The popularity of the Ford Fseries pickup is no fluke. Born more than a century ago, it earned its place in the American landscape by delivering rugged value and consistent innovation. Early on, it was its available flathead V8; next was the twinIbeam front suspension, and more recently the truck has adopted industryfirst aluminum bodywork and embraced smaller, turbocharged engines. From the first Model TT chassis cab, which debuted in 1917, to today's leatherlined fourdoor luxury haulers, this is a brief history of the longlived Ford Fseries.

THIS IS THE STORY OF THE FORD F150

Although it looked nearly identical to the previous Fseries, the sixthgen version had a redesigned grille, parking lamps situated above the headlamps, and a concave bodylength groove housing the sidemarker lamps. The Club Cab arrived in 1974, offering either a pair of centerfacing jump seats or a small bench seat with a foldable bottom cushion. The F150 appeared for the first time in 1975; even though it would soon surpass the F100 in popularity, the F100 remained on the order books until 1983. Rectangular headlights were offered on upper trim levels in 1978; they became standard in 1979.