Tow Vehicle Question - F250

[109jb]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

I use a GMC Duramax crew cab and it is my everyday vehicle. It gets better fuel mileage loaded or unloaded, towing or not towing than any full size gas truck. Has good acceleration. It is a comfortable ride with the long wheelbase. Etc. My wife and I use it as our "date" car. If I never towed anything but still wanted a full size truck it would be a diesel over a gas truck any day.

edit: Oh yeah, traffic. I drive in Chicago traffic all the time. No problem at least for me. As far as parking lots, it could be a problem if you are the type that has to park in the very front of every lot.

 

[airmail]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

I have a F150 King Ranch Super Crew (Screw) with a 5.4 and 3.73 rear end. I tow a 28 foot Coachman trailer that my wife has loaded with 1/2 the house now I'm figuring I'm close to 7,000 lbs. The truck is rated real close to 10,000. I'm real comfortable towing this kind of weight. We towed the trailer up from Florida to Pittsburgh with 5 people in the truck. Trailer loaded and the air on all the way and it worked fine, plenty of power. I also have the right hitch and stabilizer which makes the world of difference. The only time the truck is working hard is on big hills and thats only if you want to push it to 65 mph or more. Stopping is the same you need good trailer brakes and and you need to have them adjusted right. If the truck is rated for 7400 lbs I would not exceed that but I would make sure what that truck is rated for and what the real weight is you are towing. Hate for you to miss a good deal on a good truck just because you are not sure about the specs on the truck or boat.

One other thing you are not supposed to tow in overdrive. I do sometimes on flat roads but never on hills.

My truck is a everyday rider to and from work I'm very comfortable in it around town or out on the road. Just like somebody said my towing is only a very small part of what I use it for. If you get a monster truck for a couple of weeks out of the year you still have to live with it the rest of the time. I can recommend the Ford F150 for me it works like a charm.

Good luck I'm sure you will fine the right vehicle for you.

The only complaint I had was those darn adjustable brake pedals. I was back to the dealer many times till a Ford engineer finally got involved and fixed them. It took awhile but they did get the job done.

 

[JoLin]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

I use a GMC Duramax crew cab and it is my everyday vehicle. It gets better fuel mileage loaded or unloaded, towing or not towing than any full size gas truck. Has good acceleration. It is a comfortable ride with the long wheelbase. Etc. My wife and I use it as our "date" car. If I never towed anything but still wanted a full size truck it would be a diesel over a gas truck any day.

edit: Oh yeah, traffic. I drive in Chicago traffic all the time. No problem at least for me. As far as parking lots, it could be a problem if you are the type that has to park in the very front of every lot.

As has been stated a couple times, to each his own. I'm not knocking diesels, just don't want one for myself.

 

[quackaddict1]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

That 2006 1500HD sounds like a good option, I would assume it has the factory tow package?

Unlike the Ford's, Chevy has different transmissions for its power plants. My old man has a 2001 Chevy 2500 that is a "HD" without the badge, sort of a heavy 3/4 ton or a light half ton, anyways with the 6.0 gas motor his transmission is a step up from my 05' 1500. The best transmission GM uses is the Allison in the diesels, but you don't want or really need that.

Back on point, the 6.0 in my old mans pickup will drag around our 6 ton crawler and triple axle trailer, you know it's there but that same setup (or close brethren) is in the 1500HD your looking at, and your not looking to haul near the weight.

FYI the key to transmission life is using common sense, watching your shifts to make sure your not shifting up and down all the time. With a load of that size, you will need to use the tow/haul function, which changes your shift points and won't let you go into overdrive in most circumstances.

BTW his gets somewhere in the range of 14-16 empty, with the crawler it drinks fuel. Like 10-12 range. The new ones may be better, hell my 1500 gets 20 empty on the highway.

 

[S.McGee]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

I don't want to start a fight or make people angery, I do agree that you shouldn't exceed the rating, but I also know for a fact that they take at least 10% off what the safe working load is. So if it says 1000lbs you can actually pull 1100 lbs safetly and not cause damage to all the other drive train and other suspension as well.

But I do agree not to go past the reconmened rating.

 

[lucky7]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

i;ll add my 2 cents here. i have a f150 5.4 screw, 4x4 love the truck, pull a 3500 pound boat, 75 miles 10 times a year, maybe more, allways deselect overdrive, 65mph, 115,000 miles on it and i need a 2600 dollar tranny.
i think a much heavier load would have the motor screaming all the time except for down hills. i use a f350 7.4 diesel for pulling equipment, its night and day. i understand you dont want a diesel, but i would suggest you look into a v10. and change your tranny fluid.

 

[This_lil_fishy]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

I agree with others, the chassis is up to the task, but you might find the motor a bit weak for that load, certainly long trips. My f150 tows my 3000-4000 boat just fine, and I have towed almost 10000lbs with it (5.4 w/3.53 rear) but just around town for a big move. It can do it, but at what cost.

Ian

 

[quackaddict1]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

That gas V-10 isnt a good option IMO, if you need that much power your better off with a diesel. They get terrible gas economy but they do deliver plenty of power.

Whoever let Ford put that 5.4 in the F-250 should be shot, if you need the suspension and the rest of the truck, you need more power.

 

[dave11]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

That gas V-10 isnt a good option IMO, if you need that much power your better off with a diesel. They get terrible gas economy but they do deliver plenty of power.

I have the V10 and think it is a great option. I get what I consider to be good mileage, and I never worry about power.

15 MPG highway - not towing
10 MPG city - not towing

11.9 MPG highway - Towing
??? MPG city - towing

 

[JoLin]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

After looking at truck specs ad nauseum, I'm zeroing in on Chevy/GMC 2500HD-series extended or crew-cab trucks as my vehicle of choice. Best in class GCWR @ 16,000 lbs. Appears they all come stock with a 4.10 axle ratio and ability (with tow package) to pull in the 10,000-lb range. Couple it with the 6.0 V8 (also standard), and I should have a usable package that's easy to live with every day.

I'm actively searchiong right now for a good example, 2004-2006 model year with mileage around 50K. There are a few around and I'm setting up visits. Wish me luck!

Hurts like hell to give up my '96 1500. 146K miles and it runs like a champ.

 

[skargo]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

I think you already answered your question on how it will pull the load......

its rated at 7400 but you plan to pull 8000lbs.....

Yeah, I don't see where the problem is. It would be over loaded, unsafe, and inconsiderate to everyone else on the road.

Get the proper tow rig.

 

[Rancherlee]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

I don't see why the manufactures have gone DOWNHILL with the tow ratings on the smaller engines. Its like they want to FORCE you to pony up the cash to get the biggest engine available. Hell, I STILL have my 83' F250 4x4 Xcab Manual transmission truck with 3.55 gears with a 121hp 300 Inline Six under the hood. 260,000 miles and 50% of that is plowing snow or pulling trailers. This truck is rated at just under 10k towing capacity. I don't see how a New 3/4 ton truck with 300+ hp and stronger gears can be rated for only 7400#. Granted my truck slows up on just about any grade and struggles to pull 9500# (skidsteer on a trailer) on flat ground it still gets the job done. Hell, Ford put a 7300# rating on my 4.6L Mountaineer and that isn't even a 1/2 ton equivalent.

 

[JoLin]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

Yeah, I don't see where the problem is. It would be over loaded, unsafe, and inconsiderate to everyone else on the road.

Get the proper tow rig.

No problem, Skargo- I admitted as much in this thread about a week ago. Try to keep up

 

[Andy in NY]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

After looking at truck specs ad nauseum, I'm zeroing in on Chevy/GMC 2500HD-series extended or crew-cab trucks as my vehicle of choice. Best in class GCWR @ 16,000 lbs. Appears they all come stock with a 4.10 axle ratio and ability (with tow package) to pull in the 10,000-lb range. Couple it with the 6.0 V8 (also standard), and I should have a usable package that's easy to live with every day.

I'm actively searchiong right now for a good example, 2004-2006 model year with mileage around 50K. There are a few around and I'm setting up visits. Wish me luck!

Hurts like hell to give up my '96 1500. 146K miles and it runs like a champ.

My buddy has one of those... he towed me back from CT... flatbed trailer 3800# and my bravada 4100#, averaged 8 mpg.

 

[skargo]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

No problem, Skargo- I admitted as much in this thread about a week ago. Try to keep up

But it's hard man! :redface:

 

[quackaddict1]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

I have the V10 and think it is a great option. I get what I consider to be good mileage, and I never worry about power.

15 MPG highway - not towing
10 MPG city - not towing

11.9 MPG highway - Towing
??? MPG city - towing

If thats your style fine, the V-10's are there for a reason, but I know for a fact you can add 3-4 mpg to what you just listed by going with the now gone 7.3 diesel they has. This comes from actual driving experience.

At some point the benefits of gas don't outwiegh the savings, I believe it is at the point where you need a V-10 to do your work. The economy has always been terrible with those, and I have driven no less than 4 of them. Finding a good diesel is well worth the time IMO when you need to get that much HP out of em. Ford should have made a big 8 like GM did to keep some fuel economy.

 

[dave11]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

If thats your style fine, the V-10's are there for a reason, but I know for a fact you can add 3-4 mpg to what you just listed by going with the now gone 7.3 diesel they has. This comes from actual driving experience.

At some point the benefits of gas don't outwiegh the savings, I believe it is at the point where you need a V-10 to do your work. The economy has always been terrible with those, and I have driven no less than 4 of them. Finding a good diesel is well worth the time IMO when you need to get that much HP out of em. Ford should have made a big 8 like GM did to keep some fuel economy.

I have driven diesel trucks something over 3 million miles. I like to fool myself into thinking I know a little bit about the pros and cons of both diesel and gas engines. Diesel pickups are great with lots of torque and better efficiency. If that is what you want and/or need, great. Without getting into a long dissertation, the gas V10 engine was far superior to a diesel for my application.

 

[gostephen]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

just a question is it a light duty f250 or a heavy duty f250 ford made 2 different models this year, 1 had a towing cap of about 7400lbs the other had a much higher cap. the light duty has basically the same drive train as an f150 but a heavier suspension, the heavy duty has a heavier drive train.

 

[skargo]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

I have driven diesel trucks something over 3 million miles. I like to fool myself into thinking I know a little bit about the pros and cons of both diesel and gas engines. Diesel pickups are great with lots of torque and better efficiency. If that is what you want and/or need, great. Without getting into a long dissertation, the gas V10 engine was far superior to a diesel for my application.

A gas v10 is NEVER superior to a diesel in ANY application.

 

[dave11]

Re: Tow Vehicle Question - F250

A gas v10 is NEVER superior to a diesel in ANY application.

Tell that to the Ford Motor Company.

What are your credentials to make a statement like that?