I would say it depends on the truck you buy, or any plans you have to modify. If you get a truck like mine with the smaller tires, you will be happy with 3.73's. If you buy a truck with the 34" tires, or plan to add larger tires, then get a 4.30 truck. I'm wanting to go to a larger tire, but worried about the performance loss with the 3.73s I have. My dad has the same wheel and tire package as I do with 4.30's, his truck is a different animal, and gets better city mpg. He can't touch me on empty hwy mpg, as I've seen up to 17mpg and I live in East Tennessee with lots of big hills, but he isn't far behind. If I had it to do over again, I would have ordered my exact truck with 4.30's, there is really no downside to them, but lots to gain with them.

To sum it up, all 4.30's are great, 3.73 is not bad, especially with the smaller tires. But realize if you get a lariet with 20" wheels and 3.73's, it will pull your load no problem, but 6th gear will be useless while towing, and will be doing a lot more downshifting even empty, which lowers your mpg.

 

cycler,

I don't know the kind of terrain you're primarily going to be driving in. If it's always mountain grades 100% of the time, then maybe 4.30 gears (for your *relatively light* 8K weight I mean). If you're primarily going to be flat ground, or rolling hills with occasional mountain towing, then I would go 3.73's all the way. Especially for an empty daily driver that is only pulling a load a few times a year. And all this is assuming you're not going to put on a lift kit and go with 35+" tires (or larger).

What part of the country are you in?

Also, that gross weight on your toy hauler sounds really light to me. Are you sure you're really looking at 7-8K gross weight on a toy hauler? Not dry weight? Those things can get real heavy, real fast. But even for 10K and an occasional puller, you're going to be fine with the 3.73 gears.

I think most of the folks saying "get the 4.30's or you'll hate the truck, etc, etc..." have never actually tried pulling with one, and are just repeating what someone else wrote on the interwebs. The '11 and up 6 speed transmission has a ridiculously low 1st gear (and that's a good thing), and the gear ratios are much closer together than earlier transmissions. That coupled with the wide torque band of the 6.2 makes for a great gasser powertrain for towing. Also, 5th and 6th gears are both overdrive on the '11 and up trans. Nice for empty weight, daily driver duty.

Whatever gear set you go with, manual mode on the transmission is your best buddy. Handy as sliced bread, as the saying goes. I started off just letting the truck do it's thing in drive and tow/haul. But now, I use manual mode almost exclusively while towing anything 6K or heavier. Keeps the transmission from hunting through gears, or downshifting early or unnecessarily. Also, downshifting to descend steep grades is a huge plus. Keeps your brakes from getting hot.

Wind resistance is going to be you're biggest mpg killer. More so than weight being pulled, unless steep grade pulling. You will see a significant drop in mpg pulling at 75 mph, vs 65 mph. Same can be said, but to a lessor degree for just driving solo/empty. These trucks are as aerodynamic as a barn driven sideways, and adding a trailer to the back only makes it worse.

I just completed 900+ miles, mix of loaded (700) and unloaded (200+) miles, mix of rolling hills, flat ground, and steep mountain grades, and my trip average mpg was 9.5. I'm pulling 12K. On open highways I averaged between 65-70 mph. Some of the mountain grades were 30 mph switchbacks, both uphill and downhill, and I had no problems keeping up with traffic, or accelerating back up to posted speed limits after hitting the straights again.

Thankfully on this trip, we didn't encounter any serious headwinds, or that 9.5 mpg number would be much lower. My 5er sits just *barely* under 13 feet high, and a stiff headwind is a real mpg killer for me. Worst to date was pulling on flat ground, into a 30 mph headwind, I got 5 mpg. That one stung the wallet pretty hard, you could watch the gas gauge moving towards "E". But, I had no problems maintaining my road speed in those conditions ( I think I was in 4th gear @ 60 mph at the time).

 

Outside of the initial cost, is past history with diesel (or specifically Ford diesel) the reason many are choosing the 6.2 option? I too am looking for a SD for the same reason of towing, I am hedging towards the 6.7 but wow a lot of people love the 6.2s.

 

For me, it's a combination of things really.

First, I don't pull heavy all the time. If I did, I would seriously consider the 6.7. The highest percentage of my driven miles are unloaded or lightly loaded miles.

Second, my truck is my daily driver, and my commute is a short one. Bad combination for a new diesel, with all the emissions/regen headaches.

Third, I don't like any of the emissions crap found on all of the new diesel engines, not just the Fords. I know it's gov't mandated, but it's turned a reliable platform (diesel engine), into a huge p.i.t.a. .

Fourth, the extra expenses related to owning a diesel, both in up front costs and higher maintenance costs over the lifetime of owning the truck. I don't think you'd ever pay off the increased costs with mpg, before the truck fell apart around you and you had to buy another one anyway. Especially these days, with the cost of diesel being so close (comparatively) to the cost of gas.

Lastly, up here with the cold climate, it's just easier to deal with in a gas truck, vs a diesel one. I don't have to worry about fuel issues, water in fuel, fuel gelling, getting the truck to actually warm up and run well, etc. I don't have to plug in my gasser in the winter, even when low temps drop into the -40 F's. Just climb in and crank her up. Let it warm up for 5-10 min, and off I go.

 

My thanks again for your replies. I am really reading and re-reading every word. To answer some questions; I live in NJ, but, most trips I would like to take will include rolling hills and mountains, no doubt. Think Blue Ridge, Finger Lake region (NY), NE, Missouri (Ozarks), and you get the idea. As for the toy hauler, the two or three I am looking at have a weight of 6k lbs, give or take, no bigger than 22'. Add 600-800 for a motorcycle, and miscellaneous gear, is how I came up with 7500 lbs. Now, I didn't figure in full tanks in the TH, water, and so on. Once again, thanks for the replies, they are very helpful. Oh, I will say that the truck will stay bone stock. No desire for bigger tires or any of that, but, definitely a tuner chip.

 

For your use, stay with the 3.73s & get a 5star tuner. That's what I've got in my 2012 with a 6.2 & 18" stock tires. Took a trip in June, pulling our 11,000# 5th wheel from NW Ohio all the way to Philly & back. No issues. Averaged 8.5 MPG for the whole trip & that included leaving the truck idle with the A/C on for the dog at every tourist stop along the way. The truck is my daily driver & I get 12.5-13 MPG in the winter, using 4wd about 1/4 the time, 15-15.5 in the summer. Dash is showing 12.5 MPG average since new. 48,000 miles now. Never had any mechanical issues.

 

You're getting a lot of info here so here's my $.02.

What type of toy hauler are you looking at. There are some where you would not need to get rid of your truck. I have an outback 230rs toy hauler (which I need to sell) It's not a conventional looking one but works great. We put a golf cart in it. 5400 lbs dry and mid 7's if you load it way up. I towed it with a 2005 F150 3.73 gears, got 9 a 9.5 mpgs towing and it did great.



If you have any questions let me know.

 

The difference in mpg's between the 3.73 and 4.30's is not much and I have proved that out already.
I did a ton of research on that very question before ordering my truck and I made the decision to go with the 4.30's.
I don't tow all the time but when I do I wanted the better performance the 4.30's give. The rest of the time, if you do the math you will find the difference you will pay in gas between the two to be negligible.
What really baffles me is why the dealers order the majority, if not all, of their 6.2's with the 3.73's.
I have posted my "real world" fuel mileagr results over on the 6.2 section of this forum if you are interested and I only expect it to get a little better as I only have 2200 miles on it so far.

 

Thanks for posting, and thanks to all the others who shared their experiences. WyoBull, I read your post in the 6.2 section. Impressive fuel mileage for sure. My wife and I started this looking at 20' toy haulers, but, think we will be going a bit bigger, want a forward bedroom.

 

I'd hold out for the 2017 gas 250. The new transmission is far superior for the daily driver truck. I can't think of a single reason to get a '16 other than price, and if you're using it for daily driving, than the difference in cost will be easily paid off in improvements. The 250 will be overkill, and you'll have a wonderful tow platform. Don't even take a great deal on a diesel, you won't want it.

 

Unless you don't like the overgrown f150 look of the '17. I've said it before, but with its separate cab, and all steel construction, the '16 might be remembered as the last true superduty. I have nothing against aluminum at all, in fact I work for the aluminum company making the aluminum coils for the superduty body, and I like the '15^ f150s, but I don't want to look like every other truck going down the road either. As far as the transmission, I have 0 complaints about mine, it's been a proven reliable piece, shared with the diesel. The upcoming generations is not the same as the diesels, I wonder why?



Is that a 150 or 250? Oh wait, I see that awful vent in the fender, it's a 250.

J/k, for anyone that's ordering a new '17, I'm sure there will be lots of improvements over the out going generation, and the look might grow on me some, thats strictly at matter of opinion. I just prefer the 11-16 look better. It's kinda like the f150, I like the '15 and up, but before that, I loved and still do, the 04-08 body style and hated the 09-14, they never did grow on me, and would never of bought one.

 

I'd be interested in knowing how/why you think the new unproven, lighter built transmission is far superior for daily driving then the overbuilt well proven existing six speed? I get the point of it, the diesel tranny behind the gasser is overbuilt so I assume Ford has seen an opportunity to lighten things up, grab some mileage, but I bet it saves them some money too.

 

Frantz, I ordered my 2016 late this past spring and got one at the end of the current model builds. I could have easily waited to buy a new 2017 but to be honest, I think they look like an overgrown F150. I have always liked the body style of one I bought.
As far as improvements, a lot of that is in the eye of the beholder but since you work for Ford, I would certainly expect you to tout the new model. I do the same for the company I work for.
My 6.2 gasser with the 4.30 rear end is great for me and I have posted about my experience with mileage and I have happy with it.
As far as the technology goes, mine has plenty for me. Hell, I don't utilize a lot of what Ford Sync has to offer but will get more immersed in it over time.
I would not hesitate to recommend to anyone a 2016 Super Duty based on my experience but I understand completely why you promote the 2017's.

 

Just wanted to say thanks for all you guys who posted in this thread. There is a ton of info and I can assure you all I will read it over and again. Right now the wife and I are still undecided about towing a trailer or going Class C, with a trailer for the motorcycle. If a new truck is in the picture, I would not hesitate of buying a 2016 SD, with the 6.2. Even if I go 26' with a toy hauler, the truck would be fine, plus my daily driver and as I will be retired, not too concerned about daily mpg. Thanks again, Cycler.

 

Unless one is trying to build a maximum unloaded hwy mpg truck there is no downside to the 4.30 gears, only upside. I feel most use their SD for work, often with some load, towing, truck beds, around town driving, running tires like the stock 275/65/20. In all of these situations the 4.30 outperforms the 3.73.
I offer my best SD opinion based on all of my SD experience and what I know from my local dealer, shops and friends.