Autoweak Chooses Ford F- Series as Best

DEARBORN, Mich , Nov. 6, 2006 – The Ford F-Series has again been crowned the winner of the Best Truck award in the annual AutoWeek Readers’ Choice Awards. The selections are profiled in the November 6 issue of the automotive enthusiast weekly magazine.

The 2006 honor marked the ninth time the Ford F-Series lineup claimed the award, including eight consecutive years. An online poll asked readers to name their favorites during a six-week period. This is the 16 th year AutoWeek editors have turned to readers to share their likes and dislikes.

“Automobiles are incredible passion points for our readers,” said Dutch Mandel, associate publisher of AutoWeek. “Those who read the magazine and visit AutoWeek.com are the neighbors, friends and co-workers sought for their opinions when it comes time to buy a vehicle. The AutoWeek Readers’ Choice Award is a barometer of America’s market favorites.”

The awards will be presented to automakers at the AutoWeek Design Forum January 10, 2007, held in conjunction with the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan.

The F-Series, the most awarded truck in automotive history, has claimed more than 45 awards since 2003 – the year the new F-150 launched, followed by the new Super Duty in 2004 – from a variety of news media and external organizations. The growing Ford truck trophy mantle has helped drive F-Series sales leadership for 29 consecutive years, including an impressive 133,000-truck lead in 2006 through October.

“Ford trucks have defined the pickup segment for nearly 60 years as evidenced by numerous awards and decades of sales leadership,” said John Felice, Ford general marketing manager. “The AutoWeek Readers Choice Best Truck award stands out as shining example of this leadership because some of the most discerning enthusiasts read the magazine and voted for Ford trucks.”

Built Ford Tough: A Legacy of Leadership

As the most successful vehicle in the history of automobiles, the Ford F-Series is in a league of its own at the top of the automotive game. It’s been the best-selling truck in America for 29 consecutive years and the best-selling vehicle for 23 years in a row. In 2006, it’s on track to retain truck leadership for a 30 th year.

Since its debut in 1948, Ford Motor Company has sold more than 32 million F-Series trucks around the world. Ford sells one F-Series truck every 21 seconds in the U.S. This legacy is founded on customer loyalty and belief in the “Built Ford Tough” promise, which guides the Ford truck team’s brutal engineering development regiment. As a result, Ford boasts more trucks on the road with more than 250,000 miles than any other automaker.

The new 2008 F-Series Super Duty, the next in the line of successful Ford trucks, will hit showrooms in early 2007 boasting an all-new 6.4-liter clean diesel engine that helps deliver more than 24,000 pounds of towing capacity – more than 6,000 pounds than the nearest competitor. The new Super Duty also features “tough luxury” interior design elements from the ground-breaking F-150, matching impressive improvements in quietness and refinement that have never been offered in the segment.

The new Super Duty also features an industry-first TailGate Step that extends from the top of the tailgate when lowered to split the difference between the bottom of the bed and the ground to help customers load items into the bed more easily. Catering to the 90 percent of Super Duty customers who tow, the industry-exclusive power-fold and power-telescoping side mirrors help drivers improve their view around trailers.

The 2007 Ford F-150 also features impressive improvements, including the introduction of the new FX2 Sport custom street truck and Harley-Davidson™ SuperCrew specialty models. The new F-150 boasts more capability with a 600-pound increase in maximum towing capacity to a segment-best 10,500 pounds. The truck’s best-in-class maximum payload is 3,050 pounds. The 2007 F-150 also is offered at a better value, with suggested retail prices up to $1,400 lower than the 2006 model, and improved powertrain warranty coverage for five years or 60,000 miles.