Isn’t webisode one of those nonsensical words – like staycation and frenemy – that you wish would just go away? You might say it’s cringe-worthy, as if cringing were ever worth the trouble.

One wonders what a no-nonsense guy like Mike Rowe, host of TV’s “Dirty Jobs,” would think of the word webisode. He’d probably run over it with the all-new 2011 Ford Super Duty. There’s no harm in dreaming, right?

Starting today, Rowe is hosting a series of – you guessed it – webisodes detailing the development and testing of the new powertrain lineup of the all-new Super Duty – a truck so tough all of your frenemies will run scared.

Finally, Webisodes for Truck Guys
In the series, Rowe leads customers through laboratory and real-world durability testing of the Ford-built 6.7-liter Power Stroke® V-8 turbocharged diesel, 6.2-liter V-8 gas engine and 6R140 heavy-duty TorqShift® six-speed automatic transmission. The webisodes are at http://www.fordvehicles.com/2011superduty/.

According to recent Ford customer research, Mike Rowe is the quintessential “truck guy” (like there was ever any doubt!) One respondent said: “I would say that he drives a truck in real life and is not afraid to do stuff like pull out a stump or go off-road.”

In the coming months, the site also will feature webisodes demonstrating the capability of the all-new 2011 Ford Super Duty on commercial customers’ work sites.

Quotes
“Mike Rowe and Super Duty are a natural pair.” “Our new lineup of engines and transmission for the 2011 Super Duty was put through a series of extreme tests both in the lab and at the job site. Mike Rowe will take our customers through the details of those tests.”
– Eric Peterson, truck communications manager

“The new Web site will allow potential Super Duty buyers – our most knowledgeable customers – the opportunity to get an in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at what being Built Ford Tough really means. Mike Rowe has partnered with us to help customers navigate the site so they can learn more about how Super Duty helps truck owners get their work done.”
– Eric Peterson, truck communications manager

If Teddy Roosevelt were alive today he’d probably drive one of these babies – the 2011 Ford Super Duty pickup truck. Teddy would drive it into battle. He’d drive it on safari. He’d drive it all over the great outdoors. Why? Because the 2011 Super Duty has that rare combination of powerful capability and quiet confidence – just like Teddy himself. It features Ford’s new 6.7-liter Power Stroke® diesel engine, which is expected to be the quietest, smoothest diesel on the market, outperforming its closest competitors by several decibels. Teddy would tell you that being “quiet and capable” gets things done.

Smooth Combustion, Refined Sound
Engineering and design improvements to the all-new Ford-engineered, Ford-tested and Ford-built 6.7-liter Power Stroke® turbocharged diesel engine – debuting in the 2011 F-Series Super Duty – eliminate the harsh sounds of the typical diesel to make it one of the quietest and smoothest diesels on the market. Significantly quieter than its toughest competitor, the 6.7-liter diesel challenges traditional views about how diesels should sound.

Most of the improvement in NVH comes from changes made to the combustion system and the structural integrity of the compacted graphite iron block, as well as from mounting one turbocharger on the engine block instead of two.

Specific design upgrades were made to both the piston and the piston bowl to optimize the combustion process, which features a two-stage combustion event instead of a single-injection event, causing harsh, sudden and loud combustion. Instead, a starter or pilot injection of fuel begins the compression process before the main injection.

The result is a smoother combustion and a more refined sound for the customer. When at idle, two pilot injection events are used to make the firing process even smoother and aid in quietness. The “ticking” of the high-speed injectors also is masked by specially designed covers on the engine.

Adding Advantages, Eliminating Concerns
Mounting the turbocharger from the center housing directly to the block provided several advantages as well in terms of NVH performance.

When turbochargers vibrate, it can lead to other parts of the vehicle vibrating. The exhaust system, for example, is directly attached to the turbocharger. So when the turbocharger vibrates a lot, the exhaust system vibrates too and that’s disturbing to the customer. Bolting the turbocharger directly to the block eliminates that concern.

Using one turbocharger, instead of two operating in series or sequentially, helped solve some NVH challenges as well.

Having one turbocharger eliminates the air-handling noises – the whooshes – as the engine switches from one turbo to the next turbo. The turbocharger on the new Super Duty also has ball bearings that pilot the shaft in the turbo, which helps eliminate the potential for the shaft of the turbocharger to gyrate in its housing, which can create noise.

Other improvements include the addition of two resonators in the intake system as well as a third resonator near the air cleaner.

The new diesel will also deliver other significant improvements including better torque and horsepower, class-leading fuel economy and best-in-class towing and payload for unparalleled performance.

Quotes:

“Historically, consumer perception has been that diesels should sound rough and tough, but from a sound quality perspective they were actually loud and unrefined. At Ford, we approached the new diesel development as though it was more than a work truck and something that people wanted to drive, making ‘quieter’ a reason to buy. We’ve been able to tune the diesel intake system to give us the sound we wanted. It’s now a nice complement to the engine.”
– Scott DeRaad, Ford Engine NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) Engineer

If Teddy Roosevelt were alive today he’d probably drive one of these babies – the 2011 Ford Super Duty pickup truck. Teddy would drive it into battle. He’d drive it on safari. He’d drive it all over the great outdoors. Why? Because the 2011 Super Duty has that rare combination of powerful capability and quiet confidence – just like Teddy himself. It features Ford’s new 6.7-liter Power Stroke® diesel engine, which is expected to be the quietest, smoothest diesel on the market, outperforming its closest competitors by several decibels. Teddy would tell you that being “quiet and capable” gets things done.

Smooth Combustion, Refined Sound
Engineering and design improvements to the all-new Ford-engineered, Ford-tested and Ford-built 6.7-liter Power Stroke® turbocharged diesel engine – debuting in the 2011 F-Series Super Duty – eliminate the harsh sounds of the typical diesel to make it one of the quietest and smoothest diesels on the market. Significantly quieter than its toughest competitor, the 6.7-liter diesel challenges traditional views about how diesels should sound.

Most of the improvement in NVH comes from changes made to the combustion system and the structural integrity of the compacted graphite iron block, as well as from mounting one turbocharger on the engine block instead of two.

Specific design upgrades were made to both the piston and the piston bowl to optimize the combustion process, which features a two-stage combustion event instead of a single-injection event, causing harsh, sudden and loud combustion. Instead, a starter or pilot injection of fuel begins the compression process before the main injection.

The result is a smoother combustion and a more refined sound for the customer. When at idle, two pilot injection events are used to make the firing process even smoother and aid in quietness. The “ticking” of the high-speed injectors also is masked by specially designed covers on the engine.

Adding Advantages, Eliminating Concerns
Mounting the turbocharger from the center housing directly to the block provided several advantages as well in terms of NVH performance.

When turbochargers vibrate, it can lead to other parts of the vehicle vibrating. The exhaust system, for example, is directly attached to the turbocharger. So when the turbocharger vibrates a lot, the exhaust system vibrates too and that’s disturbing to the customer. Bolting the turbocharger directly to the block eliminates that concern.

Using one turbocharger, instead of two operating in series or sequentially, helped solve some NVH challenges as well.

Having one turbocharger eliminates the air-handling noises – the whooshes – as the engine switches from one turbo to the next turbo. The turbocharger on the new Super Duty also has ball bearings that pilot the shaft in the turbo, which helps eliminate the potential for the shaft of the turbocharger to gyrate in its housing, which can create noise.

Other improvements include the addition of two resonators in the intake system as well as a third resonator near the air cleaner.

The new diesel will also deliver other significant improvements including better torque and horsepower, class-leading fuel economy and best-in-class towing and payload for unparalleled performance.

Quotes:

“Historically, consumer perception has been that diesels should sound rough and tough, but from a sound quality perspective they were actually loud and unrefined. At Ford, we approached the new diesel development as though it was more than a work truck and something that people wanted to drive, making ‘quieter’ a reason to buy. We’ve been able to tune the diesel intake system to give us the sound we wanted. It’s now a nice complement to the engine.”
– Scott DeRaad, Ford Engine NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) Engineer