Ford has been selling the F-Series for ages now and people love it. The fact that Ford keeps updating the lineup often is also what helps keep the sales volumes ticking. The F-Series is an extensive lineup with more than 20 variants on offer that caters to the needs of every truck buyer. Apart from this, Ford has also worked in collaboration with multiple tuners, and it even sells some of those trucks through its own dealerships. One of them is the special-edition Black Ops F-250 by Tuscany. This beast is based on the Ford F-250 and it looks stellar to say the least. As the name suggests, this truck is a tribute to the Black Op veterans, and for every Black Ops truck sold, Tuscany makes a donation to the Wounded Veterans Organizations - that's something we can all get on board with!

Exterior

Upfront, the F-250 Black Ops looks exactly like the Ford F-250, albeit a few prominent changes. While the logo badge is left in the same place, the Blue Oval logo itself is left black, err., blank. The waffle grille is left untouched as well. The vertical headlights on either side of the grille feature C-shaped LED Daytime Running Lights. Since Tuscany has gone with an all-black theme, why didn't it add smoked headlamps? Well, I like it the way it is.

The bumper houses a bull bar, again, finished in matte black type material. LED foglamps are present on either side, while the bullbar houses two LED auxiliary lights. However, I'm a little amused with the way Tuscany installed the bullbar. The bottom bar is ridiculously close to tow hooks on the front bumper. Doesn't that make the tow hooks completely useless? This is a typical 'form-over-function' instance that has rendered this feature useless. The highlight are the two huge hood scoops that give the F-250 Black Ops truck a completely different vibe. It's big enough to scare the people who spot it in their rearview mirrors.

When viewed from the side, you actually get to know how high the F-250 Black ops rides. There is no chrome element anywhere on the sides as well, not even on the wheels. Instead, he F-250 Black Ops rides on 20-inch Stealth Black Tuscany Black Ops wheels wrapped in 37-inch Toyo tires. The spokes, the hub, and the nuts are painted black to match the personality of the truck. The XL-sized wing mirrors are held by two fairly long struts that also house the turn indicators. You can extend the mirrors out help you view all the action happening at the back of the truck. Ford calls them the Powerscope Mirrors and this can be very helpful if you have a trailer hitched at the rear.

The rear is still the same, simple, and looks a little boring. The painted logo and the black shade overall saves grace, but Tuscany should have worked a little more on the rear to make it look as menacing as the front and the side profile. The exhaust tip comes with a black powder coating below the tailgate step. As for the taillights, they follow a design similar to the headlights and break the 'black' monotony to a certain extent.

Ford is a market leader and I don't understand why it still uses a simple power tailgate when the competition is miles ahead already. GMC has the MultiPro tailgate, while the Ram has the MultiFunction tailgate. And, what does Ford have? A Tailgate Step that can be deployed when you pull out the top edge of the tailgate when it is lowered. The F-Series has been the best-selling vehicle for 42 years in a row, and this kind of complacency on Ford's part is unacceptable. Even the Honda Ridgeline comes with a fancier tailgate! Just imagine how cool it would be if the truck came with a 'talented' tailgate.

Interior

Just like any other tuner-modified truck, the interior more or less remains stock except for some branding here and there. For instance, the SVE Syclone is based on the Canyon and is not a well-loaded truck per se. But the tuner didn't bother to make it a luxurious proposition. As for this Tuscany, they have it covered anyway. The overall feel of the cabin is pretty nice even in the stock form, and the Tuscany additions make it even better. This truck comes with American Flag and Black Ops patches embroidered on the headrests. The biggest selling point is the use of Carbon Fiber on the dashboard, doors, and center console. Few carbon fiber inserts can be found on the steering wheel as well. Even the floor mats are Black Ops embroidered. Another Black Ops special feature is the Deep Tinted Windows. This is going to look like a badass, bulletproof truck from the outside with all the windows rolled up!

Talking about the stock cabin, Ford provides one of the best interior spaces out there in the segment. The cabin looks and feels great while being functional at the same time. If I had to nitpick, it's got to be the cluttered steering wheel. And, if you have a black theme inside anyway, like the F-250 Black Ops, things feel a little more congested. There's no word on whether the truck features Ford's eight-inch SYNC 3 touchscreen infotainment system or not.

Drivetrain

The F-250 Black Ops can be availed in either of the two engine options - a 6.2-liter, V-8 mill that churns out 385 ponies and 430 pound-feet of twist, or a 6.7-liter, Power Stroke turbodiesel V-8 engine that develops 450 horsepower and 935 pound-feet of torque! On paper, it may have not beaten Ram's four-digit mark, but it is more than enough in real-world conditions. In cars, high torque figure helps you achieve faster 0-60 mph figures, but in trucks, it helps you pull thousands of pounds of cargo from a standstill without breaking a sweat.

That explains the high stance that we spoke about in the exterior section. It also features special heavy-duty, Tuscany-built shock absorbers with black boots. And undercoating protection for the same is also offered as standard. The F-250 Black Ops also features dual steering stabilizers. A steering stabilizer's main function is to control the sideways movement and oscillation of the wheels. Another interesting thing is that the tuner has recalibrated the tire sensors and speedometer as well. This is done to provide correct information since the truck is now wrapped in much bigger tires.

It will be offered in both, two-wheel-drive setup, as well as all-wheel-drive configurations. Both the drive configurations and engines are mated to a six-speed automatic gearbox. It is high time Ford offers the 10-speed gearbox on this engine to fully optimize the torque available at your disposal. Tuscany has also not provided the towing and payload ratings for the F-250 Black Ops. I'm listing out the ratings from the stock truck assuming they have not changed with the additional equipment. The truck from the Blue Oval comes with a towing capacity of 35,000 pounds and a maximum payload capacity of 7,640 pounds.

2020 Ford F-250 Black Ops by Tuscany drivetrain specifications

Pricing

The Ford F-250 Black Ops comes with a starting price of $89,000.

Final Thoughts

The F-250 Black Ops looks absolutely smashing. However, the all-black theme may not please everyone. The company says that for every Black ops produced, it donates $200 to the wounded veterans' organization. Now, this is a noble thought by the company to give a small part of its proceedings to the people who served our country selflessly. Another advantage of going with company-approved tuners is that their products don't void or hamper the original warranty. For the record, the warranty is 3 years/36,000 miles. The fact that you can choose to have it any of the two engine options and in any drive configuration makes it a tempting proposition. The truck can be purchased through Ford dealerships and can be serviced there as well.