Depending on your point of view, an aluminum truck body is either :
A) A fuel-saving stroke of genius.
B) An invitation to higher repair costs.
Ford redesigned its ultra-popular F-150 with a lightweight aluminum body for 2015. It was a big risk (the F-150 was already the top-selling pickup in history), but a calculated one. Ford pointed to the move as a way to meet rising federally mandated fuel-economy standards.
Chevrolet is not impressed.
Chevrolet is making its case for why steel is still king of the truck market with a new campaign that swipes at the new F-150. In one of its newest commercials, Chevrolet drives home the superior strength of steel by forcing focus group members to choose between an aluminum or steel cage when a grizzly bear is let loose in the room (see the commercial above). You can check out a couple of the campaign’s other commercials below.
It’s a big risk for Chevrolet, which very likely will be using more aluminum on its own trucks in the future.
What are your thoughts on the greater use of aluminum for pickup trucks?
I used to be a fan of gm. But it seems like they don’t want to invest in new technology . They just sit back and let everyone get ahead. Then they make fun of the competition or try to convince everyone they have the better product. They worked with ford on the 10 speed trans, but ford is already using it in their trucks. Gm?. Also the base engine in the vette needs to be updated. The only thing helping the vette is their light weight. But everyone else is putting out more horse power. I got rid of my c6 gs because of all the road noise. On a road trip I had to shout at the passenger so they could hear me and I had to really slow down so on star could understand me. My buddy’s Camaro was a lot quieter
It’s interesting to know that opposing car brands actually have design differences when it comes to truck bodies. I personally think that aluminum is sleeker to look at, on top of being lighter. I probably should get a custom aluminum body for my truck in preparation for some luggage for a road trip with friends this coming summer.