The medium-duty commercial truck market is not huge, but to thousands of businesses that need heavy-hauling work trucks to make big payload deliveries many times a day, these workhorses are their No. 1 tool for getting the job done.
that Ford made big news because it was moving production of the F-650/750 from Mexico to Avon Lake, Ohio. Now that the assembly plant is in full production mode, it's selling more of the trucks than ever. As of August, Ford has sold just as many of the big trucks as it did during 2015. That's not too surprising given that Ford offers several upfitter options for businesses that need this type of truck.
Using a sales strategy similar to the one employed with the smaller Super Duty lineup, the F-650/750 is offered in three cab configurations, several wheelbase lengths and two engine options — a Triton V-10 gas engine and the Power Stroke V-8 turbo-diesel used in the F-Series lineup. It also offers the class-exclusive live-drive power takeoff provision in the transmission that allows the trucks to be used when stationary and mobile.
Although the segment will never be a huge volume player for Ford (around 15,000 units should be sold by year end), the Blue Oval is the only company to offer a full lineup of Class 1 to 7 vehicles to help just about any business. Now, if Ford would only offer these big brutes with a 10-foot pickup bed and an air-ride suspension. That would make for a tremendous tow rig.
During our summer drive of an F-650 dump truck with the V-10 gas engine, we found the combination quite comfortable given the 26,000-pound gross vehicle weight rating.
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