Ford Launches 2008 Super Duty Trucks at Texas State Fair

At this very moment, Paris is the talk of the car world. The Mondial de LAutomobile in Frances largest city is currently the home of dozens upon dozens of introductions, including new vehicles and concepts. But for the people of Texas (other than those in Paris, Texas), Paris is a non-issue when compared to their annual Texas State Fair, home to one of the biggest truck exhibitions on the face of the planet.

Ford has been launching vehicles at the Texas State Fair for years; last year, Ford launched the new Explorer Sport Trac and Lincoln Mark LT, while this year theyve selected this location to introduce the brand new 2008 Super Duty pickup truck range.

For Ford, the F-Series pickup truck is the most important vehicle the brand has ever made, having built over 31.5 million of them since the letter designation was launched, and has been Americas best-selling truck for 29 years standing. Dearborn has had nothing but success with the latest generation of F-150 and F-250, and therefore to continue this trend Ford has brought Americas favorite work machine up to date with the all-new F-350, F-450 and F-550 Super Duty trucks.

"The F-Series is an essential part of our core business, and we will do whatever it takes to stay number one in full-size trucks," said Mark Fields, Fords president of the Americas. "Every aspect of the new line of Super Duty trucks, including capability enhancements, design changes and feature innovations is uniquely designed after spending a great deal of time talking with - and listening to - our customers."

As with its standard pickup truck range, Ford will be offering the new Super Duty trucks in a variety of different forms, with Regular, SuperCab and Crew Cab bodies, and two different beds of 6 feet or 8 feet in length, not to mention an open-back version for commercial duty. A choice of single rear wheel or dual rear wheels, as well as two- or four-wheel drive is also available. For the first time, the F-450 will be offered in both pickup truck as well as a chassis cab form, while the F-550 will only be offered as a chassis cab.

With a take rate of nearly three in four, diesel power is important to the Super Duty truck range, which is why Ford put serious money into upgrading their diesel engine. An all-new 6.4-liter Power Stroke diesel will be available, which Ford claims is the most advanced and most refined diesel to be offered in the North American pickup truck segment. The engine features Clean Diesel Technology and two variable geometry turbochargers for instantaneous response. Output is rated at 350 horsepower and 650 lb-ft of torque. The new diesel meets strict new federal standards, and will require low sulphur diesel.

But the bottom line is what the truck is capable of. Ford says that the new Super Duty can tow in excess of 24,000 lbs, and has a payload of more than 6,000 lbs - enough to make it an industry leader.