Badly need a Tow
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Badly need a Tow
I live in a British Columbia ski town at the top of a steep 11 km hill. My mini excavator and trailer weigh 15000lbs. I own a Chevy 6.5L diesel, automatic, one ton dump that does not have any pull or hold back. All advise is steering me toward a F450 7.3L Turbo 4x4 manual. Everything I read about the 6.0L Ford is not favorable. What say the experts. Bring it on gentlemen.
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Joined: Sep 2006
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From: Cartersville, Ga
A F450 w/ a 7.3L would do the job good. I love my 6.0L. It pulls great. The general consensus is to stay away from the early 6.0L's. There are good 03 & 04 6.0's out there though. Just get an oasis report. With the hill you describe, an 06 or 07 350 DRW w/ the Tow Boss package would work well for you. If you do go the 6.0L route, it will blow the doors off the 6.5L you have been driving. Another reason to go with the 6.0L is that the torqshift auto tranny has a good reputation going for it right now and the tow command system on the 05 and up trucks will seal the deal for you. One vote for the 6.0L!
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Thanks UGA
My Chev 6.5L Turbo sucks sucks sucks under load. The hilll I live on eats it. I was fooled by a good lookin truck with a great dump body. Didn't think the motor would be so weak. Can't see dumping more money to try to solve the problem so its for sale and I'll be looking for a Ford F 450 - the GVW meets my needs. For some reason I have always been leary of Auto Trannies. The new auto transmissions are getting good write ups but especially with going down steep grades I like the idea of choosing my own gear.
The specs show the 6.0 with tons of power and torque to spare but I was still warned that they work a lot harder under load than the 7.3.
any thoughts???
The specs show the 6.0 with tons of power and torque to spare but I was still warned that they work a lot harder under load than the 7.3.
any thoughts???
Lead Driver
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 5,665
Likes: 164
From: Cartersville, Ga
I will go ahead and tell you that the 6.0 makes its grunt a little higher in the rpm band than the 7.3L does. It also turns more rpms. The variable vane turbo in the 6.0L takes a little longer to spool. I just got back from towing a 12.5k camper (the one in my signature pic) and was extremely pleased with the way my truck performed. As far as towing at highway speeds, the 6.0L will absolutely blow the doors off a 7.3L. The 7.3L is better around town in my opinion.
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Joined: Sep 2005
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Originally Posted by powderpig
My Chev 6.5L Turbo sucks sucks sucks under load. The hilll I live on eats it.
any thoughts???
any thoughts???
6.0 auto!
7.3 stick!
find a truck your happy with and enjoy the ride!
6.0 FTW!
Lead Driver
Joined: Sep 2006
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From: Cartersville, Ga
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Postmaster
Joined: Jan 2005
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From: BC Canada
I think what you want is a 450 6.0, 05 or newer with the integrated brake controller and the Torque shift auto 5 seed. This way you have hold back on the downhills and it can shifter faster than ANYONE on the uphills. You should really see if you can try a 7.3 manual against one and make the choice. At 15,000 lbs you are going to want the auto and the 6.0 with 120 more horses and almost 150 more lbft of torque. You might want to go so far as an SCT with a custon tow tune and use the variable turbo for engine braking with the hills you speak off.
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From: iowa
Originally Posted by mhoeter
At 15,000 lbs you are going to want the auto and the 6.0 with 120 more horses and almost 150 more lbft of torque.
and when you tell some one to compare engines don't try to make it towards the one you think he should buy because it's your favorite. Either just tell him to buy a 6.0 and say why or say to compare equal trucks with the 2 engines.