The 14th time Harley and Ford have collaborated on an F-Series model.
Ford hopes to burnish the bad-boy image of its big F-Series pickup with the launch of the 2010 Harley-Davidson F-150, which will be making its public debut, this week, at the Chicago Auto Show.
The 14th time the automaker and motorcycle manufacturer have teamed up, the new Harley F-150 combines the basic styling and features of the new-for-’09 F-Series truck and signature design cues lifted from Harley’s born-to-be-wild bikes.
“In the marketplace, today, you have to have a point of view and be differentiated,” explained Mark Fields, Ford’s President of the Americas, as he provided a sneak peek at the truck soon to roll onto the stage at Chicago’s McCormick Place.
The ’10 Harley F-150 isn’t the sort of “paint and tape job” automakers used to use when they 
would try to share the cache of an icon brand name, like Harley. The new truck features a specially-tuned suspension, for one thing, and some significant appearance details, including “beefy” 22-inch low-profile wheels and tires, and a unique front fascia featuring a distinctive, 6-bar, billet-like grille. A specially-designed set of running boards gives the truck a lowered appearance, compared to a conventional F-150.
Of course, Ford has plastered the Harley name all over the exterior of the vehicles, as well as on door sill plates, and there’s a Harley logo stitched into the deep black and red leather seats.
The Harley F-150 shares the 5.4-liter V-8 offered in other, more conventional F-Series models.
This is the first Harley edition produced since the re-launch of the F-Series, for the 2009 model-year. Since the partnership began, Ford has sold more than 74,000 Harley F-Series trucks.
The timing of the ’09 F-Series was questioned by many analysts, as it brought the redesigned truck to market shortly after fuel prices hit record levels – a situation compounded by the worsening recession. But pickup sales have shown some rebound in recent months, especially in the full-size end of the truck spectrum. In fact, as TheDetroitBureau.com reports today, Ford is actually adding a third shift to its Rouge assembly complex, in Dearborn, Michigan to meet demand for the truck.
