pounds. F-250 Super Duty boasts a maximum payload of 4,200 pounds, and according to the company it can haul more than 600 pounds over its nearest competitor.
More power than ever
The Ford-designed, Ford-engineered, Ford-built second-generation 6.7-litre Power StrokeV8 turbo diesel that powers Super Duty now delivers a best-in-class combination of 440 hp and a staggering 925 lb.-ft. of torque. That power is standard for every Super Duty diesel pickup – from F-250 to F-450 – without requiring special tuning or unique hardware.
According to Ford, the standard 6.2-litre V8 now offers best-in-class torque among gasoline engines of 430 lb.-ft., with standard 385 hp.
Both diesel and gasoline engines are backed by the TorqShift six-speed SelectShift automatic transmission for reliable and efficient cross-country towing. The F-250 pickup with 6.2-litre V8 and all-new TorqShift-G six-speed automatic delivers improved fuel economy and capability for three-quarter-ton Super Duty customers.
