Did no one have a hard time finding a long bed? We have been strolling our local dealer's lot and crew cab short beds abound. There were a grand total of two long beds, both crew cabs 350 DRWs.

Here are questions for those of you who have bought a newer truck. Will a much newer truck be quieter, turn more tightly, and ride more smoothly than our 02 7.3? Our 02 is in excellent condition, but quiet is not its strong suit and it takes plenty of room turning it around. The ride is little harsh, but I think I can take care of that. If I am going to spring for what the newer models cost, I want to have something more tangible than eye candy and we don't need more tow capacity.

Thanks,

Steve

 

The trucks are a bit more nimble than they were and a whole lot quieter and more comfortable. Take one for a test drive. You
really have to order one to get what you want. I wanted the 5th wheel prep package and the only ones the dealers stock come with the fx off road package that really conflicts with an optimal towing configuration. You can lock in incentives when you order and get current ones if they are better when your truck is delivered. Timing might be iffy because they will or have stopped taking order for 2015's. Mine took 4 weeks from order to delivery.

 

Kind of comparing soup to nuts, but...... The difference in the noise level inside the cabin between our '11 F250 6.2 gas lariat and our new '15 F350 6.7 PSD KR is night and day! The new one is so quiet you dont even realize it is working!

 

To the OP, I've only owned one short bed truck and will never own another. And I made that decision well before I had a gooseneck or 5th wheel trailer. 6 foot makes a great grocery getter but I use my truck bed for way more than a hitch and like the free space. Not to mention plenty of room for firewood or other stuff in front of the 5th wheel. I still think the logistics of parking are affected more by the wheelbase of a CCLB truck than the width of a dually. Just my .02. Granted my wife does not EVER drive the truck, she drives a Focus, because the Fusion was too big and I like my fenders.


To Steve, the difference in interior noise between a 7.3 and 6.7 is night and day. As posted before, the 6.7 is nearly unnoticeable inside the cab. The new one will probably ride better too since the rear springs are too light IMO. Mine turns ok for what it is. A F450 or "tow boss" F350 will turn even better with the widetrack axle, but would be gross overkill for your trailer.

 

Are those empty weights? Because our empty were pretty close to that.


I went DRW and long bed is the only Ford option. Don't regret anything about it.

 

Are all of these discussions comparing apples to apples?
My old F100 was a long bed, but it was a 2 door cab.
My current F250 is a 'medium' bed, but with the 4 door crew cab, it is just about the same length as my old F100 (or so).

So is everyone talking long bed crew cab, long bed king cab or long bed standard cab?

Also, a longer bed would not be more stable in cross winds.
It all comes down to surface area.
The more surface area you have, the more force a cross wind can create to push you one way or the other.
For a cross wind, you want more -width-, which is where a dually comes in.

However, consider the fact that you are pulling a 40 foot trailer,
the surface area of the trailer facing (perpendicular to) the
cross wind is going to be much more significant than the little
bit of extra surface area of a long bed v/s short bed.

Here are a few other things to consider.
I have seen videos of people with short beds pulling a fiver and when they turned too sharply,
it impacted the rear of the cab, shattering the read window glass and damaging the cab.

A long bed crew cab is VERY long.
It has one heck of a large turning radius.
My medium bed is a hassle just trying to manage to park it in some parking lots.
Even if I knew it would fit in the spot, a narrow aisle between rows of cars can make it difficult at best if not impossible in some cases.
And even if I can park it easily in a spot, its length is much longer than most spaces,
so I either overhang into the driving aisle or overhang into the space in front/behind me depending if I back in or front in.

When I went to have my tires aligned for the first time I discovered another bonus that was lucky for me.
Most retail / chain alignment shops have an alignment rig that you roll onto. My truck just barely fits on it.
If it were the long bed, they would not be able to do the alignment.
Personally I like the fact that there is a Tires Plus in almost every major city in every state because when I had my first
balance, rotate, alignment I bought the lifetime packages.
I can go there any time, any place as often as I want, and it is FREE.

 

Please disregard this post.

 

Steve,
I went from a 2003 5.4/Manual SCSB to a 2015 6.2 CCSB, both in XLT trim levels, both with the FX4 package and not much else in the way of options. I can say that the in-cab noise level is a major reduction with the new truck and the ride quality is much better overall. Even adding 14" to the wheelbase and overall length of the truck, the new truck doesn't seem to be any harder to get it where I want it than the old truck. Before I ordered my 6.2, I test drove a 6.7 and was absolutely amazed at how quiet it was in the cab, both in town an on the highway. If you are happy with your current truck and don't really want to spend the money, then I might even suggest not test driving the new ones, that's how big of a difference there is. If you are looking for an upgrade and have the money to spend, I don't think you would be disappointed with the improvements in noise and ride quality.

 

that is loaded weight minus food and things that would freeze

 

We have decided to go for the long bed. waiting for the 2016. Thanks for the info and discussion.

 

good choice.

 

Steve,
Your 02 still has leaf front springs which really inhibits turning. The newer, coil springs make a big difference in turning radius. I guessing, but I think that change happened about 05.
The other choice is 2wd vs 4 wd to help with turning radius.

One last thing to consider that's not mentioned, my LB has a 38 gal fuel capacity vs the 29 gal on the short beds. Something else to think about for long hauling.

 

At least you have your decision. Personally, there are days I wished I had the long bed and other days I am happy I have the Short Bed on my truck. Where I live, I know the long bed would have been too much of a PITA to park especially in Winter. My truck can still haul 2+ yards of mulch in the spring and summer. Brush and leaves in the fall. An extra foot and a half would be nice but I am not going to trade my truck in over it though.

Good luck when you finally buy the new ride.

 

Order the truck and get what you want. Plan on 5-7 weeks for build and delivery time, longer if you want a spray in bed liner. Dealers seldom order things 250 owners really want and need. Buying something out of stock usually means compromise.

 

I 'jumped' from a '06 SB F350 CC to an '11 LB F250 CC. I have to say that the riding comfort is day and night even though the interior is generally the same for both and the 250 actually has heavier suspension with the 5er option and diesel. Where the SB was a little choppy, the LB kinda glides over the bumps. One big selling point for the '06 and up over an '05 down was a shorter turning radius. Not too sure what 'shorter' means as they both needed a pretty large swing area with the '11 and 172" wheelbase needing a bunch more yet. Yes, there are a few places I fear to tread with the truck for ease of maneuvering, but I generally take it almost everywhere - I'm bigger then most others. I hauled the older and shorter 5er with both trucks - and the long bed is sooooo much nicer - except in really tight campgrounds or parking lots. The new and much longer 5er ........ better yet. Then as said by several folks - that extra foot and a half means that a 10 foot piece of molding will fit diagonally and an 8 foot piece of plywood or dry wall will fit under the tonneau if it's pouring down precipitation.

Trying to find a long bed with what I wanted on it was not easy. We have at least a dozen Ford stores within a 50 mile radius. Since my funds are somewhat limited, I have to buy used. It took several months to find what I wanted, or at least most of what was on the list. I paid pretty close to top dollar - and so far have been very happy as it does everything I need t to do.