Did a lot of work for International Harvester, John Deere, and Cat also over the years. All I can say is I have seen really good ideas and some amazingly dumb ones from all of them, Toyota & Honda are also included in the dumb ones for those wondering, nobody is exempt.
New Ford F150
- Thread starter daugen
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fordmantpw
Veteran Member
Well, Ford isn't even on the lake yet...the truck has only been announced, production doesn't start for a couple months, and now GM decides to follow. But, you are correct, GM took the safe way out and chose not to innovate. That's fine, to each their own, but it will put GM 2-3 years behind in that aspect. One note, I would bet Ford got a better price for their Aluminum than GM did, locking up the deal before demand went up.
Just an FYI, as far as auto/truck design, stuff is decided years before it is "announced" to the public. I am working on things for the 2016 model year and beyond you have not seen or heard anything about.
Gm had composite beds years ago that would take a heck of a beating but the demand wasn't there at that time as well as the Denali truck rear wheel steer which if I remember right possibly only sold 8,000 units.
At least they didn't copy the $1500 spark plug change and the 6.0 mess. They all have their share of problems, none are perfect. To say one or the other announced something just because the other did like it was just thought up yesterday is ludicrous. I knew about aluminum trucks in the works a looooong time ago, and not just Ford or GM's.
Gm had composite beds years ago that would take a heck of a beating but the demand wasn't there at that time as well as the Denali truck rear wheel steer which if I remember right possibly only sold 8,000 units.
At least they didn't copy the $1500 spark plug change and the 6.0 mess. They all have their share of problems, none are perfect. To say one or the other announced something just because the other did like it was just thought up yesterday is ludicrous. I knew about aluminum trucks in the works a looooong time ago, and not just Ford or GM's.
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fordmantpw
Veteran Member
You know, I wish the rear-wheel steer would have caught on better than it did. That was a great concept, I think it was just too expensive at the time (wasn't it like $3k or something?). Plus it required special wider rear fenders due to the wider axle.
MikePA
Super Moderator
You'd think this would be common sense.
jejeosborne
Veteran Member
I had a 1988 turbo charged Mazda 626 with 4WS. That was a fun car to drive. It pulled more lateral G's in a turn than the corvette that year. Problem was it ate tires. Might have been because I drifted the same Cloverleaf twice a day
. That is still my all time favorite car I have ever owned. My then pregnant wife drove it over a curb and took out the 4WS system and even the dealer couldn't figure out how to fix it. The tires would turn and shortness the turning radius under 25 MPH and do the opposite above that. This was years before the silverado made it an option.
DeereMann
Platinum Member
I drove Chevy trucks in the 2000's. When they went bankrupt, they didn't keep up with Ford or Chrysler, so my next truck was a Ram. Very pleased with it after 2 yrs / 30k miles.
The 2014 Chevy does not impress. Seems like an overpriced, catchup, 'me-too' effort? :confused3:
The 2014 Chevy does not impress. Seems like an overpriced, catchup, 'me-too' effort? :confused3:
fordmantpw
Veteran Member
I would agree with that. I think the '14 Silverado/Sierra was more aimed at keeping loyal GM buyers as opposed to bringing more buyers from other makes into the store. Ram and Ford OTOH are trying to reach out to as many buyers of all brands as possible. If I were in the market for a new truck today, it would be between Ram and Ford.
GM full size truck sales are solid. Both Ft. Wayne assembly and Flint assembly are running 3 shifts around the clock to keep up with demand. I'm glad they stick w pushrod V-8's. Tried and true. Still boasting good MPG's. That's not a "copy". I'm also happy GM is introducing a fresh new mid-size truck to meet the EPA's high demand for gross MPG's for the company instead of putting all their eggs in the full-size truck like Ford is doing to meet demands. Both are taking gambles, but the Tacoma needs some competition. It's an open U.S. market. GM is not worried w full-size truck sales. The numbers speak for themselves. The new 14 Silverado/Sierra body style came out BEFORE Ford changed the F-150 BTW.
fordmantpw
Veteran Member
This chart tells otherwise: Best-Selling Pickup Trucks: January 2014 - PickupTrucks.com News
It's not good when you have the newest truck on the block, but have the biggest decline of the big 3. Ram is the only one to gain in sales from Jan 13 to Jan 14.
