I passed and spent the money elsewhere

 

I wanted chrome package on my King Ranch I ordered but didn't want to lose the 20's with caribou inserts thats the only thing that stopped me from ordering chrome package.

 

I passed on the chrome package because I plan to change bumper/wheels to black something, however, I did order the 20's but chrome package wasn't mandatory.

Ordered:
2017 F250 SRW 4X4 Crew Cab
Lariat, 6.7L Power Stroke Diesel
Blue Jeans Metallic
Black Leather Interior

expected delivery week of 9 Jan 17.

 

You pay over $1k for it with the F450 King Ranch, without much difference. For my KR F450, only the bumpers change from painted to Chrome (same bumpers as the XL, Lariat), a large chrome KR banner on the tailgate, tail pipe tip, mirror caps and door handles - you also lose the caribou stripes in the grill. My painted bumpers on my 2009 F150 King Ranch have 140K miles on them, and only a couple of minor paint chips that I've never noticed if I didn't look at them carefully to see if they held up when deciding on chrome or not for my 2017.

I went to a dealer and looked at a lot of chrome vs painted bumpers, and prefer painted on the dually. The 2 tone doesn't go over the wheel wells on the F450, so the break in the color with the chrome bumper didn't sit well with me. You also get a small piece extending the front bumper on each side (F450 only) that is painted whether you have a chrome bumper or not. A chrome bumper with a 3" painted extension to cover the front wheel well extension didn't sit well with me either.

On the SRW trucks, you at least get different wheels that some might like better.

 

I bought my current KR with the painted bumper while I was stationed in Texas because I like the Two-tone look. I was in TX for 3 years and never had any problems with the bumpers except the occasional stone chip that was easily fix with some touch-up paint, then I moved back to PA. After 2 years in PA both of my bumpers as rusting pretty badly where the plastic topper meet the bumper. I took it to a body shop for a repair estimate the estimator immediately started to smile, then told me that they see a lot of painted bumpers in that condition. He explained that the plastic topper on the rear and the plastic cowling on the front bumpers expands and contracts at different rates than the steel which eventually wears through the paint, then the road salt and brine mixture they put on the highways gets between the plastic and metal and starts to eat the metal bumpers. Unfortunately the rust starts under the plastic where it is invisible until it creeps from under the plastic.

My take on the paint vs chrome decision should be skewed by your vehicle location and salt contact.

My next truck will have chrome bumpers, while I like the painted bumper better, the $900 repair bill and constant rust concerns outweighs the paint scheme looks IMO.