posted this in the wrong forum befor, so im giving it another shot, im new to full size ford trucks but im looking to upgrade from my ranger to a full size ford and i have a few questions. as far as the 250 and 350 deisel go, whats the big difference. besides the front axle what sets them appart. some people tell me thats it, but others say the frame is different too. is the 250 lighter, and will it get better fuel efficientcy. if so how will this effect my ability to tow. anything you guys can tell me about the benefits of one or the other is great, cause i was thinking about solid axle swapping a 250, but if itll be the same as a 350 then I might as well just buy one of those. also what kind of fuel efficiency can i expect from this model of 7.3 psd in say a 250 single cab. Thanks for all you info

 

I have a 97 F250 with a 5 speed 3.55 gears and 35in tires, i average about 16mpg and about 12 when towing. If i remember correctly the front axle and the rear springs were diffrent, but i could be wrong.

http://community.webshots.com/user/pogrelis97

 

I would just look for a f-350 because of the front axle. The d-50 that came in the f-250s is prone to alignment issues. Plus the d-60 is A LOT stronger.

Also since your shopping around the f-250 only came in a 4 door shortbed. You had to get a f-350 to get the 4 door longbed.

Other than that there is a difference in brakes and suspension. I think all the frames are the same

My f-250 x-cab 5 speed with 4.10 gears will get 18mpg empty crusing at 70 and towing really depends on what I'm hooked up to. Got a whole 8mpg towing a 310 backhoe and 24ft trailer (it was pretty heavy)