For the sixth consecutive year, the Texas Auto Writers Association
(TAWA) has recognized a Ford truck – the 2009 F-150 – as the one and
only “Truck of Texas.” The Ford Flex and Expedition King Range received
top honors as CUV and SUV of Texas, respectively. Ford swept all four
vehicle-centered top honors and its lineup of trucks was named Truck
Line of Texas.

Currently on sale, the new F-150 delivers a fuel economy gain that
is up to 12 percent better than the prior model year on F-150 models
equipped with the high-volume three-valve, 5.4-liter V-8 engine. In
addition, the F-150 features a towing capacity of 11,300 pounds and
hauling capacity of 3,030 pounds.

Other Ford Motor Company vehicles winning top honors in their categories at the TAWA Rodeo include:

• Best Luxury Pickup: 2009 Ford F-150 King Ranch
• Best Full-Size CUV: 2009 Ford Flex
• Best Mid-Size CUV: 2009 Mazda CX9
• Best Luxury CUV: 2009 Lincoln MKX
• Best Mid-Size SUV: 2009 Ford Explorer
• Best Heavy Duty Pickup: 2009 Ford F-350 Super Duty Cabela’s Edition

Quotes

“This is high praise, especially the coveted ‘Truck of Texas’ top
prize. Texas Auto Writers are the toughest truck critics because they
know firsthand and truly appreciate how core truck customers really use
their pickups. We’re honored that TAWA recognizes that the new F-150
offers consumers class-leading capability, unsurpassed fuel economy and
durability that shows how closely we’ve been listening to our customers
for the 31 years Ford trucks have been America’s favorite.”

-Mark Fields, Ford’s President of the Americas

“We’re honored that TAWA recognizes that the new F-150 offers
consumers class-leading capability, unsurpassed fuel economy and
durability that shows how closely we’ve been listening to our customers
for the 31 years Ford trucks have been America’s favorite. ‘Truck of
Texas’ is really the most important award of its type in the industry.
We love trucks down here, and we really use these vehicles everyday.
And since we spend so much time in our vehicles, for us it’s not just
about how the horse feels being towed, but how your butt feels sitting
in the truck, too.”

-Harold Gunn, President of TAWA

http://ford.digitalsnippets.com/trucks/#new-ford-f-150-earns-%E2%80%98top-safety-pick%E2%80%99

When they say “Built Ford Tough” they aren’t kidding.

The new 2009 Ford F-150 is the latest Ford vehicle to earn the
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s “Top Safety Pick” award. With
the award, Ford Motor Company, including Volvo, adds to its leading
number of 16 IIHS “Top Safety Pick” ratings, further separating itself
from Honda’s second place tally of 13. IIHS awarded the F-150 its
highest rating for front and side impact tests and in evaluations of
seats and head restraints.

Ford engineered the new F-150 to also earn top ratings in the U.S.
government’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
tests to be conducted later this year. Ford has more IIHS Top Safety
Picks and government five-star safety-rated vehicles than any other
automaker.

The new F-150 also has been recognized as the one and only “Truck of
Texas” by the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) – the sixth
consecutive year a Ford truck has won top honors – as well as
PickupTrucks.com’s Best Overall Half-Ton Pickup.

The Toughest Truck

The F-150’s legendary toughness contributes not only to its
durability and capability but its safety as well. The 2009 F-150 has an
all-new hydroformed steel body structure – including industry-first use
of tubular ultra-high-strength lighter weight steel that offers top
performance and contributes to the F-150’s unsurpassed fuel economy in
the full-size pickup truck segment.

Also new in the F-150 this year is Ford’s standard Safety Canopy®
side-curtain air bag rollover protection system, which helps protect
front and rear outboard passengers in both rollovers and side-impact
crashes. It is designed to stay inflated for several seconds, as
rollover crashes often last longer than side-impact crashes. Added to
this is a Ford-first – the new “K-bag,” a front seat dual-chamber side
air bag named for its unique shape, which is designed to help protect
the rib cage from excessive crash forces during a side impact.

Another standard safety enhancement is a state-of-the-art passenger
seat sensor that specifies the timing and type of air-bag deployment
based on the weight of the occupant. Additional sensors in the vehicle
– monitoring roll stability control and rollover air bag deployment –
have been integrated into one unit, increasing the sensitivity and
accuracy of the system.

Stability and Towing Control

The F-150’s standard offering of Ford’s exclusive AdvanceTrac® with
RSC® (Roll Stability Control) also met a newer requirement that
vehicles must offer electronic stability control to earn IIHS’s top
rating. The system, using a gyroscopic sensor, detects and measures
over-steer, roll and yaw.

Working in conjunction with AdvanceTrac is Trailer Sway Control,
which determines from the yaw motion of the truck if the trailer is
swaying and takes measures to help bring it under control. Additional
towing-related driver-aid features include Integrated Trailer Brake
Controller, Tow Haul Mode and Reverse Camera System.

Two local men were seriously injured when their pickup truck
left the road and hit a tree near Cotton Plant on State Highway 38
early Monday morning.

Thurston Poole, 33, of Des Arc, and Billy Ray Wallis, 38 of
Little Rock, are listed in serious condition at Baptist Medical Center.
The accident occurred as the two men were returning to Des Arc after a
frog-gigging trip.

On an overcast Sunday night, Poole's pickup truck headlights
malfunctioned. The two men concluded that the headlight fuse on the
older-model truck had burned out. As a replacement was not available,
Wallis noticed that the .22 caliber bullet from his pistol fit
perfectly into the fuse box next to the steering column. Upon inserting
the bullet, the headlights again began to operate, and the two men
proceeded on eastbound toward the White River Bridge.

After traveling approximately 20 miles and just before crossing
the river, the bullet apparently overheated, discharged and struck
Poole in the right testicle. The vehicle swerved sharply to the right,
exiting the pavement and striking the tree. Poole suffered only minor
cuts and abrasions from the accident, but will require surgery to
repair the other wound. Wallis sustained a broken clavicle and was
treated and released.

"Thank God we weren't on that bridge when Thurston shot his nuts off or we might have been dead," said Wallis.

"I've been a trooper for 10 years in this part of the world,"
said Deputy Snyder, "but this is a first for me. I can't believe that
those two would admit how the accident happened."

Upon being notified of the wreck, Lavinia, Poole's wife, asked
how many frogs the boys had caught, "and did anyone think to get them
from the truck."

http://www.evula.com/jokes/rednecks/news.html

By Brad Gill



Posted Tuesday November 25 2008, 4:30 PM

Posted on GON.com

Ford says it performed extensive testing on the new powerplant, including subjecting fifty prototype engines to more than a dozen of the toughest engine tests at Ford’s dynamometer lab.

The SVT division used a 62-mile durability loop in the desert of Borrego Springs, California, to replicate the conditions of the Baja 1000 race, to further test the performance of both available engines.

http://www.leftlanenews.com/ford-f-150-raptor.html

While much of the focus will be on the new 6.2-liter mill, the 5.4-liter Triton also features a number of new technologies. A new open-valve fuel injection strategy improves horsepower during towing and higher rpm operations, while delivering lower emissions and better fuel economy.

Of course, engines are only part of the equation. A great deal of R&D went into the truck’s modified chassis and suspension. With 13.4 inches of usable travel in the rear suspension and 11.2 in the front, the Raptor promises to be a capable off-roader.

Raptor’s wider track and softer suspension mean it will glide over obstacles with relative ease. The suspension’s dampers were designed by Fox Racing Shox, giving the Raptor the only internal bypass shocks on a street truck. The position sensitive dampening internal bypass feature allows the shock to become significantly stiffer as it travels, preventing the truck from bottoming out.

The last component of the Raptor’s connection to the ground comes in the form of BF Goodrich All-Terrain TA/KO 315/70-17 tires. Mounted on 17-inch wheels, these 35-inch tires are designed to work on- and off-road.

High-tech features include: Trailer Sway Control, an Integrated Trailer Brake Controller, an Electronic Locking Differential, Hill Descent Control, an Off-Road Mode, and an Auxiliary Switch Board to facilitate aftermarket add-ons.

The F-150 SVT Raptor will be built along side the new F-150 at Ford’s Dearborn Truck Plant at the Rouge Center in Dearborn, Michigan.