What’s It Like to Drive a Ford F-650 Dump Truck?

By Jerry Perez - June 20, 2016

You may have played with little dump trucks when you were a kid, and in fact, some of you may have grown up to drive real life dump trucks as adults. In case you’re not one of them, here’s a little peek into the 2016 Ford F-650 dump truck.

Jason Cannon, from the Commercial Carrier Journal, recently had the opportunity to spend some time behind the wheel of this life-sized Tonka truck, and even put the massive dump bed to good use. Some people just get to have all the fun, huh?

If you’ve ever been curious of what it’s like to drive a serious piece of commercial machinery, it turns out that it may not be all that different than your run-of-the-mill heavy duty pickup truck. According to Cannon, the F-650 dump truck borrows most of its dash panels, gauge cluster, auxiliary equipment switches, controls, even cabin size is similar to that of a 4-door Ford Super Duty.

While the 2016 model dump truck received a slight front fascia re-design to look a little more modern and even “classy,” the truck as a whole sends none other than a brutish and capable vibe to onlookers. You definitely don’t want to get caught in this thing’s blind spot.

The F-650 is equipped with a 6.8 liter Triton V-10 gasoline engine, which pumps out 320 horsepower and 460 lb.-ft. of torque, and features a 8,500-lb. front axle, and a 17,500-lb. rear axle, for a total combined GVWR of 26,000-lb.