Joining GM and Ram on the 3.0-liter diesel bandwagon, Ford announced ages ago the F-150 will be available with diesel power, and now we know the price. 

Ford will be looking for $4000 to step up to the diesel in the Lariat model over the base 2.7-liter EcoBoost. Over the 3.5-liter EcoBoost in a Lariat-trim F-150, the diesel is a $2,400 option. Only Lariat-trim and higher trucks will be available with the new diesel, so work truck buyers need not apply.

On the King Ranch and Platinum-trim trucks, the diesel is a $3,000 option over the standard 5.0-liter V8 and $2,400 more than the 3.5-liter EcoBoost.

READ MORE: Ford F-150 Diesel MPG Officially Rated at 30 Highway, 25 Combined

Let’s break this down, then. We know the cheapest trim in which the diesel will be available is the Lariat. This truck starts at $42,410 including destination charges, meaning the smallest possible Monroney an F-150 diesel will show $46,410. That’s for a two-wheel drive SuperCab, by the way. A SuperCrew 4×4 Lariat starts at $48,195 including destination, putting a diesel version well north of fifty grand.

The company has pegged output numbers for the diesel at 250 horsepower and 440lb.-ft of twist. Considering the 2.7L EcoBoost is only 40 lb-ft shy of that number, one has to wonder if the PowerStroke will be more of a status thing than a true work tool. Ford boasted recently that the 2018 F-150 3.0-liter Power Stroke diesel will have an estimated fuel economy rating of 30 mpg highway in two-wheel drive form.

Perhaps at this point, it is worth mentioning that customers can get into a 2018 F-250 4×4 XL with the 6.7L Power Stroke diesel for $46,100 including destination, putting the cheapest half-ton diesel $310 more expensive than the least costly three-quarter ton unit. Of course, the level of amenities cannot be compared between an XL and Lariat but, in terms of actual capability, this is certainly turning into a case of getting more for less.

Head-scratchingly, Ford is busy touting a best-in-class payload of 2020 lbs for the XL and XLT fleet applications, meaning that while John Q. Public won’t be able to get a half-ton diesel stripper, people who fill out government forms in triplicate are likely to turn a key in such a machine. Perhaps they’ll make it to dealer lots in 2020. They will certainly show up on the used market before too long.

F-Series pickup trucks continue to rule the roost in terms of sales, with the company moving 87,011 of the machines last month alone. That works out to very nearly to a unit being sold every fifteen seconds, assuming a 12-hour working day at dealerships, seven days a week.

The 2018 Ford F-150 with all-new 3.0-liter Power Stroke diesel engine will begin shipping to dealers next month.