Back when it was introduced in 2015, Ford claimed that their all-new Super Duty pickup was the “toughest, smartest, most capable Super Duty ever.” And they’re at it again. This time, for 2018, the F-Series Super Duty is about to get a dramatic overhaul that will see it improve in almost every conceivable way. In fact, F-Series engineers are claiming that the 2018 model will be the toughest and most powerful heavy-duty pickup in history.
The 2018 Super Duty line’s 6.7-litre Power Stroke diesel V8 wrenches the torque crown away from the Ram Heavy Duty, which held it for just a year. A very similar scenario played out in the months before that particular upset. Incredibly, at the current pace, this crazy torque war is pushing the numbers higher and higher, it likely won’t be long before enthusiasts will be handing over their money for a work truck that has over a thousand lb-ft of torque!
The 6.7-litre Power Stroke V8 is largely the same as last years’ model, but the upgraded engine now produces 450 horsepower and a rock-crushing 935 lb-ft of torque, giving it once again best-in-class stats for power and torque. The upgrades represent an additional 10 hp and 10 lb-ft improvement over the 2017 model which allows it to squeak ahead of the RAM by only… 5 horsepower. That’s how tough the competition is these days: 5 horsepower wins the war.
Comparing it directly to its fiercest competitors, the 2018 Ford Super Duty now has five more HP than the Chevrolet Silverado HD’s 6.6-litre Duramax diesel and bests the Dodge Ram’s 6.7-litre Cummins diesel by five foot-pounds of torque. To help the 2018 Super Duty’s 6.7-litre Power Stroke engine deliver more power, the cylinder heads were redesigned to increase their strength when under extreme loads.
The fuel and turbo boost calibrations were also optimized to take advantage of the increased cylinder head capacity and enables the increase in horsepower and torque. As a result, Ford says the 2018 Super Duty delivers best-in-class towing with a gooseneck trailer at 34,000 pounds.
It also has best-in-class towing with a conventional hitch at 21,000 pounds, and best-in-class payload capacity at 7,360 pounds. If you hadn’t gathered, Ford is keen to emphasize that the 2018 Ford F-Series Super Duty is the best in its class at just about everything. Bear in mind though that the gooseneck towing capacity relates to the new-for-2018 F-450 4x2m, which is primarily designed for hauling big trailers on the road.
With a conventional hitch, Ford now beats Ram’s towing capacity by 1,000 lbs.
“Super Duty customers expect the best, and for 2018 we’re giving our customers even more power and torque from our 6.7-litre Power Stroke diesel – delivering the most horsepower and torque available among all heavy-duty pickups,” said Todd Eckert, Ford truck group marketing manager.
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