The 2015 F-150 will start production at Ford's assembly plant in Dearborn, Michigan. As the launch is targeted to occur in December, the company said that it is adding 850 hourly jobs at the assembly plant to make the launch right on schedule.
Production of the 2015 pickup truck will also begin in the first quarter of next year at Ford's plant in Claycomo, Missouri.
When combined, the two plants will have the capacity to produce over 700,000 trucks every year.
"We recognize this is the most watched launch in the industry," said Raj Nair, Ford's head of global product development. "We know the importance of getting the F-150 right."
In 2013, Ford's F-Series has been cited as the top-selling vehicle line in the U.S. for 32 years in a row. Sales have increased 18 percent to reach 763,402.
Each truck rakes in a gross profit of $8000 to $10000 which makes up 90 percent of Ford's automotive earnings on a global scale. The new F-150, which had mostly used aluminum instead of steel in its body, can't command a price that's high enough to cover aluminum costs. Apparently, aluminum is said to be almost three times more expensive than steel.
"The all-new F-150 continues to advance my great-grandfather's vision of building vehicles we can be proud of and our customers can depend on," said Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford, the great grandson of the founder.
When he was the company CEO 13 years ago, Ford initiated the $2 billion overhaul of his family's factory as a way to make the place environmentally friendly. It included a 10-acre 'living roof' that is blanketed in sedum.
Prices of the new truck were increased by 1.5 percent or an equivalent of $395 on the base model XL. Starting price is set at $26,615. The King Ranch model starts at $49,460 which marks a 7.9 percent or $3615 increase. According to the company, there are over 250,000 online buyers who had configured and priced a truck on Ford's F-150 official site.
The truck plant at Dearborn was closed completely this fall. The body shop was removed and the plant is rebuilt from scratch. Part of the overhaul has required the use of 500 new robots, a modern paint shop and 850 new workers to build the truck. A similar overhaul is planned next year at the Missouri plant which is also the manufacturing site of the F-series.
The new F-150 will be on sale in the U.S. next month. It will be available in 90 markets beginning next year.
