Trucks and SUVs

2025 Best Full-Size Truck: Ford F-150

The Ford F-150 lineup has been voted the Best Full-Size Truck in the 2025 AutoTrader Awards. It’s been the best-selling vehicle overall in Canada for some 15 years now, but that’s not the reason our panel of more than 20 of the top automotive journalists in Canada voted for it. The F-150 had to stand on its own merits, and that’s what won it the title for the fourth year in a row.

The F-150 offers a wide range of choices, starting with its configuration. It has a regular-cab model, as does GM, but which Ram and Toyota no longer make, and several commercial users still prefer two-door trucks. It functions well as an everyday commuter, but the F-150 is also a serious work vehicle, with models capable of towing up to 6,123 kg (13,500 lbs) and carrying up to 1,106 kg (2,440 lbs) of payload.

As for engines, again, it’s choice and then some. There’s a 2.7L V6 “EcoBoost” – Ford’s name for turbocharging – that makes 325 hp, a naturally-aspirated 5.0L V8 making 400 hp, and a 3.5L V6 EcoBoost with 500 lb-ft of torque. There’s the F-150 “PowerBoost” Hybrid, with its twin-turbo 3.5L V6 and electric motor churning out 430 hp and 570 lb-ft of torque. The self-charging hybrid system is primarily about making more grunt, rather than Prius-style fuel economy, but it’s still rated at 10.7 L/100 km in combined driving, while the non-hybrid 3.5L gets 12.4 L/100 km.

But wait, there’s more! If go-fast performance is your thing, the F-150 comes as the Raptor and Raptor R, offering as much as 720 hp. And if you prefer a zero-emissions pickup, there’s also the all-electric Lightning, offering up to 775 lb-ft of torque and as much as 515 kilometres of range.

The judges are impressed by the F-150’s cabin, which is both roomy and practical, stuffed full of storage cubbies, and even an available work-or-lunch table that folds out over the centre console after the gearshift lever cleverly folds down to accommodate it. Lower trims offer comfortable seats and easy-clean surfaces, while upper trims can add massaging seats, a 12-inch infotainment screen, and power-folding side steps.

Ford also didn’t ignore the bed, and it can include an integrated ladder-style step and tailgate work surface. The available Pro Power Onboard inverter system provides bed-mounted outlets – starting at 2.0 kW, and up to 7.2 kW on the hybrid, or 9.6 kW on the Lightning – that, at those upper levels, can run multiple power tools simultaneously or everything needed for the ultimate “glamping” weekend.

For those who tow or haul, the F-150 can be equipped with class-exclusive technologies, including onboard scales that warn if you’re near or over your truck’s capacity when you’re loading items, by sequentially illuminating the taillights to indicate the limits; and a “smart” hitch that calculates tongue weight, advising if you’ve put too much on the hitch, or where you should be locating the load on the trailer for proper weight distribution. Ford’s trailer-backing assist – where you turn a dial to the left or right when reversing, rather than figuring out which way to turn the steering wheel – has since been copied by some other truck companies, but it was still the first.

Other technologies include standard blind-spot monitoring that includes the trailer, and curve control that helps slow the truck if you’re taking a curve too quickly. Also available is Blue Cruise, which lets you drive hands-free on select roads.

Our experts agree that the Ford F-150 is popular with Canadian drivers for many great reasons, whether they’re using it for work or play. With a robust lineup that has a truck for every need, each F-150 is packed with clever and practical features that make it work both harder and smarter.