Ford brings the bad-ass to the F-150

By Gary S. Vasilash

Without question, the Ford F-Series lineup of trucks has a sales streak that will never be bested: it has been the best-selling truck in the US for 49 years running. That was the year Debby Boone was crooning “You Light Up My Life” and the very-first Star Wars movie (Episode IV-A New Hope) hit the screen.

Yes, 49 years is a long time.

During this period there have been some 34-million+ F-Series truck sold.

Now it should be noted that it isn’t just the F-150, because there are also F-Series trucks with the Super Duty moniker.

But by and large, it is because of the massive success of the F-150 that Ford continues to wear the sales crown.

One of the reasons there is such broad acceptance is because there are versions of the truck designed and engineered and priced for a wide range of truck buyers.

There are the F-150 XL, STX, XLT, Lariat, Tremor, King Ranch, Platinum, and Raptor. There F-150s with a 2.7-liter V6, a 3.5-liter V6 hybrid, and a 5.0-liter V8.

One of the latest entries in the showroom is a variant of the STX, the F-150 Lobo.

As lead exterior designer Josh Blundo said of what the truck needed to be:

“Drop it.

“Give it V8 sound and performance. Make dual exhaust tips standard. Add aggressive styling.

“And give it a face that looks … sinister.”

And they checked the boxes.

The Lobo, based on the SuperCrew cab, is lowered in the back by two inches. There is a 10-piece ground-effects array that helps make the truck seem even lower.

And there are those 22-inch gloss black wheels that make it seem as though the truck is hugging the road more than, well, it is hugging the road.

The V8 does more than sound powerful. It produces 400 hp and 410 lb-ft of torque. It is mated to a 10-speed automatic.

The truck is a 4×4 with a 3.73 electronic locking axle ratio.

The “sinister” face is created by having a unique upper grilled that is bisected by a light bar. Below it there is a gloss black mesh lower grille.

From a functional perspective, there is a 5.5-foot box on the back. The Lobo can tow a max 7,900 pounds. The max payload capacity is 1,450 pounds.

It should be noted, however, that while the Maverick Lobo, which was introduced last year, not only is lowered and equipped with exterior modification, also has a twin-clutch rear drive unit that allows the truck (when in “Lobo drive mode”) to send 100% of the rear torque to a single year so as to provide performance capability when throwing it around, the F-150 Lobo doesn’t have that.

Still, with that 400-hp V8 propelling the F-150 Lobo, there is certain driver satisfaction delivered when getting on the throttle.

Ford understands trucks in a way that few do. And the Lobo package is designed to address the interests of those who operate in an urban environment and want their truck to reflect that terrain.