Dollars & Sense on Wheels: Ford redesigns super duty truck

Our weekly look at all things automotive. Today's review by G.Chambers Williams III of the San Antonio Express-News.

Super makeover?Last year, Ford’s best-selling F-150 light-duty pickup came to market with a complete redesign, bringing lots of new features and innovations.

Now it’s the Super Duty’s turn.

Ford will begin rolling the redesigned heavy-duty pickup line into dealerships early next year as a 2011 model, complete with a new 6.7-liter Power Stroke V-8 diesel-engine option. Prices start at about $26,000.

Also new is a 6.2-liter V-8 gasoline engine, which offers “significantly improved” horsepower and torque, as well as better fuel economy, Ford says.

The diesel comes with a new six-speed automatic transmission that Ford says is designed to deliver low-end pulling power more efficiently, a necessity when carrying or towing heavy loads.

And with the Power Stroke turbodiesel engine, with significantly increased horsepower and torque, the 2011 Super Duty will retain its best-in-class towing and payload capabilities, Ford says.

Just how capable will it be? Ford says that when equipped with the diesel, the largest Super Duty model — the F-450 — will maintain a gross-combined-weight rating of 33,000 pounds.

No horsepower and torque ratings have been announced yet for either engine.

The new diesel is also more fuel-efficient than the one it replaces, Ford says, but under EPA rules, fuel-economy ratings are not required to be provided for vehicles in this weight class.

The Super Duty also will offer more towing capability from inside the bed, in the so-called fifth-wheel configuration, with the first factory-installed gooseneck towing substructure mounted directly to the frame, the automaker says.

Ford also is adding its trailer sway-control system to the new Super Duty.

It will work automatically in conjunction with the trucks’ electronic-stability/roll-control system, which will be standard on all Super Duty models with the single-rear-wheel configuration.

Also available will be an integrated trailer-brake controller, which works in conjunction with the antilock braking system to prevent lockup of the trailer brakes in the event a quick stop is necessary.

The system also will apply the trailer’s electric brakes to help stabilize it if it begins swaying, Ford says.

Other features designed to help with towing and off-road driving include Hill Start Assist, which holds the brakes briefly when the accelerator is pushed to start the vehicle after stopping on a hill; Hill Descent Control, which helps maintain downhill speed automatically on steep grades; and an electronic-locking rear differential, designed to reduce wheel slipping on loose or slippery road surfaces.

Among other safety features are a standard tire-pressure monitoring system on all of the single-rear-wheel models, and optional front seat-mounted side air bags as well as roof-mounted side-curtain air bags for both rows of seats.

Other new features include the optional Ford Work Solutions cockpit, which includes a “flow-through console” with a 110-volt power outlet, along with new seats and lockable storage under the seat. These items are designed to make the Super Duty an “office on wheels,” Ford says.

“The 2011 Super Duty offers the widest array of solutions for the widest array of heavy-duty work-truck customers,” Chris Brewer, chief engineer for the Super Duty, said in announcing changes in the new model.

“The Super Duty lineup offers a variety of body styles and powertrains, from diesel and gasoline engines, each with a new six-speed transmission; to pickup trucks and chassis cabs, each with the towing and payload capabilities that define Super Duty,” he said.

Recent upgrades to pickup trucks of all brands have made their interiors quite carlike, and the new F-series Super Duty continues that trend. The cockpit can be outfitted almost as luxuriously as that of a premium sedan. An array of amenities is offered, ranging from power and leather seats to upscale navigation and audio systems.

The Super Duty also has a more refined ride for 2011, as well as improved steering and overall road handling, Ford says.

“A big part of the comfort in Super Duty trucks comes through controllability,” said Dan Gompper, the vehicle’s dynamics supervisor. “No matter if the truck is loaded or unloaded, full trailer or empty trailer, customers can be fully confident.”

Exterior changes include a new hood with its “inverted power dome,” as Ford calls it, along with a larger Ford oval on the grille.

Interior storage space has been increased about 60 percent.

Also new is an optional 4.2-inch LCD “Productivity Screen,” which displays information about the truck’s systems, fuel economy and towing capabilities.

The screen is controlled by a five-way button on the steering wheel.

Various cab and cargo-bed configurations are offered, as well as the dual-rear-wheel setup for heavier hauling and towing.