I posted results of test driving 2016 crew cabs in short, long, and dually configurations in the 2017 forum, but would like to get thoughts from the broader audience here.

Test Drive Feedback:
The trucks I drove all had different tire pressures. Short 55 psi f/r, Long 75psi f / 90psi r (that was a surprise); dually 65 psi f/r)

Driving:
1. The short bed was the worst riding of the three. The bumps were much more jarring and it had a near constant jiggle at most speeds. Wife and kids said it was not tolerable.
2. The dually was in the middle of the pack. It took bumps better, but also had a near constant jiggle at most speeds; the jiggle was especially noticeable at highway speeds.
3. The long-bed SRW had the best ride by far - not by a little, but nearly night and day. Smooth at all speeds, and bumps were much softer. (And this is with 90 PSI in the rear tires!)

I was shocked that the long bed, even with overinflated tires, rode so much better than the short. I was interested in a short bed before test driving the three, but unless the 2017 short beds ride a lot better, I'll get a long bed SRW.

Was my experience a fluke or is this generally the case?

 

WHAT was the spring package...????????


my 250 had 4 spring type for the front
and I think 2 for the rear....


mine is a supercab, longbed. with towing and camper package...
mine can have 4,000 in the bed... it has a 6,100 pound limit on the rear axle..
and RIDES very HARD empty.. maybe harder then the short bed you tried..
and I run 50 psi in all 4 tires empty.


my point is its NOT the Truck... its what spring package installed.
and was it a Gas engine or a Diesel... again spring packages.

 

Lots of variables to consider. Different suspension packages are going to have a direct affect on ride quality as well as wheel base, but yes, generally speaking a long wheel base is going to ride smoother than a short wheel base.
You took a more thoughtful approach than most people test driving new vehicles, but to make it truly valid, you'll need to compare apples to apples and oranges to oranges. In other words, if you are trying to determine the affect of wheelbase on ride quality, everything else on the comparison trucks has to be identical, right down to the chrome option packages, since overall vehicle weight will also influence how the truck rides.
It's due to this difficulty that most people simply drive different models until they find one they like.
I'd identify exactly what I wanted in my truck, such as option packages, cargo capacity, etc. that isn't negotiable, then try different trucks with those gotta haves to arrive at one I liked.

 

As a general rule a longbox will ride smoother than a shortbox. As said, the truck setup is what makes the ride. A lifted suspension usually smooths out the ride if the proper parts are used.

 

I need to check the pressure in my tires and drop them down if they are at max. I won't be towing for a while.

 

Both srw trucks had the same 20" tires. Both had the same 3 primary leaf springs, the long bed had the normal F350 overload spring. Both had 4" blocks in the back.

The difference was very, very noticible. I'd like to thoughts on whether there is normally this dramatic of a difference between short and long, or was this a fluke.

I plan to wait until October to order so I can repeat this test with the 2017. I would expect the stiffer frame to benefit the long bed truck even more.

 

you did not say anything of FRONT springs.... it a large part in ride...


snow plow package
camper package
tow package
diesel engine package
gas engine package


and that is just the front springs and shocks.


and 3 leaf is not same on all trucks.. again weight packages..


camper or no camper... small gas tank .. large gas tank...


it all matters.

 

Good points. More data
Short bed: F250 platinum, 6.7, snow plow package, FX4
Long bed: F350 Lariat, 6.7, FX4, no snow plow package

Thanks for pointing that out. Maybe the snow plow package played a major role in the poor ride of the short bed. I'm still very interested in opinions on the ride difference in general between a short and long bed crew cab with the 6.7. I won't have the front spring upgrade in my truck.

 

I'll throw in another thing that can be misleading.

The ride quality, especially bumpy roads, is drastically worse in the back seat than it is in front, both wheel bases, it's almost comical when towing a trailer. Passengers in the back bounce up and down a lot which is just the way it is, just don't want you to be surprised some day.

 

This is very true, on our recent trip towing the camper, my wife moved to the back seat and let my oldest son up front, she immediately started complaining every time we hit some rough pavement, next stop, she was back up front.

 

We have two otherwise identical regular cab long bed F250's at work, but one has the snow plow package, the other does not. The truck with the plow package is brutal when it comes to ride, it is like there is no suspension at all. The one without the plow package rides noticeably better, but still is not pleasant to drive. These are not FX4 equipped. Neither has the camper package, both are gas engines.

Unless you are going to hang a plow on the front of these trucks, I recommend not getting the plow package!

 

My 2015 f250 short bed crew cab has the FX4, snowplow and camper packages. It feels like it has no springs or shocks on it. It's probably the worst riding vehicle I've ever owned.

My wife and kids don't even want to ride in it any more. I have had several Ram trucks, they ride so much better that there's no comparison. The wife has directed me to dispose of this truck and go back to a Ram, so I'm looking at new Cummins trucks- suits me just fine :-)

 

I think springs have the most to do with ride quality, but wheelbase also matters. I drive a '16 CCLB for work, and there's a noticeable amount of frame "shimmy" that occurs after a moderate to severe bump in the road. My '08 and '11 CCSB trucks didn't have this nearly to the same degree. I think that's because the longer frame can flex more.

 

My long bed does shimmy, especially on rhythmic concrete roads where the expansion joints are spaced at about the same length of the truck, but yes, regular random bumps make things oscillate too.

Funny thing is, which makes a lot of sense, whenever I'm hooked up to a trailer, it's all rock solid. The extra weight adds the stress to the truck, loads it in a way that makes everything stiffer. Luckily I almost never drive more than 40 miles with an unloaded truck. Doesn't help most others though.

They're big heavy trucks that handle work. They're made to operate at their best at 10-11,500k. Driving around at 7-8k isn't really fair to them.

 

Have the ext cab and long bed with camper pkg, ride is ok but taking truck down the same road with camper hooked up is nite and day. Way better with load on, almost car like ride.