I'm debating on selling my 350 and getting a 450/550 for bigger towing (MacDaddy RV)... curious to get feedback on any headaches I could expect on insurance, plating, in-town parking, etc... with the 350+ models.

 

Have insurance lined up ahead of time. A lot of companies wont touch them. Have commercial insurance on mine because of business but it is pricier than normal type. Maybe that is changing now that Ford has derated the F450

 

Are you staying with the 7.3, if so then you will be looking at cab and chassis models which will probably require commercial insurance. Having said that, commercial insurance is no big deal, in fact it's really not that much more money. Sometimes if you can prove that it will be personal use only, you may be able to get a personal insurance policy. With a cab and chassis, you have all kinds of bed options.

 

yeah, would realy like to find a 99.5-03 7.3 - any ideas on which insurance carriers wouldn't have issues with personal use?

 

I think every state has their own requirements, so it's not just the insurance companies.

 

Biggest issue you could run into is how heavy the truck alone will be and the ever lower weight restrictions at ports. I've seen as bad as anything over 8Klbs needs to stop, that is getting to be ridiculous. Our empty 450 with a V10 is 10.5K. One of those things you can get away with 99% of the time but the one time the "wrong" LEO pulls you over you could be in major problems. Our 450 turns sharper than a 250/350 but it has the wider front and I am not sure what all years that was available, I think '05-'09. Those Pre '04s take a football field to turn around in no matter the size.

 

Love the wide axle turning radius of my 08F450! Most things cost more with the 450/550. Here the emission test is $75 cause they are Heavy Duty! Plates in this state are a lot more because of GVW. If you look like a commercial vehicle ie. not towing a rv you are fair game for every local (yes local) motor carrier safety unit to pull you over to check things out so you dont even have to go through a port to get in trouble.
Finally if you pull a flatbed or dump trailer and not a rv watch out for the 26,000 GCWVR. Top that which is easy to do then its required to have a CDL.

 

Will most likely be full-timing in the rv (why the choices are running heavy GVWR ~16,000), could register in any state; though hear SD/TX/OR/MT/FL are best - think a CDL requires a more permanant address? Would definately want to stay below that 26,000 GCWR barrier.

 

If you are towing a RV, DOT won't even give you a second look.

 

kinda worried about insurance and driving off the RV dealer lot when i'd be well over my truck's GCWR limits

 

I'd look heavily into South Dakota registration. AFAIK, unless you are using your vehicle for commercial purposes, you can register and drive anything you want, regardless of GVWR, as a personal vehicle.

two examples to support:
When i had to haul hay earlier this year, i called the port of entry to verify my vehicle combination and licensing requirements. I was hauling a 20k GVWR trailer behind our 8800lb GVWR pickup, thus being over the magic 26k. their exact words were "unless you are hauling commercially, you don't need a CDL regarless of vehicle or combination" that included me not needing an overwidth permit, so long as i stayed off the interstate.

also: my wife's uncle pulls his RV down to aridzona during the winter with his semi tractor. again, for personal use, it wears private plates just like any other private vehicle on the road, and does not require a CDL to operate.

if SD is on you list of states in which you can register, i'd check it out. our licensing laws here are pretty lax. unless you're commercial, then every 3/4 ton pickup and van on the road is required to stop and weigh. 8000lbs GVWR and up posted at every scale ... also posted, though, is "RV's excluded"

i'd check it out.

 

I just learned that 19.5" tires are spendy.

 

Finding a good 19.5 tire with a good AT tread is hard to find.