1948 saw the beginning of the F truck, Little did ford realize that they were on a winner from the beginning. First up was the F1 a half ton vehicle then the F2  and F3 the heavy duty. Engine was a powerful 95 HP 6 226 cu in and a 239 cu in V8 with just on 100 HP Note *(1 horsepower = 0.745699872 kilowatts) Towards 1952 the engine altered and the six cyl  model now was 215 cu in  rated now at 101 hp Things evolve slowly mainly cosmetics,  different grills and the invention for those wet wintry nights a waterproof ignition system.. The lines improved in 1953 the grille the fenders and the bonnet all stylizing into one and also the birth of the badge F100 and F150 (f150 ¾ ton). Early into the next year the engine developers increased the engine size to 223 cu in and a full 115 HP The V8 was also revamped and it became the 239 with 130 HP. 1954 also saw the luxuries included like, arm rests, cigarette lighter  and again a grille change.   1956 up goes the HP to 137 in the 6 to a huge 173HP in the new 272cu in V8  the Flare side began its life in 1957 with its two separate rear fenders and the evergreen Ford F truck the style side. Another new grille in 1958 1957-1960 Ford eager for a power house in 1959 developed the 292 cu in 186 HP V8 and a year later in the body department the bug eyed model is released 1961 the designers went to work and a newer look was developed , the single headlights returned Ford seemed  happy with engine development at this point and right up to 1965 when the 240 cu in and 300 cu in sixes  hit the market . HP here was significant developing  150 and 170 HP. Then the V8 353 with a whopping 208 HP 1967 the cabin became larger, legs were getting longer and more visibility was created using more glass. Three trim levels became available, base, custom and ranger.  The ranger had the carpet and more chrome the fore father of the lariat 1968. The 360 disposes of the 352 V8  and Ford  added the 390 V8 . The f100 got its act together with coil springs (mono beam)  . For the family man the innovative 4 door crew cab arrives into 1969 1970 a extra trim level is on the market and the Ford marketing machine is working overtime The four  models are the custom, Sport, Ranger and Ranger XLT .The age old favourite 302 with 220 HP is now a addition to the choice of engines And don’t  forget the grille changes in 1972 Over the next few years development in cabin space and sturdier frame headed the development departments agenda the 460 cu in V8 became a option, as did the automatic transmission and the body changed  and this was just 1973. 1974 into the extended cab called for the first time “the Super Cab” integrated indicators, suspension and another grille also appeared. The rear seats could also now be placed in the rear. 1975 and here is the F150 this filled the void between the F100 and the F250 Ford had a little sleep until 1977 when the 360 engine went and the 351 163 HP and the 400 cu in 169 Hp soothed the passion for V8s and a year later the 300 six cyl became the standard engine also that same year the Lariat was introduced with the rather large grill 1979 square headlights on most models except the custom In with the 80s and legroom was the flavour and Ford delivered with a extra 10 percent the 460 engine said good bye  1982 the ford oval badge replaced FORD on the  bonnet. Those ever reliable ball joints made their debut, the ranger name was dropped from the fleet and the names appeared XL, XLT, XLT Lariat 1983 Ford confusion on where the market was going and the 460 came back this was also the year when engines became litres 460 =  7.5 lt HP  here was 245 also the 6,9 V8 arrived in a diesel HP was down to 170 torque was just the best as demand now was switching to vehicle suitable for towing. This year saw the goodbye to the F100 and the F150 now became the intro level model.  Ford saved their money for the next two years and nothing changed but 1987 and the new look f series appeared. Headlights evolved and now you only had to replace the bulb and not the whole headlight, the instrument panel changed and antilock brakes appeared for the first time on light trucks the 4.9 lt got a revamp with fuel injection with a increase  of power output of 20%  following on that year the 7.5 lt V8 got fuel injection 1988  and the old flare side body was discontinued the 4.9 lt six now had 185 HP the 5.0 lt V8 210 HP the 5.8 V8 230 HP and the increased size diesel now 7.3 and don’t we love them  developed 180 HP. The four speed box is gone and in with the 5 speed box Auto locking hubs also appeared on the F150 for the first time late in 1988. manual locking hubs remained a option Auto hubs became standard on the f250 and f350 in late 1990  4 wheel drive on the 5.0 lt was made better with the touch drive transfer case For Australians the f series went into a hiatus even though most of this history is relating to the USA market as I consider that to give the insight to what is now the  F series. For the interest of Australian readers the know 4.2 diesel and the 5.4 petrol engine was initially a reality in the US in 1997. The Harley edition debuted in the states in 1999 and Ford Australia released the F250 4.2 XL in 2001. 2002 along came the super cab and crew cab. In December 2005 the last shipment of Brazilian made RHD vehicles headed to Australia and the rest is history we all await the next chapter 2008 Ford F150 Ltd edition Foose Ford f250 f150 Vin Number Lincoln Mark Lt