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2015 Ford F-150 Blends Bold Styling with Smooth Aero

From the moment the 2015 Ford F-150 was unveiled earlier this year, the truck’s bold, blocky styling definitely made it one of the best-looking trucks for Ford since the F-1 pickup from the 1950s. Despite its squared-off appearance, though, Ford says that this F-150 is the most aerodynamic ever, and it just released some cool information to show it managed to pull this off.
2015 Ford F-150 1 photo
Photo: Ford
To achieve this goal, Ford has gone over almost every detail of the F-150’s design to ensure that air flow is optimal for fuel efficiency without sacrificing styling. This primarily starts at the front of the truck where the upright nose received numerous treatments in order to make for cleaner air flow. This includes features such as the rounded headlights and fenders, air ducts in the front bumper to allow air to pass into the wheel well and the windshield that was mounted flush with the body to remove excess trim pieces that cause drag.

Beyond the front end, Ford engineered the F-150 with the cargo bed sides that are slightly narrower than the cab of the truck, angled edges at the rear of the bed giving the air a cleaner break to reduce turbulence and an integrated spoiler at the top of the tailgate. Even the badges and door mirrors were fine tuned to give the F-150 its sleek aerodynamics.

The truck’s sharp, boxy shape gives it a tough appearance, but actually the key to the design is aerodynamic efficiency – getting the most out of the shape. We made F-150 look tough and capable, while also reducing wind resistance,” said Brad Richards, Ford F-150 exterior design manager. “We learned where we could push shape and design to reduce drag, and where to stop when we weren’t gaining anything.”

While we would never expect a truck to be shaped like a Toyota Prius, it is quite impressive to hear Ford tout the level aerodynamics on its all-new pickup truck. Ford has already taken momentous steps with the development of the new F-150 to maximize fuel economy such as the lowered curb weight and the advanced new powertrain options, and the attention to detail on the look and air flow of the truck’s styling were equally important.

Following the planned shutdown of the F-150 plants in Dearborn, MI and Kansas City, MO, production of the 2015 Ford F-150 is expected to commence in October.
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