Whatever violent disaster bent this Ford Super Duty FX4 into a ‘V’ obviously did nothing to its Power Stroke diesel engine.
It takes a lot to stop a Ford Super Duty truck. High mileage certainly won’t do it. That’s why you see so many of them online with 300,000, 500,000 or even 1 million miles on the odometer still going strong. Many even survive natural disasters. This PHN131 Super Duty King Ranch obviously went through something horrific that totaled its body, but whatever that was, it didn’t kill the Power Stroke diesel under its hood.
We found this ultimate Built Ford Tough footage on the thetrucknation_Instagram page. It’s remarkable in two ways.
First, we’re morbidly impressed by the amount of structural damage inflicted upon this poor truck. It’s unclear what hit it (we’re guessing a huge tree or a concrete support beam fell on it), but it’s obvious what effect it had. The blast sight was the back half of the cab, which was both shredded and smashed down to seat-bottom level (we hope nobody was riding in the rear during the moment of impact).
It seems the destructive energy rippled through whatever was left of the cab and caused the front doors to buckle outward. The frame underneath is now the metal equivalent of a severely warped 2X4. From what we can hear, it sounds as if some part of the Super Duty‘s bent undercarriage is scraping the pavement.
Second, we’re blown away by the fact that even something as small as a reflector on this mangled heap still works. Just look at it. This truck could double for a piece of the wreckage left behind after a giant monster rampages through a major city in a sci-fi movie. It should be a massive cringe-inducing paperweight. Amazingly, its Power Stroke diesel still runs. Not only that, but the transmission’s drive and reverse gears still work.
If this truck hasn’t been parted out already, we have a suggestion as for who should buy it: Ford. They should purchase it and leave it as it is, then make it an exhibit in the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation as a testament to how tough its trucks can be.
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.
