1994 Ford Powerstroke (Power Stroke)

Official press release:

POWER STROKE CONCEPT TRUCK

Dramatic design -- power plus — luxury and comfort to the nines -and most of the conveniences of the top luxury cars. Ford has put it all together in a pickup truck -- the Power Stroke.

The Power Stroke, now starring at auto shows across America, is a burly, tough Ford dual-rear-wheel pickup truck dressed in a bright yellow exterior with chrome accents, complimented by a graphite grey interior.

"It’s just a concept now," said Andrew K. Jacobson, Ford truck design director. "But, it’s also a good glimpse into the future -- a vehicle that may come to life as we move through the Nineties and on into the next century."

"Even with its unique good looks, this is a serious work truck," Mr. Jacobson said, noting the power starts with Ford’s new direct injection (DI), turbocharged diesel engine.

The Ford DI diesel, available in the spring of 1994, generates 210 horsepower at 3000 RPM and a mammoth 420 foot pounds of torque at 1800 RPM. In fact, it will be the industry’s most powerful diesel engine. Better yet, it will deliver an impressive 17.3 miles to the gallon of fuel — and it will start trouble-free in less than two seconds in temperatures as low as -20F. That is best-in-class startability.

The Power Stroke was created as a concept vehicle with the road manners of today’s cars, but incorporating the traditional Ford truck toughness, versatility and durability. Toughness comes through in its rugged profile that includes a custom-designed, powerful grille, a smooth, wraparound windshield with a hidden "A" pillar and wide-track dual rear wheels. Additionally, the wheelbase is 10 inches longer than a conventional F-250 "dually" -for even greater vehicle stability - and there is less sheetmetal overhang at the rear of the truck - adding significantly to its agility.

"There is more to the Power Stroke than just muscle and good looks," Mr. Jacobson said. "It’s equipped to take on the biggest of the towing jobs - on road or off, day or night."

Up front there is an 8,000-pound capacity, single-line-pull winch nicely concealed in the lower front air dam. Also included are front tow hooks. High-power, projector-type headlamps and front fog lamps assure maximum nighttime visibility under all weather conditions. And, the Power Stroke rolls along on big, 17-inch, heavy truck-type, eight-lug, polished aluminum wheels with equally big LT 265/70R17 tires.

Unique side-view mirrors incorporate a feature that uses the mirror faces as an auxiliary illuminated display of turn signals, stop lights and a flashing backup indicator -giving drivers of vehicles on the road behind the Power Stroke sharp, early signals of what the Power Stroke driver is going to do.

The Power Stroke’s spacious interior has leather-covered Captain’s Chair bucket seats and a CB radio. Wide doors make it easy to get in and out of the cab and there are custom-designed running boards integrated into the truck body, plus chrome-plated diamond-design upper inserts with anti-skid surfaces.

For easy hook-up to large fifth-wheel campers and trailers, there is a chrome-plated fifth-wheel hitch in the center of the truck bed. Also chrome-plated is the anti-skid, diamond-design, two-step rear bumper with a ball hitch in the lower-level step. Unique tribar tail lamps complete the rear end theme and there are work spotlights in the truck bed area for after-dark loading and unloading.

Also enhancing the Power Stroke’s rugged good looks are a unique, integrated front visor with strobe marker lights and air vent slots that help reduce wind drag.

The hood is made of a special, lightweight carbon fiber that is unpainted beneath the "DI Turbo Diesel" identification to highlight this weight-saving material.

"More than just a concept, the Power Stroke is a suggestion of what tomorrow could bring," Mr. Jacobson concluded.

How do you introduce a big, new, powerful diesel engine? When Ford's truck team asked that of Andy Jacobson, Design Director for Ford trucks, he recognized he had two challenges. The easier was to come up with a concept that would attract everyone's attention to the 7.3 liter direct injection turbocharged diesel with 420 lb-ft of torque. More difficult was not to tip Ford's hand about the redesigned F-250 truck line scheduled for release as 1997 models.

The solution? "We deliberately made it unlike anything that we were working on in order not to give the competition any clues as to the direction our truck designs were heading," Jacobson recalled.

The team Jacobson turned loose on Power Stroke was led by Dennis Reardon. Soo Kang was the principal designer. Their Power Stroke concept was, indeed, very different. The key to making the new 7.3 liter Power Stroke turbo-diesel stand out was to make the Power Stroke concept as rugged and hard-working as the new engine. Ford's mission was to highlight the new diesel's towing capability so the concept was given dual rear wheels running LT265/70R-17 BFGoodrich Proto T/A tires on custom directional billet aluminum wheels. Built on a 1993 Ford F-350 extended cab dually chassis, the Power Stroke concept's wheelbase is stretched 10 inches but the rear overhang has been cut to keep the bed itself in proportion. Power Stroke concept's working, towing aspect is completed by a chromed fifth wheel with body-color mount permanently installed in the bed and four chrome cleats in the corners of the bed floor for cargo tiedown. The body color dual level rear bumper is accented by chromed diamond plate step inserts and a tow ball on the lower level. Tri-bar taillights flanking the tail gate complete the Power Stroke concept's presentation. Up front this impressive rig features a unique curved grille topped by a matte grey insert that extends from the extremities of the headlights all the way across the concept's nose in front of the hood and encompasses fully covered headlight assemblies with projector-style lights. A pair of fog lights are enclosed within the lower fascia which also hides an 8,000 pound winch and tow hooks. The hood itself is formed of fiberglass with carbon fiber decals. Ford's designers cleverly exposed the underlying carbon fiber to form the "DI Turbo Diesel" identification on each side of the hood's power bulge. A chrome accent strip extends from the ends of the grille along the Power Stroke concept's sides, drawing attention to the neatly formed running boards with inset chromed diamond plate steps that are integrated with the body.

The two door cab has a wraparound plexiglass windshield which looks "fast". It is shaded by a sun visor integrated with the roof and incorporating air vent slots to lower aerodynamic drag. The cab is topped by five integrated rooftop marker lights and there are work lights in the upper corners of the cab extension at the front of the bed to aid trailer hookup.

Inside, leather captain's chairs make sure the driver and passenger are comfortable on long hauls. Wide doors make it easy to step in from the integrated running boards. Occupants are also provided with all the comforts of a modern-day passenger car including power locks, air conditioning, power steering, power brakes and a cassette stereo. It is of note that this model does not have side windows and the cab section floor boards and inner section are production steel which then has a fiberglass "skin" adhered to it. The outside mirrors, which were very advanced for their day, have built in turn, stop and reverse indicators.

The Power Stroke concept is cleverly different from the new F-250 the design team wanted to protect, but at the same time it is distinctively Ford. The distinctive nose draws attention to its hood and the new DI diesel that resides within, which is, after all, the Power Stroke concept's purpose.

As offered here it is in show quality condition, with excellent, unblemished and vivid "Sierra Sun Pearl" paint that stands out in any crowd. The interior is pristine and the Power Stroke concept's chrome is brilliant. So is its concept.

SOURCE: Christie’s