He said his trailer is currently 6500 lbs, which would be well within the 150's capacity. The reason I would recommend the SD is because he is upping his trailer to over 9000 lbs soon. His tongue weight alone with that trailer is going to have him within a couple hundred pounds of his payload capacity, so he isn't going to be able to carry much else besides himself. If you are having to wonder if you have enough payload left over to let your wife ride with you, then you are cutting it too close to what the truck is capable of in my opinion. Not to mention the argument it is going to cause when you tell your wife that your truck doesn't have the payload to haul her

 

Really? Considering I haul ~16k on an all steel gooseneck trailer with my 6.0, I think a 6.0 would work very well with a "wimpy" 9k trailer.

Plus, he could more then likely get a cheaper 6.0 then he could for another diesel with the same amount of miles due to people's misperception of that engine. I've seen more people screw up a 6.0 and blame Ford and/or International for their issues then those that actually had a legitimate claim for an issue.

 

Do you want a Super Duty???

 

To be quite honest, no. I'm looking at an F150 platinum and the interior is on a whole different level than the high end SD's - which it should be. Obviously the performance is not near a SD.

I've heard manufacturers rate high from some folks and they rate low from other folks. My Envoy is rated to tow 6500lbs and it handles the current trailer without an issue - I just feel that long term it will stress the chassis to much. I don't even have a WD hitch yet (ordered and on the way though).

 

Crew Cab or not? Look at the door jam sticker on any F150 you're looking to get. That will tell you how much leftover payload you have w/o passengers and cargo inside the truck and truck bed ... you must included the tongue weight of the cargo trailer against this number too.

A crew cab platinum F150 I looked at had 980 pounds of cargo capacity on the dealer lot. A 9000 pound camper would eat that up. The non-crew cabs have much more room, however.

 

According to the specs in this:

2010 Ford F-150 | View Towing Specifications | FordVehicles.com

It looks like I'm at 1540 for paypload. AFAIK that includes a 150 lb driver and a full tank of fuel. I realize I'm on the edge but I only do this in the summer months and would prefer to squeak by with an F150 as long as I'm not too close against the limits. That beign said, my trailer is currently 6500-6700lbs and it may be some time before it gets heavier... but if I add 2000-2500lbs I don't want to be back at the dealer. My trailer maxes out at 10,200 so I am not planning to get any heavier than that.

 

I always say get more than you would ever use, that way if you ever went bigger you would be fine.

 

So you are looking at a crew cab? *Really* go look at the truck you intend to purchase. I did the same thing and looked at the same number when I considered the newer generation F150's a year or so ago.. An F150 platinum package has lots of options that are not included in the spec ratings. The payload rating of the one I looked at was 980 pounds as I'd drive it off the lot... probably less even 80 pounds less than that because I weigh 230 pounds myself. If you think you are on the edge looking at the specs....there's a good chance you're over with a truck that has lots of options (like the Platinum equipped ones).

 

Yeah I will do that. Although the specific truck I want is 200 miles away, there are very similarly equipped Platinum trucks locally. Sorry, forgot to mention - yes to the crew cab.

Part of the issue is that I have no real need for a super duty outside this 8-12 time per year thing. I also have a problem with the thousands of idiots who drive around in their gigantic trucks to and from work acting like they are some cowboy rancher back and forth to community college.

Not that I'm an enviromentalist, and it's not like I care about image that much -- I just don't want to be the guy driving around in a giant truck that doesn't need it.

 

Having had both, and pulled roughly the same weight you pull (a 7000lb travel trailer), here is my feedback...

- With the F150 (5.4L), I didn't have much of a problem pulling the weight in terms of power. But two issues prompted me to switch. The first is the consideration of what road environment you'll be pulling on. On roads that required higher speeds such as highways, it was very disconcerting when larger trucks passed. It felt like I was just along for the ride sometimes since the F150 is a relatively light vehicle. The second issue was fuel consumption. I was getting 7-8mpg, forcing frequent fuel stops on longer trips. If neither of these applies to you, or concerns you, then consider the F150.

- F250, in either gasser or diesel. Switching to the F250 solved the stability problems. You feel much more confident pulling larger loads in terms of stability, safety, etc. With regards to fuel consumption, you have to weigh the tradeoffs as it pertains to the distances and frequencies you described. An F250 in a smaller gasser like the 5.4 will be about the same in low MPG when pulling that load. The V10 we used to pull the trailer had more power, and slightly better MPGs, about 10 to 12mpg. But since I was going 300-400 miles at a shot, that was still far too low of MPG than I wanted, so I opted for the Diesel. With it, I get in the mid to high teens on MPG, greatly extending the distances I can drive without needing to refuel.

rgds,
TX

 

Yeah, towing my trailer empty actually causes a lot more sway than loaded -- but I know what you mean. Did you have a WDH with sway control on the trailer? It seems like that would mitigate most of the sway issue.

 

I'm running a WDH without sway control. For me it wasn't an issue of the trailer swaying, it was just the overall pushing, pulling, drifting of the entire truck+trailer "package" when large trucks passed close by. When you have a trailer that heavy, and probably more specifically an enclosed trailer like yours or a travel trailer, the lighter trucks have less of an "anchoring" effect. With the heavier F250, I feel like I'm glued to the road now when an 18 wheeler blows by in either direction.

 

yeah... I hear ya. I'd call the dealer and ask them to report back on the door jam sticker that lists the available cargo capacity as the truck leaves the factory. That'll save you time and effort at checking.

Other than the payload limitations of the F-150 CC, I think you're probably in that grey area. The fact that, for your needs, your Envoy performed ok means to me that you'll likely find the Platinum Crew to be luxurious and very capable for your limited travel range.

Even if you decide to flirt with or exceed your payload specs...at least you'll know you're doing it. The Platinums are sooooo nice inside. I love my '06 King Ranch Crew Cab F250 6.0L PSD... not as nice as a Platinum insidie...but I sure do appreciate getting 12-13 mpg (versus 7-8) towing my 34 foot, 9000 pound camper.

 

Exactly!

 

WTF?