• Ford has ended months of speculation with the news
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that it hopes to launch a replacement model for the P100 pickup early next year. No photographs have been released yet, but Commercial Motor's artist has produced an impression, shown here.
The new pickup will be based on the latest Ford Sierra Saphire body, and will retain its cab shape, but while the old P100 pickup was made in South Africa, the new model will be built in Europe.
Ford hopes to keep the tooling Costs to a minimum with the new pickup, although it admits that "it will be very expensive to start production, but the potential market in Europe is worth the investment."
The P100 pickup was only offered in 4x2 petrol-engined form, and Ford has not yet decided if the new model will have 4x4 or diesel options. If a diesel option is offered then the engine could well be the Peugeot 2.3 litre IDI unit from the 504 pickup, one of the new model's biggest potential competitors.
The engine is currently offered in diesel derivatives of the Ford Sierra, arid it may soon be available with a limited engine management system using a new Bosch VP15 electronic pump.