The Ford F-750 you see here is one TONKA truck you can’t put your hand on and push through the dirt in your backyard, but doesn’t it just make you want to play with it, anyway?
Instead of forcing you to make a rumbly truck-like sound with your mouth, the F-750 TONKA comes with a real engine: the Blue Oval’s 6.7-liter Power Stroke V8 diesel, which is mated with a commercial-grade six-speed TorqShift HD automatic. The all-new 2016 Ford F-650/F-750 on which this kids-dream-come-true is based offers three variations of the oil-burner engine, which range in output from 270 horsepower and 675 lb.-ft. torque to 330 horsepower and 725 lb.-ft. torque. Each is covered by a five-year, 250,000-mile warranty. A gas-powered 6.8-liter V10 engine with 320 horsepower and 460 lb.-ft. is also available.
This TONKA’s Truck Tech Engineers dump body contributes to a 33,000-pound GVWR and can haul up to 17,000 pounds – perfect for building the ultimate (full-size) sand castle at the beach. However, you might need something a little more substantial than a plastic shovel and bucket to go along with it.
You can spot the F-750 TONKA at major work truck, commercial, and vocational trade shows throughout 2015. (The best part is that your mom won’t be at any of them to tell you to stop playing with it and come in for dinner.) The 2016 Ford F-650/F-750 medium-duty trucks, in Regular Cab, SuperCab, and Crew Cab body styles, will be in commercial dealerhips this summer.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
