What's your GVWR?

 

Just retired my 2003 Excursion (chipped V10) 288,000 km (180,000 miles) on it. First pull with the 2013 F250 / Crewcab / 6.2 and I love it. The get-up and go doesn't match the V10, but maintaining the speed is a breeze! Only took 1/2 of a round trip to decide on Firestone Airbags - 70 lbs worked great. Also a 1.5 - 2.0 MPG improvement with a 10,000 lb trailer.

 

Congrats on the new truck! What kind of trailer and do you have the 3.73 or 4.30 axles?

GC

 

28 ft Trailblazer by Komfort. 16' slide and large water tanks - tons of weight. 3.73 - I put about 45,000 km / 28,000 miles on per year - so giving up 1-2 mpg wasn't with it. Nvm that, dealer searched and there wasn't on 4.30 in Alberta!

 

I've been looking at the new 6.7, but after reading about the common rail failures and Ford not owning up I've been looking at the V8.

 

Nothing against the diesel guys - I really enjoy my 7.3 - but that's generally why I'm looking at the gas v8. Nowadays since all the emissions add-ons have complicated the diesels, I'd like to deal with simpler - since I'll be owning an out of warranty truck (used).

 

I'm with you on that, I sold my 7.3 and have been looking for replacements. The 6.7 has so much potential, but it's a shame Ford won't stand behind their products.

 

If you don't mind my asking, how did you do in the sale? I see them around here advertised for quite a bit higher than what "book" says and I don't know what to believe - throws me a curve when I try to plan for the next truck purchase.

Maybe I should drive past Carmax and see what they'd give me and use that as a starting point..

Ok sorry dualwheels about the thread hijack! How about a towing report to get me back on subject

 

Towing report:
First let's talk weights, I really wanted to get this truck trailer combo weighed but did not see a open scale. Really didn't have the time to drive out of the way to find one. So my best guess is truck 11,000lbs and I know the camper weighs in at 8200lbs so a combined weight of 19,200lbs. the camper is a Sunline 317 SR.
The route: PA Turnpike north to 80 west to 42 south and then 487 south. The Turnpike has many hills and very few flat areas. There is is hill that is 7 miles long at 6% grade. West 80 has many rolling hills not very steep though. Route 42 is a two lane road through Bloomsburg and then 487 has a few of those sneaky hills, turn a corner and "where did that hill come from".
The trip: Got on the turnpike and got up to speed and something just didn't feel right, steering felt loose no grip on the road. I pulled into the Rest area and looked around the truck. I noticed rather quickly that the tires were low. Now this is embarrassing to admit because I ALWAYS check my tires. All the tires were set at 50psi, way too low. I aired up to 65psi in the back and 70 in the front. Much much better, the way a dually is supposed to feel.
Starting off the line is what I expected with less torque than my '08 V10. I really did not expect too much from this little engine. It did move the load well. With just over 800 miles on it I really didn't want to push it too hard.
The hills: I miss my V10's torque. Towing up a hill and trying to pass the v10 would downshift to 3rd and just go. The 6.2 would downshift to 3rd (6th was locked out) and get there eventually. However the 6.2 is impressive in the 5000rpm range. Passing on a hill and that sneaky hill I described earlier were the only 2 times I let this thing rev. I was at 5000rpms and gently gave it more gas and it had power up there. I had to let off around 5500, I didn't want it revving that high with such low miles.
The trans loved 3rd gear for whatever reason. I would be in 4th and it would downshift just because. Fourth was doing just fine but for some reason it wanted 3rd. Tuning would help that.
This truck loves to cruise in 6th on flat ground at around 70mph. Even when it would downshift to 5th it was quiet. Sometimes I had to look down to see what gear it was in. Even 5th gear at 70mph was very comfortable. To me 5th at 70 was the best, that would put rpm's around 2800. Even at those rpm's the cabin was quiet except for the nice rumble of the exhaust.
MPG's: I got 6 mpg on the way up and 7.5 on the way back home. Now having said that, I was keeping up with traffic that was going 65-70 and a few times caught myself cruising at 75. I am happy with those numbers considering I have low miles and passing anyone going less than 65.
I think this is going to be an impressive engine the more miles I put on it and with proper tuning.
I did have one panic moment. I was cruising at 67mph and I heard this vibration, I could not feel it in the steering wheel but i could really hear it. When it continues and gets louder you start checking your gauges, then you look in you mirrors to make sure nothing fell off, then check you gauges again, you extend the mirrors to see if the awning is still there, everything checks out but you are still worried. So about the time I'm thinking about pulling over, I decide to pass a Toyota 4runner pulling a single axle trailer loaded with quads. His trailer was starting to sway more than I liked, that's why I wanted to pass. As soon as I got beside him I realized he was the one making the noise with his mud tires. They must have been brand new tires with deep lugs because they were really loud. After I passed him my heart rate returned to normal.
Someone asked me what my GVWR was, it is 14,000lbs.
That's all I can think of right now, feel free to ask questions.

 

Thanks dualwheels for the towing report! That kind of terrain is just what I'm curious about as there is a place in VA we go to every year which really works my truck. One final climb to the campground is a bit too steep for second and sometimes the truck has to go to 1st - TC unlocked hauling up the hill I'm always wondering if my tranny will take that pull again.

All our other trips are fairly flat but it's that one trip that I get nervous about every year.

So a couple of questions ... you never felt that your combo was straining? Seems like you had the power you needed, just had to rev and suck down some gas? Also when it did rev was it noisy or tolerable?

From everything else I've read I expect the 6.2 to come into it's own and get stronger with more miles. I look forward to how yours does with towing as you get more time on it.

Thanks !

 

I think the engine has the power even though it has to rev to get it. My feeling is the trans is really not communicating with the engine the way my '08 V10 and torqshift did. I thought the trans would have "learned" how I drive by now, maybe it has and it's just lazy. I think a call to Mike will solve my issues.
I would like more horse power and torque in the mid range, especially when towing.
As far as noise, when it's revving at 5000rpm's there will be noise but the sound of the exhaust is really nice, it sounds like a truck should sound. The V10 loved to rev too but the exhaust note took some getting used to.
I agree with others who say the engine will get stronger with more miles.
On a side note Ford's stock shocks still suck (say that 4 times) so I will be getting some Bilsteins real soon. Any one have part numbers?

 

Just saw this. I sold it over a year ago...I listed it for $13k and got $9k for it because the rear main seal was leaking and needed repair. I still get to use it once a month for a few days if I need it, so it was a no brainer!

 

Good to know. Thank you!

 

Nice report Dualwheels. Sounds like you were at Knoebel's for your trip Looking forward to seeing how the 250 will respond on its maiden towing trip. Very interested in seeing how the air bags are going to work out as well as the overall performance of the truck.

 

Yep we were at Knoebels been going there for 25 years. It's a nice family run campground/amusement park. Way cheaper than other amusement parks and the food is better.