FWIW there are three pages of SD trucks with gas motors and 4.30 gears sitting around me. I don't have a single one on the lot and get very few request for them, but guys on the forum here love em. If you want the gears, they are out there.

 

I am curious if it is only a kid carrier why not an F-150? Considering it will get better MPG.

 

Don't get hung up on the gear ratio issue. I have 3.73s and tow 8k lbs regularly in the "mountains" of the east. Never had an issue accelerating and merging onto the interstate. It's a truck, not a race car. I'm running a 5 Star tow tune that more than makes up for the higher gear ratio. Find a truck that has the features you want and make due with whatever gear ratio it has. BTW, I get 11.6 mpg city, as high as 15.7 on highway, and 9 mpg towing.

 

I hate to turn the op's question into a 3.73/4.30 debate. But it's probably the single biggest decision when going gas, and I want the op to understand what I meant. I own a 3.73 truck, and yes, it is more than capable of towing my 8500 loaded travel trailer 1600 miles. Never said it wasn't. But I have the luxury of jumping straight out of my truck and into my dads with 4.30's. I don't think his truck is much faster than mine at full throttle. With the 6.2 making its power high in the rpms, the 3.73's leave it in that powerband a bit longer making up for the longer gears. But most of us didn't buy these trucks to race. What I did say is, it makes for a better driving experience. At light throttle around town, his truck wants to pull out and get up to speed. Mine takes a little extra motivation with the right foot, especially if there is any grade, which is why his gets better in town mpg. I'm not complaining about mine, but more bragging on 4.30's. No way I would buy another 6.2 with 3.73's after driving one with 4.30's. The superduty is heavy and the 6.2 makes power high into the rpms, which calls for lower gears. And with the double overdrive transmission, you can get away with it even on the hwy without paying the price in mpg.

 

I'm with Ron on this.

LOL, It just seems every 6.2 question thread turns into a gear debate some how. Everyone's take on gas SD's is not the same. My recommendations come from a life of owning diesels and now going away from them to gas. Others are coming from 1/2 tons into a SD. The constant is that the 6.2 is a very solid, reliable and capable motor.

IMO, the 3.55 and 3.73 are Powerstroke gears for a motor that makes sooooo much torque down low. 4.10 and 4.30 are gears for a naturally aspirated (NA) gas SuperDuty motor that take a lot more rpms to make power.

I believe that most buy a SD to be a work horse and not an interstate unloaded runner. I really regret settling for 3.73's on my last truck. I just give the advice for others not to make the easy mistake as I did. Fortunately I was in a position to order a new truck and there was no doubt about getting 4.30's this time. I am so happy with them now.

 

Completely with you on this topic RainDesert.

 

My big thing was I needed towing power and I will get the same mileage with this as I did with my 1500 that needed the heavier rear end and more gears in the tranny along with the bigger engine. I had a lot of fancy stuff on my old truck heated leather seats, sunroof, climate control, hard tonneau, Bosse Stereo with gps, full size back seats. Now cloth seats smaller cab, regular Air conditioner, small back seat but this was what I needed since I moved up to a bigger trailer to tow. Only have under 500 miles on it so far but I am happy with it so far and less headaches with less electronic gadgets to have problems.

 

I ordered the 4.30 gears and honestly I am disappointed. mpg are not good. I average 10 mpg highway and city. Towing is about 7 to 8mpg with a 10k trailer. My friend pulls a 10k trailer and his mileage is a lot better with 3.73's. I wish I had listened to the salesman who tried to convince me to go with the 3.73's!

 

The 6.2 is a great motor! Very reliable. Sounds like an f150 would suit your needs just fine. If you decide on a super duty the 3.73 gears are a good choice for most unless you plan on 37" tires or towing 15k. I ordered mine with the 3.73 gears and I am very happy with them. I've pulled an 11k trailer in the mountains twice with no problems. Mileage is 17 highway and an average of 12 to 14mpg combined. Towing was about 9mpg with a fairly heavy trailer.

 

Going on my first road trip this weekend hope to see the real highway mpg, not towing, then. I like hearing all the good praise of this motor, dislike hearing all the anti Ford friends. Mpg going up will be a big plus, with under 500 miles on it so far I'm really happy with my choice. Wasn't really happy with the service dept. yesterday, I got my truck back after undercoating and found undercoating everywhere, on tail light, bumper, fender running boards. They didn't look it over very good after it was done. I did get it all off with a little elbow grease but kept finding a little here a little there some were big blobs like tail light and bumper, how can you miss those.

 

Sorry to hear you don't like your 4.30's John. I just turned over 5000 miles on mine last weekend and my total combined lifetime mileage is 12.9.
I get over 12 just with city driving. The only way I am going to get 10 is if I have my foot in it from stop light to stoplight.
I get about 15.5 on the highway depending on conditions like wind, grade etc.. The worst I have gotten towing is about 10.3 mpg.
I am not doubting you at all but these trucks will do a lot better than what you are experiencing.

 

I hate to hi jack this thread, but we need to figure this out John. Your numbers just don't add up to what lots of people see including me first hand between myself and my dads. Can you post your mileage, engine hours, idle hours, tire size and your terrain in your area. My dad is seeing about 13 mpg and I don't think his truck has ever been on the interstate except the trip home from the dealer. We have lots of hills living in the foothills of the smokeys. I see mid 12's. Hate we don't live closer, cause my offer still stands on swapping axels!

 

My numbers are right in line with WyoBull. I'm getting over 12 on hand calc'd fill ups with all my town driving and work. This is a nice bump over my last truck.

 

Maybe I am a bit of a lead foot. My wife is always telling me to slow down. I will try for a week to slow down and see if I can get closer to what some on here are getting for mileage. 13mpg would nice on highway. I will report back on a new thread in a week.

John

 

That's awesome!! Thanks guys! I'm hearing terrible things about mileage being 6-8 MPG in town. That's nuts!! Wambo, what's your mileage even though you have a 350