It’s being reported that production of the all-new 2015 Ford F-150 is going to be delayed by at least three months due to problems with the truck’s aluminum body panels.
It’s being reported that production of the all-new 2015 Ford F-150 is going to be delayed by at least three months due to problems with the truck’s aluminum body panels. Ford has decided to employ new aluminum body panels on the next-gen F-150 in an effort to significantly drop the truck’s weight, but it looks like some early quality issues have caused some delays.
According to The Truth About Cars, the aluminum supplied by Alcoa and other Tier 2 suppliers did not meet internal forming requirements for the “tooling tryout” phase of pre-production. A source told TTAC that the main issue with the current aluminum is its inability to be properly formed. If the aluminum’s ability to return to its normal shape after hitting it with a die is off, then there will be major problems. The switch to aluminum represents a bold move, but the stakes are obviously very high with the F-150, since it accounts for most of Ford’s global profits.
Right now it looks like the next-gen F-150 will be arrive 6 to 10 weeks later than originally planned, with wide availability not happening until late 2014.
Source: Ford via The Truth About Cars
