What's the difference between the front leaf springs vs front coil springs? Besides for the obviously different shape. lol

 

The Death Wobble. Fasten your seatbelt. There may be an argument over it.
Some here love their coil springs, and mentioning a preference for leaf springs can be like setting off the Bat signal.

 

This perhaps belongs in a different thread, but this is my experience. I agree with Jeff on the argument, and I'm not trying to "start something" but just answer your question.

In 2005, Ford redesigned the front suspension on the 4x4 Super Duty trucks to improve the ride. The new front end utilized coil springs/control arms in place of the leaf springs used on the previous models. They allow the axle move slightly to absorb some of the "whump" when hitting a bump. The ride is smoother and less harshness is transmitted to the frame/cab with the coil springs. I personally think the improvement was more noticeable when running empty or lightly loaded,

The reason I like the leaf springs better is that they do not allow as much lateral (side to side) movement in the front suspension. I noticed this while test driving a 2011 SD, towing a 6,500 lb, 32' travel trailer in blustery 30-45 mph wind. I towed the same trailer on the same route, same day, same wind with my 2001 SD. I used the same Reese Straight Line hitch for both pulls. My 01 just "felt" better in the wind, and we get a lot of wind here in Wyoming!

In fairness to the newer design, I never felt like the truck was not handling the trailer, the wind or the road. The sway control never kicked in. But, there just was a difference in the way the truck felt.

 

They all feel the same to me.

 

They do grow on you I suppose. I test drove a 2014 psd XLT extended cab, made me wish I had the 55,000 for it. Haha, but that's only ten grand less than my house so I'll have to come back for it after the house is paid off. I still like my front better, but it drove worlds better than mine, not to mention the tq.

 

Its a matter of personal preference, and that depends on your purposes for having the truck. Since I'm frequently subjected to the wind conditions I mentioned before, I am more than willing to sacrifice the a little ride quality for stability. My truck rides more than nice enough for me, anyway. I also appreciate the simplicity and toughness of the solid axle/leaf spring design. I did NOT buy my Super Duty for the ride, but rather for the truck's capacity. I've had mine 12+ years and 180K miles and have never felt let down.

I really don't know if there is an advantage to either system off-road, I seldom use mine that way, and have not driven the newer design off-road. Mine has taken me through hellacious snow (8" of old, crusted snow with 12" of heavy, wet new snow on top, off road, to drive around--and through--the tops of trees which were falling across the road from the weight of the snowfall.) I only had chains on the front.

There were a lot of things I liked about the '11 when I drove it. I was comparing a 6.2 to my 6.8 and missed the torque of the V10. I decided I can do a lot of repairs/modifications for the $30K difference a new one would have cost. I have to steer clear of diesels because of an asthmatic reaction to the exhaust, but I too would love the power the 6.7's make.

 

Then you would love the coil sprung front end. They are rated higher than the leaf sprung trucks

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