Ford Australia begins F-150 deliveries

FORD Australia has kicked off customer deliveries of its newly introduced right-hand drive F-150 pick-up truck this week, marking the milestone with a tour of the 21,000 square-metre RMA Automotive conversion centre for “select owners”.

The future F-150 owners met Ford Australia’s product development engineers and RMA Automotive leadership for an in-depth tour of the facility, which can re-manufacturer up to 20 of the vehicles each day using an assembly line of 65 individual workstations.

According to Ford Australia, the process takes around 22 working hours to complete over a three-day period.

During the facility tour, customers also had the experience to test drive a completed F-150, which is now available to order from $106,950 plus on-road costs.

Australian-delivered Ford F-150 XLT and Lariat variants are produced in Detroit, Michigan before being shipped Down Under for conversion to right-hand drive.

The “uncompromising and detailed re-manufacturing process” requires some 500 new parts to complete, as well as the recalibration of steering, climate control, lighting systems, instrumentation, and some software to ensure the vehicles suit Australian requirements.

Ford Australia says it will “ramp up” deliveries of the F-150 throughout November, the full-size pick-up already attracting a strong level of interest among Aussie buyers for whom the model mix currently favours short-wheelbase Lariat variants.

“We have re-manufactured over 450 F-150s to date, with the current mix sitting around 80 per cent towards Lariat, however XLT demand is growing,” Ford Australia product communications manager Ben Nightingale told GoAuto.

“Currently, short-wheelbase models are accounting for approximately 60 per cent of customer orders.”

The Ford F-150 is available locally in short-wheelbase (3683mm) and long-wheelbase (3978mm) configurations, both with a Crew Cab body and all-wheel drive. The tray length for the duo is listed at 1676mm and 1981mm respectively. Each is backed by a five-year/unlimited-kilometre manufacturer warranty.

All F-150 grades are powered by Ford’s 298kW/678Nm 3.5-litre EcoBoost twin-turbocharged V6 petrol engine coupled to a 10-speed automatic transmission as standard. Braked towing capacity is rated at 4500kg.

For the F-150 XLT, standard equipment includes 20-inch alloy wheels, chrome bumpers, black running boards, tailgate step and Tough Bed spray-in tub-liner.

The Lariat is differentiated by a premium mesh-style grille with chrome frame, chrome appearance package including wing mirror caps, door handles, belt mouldings, tow hooks and running boards, a powered twin-panel moonroof, and LED head-, fog- and tail-lights.

XLT variants are available in five paint colours including Oxford White (NCO), Agate Black, Iconic Silver, Antimatter Blue and Carbonised Grey, while the Lariat adds Rapid Red to the palette.

Ford Australia recently announced capped service pricing for the F-150 range, which undercuts most of its major competitors. The four-year/60,000km program sees scheduled 12-month/15,000km maintenance visits priced at $429 each – just $50 per visit dearer than the smaller Ranger utility range.

It is also considerably cheaper than that for Toyota’s 70 Series LandCruiser range, which is pegged at $525 (for 60 months or 100,000km) but must be carried out every six months or 10,000km.

The difference in cost of ownership also gives the F-150 a considerable advantage over other locally converted American pick-ups, including the Ram 1500. That model costs an average of $652.56 annually to maintain over a three-year period, with larger 2500 and 3500 models jumping to $970.16 per annum.

Service pricing for the Chevrolet Silverado range is closer to that of Ford’s F-150, costing an average of $551.67 annually in standard form, or $720.50 each year for HD series models.