Spotted a test mule on US 60 between Phoenix and Wickenburg, AZ! Will post pics when I get home. I tried to get a pic of the frame from the rear left wheel but it kept coming out too dark. The mule looks like it had a boxed frame. It was following a 2015 SD and the frames were definitely different.

 

I had a sighting on casino dr. in Laughlin Nv. this afternoon which is not far from Wickenburg, less than a 100 miles id say. I had a sales rep with me and we had an appointment with a customer or I would have turned around and chased him down. This was a crew cab dually and had that same black cover over the entire truck that the spy photo's have. I could see through the screen over the front grill where the blue oval would bolt but it was not there.


Sure wish I had time to chase it down, wonder if spending the night at one of the casinos in Laughlin???? I live about 40 miles from Fords Yucca proving ground on I-40 but as I understand it they no longer use it. a few years in the past we always had there new cars and trucks going through town. they were always in groups of three. Trucks usually towing a trailer loaded with lead making the loop up the hill through Kingman and back to Yucca.

 

This one was a crew cab SRW. All camoed out with that black and white stuff.. they were headed up that way

 

Yep, black and white cover. This was defiantly a dually, I didn't notice if there was any other trucks with it.

 

And was there a Ram with a Cummins and a car trailer following them both?


In case the 15 broke down, or the 17 burned down?





Just kidding! Every pickup truck I've ever owned has been a Ford.

 

here are the pics i got.. sorry about the crap quality.. hard to take pics while driving..
these trucks look way better in person.. I take back what I said about them being fugly..

 

I just wish the greenhouse was taller. the low roofline with respect to the beltline is not for me.

 

When is this new design do out? And why not test these vehicles under the cover of nighttime? That way they don't have to covert them up like some half-baked Christmas present???

 

good sleuthing!

Testing with camo is pretty standard. My guess is they are in AZ for heat test. The desert gets pretty cold at night.

 

The Ford hot weather proving grounds was in Yucca AZ, not far from Laughlin NV from 1955 until 2007 when they sold it to Chrysler. Ford moved to the former Volvo proving grounds in Wittman AZ in 2009 so still have a major presence around here and sightings are pretty common. I remember many times being in the ghost town of Oatman AZ and Ford trucks would come screaming up, over the top and down the hill on old Highway 66 dragging trailers loaded with huge concrete blocks or dragging up the hill between Laughlin/Davis Dam and Kingman. I have two cousins and a couple other shirt tail relatives that all retired from Yucca and can tell some great stories.

 

Do I see a radius arm bolt and front diff in the first pic? That'll put the inside "spy shot" worries about IFS to rest hopefully.

I saw an entire FLEET of Nissan test models last year entirely wrapped in a similar black/white camo. The entire crew stayed at the Holiday Inn in Frisco, CO, right off I-70 where the did the Rumble in the Rockies HD Shootout test. It was seriously 30+ cars and SUVs, plus several trucks hauling test load trailers.

 

Argh, it has the same design problem as F150. Nose angle is too steep in profile, like it is chopped off with a cleaver.

 

I'll judge when I finally see one in person. I thought the new mustang would look great from all the spy photos but it actually sucks. Looks too much like a fusion. So I'll wait to judge what the new super duty looks like.

 

So, just to verify that I'm up to date with this info... The 2017 IS going to be all aluminum, like the F-150? And did we nail down what the engine line up will be yet?

 

looks like a front differential to me. You can also see the cutout in the front hubcap to access the locking hubs.