2011 ford f-100
The 2011 Ford F-100 will be smaller than Ford's full-size F-150, which it's based on. The 2009 F-150 is shown here. See pictures of the 2010 Ford F-150.

Consumer Guide’s Impressions of the 2011 Ford F-100

Update 05.05.2011

We haven't uncovered any news lately on the 2011 Ford F-100. Please check back for further updates as they become available. Click here for more information on new Ford cars, trucks, and SUVs.

When it comes to trucks, small is looking like the new big. That’s why Ford is said to be planning its first-ever midsize pickup. With smaller size and less weight promising better fuel economy, the rumored F-100 looks like a smart move for the company and consumers.

What We Know About the 2011 Ford F-100

Rumors are flying about a first-ever midsize Ford pickup reviving the F-100 name from a quarter-century ago. Word is that Ford is readying this “9/10ths scale” version of the next-generation F-150 for a late-2010 release, about a year ahead of the larger truck’s scheduled 2012-model redesign. The 2005-vintage F-series soldiers on until then, albeit with a heavy 2009-model makeover.

The 2011 Ford F-100 is an evident hedge against further sales declines for the cash-cow F-150. It’s also said to be a temporary fill-in for the long-neglected Ranger compact pickup, which reportedly was supposed to depart in 2009. But the latest reports say today's Ranger may hang on until 2011, when a new design would debut that would be Ranger's first clean-sheet redo in nearly 30 years. Will that new Ranger be the F-100, or are there two smaller Ford trucks in the cards? Hard to say for sure at this point. In addition, Ford is tipped to be working up a new, F-100-based Bronco SUV to answer the hot-selling four-door Jeep Wrangler and to replace the Explorer Sport Trac that’s expected to phase out during 2010.

Why all this activity? Because soaring gas prices and a sour economy are devastating the big-truck sales that have loomed so large for so long on Detroit balance sheets. This situation is likely to continue for at least the near-term. And some analysts think rising fuel prices and other negatives will eventually shrink the big-pickup market for good, as “casual” buyers desert the segment for thriftier daily transport. How low would sales go? Obviously, no one can say right now. But F-150 sales have been heading south, plunging 15.5 percent in the first four months of 2008 versus the ‘07 period. Other large pickups are hurting, too. In addition, Ford and other brands are hustling to revise product plans in light of the government’s mandated rise in light-truck fuel economy from today’s 20.5 mpg to 28.6 by 2015. With all this, the F-100 looks not only plausible but an ASAP necessity.

Sources say the 2011 Ford F-100 will borrow a basic body-on-frame platform from the 2012 F-150, much as Nissan trims its full-size Titan architecture for the midsize Frontier. This approach saves money in upfront development and by allowing two ostensibly different trucks to be built in the same plant and with much of the same tooling.

The 2011 Ford F-100 is said to cast about the same-size shadow as 1997-2003 F-150s. That would make it slightly larger than the rival Frontier, Dodge Dakota, and Toyota’s top-selling Tacoma, but still visibly smaller than the next-gen 150. Cab styles should comprise Ford’s usual trio of regular, extended SuperCab and full-back-seat SuperCrew, each with rear doors of suitable size. Styling, like the rest of the package, will be “F-150 Lite,” perhaps with a sportier air in line with the F-100’s lower price points and younger target audience.


Updated by Don Sikora II 05.05.2011

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