Is Ford planning all-wheel steering for its F-series trucks?
Is Ford planning all-wheel steering for its F-series trucks?
Posted on January 10, 2020
A patent recently filed by Ford hints at a potential all-wheel steering future for Ford F-series heavy duty trucks. This could bring a whole new level of utility to the truck range and make them even more competitive in a very busy market.
To be honest, I was surprised that Ford hadn’t offered all-wheel steering before. It’s not exactly new technology and has been a feature on cars for forever. Nevertheless, Ford seemingly has plans to give all-wheel steering to its heavy duty range.
All-wheel steering uses a traditional AWD system with some neat mechanical tweaks to move the rear wheels incrementally depending on road speed and how the system is set up. It is a complex setup and can be expensive but Ford seems to be planning to bring it to the masses sometime in the future.
Trucking AWD
The eagle-eyed guys over at The Drive spotted the patent application before I did. The patent shows all-wheel steering with a live rear axle combined with electronic steering. That rear axle uses “Ackermann steering geometry” that uses clever engineering to allow the rear wheels to turn slightly without changing their position on the road or lose grip.
That system is essential for trucks that aren’t the most maneuverable vehicles in the world and that could be rear-wheel heavy. If Ford gets this right, you could be driving a truck with no compromises on road holding or grip but that could potentially steer in a much more smooth way and maneuver more easily when parking.
According to The Drive, Ford had already experimented with all-wheel steering on the F-150 in conjunction with components giant ZF. We never saw anything of it so perhaps this new model builds on that. It could equally be something completely different.
2019 Ford F-350
One potential beneficiary of the new system is the Ford F-350. It is one of Ford’s most customizable trucks with almost limitless potential to personalize and a solid based from which to do it. The F-350 Heavy duty is everywhere doing every kind of job and for good reason. It will never let you down.
The 2019 Ford F-350 comes with either a 6.8-ft or 8.2-ft bed length or can be configured with something else entirely. Available as a regular cab, SuperCab or Crew Cab, the truck can literally be everything to everyone.
Under the huge hood is either a 6.2-litre gas V8 that generated 385 hp and 430 lb-ft of torque or a 6.7-litre V8 that delivers 450 hp and 935 lb-ft of torque. Both engines use a six speed automatic transmission that drives the rear or all wheels.
The 2019 Ford F-350 is already a very capable truck but adding all-wheel steering will really make it stand out. Here’s hoping it happens!
Visit Northway Ford Lincoln, 388 King George Road Brantford ON N3S 3N2 to check out the 2019 Ford F-350.