We can freely talk about how the 2018 Ford F-150 Diesel drives. This is the first time that Ford put a turbo-diesel engine into a light duty half-ton pickup truck in the United States. It is a specially prepared 3.0L Power Stroke V6 with a rating of 250 hp @ 3,250 rpm and 440 lb-ft of torque @ 1,750 rpm. The engine is mated to Ford’s 10-speed automatic transmission.
How does it drive? First, the truck is remarkably quiet. Yes, you can still tell there is a diesel under there, but the idle sound is well controlled, but the truck is ultra-silent at speed. Perhaps, even more so than any other F-150 that came before it.
The power delivery of the diesel V6 can only be described as smooth. It will not pin you in the seat like the 3.5L EcoBoost V6 will, but you simply ride a wave of torque with an even acceleration from a dead stop to 50 MPH and beyond. It’s typical of turbo-diesels to lose acceleration above 40 MPH or so. The F-150 Diesel does not seem to mind, and the acceleration continues further.
We were able to drive the truck with several smaller trailers that ranged between 5,000 lbs and 7,000 lbs. It may be a cliche, but the low-end torque of this engine is evident with a relatively heavy trailer in tow. The truck and trailer take off with authority.
The fuel economy rating is 20 MPG city, 25 MPG on the highway, and 22 MPG combined for the 4×4 version of the Power Stroke F-150. The 2WD version is rated at up to 30 MPG on the highway.
F-150 Diesel prices range from the around $41,000 to over $72,000 depending on cab and trim configuration. The truck is available in XL and XLT trim for commercial fleets, and in Lariat, King Ranch, and Platinum trim for consumers.
