Borgman Commercial has helped businesses in Grand Rapids, West Michigan, and abroad build and configure Ford vehicles to be optimized for the tasks they’ll be performing. One of the most versatile trucks in the commercial lineup is the 2017 Ford Super Duty. With powerful gas and diesel engine options, plus a tough-as-nails and fully-boxed steel frame wrapped in a military-grade aluminum alloy body, this truck is already a force to be reckoned with.

However, you can further customize the truck with upfits and accessories that will transform the all-purpose workhorse into a highly-specialized utility vehicle.

To demonstrate what the 2017 Ford Super Duty is capable of, a handful of commercial truck customers – all with equally demanding work environments – were approached by Ford to share their truck’s configurations and their team’s experience using them.

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Borgman Ford Commercial would like to proudly announce that TrueCar has awarded the 2014 Ford F-150, Ford Edge, and Ford Transit Connect with the highest retained value in their class. This is truly a testament to the build quality, engineering, and dependability of Ford vehicles, and Ford Trucks take the lead in pre-owned value after this recognition. It’s also of note that last year, the highly sought-after Ford Transit Connect played a crucial role in making Ford Commercial Vans the best-selling brand in the US.

In an article published in the Ford Motor Company Media Center, you can read more about the three Ford Vehicles, as well as the process by which TrueCar’s analytics division selects their award recipients.

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With the impending release of the 2017 Ford Super Duty later this year, the Borgman Ford Team has been following any news about the next generation F-Series and getting more and more excited. Following the success of the 2015 Ford F-150, the new truck is built on a new high-strength steel frame, and also sports a military-grade aluminum-alloy body. It’s loaded with new cutting-edge tech too, including features like SYNC® 3, Trailer Reverse Guidance, Adaptive Cruise Control, and more.

In this article published in the Ford Media Center, Five F-Series Super Duty customers will catch a glimpse of the development, testing and capabilities of the 2017 Super Duty before anyone else. These lucky few will later share their stories through Ford’s “We Own Work” video series, the first being published this month.
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You’ve probably seen the Chevy “mobile office” commercial where a receptionist and old school office equipment is installed in the back of a F-150. When you’re Ford Tough and top dog, lots of folks like to nip at your heels.

But there’s a reason Ford chose to equip its commercial vehicles with cutting edge technology like Sync3 and Ford Telematics, but did not include integrated WiFi operated through something like OnStar: after-purchase cost to consumer and lack of demand in market research.

In today’s mobile environment where 4G LTE gives stronger signal coverage and mobile vendors are moving to all-data plans, expecting businesses to pay OnStar rates didn’t make sense compared to alternate options such as commercial plan hotspot technology. Ford did market research and decided – for now – against it.

In an article in Paste Magazine, writer Tyler Hayes gives reasons why rolling WiFi isn’t entirely practical just yet.

The 4G LTE connection provided by OnStar isn’t cheap—it’s probably the same price, if not more expensive, compared to adding on extra data to your existing phone’s plan. Current (non-OnStar subscriber) rates on the website are listed at $20 a month for 1 GB of data and $200 a year for 10 GB of data.

Keep in mind that the standard definition version of a movie like Big Hero 6 on iTunes is listed at 1.54 GB in size. If you wanted to buy and download that movie you’d spend the price of the movie plus more than $20 on your car’s Wi-Fi data costs for that month. Beyond the price, I ran into many times when OnStar’s Internet service wasn’t very fast…streaming songs form my Bluetooth paired phone often resulted in songs cutting out as they buffered.

Tell us what you think about the need – or lack thereof – for integrated WiFi in Ford’s Commercial Lineup.

Ford Solutions that Work for Work

SYNC lets you use your voice to make a call, listen to music, voice-control, select apps with SYNC® AppLink™ and much more. Voice-activated SYNC technology also helps you keep your eyes on the road and your hands on the wheel.

• Hands-Free Calling
• Automatic Phone Book Download
• Music Search and Control
• SYNC® AppLink™
• No-Extra-Charge 911 Assist®

Upgrade to SYNC 3 and enjoy all of the great SYNC features, plus our next generation of voice-activated technology. It includes an new easy-to-use design, a new interface, and plenty of new features. SYNC 3 delivers next-level connectivity to your busy work day. With enhanced voice recognition, you can talk to the system with simple real-world voice commands and it will respond naturally to your voice. Controlling your phone and more is as easy as saying “call the office.”

Stay Connected

If you DO need to use your vehicle as an internet access point, you can broadcast your smartphone’s data through Ford SYNC. Learn More Here.

Manage Your Fleet

This is another great set of features; many of which you won’t see anywhere else. Ford and Telogis have a great fleet management system called Ford Telematics. It’s deeply integrated into equipped Ford vehicles, and provides a wealth of vehicle insights, many of which are exclusive to Ford.

If you’re out on the go, you can easily open your laptop and keep an eye on things via your phone’s connection or mobile hotspot device. Learn more about Ford Telematics Here.

Borgman Ford Commercial has been keeping a keen eye on the upcoming 2017 Ford Super Duty, and as more is revealed, the more impressed we become. When the New Super Duty finally arrives in late 2016, it’s sure to be one of the smartest and toughest additions to any fleet.

In this latest article published on the Ford Media Center, Ford engineers were tasked with testing the New Super Duty’s ability to accept aftermarket upfits, and thanks to innovative features like the new fully-boxed frame, it still proves Ford Tough even when overloaded.

Here are some excerpts from the article:

From virtual torture testing in supercomputers to purpose-built potholes, Ford has tough tested the all-new Super Duty – the toughest, smartest, most capable Super Duty ever – to make sure it’s ready for popular aftermarket cargo box equipment that ranges from glass racks to salt spreaders.

For the first time, the Super Duty body uses high-strength, military-grade, aluminum alloy, which is more dent- and ding-resistant than the outgoing steel cargo box and not subject to red rust corrosion. The backbone of Super Duty is an all-new, fully boxed frame composed of more than 95 percent high-strength steel that is up to 24 times stiffer than the previous frame.

“Ford Super Duty customers depend on their trucks to work hard every day across a variety of jobs,” said Kirk Leonard, vehicle integration engineer for Ford. “We drove prototype vehicles over the durability roads of the Ford Proving Grounds fitted with common aftermarket accessories to test the fitment and capability of our toughest pickup box ever.“

Throughout the evaluations on extreme durability roads and off-road terrain, and even after overloading select equipment, the new box design stood up to the abuse, run after run. Upon completing the challenge, the vehicles were examined in the lab by the team. No concerns were found in either the supporting structure or the mounting surfaces.

https://youtu.be/okE67ilGvS8

You can read the rest of this article on The Ford Media Center, or click the video thumbnail above to see footage of the Super Duty running through the Ford Proving Grounds test track.

Borgman Ford Commercial not only delivers on providing you the hardest working trucks around. Because we work closely with local upfit companies, we can easily tailor any vehicle to any job. To see our full commercial lineup, Click Here.

Old man winter is on his way, and many of us are making our preparations for the the colder months ahead. For some of us, this means it’s time to get your order in on your winter work trucks, just in time for year-end expenditure.

Ford makes trucks of varying sizes and capabilities, but the workhorse of the lineup is the Super Duty. Available as a pickup or chassis cab, the upfitting potential is huge, making it an ideal candidate for a lineup of plow trucks.

Ford’s Snow Plow Prep Package for the Super Duty is an attractive option. This package includes computer-selected springs for snow plow application, keeping the truck in balance for a smoother, more stable ride and to compensate for the added weight to the front. It also includes an extra-heavy-duty alternator with the Power Stroke® Turbo Diesel V8, or heavy-duty alternator with gas engine, to compensate for the increased demand for power. This prep package ensures that your New Ford Super Duty is ready for plow upfits right off the lot without hassle. Read more about it here.

Another smart addition to the 6.7L Power Stroke® V8 Turbo Diesel version is the available Line-Drive Power Takeoff Provision. What this basically does is use the spinning of the transmission to turn the truck into a mobile generator. It doesn’t matter one bit if the truck is moving or stationary, you’ll be able to power things like plows, salt spreaders, or, as Ford states, “a small city” simultaneously. The best part is, it is integrated right into the transmission design and powertrain calibration, making for fast, easy upfitting at the shop. Read more about this feature here, or watch the video below for a quick demonstration:

You don’t have to stop with the plow package or Power Takeoff, other upfit options include amber safety lights, front mounted spot lights, salt spreaders, winches, and more! Don’t forget, we have Snow Plow options for the F-150 and F-650 too! Call Scott Gibbons (616) 249-8815, or Tod Tobin (616) 249 8868 to explore your options today!