Ford is working towards improving the fuel economy, and as an attempt towards achieving this; Ford will be releasing a completely different truck body for its F-150 model made predominantly of aluminium. This decision of Ford is a consequence of Obama administration’s fuel economy regulations that required all U.S. vehicles to average 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. Ford will turn to the lightweight material, which will curb weight by a whopping 700 pounds. That is roughly a 15% reduction for the F-150, which is the company’s most popular pickup in the U.S., preferred by farmers and suburbanites alike. If achieved this weight could result in a major 25-percent boost in fuel economy.

It will also open doors for further improvements like the use of smaller engines. Apart from aluminium makeover the new F-150 will also get a more muscular look, pointed one of the Ford designer. In the year 2011, Obama administration pushed through new fuel-economy regulations that need the U.S. vehicle fleet to average 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. The new truck is crafted to be capable of hitting the increasing fuel economy standards through 2020, it is planned to come out in 2014. Ford’s one of the most popular trucks, the 2012 F-150 four-wheel drive with the 3.5-liter V6 engine, now gets 17 miles per gallon combined city and highway mileage.

While there could be manufacturing obstacles in switching over to aluminum, possibly more difficult will be determining its impact on sales. F-150, being industries most sort after vehicles it is hard to guess how the diehard truck buyers might react to a move away from steel, particularly if it sends costs upwards. Ford isn’t giving details on the next F-150, including how much aluminum will be used. “Aluminum is certainly a big opportunity for weight reduction,” on the F-150, Raj Nair, the global chief of product development, said in an interview earlier this year. “We have been public that weight reduction is going to be a big part of our strategy.”

via TheWallStreetJournal