I'm looking to buy a 2017 or newer F250. It's going to be used in my camper rental business so it will be towing quite a bit. I don't really think I need a dually, so I'm wanting to stick with an F-250 unless anybody has convincing arguments.

I'm not particularly stuck on gas or diesel at this point. I think the gas options are good enough, but I would take a diesel if it was a good deal. I'm looking for any words of wisdom on what I should look for on any of the engines and model years that I would be looking at. There are several near me that are available with the diesel engine around 200,000 mi.

I've been out of the super duty game since I sold my 2003 7.3L around 2015 () and I've been in an F150 ever since. So any advice you guys have on what to look for in these particular model years would be great.

Here's what I'm wanting: Must be crew cab, must have a 40/20/40 front seat. So realistically, XL or XLT trims only. Gas or diesel. 4x4.

 

I sure wouldn't buy any of them with 200k miles unless it is dirt cheap but still looks new and has maintenance records.
In other words, wouldn't buy one with that many miles.

 

Why is that? Can the 6.7 not do 200k reliably?

 

Are you renting the truck out as well as the camper or are you using the truck to deliver the camper to a site? If you are renting out the truck, then you should go with gas. A renter will be putting gas into it whether the truck is gas or diesel.

How much do the campers weigh? Why not a F-350? I assume you have determined the F-250 will do the job but adding in the F-350 SRW will increase the number of choices on the used market.

 

If, IF, you could reliably verify the maintenance has been meticulous, and the CP4 pump has already croaked and been replaced, then maybe.
My truck has both, and I would be hard pressed to buy it if I were in the market for a used truck.
I'd sooner buy a gas engine truck with 200K on it than the diesel.
You can replace the engine in the gas truck for less than the cost to replace the CP4 pump and high pressure fuel system on the diesel.

 

Id have a hard time buying any truck with 200k and knowing I have to rely on it for business use. Gas or diesel that's a lot of operating time in someone else's hands that you know nothing about. Even detailed maintenance records prove nothing more than the service was recorded. Doesn't guarantee the quality of work at all.

As another asked, is this truck going out to the customer in addition to the camper or just for delivery. I wouldn't trust a diesel truck being loaned out to anyone as its easy to ruin the fuel system and even if covered under a warranty or insurance the down time will still cost you enough. Overall just doesn't sound like a solid business plan unless you have a second truck that can pick up the slack if needed.

 

The truck doesn't get rented, it would be my truck I use for delivering campers. It would replace my current 2016 F150 2.7L, which honestly does fine, but I want more capacity.

It's a sweet spot really. The f250 has plenty of capacity and a DRW is just unnecessary width and maintenance. As far as a SRW F350 I haven't ruled them out. They aren't plentiful, but if I can find a similarly spec'd F250 I'll buy that to avoid the additional taxes on the increased GVWR.

 

I'll clarify, my main question isn't about the diesel specifically. There are some 6.2s available as well. You guys have given me plenty to think on regarding the diesel. How is the 6.2? What about the rest of the truck? Any issues to be aware of?

 

solid AF truck. either motor is fantastic regardless of what the cp4 haters say.

 

Yeah I wouldn't be looking at anything with that kind of miles for a business use. I'd be looking for something with 50k or less on the clock.

Having done what you are doing, go for the F350 and get a diesel, insurance costs be damned, you'll thank yourself later. If you've got bigger trailers get a dually. We didn't have bigger trailers, our longest was 30', but travel trailers REALLY drag down mileage on gassers, not so much on the diesels (the same trailer behind our diesel dropped mileage 2-3 mpg tops, behind our gasser it dropped it 5-6 mpg). If you've got bigger trailers or you have decent sized fifth wheels, a dually fits the bill not because you need it to do the job, but because it makes the job easier to do. You'll be working it, so I wouldn't worry as much about your aftertreatment system, it'll be getting the workout it needs. Make sure you're running good fuel all the time and you should be just fine.

 

Unfortunately I'm not in a position to buy a 50k mile Superduty. How unfortunate that 200k miles is too much to be reliable for these trucks.

 

I concur for a business you want the lowest mileage truck you can get, 179/168 the crap out of it on your return.

Any downtime with the truck, in addition to the cost of the repair, is bread out of your mouth. A gas engine truck is going to be cheaper to operate across the board vs the diesel. That is coming from a diesel owner, I love my 6.7 and it is running great at 120k miles but I am well aware a gas powered truck is cheaper to run (no DEF, cheaper oil changes, no fuel filters, no CP4 that could go kaboom (although that is manageable)), especially for business use. The 6.2s are some of the most reliable engines Ford ever built, doesn't have the over the top muscle of a 6.7 but solid none the less. The 7.3 gas engine is a nice middle ground, more capable than a 6.2 but a ton cheaper than a 6.7 with some very impressive towing power from what I hear.

Good luck, compared to my 2002 super duty my 2019 is head a shoulders above it. Ride is nicer, steering is WAY better, transmission doesn't feel like it is held together by hopes and dreams. They are great rigs.

Since your pulling RV's I am not sure how much the CDL furball applies, if possible go for the F-350. My F-250 pulls my 13k fifth wheel just fine but my next truck will be a F350.

 

I agree. I would really like a 6.2L. I kind of worry about cross country towing but that's not super frequent and I know it can do it.

 

So our family camps quite a bit and we have friends that camp quite a bit, with us. Ford 6.7's, Ram/Cummins, Ford 6.2's. The families that have the 6.2L regret getting it and I would not like it if you're pulling cross-country. Can it do it? Yes. Will you be happy and comfortable with it? Probably not. When I tow with the 6.7L vs. the 6.2L, it is two different animals. I understand the need to stick with a gas rig, it is lower maintenance for-sure. So if you're going gas, find a good 7.3L. But also, I wouldn't cross-off a lower mileage 6.7L diesel, if you can find one.
I may have missed it, what's your budget here?

 

It's not that it isn't reliable. It's that people, by and large, don't have any idea on how to care for a vehicle anymore, coupled with OEMs developing things for 'planned obsolescence,' shorthand for 'it breaks just out of warranty so we don't have to pay for it, and the parts are so expensive that people will just buy a new vehicle.' I looked at used vehicles before I bought my last truck, and couldn't find any that would serve my purposes without needing to basically be rebuilt.

I took a 6.4 Ram gasser to 110k, and its only issues were parking sensors and a MAP sensor. I had no knocking, no wiped out cam that they supposedly all suffer from, etc. Traded it for my current CTD. With me caring for it, I'd expect it to easily hit 300k or better. I put a combined 250k on a PAIR of 6.0 Powerstrokes, one bought with 50k on it, one with 80k...the one with 80k gave me a LOT more problems than the one bought with 50k.

But I'm the exception anymore. Our local dealer and independent mechanics are lined up, because people don't take care of their vehicles anymore. Gas and go is how most of them are treated, oil changes might happen once every 10-15k on gassers because 'oh I run high mileage oil!' or 'the oil change light didn't come on yet!' Or worse, the lights are on but no one is home - they don't even realize it's got problems despite the multiple warning lights.

I get that you've got a budget, everyone does. But this is a business expense, and business expenses are easier to stomach when you don't have a lot of unknowns. A vehicle with fewer miles on it (or even new, if you get an XL with the STX tow package, a rather inexpensive combination really) will be more reliable and have MUCH less downtime than a vehicle with high miles and an unknown usage/service history.