Why 2018 Ford F150 Named Motor Trend's Truck of the Year

The refreshed 2018 Ford F150 leads the half-ton truck segment in all sorts of measures, building on everything that makes the 2017 F150 the bestselling truck in America while adding a new exterior design. Depending on the package and engine chosen, F150 buyers can have the most luxurious, the most powerful and the most capable half-ton truck on the market, so it comes as little surprise that the folks at Motor Trend picked it as the best truck for 2018.

“Back-to-back wins for F-150 and Super Duty reflect what we’re also seeing and hearing from customers as we celebrate 40 straight years as America’s favorite and best-selling trucks,” said Raj Nair, Ford executive vice president and president, North America. “The Ford Truck team stretched further than ever to deliver our toughest, most capable and smartest trucks.”

The 2018 F150 Leads the Pack
In addition to the models from the other manufacturers, the Motor Trend editors spent time with four different 2018 F150 pickups: a 2018 F150 XL with the all-new 3.3-liter V6, a 2018 F150 Lariat with the new 2.7-liter EcoBoost, a 2018 F150 Platinum with the stronger 5.0-liter V8 and the high performance 2018 F150 Raptor with the high-output 3.5L EcoBoost. The Raptor maintains the same exterior design as the 2017 models, but the rest of the trucks tested sport the interior and exterior refinements of the 2018 model year.

After logging hundreds of miles on that quarter of F150s alongside the best from around the industry, the Motor Trend team selected the 2018 F150 as their best truck for 2018.

“This year’s competition was fierce, but the vote was unanimous,” said Ed Loh, Motor Trend editor in chief. ”The newly redesigned 2018 F-150 exceeded our expectations in every category – powertrain, performance, technology and overall execution.”

2018 marks the fifth time that the F150 has taken Motor Trend’s top truck honor, but this is the first time that any full truck line has captured the award in back-to-back years. The Chevy Colorado took home the award in 2015 and 2016, the Ram 1500 took the awards in 2013 and 2014, and the F150 won it back in 2012, 2009, 2004 and 1997.

Ford truck sales numbers have been booming and the introduction of a new-and-improved version of the F150 – the most popular truck from the Motor Company – those sales numbers should continue to be strong.