OAKVILLE, Ont., May 1, 2000 - Ford of Canada today announced it will produce up to 7,500 limited edition Harley-Davidson F-150 pickup trucks - 800 of which begin appearing in Canadian showrooms later this month at a suggested price of $43,295.

Employees from Ford and Fred Deeley Imports (Harley-Davidson's Canadian importer) cheered as the muscular, ground-hugging black beauty - complete with throaty growl - took its place alongside its F-Series siblings at a special Ontario Truck Plant (OTP) ceremony . These include Super Duty, Crew Cab and the SVT Lightning, which together comprise Canada's best-selling nameplate of the past six years.

"The Harley-Davidson F-150 pickup is a unique addition to Ford's best-selling F-Series lineup," said Bobbie Gaunt, Ford of Canada's president and CEO. "The decision to give OTP exclusive manufacturing privileges for this special-edition F-Series is high praise for the men and women who build them and whose commitment to quality is second to none."

In gleaming monochrome black with distinctive Harley-Davidson orange pinstriping and 20-inch styled chrome wheels, the truck thrums its own open-road tune through slash-cut, chromed exhaust pipes. Easily the most anticipated production event in recent OTP history, it joins the SVT F-150 Lightning as the second limited edition Ford F-Series pickup to be produced here.

The distinctive pickup has captured the imagination of automotive enthusiasts across North America - including Tonight Show host and self-proclaimed "gearhead" Jay Leno, who recently became customer number one for the Canadian-made Harley-Davidson F-150 truck.

The F-150's 260-horsepower, 5.4-litre, SOHC Triton ^TM V-8 powers the Harley-Davidson F-150, which is lowered one inch with revised springs and heavy-duty sway bar, adding to the vehicle's brawny appearance. The truck is built alongside Ford's F-150 pickups at the OTP, which employs 1,340 employees and produces 54 F-Series trucks each hour.

A marriage of powerhouse brands_

The new truck is the first product developed under a strategic alliance between Ford Motor Company and Harley-Davidson Motor Company - both of which will celebrate their corporate centennials in 2003. The alliance brings together two of the best-known, most-admired companies in the world, whose collective customers now have a new, distinctive vehicle - one that delivers a strong statement about their individuality.