We're at the 2017 Los Angeles Auto Show, which opens to the public Friday. While looking for interesting pickup truck news to share with you, we got our first look at the frame extenders Ford added across the F-150 lineup as a safety improvement.
In 2015, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety started after it was discovered that F-150s had different levels of front-crash reinforcements for different cabs. IIHS' long-standing practice had been to test the high-volume crew cab and bestow its rating for that cab across the lineup. When IIHS tested regular- and extended-cab models, the results did not measure up to the rating the crew cab received in the small front overlap test.
Ford has since improved the frame stubs on all F-150 models, and the result has been improved safety ratings in front and offset crash-testing for . We just got an unobstructed view of the frame extenders around each front wheel, thanks to Ford's exposed chassis display in L.A. They look substantial, supported and connected to the front frame rails with high-strength steel.
Cars.com photos by Mark Williams
