Hey everyone. New member here, but not new to fords. Just got rid of my 17 f150 cclb, with 3.5eco, max tow and 4x4. Realized I need a super duty for the toy hauler my family needs. Yes... NEEDS! I live in SoCal and this won’t be a daily driver. I was looking at 250s, but once I realized I wanted a long bed for the fuel tank, I though maybe a 350 would be better. We will never have a 5er, because my wife likes the idea of a sub 28’ so we can fit in most national parks. But I like the idea of never running out of payload. I think I’ll be ok with about 2500lbs of available payload. But for $1k more, why not get a 350 and hopefully get about 4k of payload.

like I said, I live in SoCal and also don’t want to pay anymore for registration. They really screw you out here. In california if your truck weighs between 7001-8000 lbs, it’s the same fee. So if the 250 can weigh under 7K, I’ll save about $50/year in registration cost. My insurance will be about $4 more/6mo with the 350. But if I don’t ever plan to have a 5er and If can get the payload I need with a 250, is the 350 necessary? I was wondering if anyone had a 2020 or 2021 f250, 7.3L cclb, 4x4, lariat ultimate, or a king ranch cclb with ultimate and 4x4 and could post your payload pls. Or if you’ve been in a similar situation, which way did you go? Thanks fo the help and time all. I appreciate it. And if there’s already a thread discussing this, pls point me there and sorry for double threading. Thanks again.

 

Is the registration fee based on truck curb weight or gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR)? I'm thinking it is GVWR which for an F250 will be closer to 10,000 lb. What engine are you planning on getting? The diesel will reduce payload. The F350 will give you more payload but cost more in registration fee as GVWR will be around 11,800 to 12,400 (not sure exactly). With a bumper pull trailer you will likely use the bed of the truck for lots of camping stuff so maximizing your payload is a good plan.

 

From what I've read you are interested in a gas engine, 7.3l. The GVWR will be 10k on the F250, and 11,400 or 11,900 on an F350 long bed. Both (250/350) I would expect to be over 7k lbs. Payload on even the F250 should exceed 2500lbs., and the 350 obviously much higher.

 

How often will you tow with it? This may help you decide between gas or diesel.
With the 6.2 engine, think about the 6 or 10 speed transmissions. With the 7.3 and 6.7 engines, its only the 10 speed transmissions.

 

Thanks for the quick replies!

@ Shawnee: Registration in california is based on gvwr less than 11500 and unladen of less than 8001 lbs. exceed one of those and you’ll have to registered based on gcvw of truck and trailer. That’s if I’m understanding the local dmv law. trucks that weigh 7001-8000 are charged a weight fee of $257. 6001-7000 is $204. Per year for both and that fee never goes down. It’s an addition to the other fees. That’s part of the reason I’d like to make the 250 work. I hate giving this state more money than I already do.

@4wd6.7: that’s what I figured I’d be looking at for the 250 cclb. And if I did go 350, I’d opt for the 11400gvwr to avoid extra registration fees. I was thinking the 350 would provide close to 4k of payload.

@kehinnc: I’m looking at the 7.3
id go diesel but here in california the diesel laws are getting stupid. This truck with be my tow vehicle and probable get driven once or twice a week. I e got another vehicle I use to commute to work.

 

Get the F350 because you can have the 10sp transmission with any engine choice. In a crew cab F250, you can eat up payload in a hurry, ie occupants fuel, hitch weight and other stuff in the bed accordingly.

 

I sold my 2017 F250 for an F350. With new trucks, there's little difference other than GVWR sticker if you opt for the high capacity tow package on the F250. I also tow a massive toyhauler (Winnebago 29STT).

My advice:

• Get the F350 (derated GVWR stickers if you want for insurance purposes).
• Get the longbed (doesn't drive much differently, and you get 1k more payload) for 48 gallon fuel tank!!! That buys you over 150 miles of range while towing, and probably close to 300 miles+ unloaded.
• Get the 5th wheel prep package.
• Get a 5th wheel toyhauler. (My biggest issue with this beast is finding a comfortable/safe way to tow it. I dropped nearly $4k on a propride hitch. Tongue weight varies so much depending on how it's loaded. It's massive. It's heavy. It catches wind. On and on. I hope to now have a decent setup with the longbed 350 with airbags, but wish I would have paid a bit extra for no-brainer 5th wheel hookup and better towability.)
  • You said you wanted to stay under 28', but look at the total length of toyhaulers. For instance, mine is a "29 foot", but is actually 37' bumper to tongue. Add in another foot for the hitch and the truck length...you're really long. With a 5th wheel, you actually shave a few feet off length because the bed is over the camper...

 

Ford offers a no charge 10,000 lb GVWR option for the the F350 which consists of a different door post sticker. In other words you can get the F350 rear suspension and badging without having the 11,500 GVWR sticker in order to avoid higher registration fees.

 

Your towing needs will grow. Buy the F350. 11,900 GVWR gas, 12,400 GVWR diesel.

 

Isn’t the F250 with the high capacity tow package essentially the same as the F350?

 

Get the 350 cclb with the 11400 derate.

I’m in California as well and ordered my truck. Getting 1k less payload to save $40 a year in registration doesn’t make sense to me. Especially if it future proofs you and you get back more on resale.

 

Saving about $40 a year in insurance does not appear to a be a huge sum of savings on a $48,000++ truck. Payload and Towing capacities are long term benefits with the truck. Beating your head on the wall later for lack of payload and towing capacities are long term agonies with the truck.
I suggest a F350 XLT SRW with 6.2 10 speed transmission and 4.30 axle.

 

It’s not really about saving money as it’s more about not wanting to give any more blood to a state that already bleeds its residents dry. It looks like the 350 cclb is the one for me. Anyone know of a good dealer in california? The best deal I’ve been able to lock in is $500 under invoice. I found a dealer in idaho willing to do $1k under invoice, but it’s not worth the distance at that price. Thanks again for all the feedback.

@ chingon: the toy hauler we’re looking at is 27ft from top of hitch to bumper. The smallest 5er I’ve been able to find in a toy hauler is 32 feet overall. But that actually might work if the 4-5 feet is over the bed?!

 

if you buy out of state you would have to get the truck weighed, which, depending on options can put you over 8k unladen and cause even worse registration issues with ca dmv.

I ended up just doing x-plan which is invoice and locked dealer fees around $125. If you do x-plan it’s the same price at any dealer. I still shopped around and found which dealer provided the best service. I should be picking up in a couple of weeks and will drive past 4-5 dealers to get to the one I picked because of the service I received. Another thing you can look for is if a dealer gives a free extended warranty on power train or some sort of service package.

 

I don't have a dealer recommendation, but if you are a Costco member they sometimes have a decent discount through participating dealers.