Ford Pickup Truck's History

Interesting article about the history of trucks and how they've changed since the 60's. I do miss the small trucks of the 90's.



I thought this was a good infographic.

~egon

Thanks for sharing.

I thought the most interesting comparison infographic was the profile shot of the 1970's F-150 next to the newer F-150 and the difference in height. New trucks sit entirely too high to be useful. Which ties into the graph about the decline in "functional" being important to buyers.

But modern trucks are superior in just about every way to their predecessors (except they sit too high and are too expensive)

This is why I went back and bought my first generation Tundra. Same size as modern Tacoma, Colorado or Ranger (huge!) but with less plastic, a real bed, and a powerful 4.7l V8. Maybe we'll get reasonable normal/mid-size trucks again as these newer "boosted" engines gain traction in the market.

Depends on how and where you use the truck. In the Rockies I appreciate a higher ground clearance even if it raises the bed level

Yep, I'm pretty sure the new Broncos, built on ranger chassis, weigh almost as much as my '01 SuperCrew I had. It blows my mind that mid size trucks are almost full size 20 years ago.

Some things that I love having now in my '15 supercrew are a much wider cab, a modern engine that can tow much more than the modular V8s of 20 years ago, 4WD auto for rainy days, a 6.5' bed, and all of the creature comforts. Just don't buy new. Because of all this my current truck is much more "functional" than either of the F150s I have owned in the past.

It has more interior room for my family of 3 growing boys. It has a 6.5' bed for more hauling capacity. It has a more efficient engine 18.5 avg vs 13 avg MPG in the 3.5 vs 5.4. The engine has much more HP and torque to pull our camper. 4WD Auto is a great safety feature when the roads are wet and I don't have to worry about front end components like I did with my '05 if I had to drive around in 4H.

As for ground clearance, that is a personal preference. I don't lose any functionality with a higher bed. The actual cubic ft of capacity is greater than 10 years ago, and I use my tailgate step and side steps to get around the height issue from the external height of the bed. Plus I'm slightly lifted with 33" tires vs stock with 32" tires.

WildcatAg said:

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Thanks for sharing.

I thought the most interesting comparison infographic was the profile shot of the 1970's F-150 next to the newer F-150 and the difference in height. New trucks sit entirely too high to be useful. Which ties into the graph about the decline in "functional" being important to buyers.

But modern trucks are superior in just about every way to their predecessors (except they sit too high and are too expensive)

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Bring back 15/16 inch wheels. Trucks sit up way too high cuz errebody rollin on 20s. Flashy wheels are 100% responsible for todays bed heights.

Sarcasm or nah?

Nah, using the same size brake as trucks that had half the power will make for sporty drives.

JSKolache said:

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Bring back 15/16 inch wheels. Trucks sit up way too high cuz errebody rollin on 20s. Flashy wheels are 100% responsible for todays bed heights.

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My F150 has 17" wheels.