Ford Lobo Designer Talks About Street Truck Development

It took around 20 years, but Ford is finally creating street-oriented sporty trucks again. While no automobile is the work of a single person, Josh Blundo deserves a good amount of credit for helping bring both the Ford Maverick Lobo and the F-150 Lobo to reality, since he was the lead designer for each of them. This week, he was part of a live, online question and answer session in which he shared details about the projects. He shared some interesting facts about the trucks and their development, and we wanted to share them with you, too.

Unsurprisingly, Past Street Trucks Were A Major Influence

Blundo confirmed that he and the team took inspiration from sports trucks of the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. Ford was a major player in those days with two generations of F-150 Lightning, and the later, supercharged one led to a specific part of the F-150 Lobo. Part of the Lobo’s body kit includes a new front bumper with a low and wide grille opening. Blundo says this is a specific tribute to a similar grille opening on the second-generation Lightning.

A Two-Door Version Was Designed

One of the questions asked of Blundo was about the consideration of a two-door F-150 Lobo. He quickly replied, “Oh yeah, of course!” He said that they came up with plenty of drawings and ideas for a regular-cab Lobo, and that he’s fond of the regular-cab configuration. He went on to say that the crew cab makes more sense, though. We have no doubt that Ford sells far more crew-cab F-150s, too, and the final decision probably wasn’t entirely in the design department’s hands. Somewhat related was the decision to go with a V8 in the F-150 and the turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder in the Maverick. Besides offering solid performance as standard, both engines already have a strong aftermarket, even within the Ford Performance line of parts. Blundo said that being able to easily modify these trucks further was important in developing them.

Apparently Demand And Interest In Street Trucks Is Growing

While we have often dreamed of a sports pickup, we also know that the market has clearly been more interested in off-roading. After all, it seems like every few weeks, another automaker is adding all-terrain tires and plastic body-cladding to a crossover to create a rugged variant. So the fact that Ford is getting back into street trucks took us a little by surprise. We asked Blundo about how Ford decided to get back into this segment, and he said, “The culture had a big part in it,” and that there was a “clear desire from customers” for such vehicles. He went on to say that he and the company have been seeing more street-oriented custom trucks at SEMA, even in the company’s own display at the event. In particular, he pointed to the Tucci Hot Rods Maverick shown in 2021, and how it had a particularly great reception. That interest led Ford to start working on offering something from the factory.

Both Lobos Were Underway At The Same Time

We were also curious about the timeline for the two trucks. Ford revealed and launched the Maverick Lobo first, closely followed by the F-150, and considering the additional mechanical changes to the Maverick. As such, we thought that Ford might’ve started developing the Maverick first, and then quickly greenlit the F-150. At least according to Blundo both trucks were in development and in the design studio simultaneously, which was good for ensuring that the two were a “cohesive family.”

Blundo Is Totally Into Street Trucks

In Blundo’s garage is a 1995 Ford Ranger, and he apparently is working on turning it into a drift truck. So he clearly lives the street truck life, and it was clear in the way he talked about working on the Lobos that he’s had lots of fun with them. When asked what his no-holds-barred dream street truck would be, he had two words: “Coyote Maverick.” We agree, while totally unfeasible, that would be extremely sweet.