ATS Road Trip: First Look at the 2023 Ford F-150 Lariat
After the Crown Victoria in November, SCS Software has moved on to the most important pickup in the Ford Car Pack. The truck coming to Road Trip is the 2023 Ford F-150 Lariat.
The real truck
SCS keeps the history short. The F-150 belongs to the F-Series that Ford started in the late 1940s, and it has been America’s best-selling vehicle since 1981. Over the years it has gone from a V8 workhorse to a range with modern powertrains, better efficiency and performance versions, and it is used for everything from work to family duty to off-road trips. The studio uses that history to explain why it picked this truck, and it is hard to argue with the choice.
What we know about the ATS version
The goal, according to SCS, is to get the proportions and the exterior right and to give the cabin the same level of care. The screenshots back that up. The interior shots show a two-tone cabin with brown leather seats, a large central screen and a wide centre console.
There will also be factory-inspired paint from the 2023 range. SCS names three of them:
- Agate Black Metallic
- Iconic Silver Metallic
- Atlas Blue Metallic
Other colours and further customisation options are promised, without details yet. The screenshots already show the truck in red, white, blue and a bronze shade.
The engine is still open
SCS is clear that the F-150 is a work in progress. The exterior and interior models are still being refined, and the team has not decided which engine configurations will represent the truck in game. The aim is performance and handling that feel right for a modern full-size pickup.
For what it is worth, the sound recording list from April 2025 asked for a 2023 F-150 with the 5.0 V8 and a Raptor with the 3.5 V6. That tells us what SCS wanted to record, not what it will ship.
Our take
Of the four Fords, this is the one most likely to become a daily driver in ATS, so it makes sense that SCS is taking its time over the drivetrain. After the long Crown Victoria spec sheet, the lack of numbers here is noticeable, but it is the honest answer if the decision has not been made. We expect the engine to be the main news when the F-150 comes back.
Source: SCS Software blog. Images and video: SCS Software.
