With GM poised to debut its completely revised heavy truck and SUV lineup, Ford is readying a few new full-size vehicles of its own. Our latest spy shots show the 2007 Ford Everest and 2007 Ford Super Duty pickups undergoing testing at Ford's proving grounds in Michigan.
We've seen similar pictures of Ford's extended-length Expedition before, so these shots prove that the vehicle's production status, if not its name, is definite.
The Everest will take over as the king of Ford's SUV lineup, as a more manageable competitor to the Chevrolet Suburban than the recently cancelled Ford Excursion. Size will indeed be the key ingredient in the package, with the Everest gaining more than a foot in wheelbase over the current Expedition. Despite its imposing presence, the Everest is not expected to have the sort of hulking, behemoth proportions that characterized the Excursion.
Still, it's surprising that Ford would even go through with plans to build such a vehicle given Bill Ford's recent attempts to erect an environmentally friendly façade around his company, which seems at odds with king-size SUVs such as the Everest. At the very least, it can be expected that the production version of the vehicle will have its standard 300-horsepower, 5.4-liter V8 accompanied at least by the choice of a diesel engine.
With the company's rumblings about building hybrid versions of half of its cars by 2010, a gasoline-electric Everest is not a far-fetched proposition either, although one that is not likely to occur immediately in the vehicle's production cycle.
Ford doesn't plan on revising only its SUV lineup, though, as made clear from our shot of the 2007 F-Series' Super Duty pickup. Sharing their face with the Everest, among others, both the F-250 and F-350 will receive brand-new sheet metal and fully revised cabins that are expected to gain the same civilizing touches that GM is providing for its trucks.
The 2007 Ford Super Duty pickups are scheduled to appear in showrooms in the fall of 2006, while the 2007 Everest will appear some time next year following its debut at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit this January.
We've seen similar pictures of Ford's extended-length Expedition before, so these shots prove that the vehicle's production status, if not its name, is definite.
The Everest will take over as the king of Ford's SUV lineup, as a more manageable competitor to the Chevrolet Suburban than the recently cancelled Ford Excursion. Size will indeed be the key ingredient in the package, with the Everest gaining more than a foot in wheelbase over the current Expedition. Despite its imposing presence, the Everest is not expected to have the sort of hulking, behemoth proportions that characterized the Excursion.
Still, it's surprising that Ford would even go through with plans to build such a vehicle given Bill Ford's recent attempts to erect an environmentally friendly façade around his company, which seems at odds with king-size SUVs such as the Everest. At the very least, it can be expected that the production version of the vehicle will have its standard 300-horsepower, 5.4-liter V8 accompanied at least by the choice of a diesel engine.
With the company's rumblings about building hybrid versions of half of its cars by 2010, a gasoline-electric Everest is not a far-fetched proposition either, although one that is not likely to occur immediately in the vehicle's production cycle.
Ford doesn't plan on revising only its SUV lineup, though, as made clear from our shot of the 2007 F-Series' Super Duty pickup. Sharing their face with the Everest, among others, both the F-250 and F-350 will receive brand-new sheet metal and fully revised cabins that are expected to gain the same civilizing touches that GM is providing for its trucks.
The 2007 Ford Super Duty pickups are scheduled to appear in showrooms in the fall of 2006, while the 2007 Everest will appear some time next year following its debut at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit this January.
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