I just purchased a 30' boat and want to buy a 2008 4X4 F250 to tow it with more ease. Boat weighs approximately 8000 pounds. Will the F250 be enough when I want to pull the boat out of the water? I was thinking of the 2008 Ford F350 DuallyCrew Cab to be on the safe side. Is that too much? Ramp conditions are not always the best...and I really don't want to struggle. Any suggestions appreciated.

 

Either should do just fine with your boat. The real question might be how far are you pulling your boat, do you have several passengers that will be riding with you and/or what other purpose will your truck serve other than boat transport do you have a preference on being gas or diesel? A little more info would help.

 

gas or diesel doesn't matter, yep...several passengers and boat would be hauled 15 miles or so to the ocean...This would also be my working truck, and yes I am on the road a lot.

 

The answers to your questions that you've asked are really "it depends". I'm not trying to be a wiseguy, but there are some variables that we don't have enough information to answer directly. Like do you use your truck for anything else, i.e. work or camping? Do you want to store your truck inside your garage?

I'll give my opinion on the F250 being enough. Yes, it should be more than enough. There are very few differences between the F250 and the F350 SRW and I don't think any of those differences would be affected at that weight and purpose. Not to mention with 4x4, you have access to "LOW" gear, which gives you all the torque you would need to pull your boat out of the water.

The other thing to consider between F250 and F350 is that some states treat the F250 as any other pickup truck, where the F350 is on the edge of being commercial. My F350 is a private truck just for pleasure, yet I have to get the commercial tags and safety inspections twice a year. Just something to think about.

As far as the question of dually, I guess it really depends how far you travel, what other functions does the truck perform and do you want to store it your garage. Also some states charge extra for a 6-wheel truck to travel the roads as opposed to a 4-wheel truck. Not much, but something to consider. I don't think your boat "requires" a dually, but a lot of guys feel safer travelling long distances with the extra tires for safety in a blowout situation, not to mention stability over the long haul. Having said that, if you're going under 50 miles one-way, the SRW will serve you fine, take less gas, take less space and be generally funner to drive when you have the trailer off.

This is all my opinion and I'm sure that you'll get some good responses here to help you make your decision. In the end, you'll be happy with whatever SuperDuty you get because they are awesome trucks.

 

Thank you Hemlock...lots of good info that I will have to research and consider...thanks for the heads up...

 

Are the ramps your using paved or gravel?

The F250 seems like it would be plenty to pull that load that distance.

What work do you use truck for? Just daily driver or hauling stuff?

One piece of advise I would offer is always put truck in 4x4 before backing boat into water and when pulling boat out of water.

 

F250 or F350 doesn't matter, unless you decide you want the Dually. Others have made good points about what the truck will be doing when the boat isn't behind it. A single rear wheel, short bed will be easier to drive around in town and to park, it will be cheaper to replace 4 tires than 6, and maybe get better mileage.

Tough choice, but it may come down to what you can find. These trucks are still popular.

 

Hi,

I have a slightly smaller boat, 25 ft Nautique wakeboarding boat and I tow with a lifted F-250, 2008 diesel. Totally up to task, not an issue. I am looking to trade it on now as I'm fed up with the lift kit. One issue you should consider is the wheelbase length. I have a super cab with 6.5 box. I feel that a crew cab, 8 ft box would tow and ride much smoother. I have enquire about a dually and the advice I received is that it is a snick of an overkill but boy do they look cool...still tempted....

 

F250 is more than enough. I tow a 14K 5er with mine. It is an SRW too.

All I would recommend is to ensure it is 4x4 so you can get up the ramps.

Also ensure it has tow mirrors and the trailer brake controller.

 

Great info folks...daily driver ...the load capacity should not be an issue. My issue is with the tow...4X4 and long bed a must I see....think I will try the 250...with the boat and trailer and fuel I am guessing I would be around 10,000 pounds... Thanks again.

 

I'd think a SRW would be better than a DRW for boat ramps... more ground pressure.

 

Thanks TexasRebel...boat ramps here are wet and slimming...more ground pressure would help tremendously...SRW would be easier and more cost effective too it seems.

 

Take a close look at tires on trucks you are looking at the OEM Continental tires on the 2008 SUCK! Almost any other tire will give you better wet traction. So keep in back of your mind you might need to spend $1000+ on tires once you get truck.

Other things to keep in mind are what the gear ratio is in rear end and if it has a limited slip in rear. While the OEM limited slip differentials are not the greatest in the world mine does help out on the ramp.

Is this boat for freshwater or saltwater use? If you are in saltwater try to never get more than the rubber of your tires in the water and spray down under truck every time you launch boat. Getting the rear of your truck in saltwater on a regular basis will eat it away in no time.

SRW are also much easier to back up with trailer in tight places like parking lots and ramps where you might have to turn almost 90 degrees at top of ramp.

 

salt water...so yes maintenance will be key for me.... good stuff for me to keep in mine...thank you!

 

Consider a weight distributing hitch, and how that will work with your boat trailer. Some are easily adapted, some are not. If you have surge brakes, a WD hitch can be a problem. But electric brakes have their own problems around salt water. The nice thing about a dually is that you would not need WD for a 10k boat. For a SRW, you will either need an upgraded hitch receiver or a WD hitch to handle that much boat. The stock hitch only handles 6k# load carrying.

I'm not a boat guy, but I've heard repeatedly that a dually is terrible on slimy boat ramps.