The cost to repair the new Ford F150 is is going to be an issue?
Ford is wanting Body Shops to build special clean rooms, have special tools aluminum specific hammers and dollies etc. that can not be used on any other type of metal due to cross-contamination.
http://news.pickuptrucks.com/2014/01...015-f-150.html
In my area the shops I sell too, out of 100+ shops only two of them are meeting the Ford requirements. Most of my local area shops don't even want any of the new Ford Truck repair business. One shop that I call on has already over 30k invested in just the clean room for these new trucks.
Galvanic Corrosion is another major concern.
Galvanic Corrosion is define as a electrochemical action of two dissimilar metals in the presence of an electrolyte and an electron conductive path. The front frame rails and inner structure parts are aluminum bolt on part's that will require special fasteners to keep Galvanic Corrosion from happening.
My concern is will the tech's repair these vehicles correctly and use the correct fasteners to bolt together these parts. A good example of failure is some of Fords SUV vehicles from the past have rear lift hatches with over 80% of them corroding around latch area, and these vehicles are no longer under warranty. IMO Ford failed in design of these older lift hatches and now decided to build front frame components out of aluminum???