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2014 Ford F-150 Becomes More Eco-Friendly with Rice Hull-Reinforced Plastic

If there's one vehicle that's really built the "Built Ford Tough" way, that would have to be the Ford F-150 pickup truck. It's America's best-selling truck and it's beating the heck out of GM's Chevrolet for decades now.
2014 Ford F-150 1 photo
Photo: Ford
But Ford is also concerned about fuel economy and CO2 emissions, and word has it the next-generation F-150 will arrive with an aluminum body that will revolutionize the truck industry. Meanwhile, the automaker has found yet another way to make its pickup more eco-friendly and revealed that the 2014 F-150 will use rice hull-reinforced plastic in an electrical harness.

According to Ford, "the rice hulls are sourced from farms in Arkansas and will replace a talc-based reinforcement in a polypropylene composite". The new sustainable material adds to a list that already contains six eco-friendly materials, such as recycled cotton, soybeans, recycled carpet, recycled tires, recycled plastic soda pop and water bottles and recycled post-industrial plastics.

“The 2014 F-Series exemplifies our continued efforts to use recycled content in our vehicles,” said John Viera, Ford global director of sustainability and vehicle environmental matters. “We can have greater impact in this case because of the size and sales volume of this product.”

For more details on rice hull-reinforced plastic check out the company press release below.
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 Download: BUILT FORD GREEN: SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS MAKE AMERICA’S BEST-SELLING TRUCK ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY AND TOUGH (PDF)

About the author: Ciprian Florea
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Ask Ciprian about cars and he'll reveal an obsession with classics and an annoyance with modern design cues. Read his articles and you'll understand why his ideal SUV is the 1969 Chevrolet K5 Blazer.
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