Shortage of parts has lead to the delay of shipment of the 2011 Ford F-150 pickups. This shortage has affected a small number of trucks and is said to be taken care of soon, revealed a Ford spokesperson, Anne Marie Gattari. She, however, did not reveal the part/number of trucks that are being held back.

“A certain population of trucks is being held due to limited part availability. We’re awaiting that part so we can ship this small population of trucks.” said Gattari

The 2011 Ford F-150, comes equipped with more fuel-efficient engines that have reportedly given a boost to the F-150′s sale numbers. According to Autodata Corp., Ford has successfully sold 473,461 F-series trucks through November which is increase of about 30 percent compared to the same period last year.  A 3.7-liter V6 engine was included in the 2011 Ford F-150 after users complained about its fuel economy.

“Any vehicle that is hot is important to Ford, and it’s doubly bad in the case of the F-150 because it’s such a volume product,” said Jim Hall, principal at automotive researcher 2953 Analytics in Birmingham, Michigan. “It’s a negative for Ford because of the lost revenue and the lost volume. It’s one of the most profitable vehicles in their range.”

Gattari further said that the 2011 Ford F-150 pickups stockpiled in parking lots near the Detroit area are expected to be shipped as new models. The F-series pickups tout to be the top-selling trucks in the US for the last 33 years.

via Automotive News