I don’t think aluminum bodies are necessarily a bad idea.
Didn’t Land Rover use aluminum bodies?
ya, but their mechanical issues always killed the truck before the corrosion did.
Don't know...but McDonnell-Douglas did.
The first Land Rovers were aluminum body on Jeep frames. LRs still use a lot of aluminum.
Yes, they at least certainly did on the Defender 90 series.
The problems with those vehicles (and all applications where steel surfaces meet with aluminum surfaces) is that the materials do chemically react with one another, especially when exposed to salt and water. Defender 90s seem to have interesting rust problems where steel meets aluminum.
I think that this Ford concept will work, but there are going to be issues with ownership of these vehicles. I expect most noticeably if bodywork is ever needed. You really can't repair mangled aluminum, only replace it. All in all that's probably not a huge issue.
They made certain panels such as the hood out of aluminum. Several manufacturers have done it with great success. MGA's of the early sixties used aluminum doors, hoods and trunks. Abbarth and others did it too. I think it could be a fantastic improvement. Now, if they would just do it with a nice six cylinder diesel . . . Aluminum can be anodized making for a very hard surface that resists corrosion. If anyone doesn't think aluminum to be structurally sound, they had maybe better not get on a 747. At 950,000 pounds, aluminum wings and landing gear couldn't possibly support one.