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I too traded up from a gasser to the diesel due to not enjoying the truck in the hills. If I want something screaming at me I'll bring to wife along on the trips. The girlfriend is much quieter
250, 350, 450, the ride is ALL in the tires. Its that cushion between the pavement and the axle that matters most. Why does an F450 ride so stiff? Steel belted sidewalls from bead to bead and 90 PSI of air pressure to keep the tires on the rim. How do you soften the ride of the F450? Replace the wheels with 20" wheels and put on LT tires with polyester belts and steel tread bands, and run them at 50 PSI. The soft sides soak up the bumps and the only harshness are those bumps that bounce the suspension. Downside, those wheels and tires cost $8,000 or more.
F250/F350, its all in the tire pressures. 350 have higher pressures for the higher GVWR. Lower the pressures, trigger the TPMS< or Forscan the TPMS to a lower trigger value and ride is as good or better than the 250. My DRW now runs 60 in the rear, 70 in the front and frankly, it rides like a caddilac compared to the exact size F450 with the heavier stiff tires. I mean it still rides like a heavy truck, but its comfortable compared to the 450. Tires made a huge difference.
My 2021 F350 6.7L diesel pulls my 5th wheel like a train locomotive. It accelerates uphill with a push on the go pedal. Its ability to tow uphill is incredible.
Bought a 2024 F250 Ultimate Lariat CCAB 6.75 box, 7.3L gasser to pull our 13K GVWR 5er and boy did this dog ever struggle in the hills of New Mexico, Wa, Ut, etc. Screaming up 5% grades at 4K rpm in 4th gear is a bit nerve racking while people are buzzing past pulling much larger trailers. We put less than 7K miles on this truck and are looking to trade. We will be taking a big hit to the wallet so I don't want to make the same mistake twice. The truck also sagged a bit more than I would like. SO...... Do we move to a 350 with the HO diesel, stay with a 250 w/ the diesel option and add air bags, 3.31 or 3.55 gears? And HO vs SO?
TIA
Bill
If I was purchasing a new truck for my personal use, I would go F350 6.7PSD HO with 3.55 gears and 20" wheels CC SB KR. How you configure your truck, HO, SO 3.31, 3.55 gears it doesn't matter as you'll have a permanent grin once you pull that 5er for the first time.
I too traded up from a gasser to the diesel due to not enjoying the truck in the hills. If I want something screaming at me I'll bring to wife along on the trips. The girlfriend is much quieter
Or an F450, fall in love with the turning radius, only to fall out due to the crappy ride and poor fuel economy as a DD. If only I could have kept my F150 AND get the F450 for just towing the 5th wheel.
Thats my combination with a slight difference. The 450 for towing and a F-150 Lightning as a DD for all other truck things. The 450 is a towing monster and the Lightning has equivalent 80 MPG and best riding truck ever.
Here the Lightning is bringing generators to relatives who lost power after recent hurricane. .
Sounds like the OP was dead set on a diesel before he ever posted this thread. He got some good advice on page 1 but it irritated him.
For a DD that is used occasionally for towing, the 7.3L engine is the only way to go. Far less expensive now and in the future, and easier to live with on a daily basis sipping that 87 octane pump gas with no DEF, no 20 minute drives to warm it up in winter, no regen cycles, no $100 fuel filters to drain periodically, and no fuss.
Then get the F250 3.31 with no heavy duty axle options or increased gvwr options. I would also stick with the shorter 18s to get a little more *** out of it.
I suspect the OP is like me and falls into the group that really values the comfort and reduced stress the diesel provides when towing. Not having to worry if you are in the right gear or at the right RPM range going into a hill...that is worth something and adds value over just the typical want vs need or strictly cost of ownership discussions. Does it cost more and can it be done without having a 6.7 under the hood, yes. But for what these trucks cost anymore I don't blame the OP for trading to get exactly what he wants.
I'm definately in this group. In my younger days, pulling the 5th wheel with my previous F350 gasser didn't bother me at all. We put nearly 30k on the truck with the camper attached. As time went on, the stress of planning the upcoming hills to make sure I was in the power band to make it to the top started making the journey less enjoyable. Then the inevitable semi pulling into the left lane to pass at 20mph and killing my momentum was a bummer. I also stressed with finding truck stops that had gas pumps that could accomodate the truck hooked to a 40ft trailer. My 5er is about 13.5k loaded up with about 2700lb pin weight. I didn't NEED a diesel, but decided I was getting old enough that I didn't want the stresses brought on by the gasser experience anymore. Fuel stops are now a non issue and while I haven't pulled outside of the Midwest with the new truck yet, going from 7mpg with the 6.2 in 4th gear to 11-12mpg with the 6.7 in 10th is promising.
Bought a 2024 F250 Ultimate Lariat CCAB 6.75 box, 7.3L gasser to pull our 13K GVWR 5er and boy did this dog ever struggle in the hills of New Mexico, Wa, Ut, etc. Screaming up 5% grades at 4K rpm in 4th gear is a bit nerve racking while people are buzzing past pulling much larger trailers. We put less than 7K miles on this truck and are looking to trade. We will be taking a big hit to the wallet so I don't want to make the same mistake twice. The truck also sagged a bit more than I would like. SO...... Do we move to a 350 with the HO diesel, stay with a 250 w/ the diesel option and add air bags, 3.31 or 3.55 gears? And HO vs SO?
I'm definately in this group. In my younger days, pulling the 5th wheel with my previous F350 gasser didn't bother me at all. We put nearly 30k on the truck with the camper attached. As time went on, the stress of planning the upcoming hills to make sure I was in the power band to make it to the top started making the journey less enjoyable. Then the inevitable semi pulling into the left lane to pass at 20mph and killing my momentum was a bummer. I also stressed with finding truck stops that had gas pumps that could accomodate the truck hooked to a 40ft trailer. My 5er is about 13.5k loaded up with about 2700lb pin weight. I didn't NEED a diesel, but decided I was getting old enough that I didn't want the stresses brought on by the gasser experience anymore. Fuel stops are now a non issue and while I haven't pulled outside of the Midwest with the new truck yet, going from 7mpg with the 6.2 in 4th gear to 11-12mpg with the 6.7 in 10th is promising.
This isn't about the 6.2 it's about the 7.3. Everyone already knows the 6.2 had to be screaming. It's an OHC engine.
250, 350, 450, the ride is ALL in the tires. Its that cushion between the pavement and the axle that matters most. Why does an F450 ride so stiff? Steel belted sidewalls from bead to bead and 90 PSI of air pressure to keep the tires on the rim. How do you soften the ride of the F450? Replace the wheels with 20" wheels and put on LT tires with polyester belts and steel tread bands, and run them at 50 PSI. The soft sides soak up the bumps and the only harshness are those bumps that bounce the suspension. Downside, those wheels and tires cost $8,000 or more.
F250/F350, its all in the tire pressures. 350 have higher pressures for the higher GVWR. Lower the pressures, trigger the TPMS< or Forscan the TPMS to a lower trigger value and ride is as good or better than the 250. My DRW now runs 60 in the rear, 70 in the front and frankly, it rides like a caddilac compared to the exact size F450 with the heavier stiff tires. I mean it still rides like a heavy truck, but its comfortable compared to the 450. Tires made a huge difference.
Definitely agree with this... When we first got our '17 450 with aftermarket wheels I was a bit puzzled by the posts talking about how rough they rode. I had just assumed people were just spoiled because ours rode great and my DD is a 96 CCLB so I have a much lower threshold for comfort than many but it didn't take much digging to find the reasons... We just took a 550 mile trip in it with my mother in law and she said it rode much better than the wifes GMC Canyon Denali (they both have KO2s) on the same roads, so like you said there's definitely a lot of room for improvement from stock.
Thats my combination with a slight difference. The 450 for towing and a F-150 Lightning as a DD for all other truck things. The 450 is a towing monster and the Lightning has equivalent 80 MPG and best riding truck ever.
Here the Lightning is bringing generators to relatives who lost power after recent hurricane. .
Great solution. Spend $160,000 on 2 trucks and then you don't have to worry
250, 350, 450, the ride is ALL in the tires. Its that cushion between the pavement and the axle that matters most. Why does an F450 ride so stiff? Steel belted sidewalls from bead to bead and 90 PSI of air pressure to keep the tires on the rim. How do you soften the ride of the F450? Replace the wheels with 20" wheels and put on LT tires with polyester belts and steel tread bands, and run them at 50 PSI. The soft sides soak up the bumps and the only harshness are those bumps that bounce the suspension. Downside, those wheels and tires cost $8,000 or more.
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this is a scary recommendation.
i did the reverse and my truck rides like a Cadillac .
I put on 22.5 rims with no adapters and 37” 16 ply tires with 120 psi and I leave them at 120 psi.
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Slideshow: Called the Fortress, the 850-horsepower pickup combines Raptor underpinnings with military-inspired features, survival equipment, and a starting price of $285,000.
