Hi, I'm want to buy an F250 w/ a utility body and I need it to have a tow hitch. If I buy one that does not have one, would the same hitch that fits on a standard bed truck fit with the utility bed as well?

Also, since most of them are 5.4's, is it better to buy an '04 or older so I don't have to deal with the breaking spark plugs, or is it worth it to get an '05 for the better tranny?

Thanks.

 

It probably has the same hitch as an F-250 pickup, but you need to find out if the truck was originally a pickup or a chassis cab. It makes a difference.

The 2005+ 5.4L does have a much better transmission, plus more power, so it is worth it in my opinion.

 

I installed a Stahl Grand Challenger service body on my '01 F250. The body came with a matching bumper that was also made by Stahl and which is rated for 800/8,000# towing with the ball attached to the bumper lower plate. The body is longer than the stock pickup bed, so the bumper extends back further. In addition, the bumper is about 1 1/4" lower to the ground than the original bumper.

I used a stock Ford reciever hitch and modified it using an aftermarket reciever tube and some 1/4" plate gussets. I added lugs on the extended tube and bolted it to the bumper lower plate, too. It makes for a very sturdy setup, with the reciever rated for 1,000/10,000# and the bumper 800/8,000#. The big drawback is that the hitch is now about 8" further behind the rear axle, which is not good for handling if the trailer tongue weight is high.

I towed my 3-axle tilt trailer yesterday at about 7,000# gross wt. and it handled just fine. I had the weight distributed evenly over the whole deck, so the tongue weight wasn't bad.

Service bodies vary a lot. I have had two in the past that used stock reciever hitches. Borrow or try one from the junkyard to see if the stock one fits. F250's were not made with the parallel frame rails (cab and chassis) and all have the hop-up rear frame design. The option was "pickup box delete", but almost all service bodied pickups came from the factory with stock pickup boxes installed, so either way, the standard reciever hitch will fit the frame bolt holes. The only question is if the service body bumper interferes with the reciever socket.