VIDEO: Ford's "Dirty Job": Selling the F150
Jalopnik got their mitts on these newly-minted Ford Truck spots with Mike Rowe. For those of you who've been living under a rock for the last year, Mike Rowe is the host of Discovery Channel's "Dirty Jobs," a show that would be hilarious just on the strength of Rowe's comedic timing and commentary. It's a very "guy thing" show, I doubt I'd ever walk in the room and find that my wife had tuned to it on her own. Of course, the appeal is wide enough that she'd sit down and watch, were it to be on.
Such is the appeal that Ford wishes to garner with the F150. They've successfully scrubbed the king of pickup sales behind the ears to great result. The problem is that while the F150 waits until 2009 for a refresh, GM just rolled out the GMT900s, and the Tundra is all-new. Granted, the Tundra isn't a proven threat yet, and with a goal of 200,000 this year, they'll probably sell out without dinging F150 sales. Perception's a funny thing though, and Ford wants to be certain that when people think Pickup, they think F150, hence the revamped ads. We think it's a smart move, as Mike Rowe has charisma and delivery that should at least amuse us. Whether it will help sell trucks remains to be seen.
Videos after the jump.
[Source: Jalopnik]
Get a WordPress.com Blog
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Infinihertz 12:32PM (3/03/2007)
The first one was so-so, but I liked the second one. I can't imagine myself ever owning a pickup, so I'm not a target customer. However, the new Tundra ads are pretty aggressive, and I'm glad to see Ford trying a different tactic than more "Bold Moves" commercials that avoid discussing the features.
Reply
david 12:40PM (3/03/2007)
saw my first 07 tundra at 1255pm 03/02/07 heading north on harlem ave. orland park il. on the back of a flatbed towtruck. not a dealer transfer, this thing had plates on it. got pictures. not a first good image.
Reply
Big jim 12:51PM (3/03/2007)
dirty jobs is more fun
Reply
L3 1:23PM (3/03/2007)
I love this 'under the skin' advertising that tells the real story. Ford started this a couple of years ago with it's 'Truth about Trucks' campaign. It really exposes weaknesses in other brands. I think it might have even been the straw that broke the (old wimpy, 2006 and previous) Tundra's back.
Toyota has built a good truck. Probably as good as the Nissan Titan, which is very good. But their under the skin ads compare the new Toyota truck to previous versions of Ford and Chevy trucks. If they were to compare to the newest versions, they would not look so innovative.
I laud Ford for the unseen (expensive and sometimes heavy) content like outboard shock absorbers, Quiet Steel, and the MONSTER frame that gets my work and play done.
Oh yeah, and the Ford is the best looking, interior and out. I think Toyotas have always looked 'bug-ish.' Like it might take over control sometime...
Reply
David 1:44PM (3/03/2007)
Mike Rowe makes an awesome truck spokes person. I also like how it feels more honest and not fancy stuff like the Tundra commercials are.
That being said, I still wouldn't buy the F150 over the Tundra. Car and Drive just rated the F150 the worst of 5 this month!
Reply
david 1:50PM (3/03/2007)
please don't confuse #2 david with #5 david. toyota could'nt GIVE me a truck.
Reply
Deezee 2:14PM (3/03/2007)
I like this move by ford. Mike is a good fit for the job. Hopefully it translate into sales.
Reply
Ross 10:53PM (3/05/2007)
The F150 is bottom rung in comparison to the Titan, Silverado and new Tundra. Don't take my word for it. Go test drive all the other trucks. The F150 will feel like you're driving a 100HP 4 banger in comparison. It feels majorly underpowered compared to the competition.
Heck, in the recent Popular Mechanics comparo, the other trucks with 1000 lbs payload were quicker from 0-60 than the UNLOADED F150.
Reply
doglet 12:28AM (3/04/2007)
"It feels majorly underpowered compared to the competition."
yeah its not the fastest but what matters in a work truck (payload, towing) are as good as or better than the competition for less money. pretty good considering its up against a lot of brand spankin new competition.
IMHO the GMT900s are the best pickup on the planet right now, they even get the best milage.
Reply
Steve 3:18PM (3/03/2007)
Yes the F-150 is underpowered.
But not for long.
Reply
Bob R. 3:28PM (3/03/2007)
#5, maybe it is because Ford has not redone their truck since 2004. Just wait until the new one comes out, then we'll see. That being said, it has taken the competition a little while to get up to the F-150 levels, and some (like the Ram) still haven't. The F-150 in 2004 was the first truck to come out with an extremely luxurious interior and a pretty high twoing capacity. Now, in 2007, three years later GM comes out with a luxurious interior for its trucks. Toyota has made an attempt, but it doesnt look or feel as good as the 2007 Ford and GM trucks. Nissan is still far behind with the Ram interior wise.
To #8, I think hp in a truck does matter, but when you are in a work truck, payload and towing capacity matter most. Of course the truck has to have enough hp for the truck to pull 11,000 lbs and carry over 3000 in the bed which the F-150 does have if you get the 5.4.
As for the commercials, I like the idea of having Mike Rowe as the F-150 spokesperson, and these commercials get right to the point (towing capacity, payload) and I think because of this, customers will get the idea better that the F-150 has these best in class features.
Reply
Bryan 4:41PM (3/03/2007)
I like them both. I think it is a good strategy (finally hired someone in the marketing department who knows how to market). I mean the Toby Keith ads only get you so far. And honestly I don't care for him much. This is what Ford needs, to prove, to show that their truck is better. You don't sell a million trucks a year with bad product. And who cares about what mag ranks who in what place. Car mags have become even more biased since I started buying them as a kid in the early 90's and are totally irrelevant. Most of them are lame jokes now. I cancelled MT, such a waste of time I can look it up online if I want to see their third rate publishing skills. I find the Tundra ads funny, they try to copy Ford so badly, and its just pathetic and weak. What is even more amusing, is the people on here that complain about how underpowered and slow a truck is, yet they are the first ones to complain about trucks and SUV's about being gas hogs and how they should be banished. In any event, I have no doubt Ford will remain the leader in trucks for another 30 years and beyond. That is something they can't, and won't give up at any cost!
Reply
thisislame 5:21PM (3/03/2007)
Mike Rowe is pretty cool, but unfortunately, he won't be able to save Ford. Ford sucks.
Reply
Mark 6:48PM (3/03/2007)
Mike's a likable enough fellow but what's really good is to see a product being sold on it's merits and not simply emotion. Good, simple ads, IMO.
I did think, however, that they were going to fill the beds full of dung or some other disgusting product given Mr. Rowe's background.
Reply
MikeW 6:50PM (3/03/2007)
The F-150 has plenty of power. It just doesn't have a transmission.
It got its ass handed to it in the C&D pickup showdown.
Where was the ZF 6hp26? No axle ratio change is needed for 4x4.
1st-25mph, 2nd-50, 3rd-80, 4th-110, 5th-130, 6th-120
Floor it at 20, it is not going to first, at 45 not into second, 75 on the highway not into third. Use the VCT and the big inch power to move, and it would!
16@90 in the 1/4, it would have beat the hemi outright, the speed of the silverado and the titan.
The '05 Nav got it, so why didn't the '05.5, '06, '06.5 bread winner get it?
and Ford had the selector detents correct back then
P R N D6, D4, 2, 1 With a top gear lockout on the side of the selector, 2 for 2nd gear starts-emergency run is already 3rd gear in the ZF6hp26.
Is anyone driving Ford Motor Company?
Reply
toyota4life 7:05PM (3/03/2007)
what i find pathetic is why does toyota have to apair in every forum on autoblog?is toyota that much of a threat to every one?you would think by now every one would get the hint that toyota is here to stay,because the more they bash the more toyota sales increase ,for david who claimed he saw a tundra on a flat bed ,what are you gonna tell us that maybe it was balljoint or maybe sludge ,incase you have not read CR ,oh i forgot every one is bias in faver of toyota ,and if it was not for toyota there would not be an autoblog ,just say toyota and all the rednecks/hillbillys/inbreds comes running,and if you are not afraid of toyota then why not just let them prove them selves wrong ,and yea the sludge and recalls /balljoint sounds like an old broken record
Reply
Bryan 7:24PM (3/03/2007)
Lol #16 of course you find it pathetic thats your excuse for the truth. You know the domestics own the full size truck arena and you can't stand that. Those trucks built America..what has Toyota done? It's also a broken record to hear that Ford sucks because Ford doesn't suck, the management they had (I am sure there are still some left) sucks. And yeah, I havent seen one..not ONE story on the sludge problem Toyota has. But you bet when Ford or GM has a problem, woah boy first story in the newscast. They got away with it for a long time, but things are changing. Their rep has been hit hard. They made everyone think they were invincible, and now that the REAL truth about them is leaking out, its rub it in your face time! ;)
Reply
toyota4life 7:30PM (3/03/2007)
when did toyota make every one think they are invincible?and why is mullaly in japan kissing toyotas ass for help?
Reply
Bob R. 7:58PM (3/03/2007)
Wow, you guys get C&D this early?? I get mine usually 10 days AFTER the beginning of the month. Wow, I'm just going to let my subscription expire then buy it at the newsstand.
Reply
Ben 8:11PM (3/03/2007)
Who in their right mind would buy an F-150 to tow anything above 8000lbs. IMO if you will be regularly towing that much step up to the F-250 with a better tranny and a chassis built to tow that much. Sure the specs are there but really, the truck weighs 6700lbs towing 11000. Does anyone see an issue with this? How many times can you move 11000lbs from a dead stop without burning up the tranny? Are the brakes up to the task?
Reply