Originally Posted by smurfs_of_war

I don't think, in any of these trucks, the frame is the weak link- older trucks with lighter frames hauled WAY more weight for years. The frame integrity now seems to have more to do with handling. The fact that Ford was willing to ditch the fully boxed frame (which was one of their major bullets in their gun according to advertising) in order to shave weight tells me that the weak link in any of these is the soft suspension for car like ride- otherwise the move from the fully boxed frame should result in decreased payload, but I am certain that won't be the case. So if the frames now are supposedly stronger- you guys could see some pretty drastic payload increases provided they didn't use the running gear as a potential weight savings. Springs can be supplemented- axles not so much. You're right. The air ride is far from a gimmick, and air bags are extremely effective. The air ride equiped Rams have a decent payload rating for a "half ton". The coils- not so much. The jeeps equipped with air ride have been holding up extremely well.

My question- how much is Ford willing to push that envelope? The 150 series could potentially start to canabalize the 250 series if they're not careful. And inflating those numbers to make up for that starts an internal arms race.

Originally Posted by irishguy824

Ford didn't ditch the fully boxed frame. It's still a fully boxed steel frame. They haven't changed that at all. This was a misconception that was made popular with Ford going to an aluminum alloy cab and frame, which is where a majority of the weight loss comes from.