Ford is planning to announce a set of new engines and transmissions today for its 2011 F-150 pickups.
The engines and transmissions that will debut this fall should provide substantial horsepower, fuel economy
and towing gains
.
.
"We are expecting better gas mileage and better horsepower," said Mark Smith, president of Dick Smith Ford near Kansas City, Mo. "We are just starting to find out about the details."
Ford's F-Series includes nine F-150 models, plus six heavy-duty models called Super Duty.
Smith said the introduction of the new engines will likely boost sales -- even though sales of all F-Series pickups, including the redesigned 2010 Super Duty versions, are already up 20% in the Kansas City metro area through July. Nationally, F-Series sales are up 34.7% through July, according to Autodata.
The surge is due in large part to the introduction the redesigned 2010 Super Duty models introduced in April. Those trucks included a new, 6.7-liter V8 diesel engine with more horsepower and better fuel economy than the outgoing version.
"I really expect every new powertrain that Ford comes out with to have at the same time more horsepower and miles-per-gallon improvements," Smith said. "Those two things didn't used to go hand in hand."
On Tuesday, Ford announced that its Harley-Davidson F-150 pickup will come with a new 6.2-liter V8 engine , which Ford said is the most powerful engine for an F-150. Ford said the engine delivers 411 horsepower, 434 pound-feet of torque and 9,300 pounds of towing capacity.
Ford also said earlier this year that it will offer a 3.5-liter V6 turbocharged EcoBoost engine for the 2011 F-150.
Ford's six-cylinder EcoBoost engines debuted last year. By adding turbocharger and fuel-injection technology, Ford is able to increase the power and fuel efficiency of its new engines, Barb Samardzich, Ford's vice president of powertrain engineering, said last week. "That is satisfying that need for that higher torque that truck customers are looking for ... and the fuel economy solution that supports the societal need for making sure that we are improving fuel economy."
By 2013, Ford expects to be producing 1.5 million EcoBoost engines globally.
Contact BRENT SNAVELY: 313-222-6512 or bsnavely@freepress.com