Posted by Arthur (in NY) on Thursday, August 04, 2005 at 7:19PM :
I went to the F**d dealer to get an inspection and a minor recall repair on my 2003 E150 work truck.
While waiting for the work to be done, I looked at a fancy display in the dealership lobby, which had cross sections of F**d, Dodge, GMC, and Toyota frames. The F**d frame has at least twice the steel than the Dodge, and more than 3 times the steel than GMC or Toyota.
The F**D frames are a box, with double thicknesses at top and bottom, and the Dodge is a single thickness, and has half the dimensions. The GMC and Toyota ones are not even closed sections, just "C" channels.
They also compared the bed bolts, (F**D's are twice the length, and much thicker) and a few other items. There were pictures of the front shock towers, for example, and the F**D ones were significantly heavier than the competition.
They had giveaway CD's that I presume also show the info. If there is a dealer near you, you might want to check it out.
apb