I am thinking about trading in my 2007 F-350 Powerstroke on a 2011 F-350 Powerstroke. I am leaning towards a fully loaded Lariat, 4WD, Crew Cab, Long Bed. I have some questions for the experts before I take the plunge.

1) How is the engine on this truck? Do they have most of the bugs worked out or is it a nightmare like the first 6.0's and some of the 6.4's? Lots of power/torque?

2) How about the transmission? Does it hunt a lot, or find a gear pretty quick and stick with it?

3) How does it pull? I have a 24ft boat that fully loaded weighs around 6,000 lbs. I know thats not a whole lot, but will I know it's back there?

4) How about ride quality? Like I said, it's going to be a F-350, Crew Cab, Long Bed, 4WD, with the FX4 package, probably the 20" wheels.

5) I am not sure what color interior to get. The tan isn't bad, although the inserts look a little odd to me. I like the way the black interior looks, but worried about them getting really hot in the summers. Thoughts? Advice?

6) I currently have a 12" shallow mount subwoofer behind the rear seat in my '07. Is there access/room behind the seat for one of these in the '11? How does the 8 speaker set up with the subwoofer sound? I don't want it to blow windows out, but I do like to have nice crisp, full sound, with some decent bass when needed.

7) How do all the bells and whistles work? Are they accurate and useful? How about the fit and form of all the components?

8) How many watts does the built in power inverter put out?

9) Does the storage under the rear seat come out to give a large amount of floor space for cargo, or is it hard mounted?

10) What type of mileage are people getting? I am thinking about the 20" wheels with the 3.55 rear end.

11) Is locking rear differential a true locker? And does it work well?

12) I noticed somebody put "Weekend Warrior" in the head's up display, I take it you can put custom text in the display?

13) Can you modify these trucks? Like a chip, exhaust, intake, etc., or do they pretty much have to stay stock?

Any other advice, tips, recommendations, compliments, horror stories, etc. are welcome. I really like my current truck but can't get over the way the '11's look, so I want to make sure I know what I am getting into and aren't going to regret it. Sorry for all the questions, but thanks in advance!

Thanks!

 

Lot's of questions, let me give it a shot:
1 - Engine/Trans combo is awesome. Amazing power and amazingly few problems and complaints. Vast majority of owners express great satisfaction.
2 - Trans locks up very quickly as part of it's power/fuel management strategy. You can use the +/- to lock-out higher or lower gears as needed plus there is a full Manual mode available.
3 - 6,000 lbs behind a 6.7L diesel is not much weight. Truck will handle it fine. I don't buy into the "don't know it's back there" vernacular because you better know a trailer is back there or you get into trouble.
4 - Ride quality is very nice considering. You have to remember that you're driving a one ton truck, not a Mercedes. Having said that, never has a one-tone ridden so nicely.
5 - Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. You're on your own when picking colors but I hated the Platinum white with adobe interior the least.
6 - Some guys are modding the speaker systems. There are threads out there for the searching.
7 - Bells and whistles galore. The driver information display is extremely useful let alone the NAV system that takes weeks to truly appreciate. Trailer sway control, downhill descent control, rear axle e-locker, traction control, oil-minder system, plus all the other Lariat options are fun and worth the price.
8 - I think its 5 watts. Someone can confirm.
9 - If it's bolted down, it can be unbolted. Modding is my hobby.
10 - Mileage is improving over time. 18 - 20 highway, 15-16 city, 11-12 towing.
11 - The rear locker is fully locked. Just used it yesterday on dirt roads and when turning, the inside tire always drags and scrubs the road when engaged. This is the first time I have used one before and I love it. Lessens the need for 4WD.
12 - Weekend Warrior. That was me. Yes you can name any trailer you attach. Very cool feature to track usage and trailer brake settings for each.
13 - One vendor is now offering a tune for the 2011's but with 400/800, why?

There were earlier complaints about rough trans shifting which were mostly resolved with the 10B17 flash. Some still say it's too rough though. Another guy had a bad turbo that was replaced and sent back to Honeywell. Some DEF lines were crushed in initial transports but those were resolved. The fuel tank on the short beds is small prompting some of us to upgrade to larger aftermarket tanks. There was also a couple of fan clutches that gave grief but that's all I know of. The amazing thing here is the LACK of problems these trucks have. Ford hit a home run with this one. Run up the victory flag as far as I'm concerned.

Good luck with your research.

 

1) My engine is running strong. No problems. It is fast!!!
2) The tranny is very smooth. I have found no hesitation.
3) It pulls strong. There are a few guys on here that pull a lot with them.
4) Ride quality is good. Letting some air out of the tires helps.
5) I went King Ranch for the nicer interior. I have heard that some feel the lariat leather to be weaker than the previous years.
6) Mine has the factory Sub. Sounds good. I usually change speakers out, but I'm keeping this one stock.
7) The bells and whistles are nice. I really like how functional they are.
8) the inverter is a 110. Haven't checked the actual output.
9) I use mine, but I'm sure you could take it out if you wanted to.
10) I've got 20's and 3.55's. I was getting 17.9 highway and 15 around town before getting the winter fuel at the pump. Now I'm getting around 16 highway and 13 around town.
11) The locking rear diff works well. With all of the power you need it on wet roads.
12) That was the name of his trailer. You can name your trailer and it is displayed while towing.
13) Why would you want to? You will just end up voiding your warranty. Ford has left themselves room to pump up the HP if someone beats them. Hence the jump from 390HP to 400HP in the latest computer flash.

Hope this helps. My fingers are tired now. Back to work!!!

 

Looks like you started typing before me Epic!!!

 

Lol, he who presses enter first wins! Message is the same though, nice.

 

for what it's worth, the inverter puts out 115w.

I also find it pretty cool that your responses lined up so closely

 

Right, thanks. I was thinking amps but even that would be wrong. If it's 115 watts with 110 volts, then the flow is slightly over 1 amp. It's a light duty port.

 

Actually, it's 150 watts...lol.
(I just looked.)

 

Well if you asked me...never mind...Epic and 11350...said it all. The truck will not know the boat you are pulling is back there but you better...I recommend any color but the UPS truck brown...

 

Thank you all for the replies. It seems that I cannot go wrong with this truck. One other thing I forgot to ask...how do the bed shapes compare from the '07 to the '11? I have a roll top tonneau on my '07 I might put on the '11 if it will fit....

 

Ok, then. 1.36 amps.

 

I will correct you like I do everybody else, it's not brown, it's bronze! Brown just sounds so dull!!!

 

We have a F450 2011 and blew the turbo with only 2200 miles. I just hope they get it fixed soon. Dealer is waiting for an eta from Ford on when they will be sending a turbo.

 

someone does not get the joke....look at my signature

 

I, for one, would like a definition of " it blew the turbo". There have been so few issues with turbo's in 100000 trucks on the road that inquiring minds would like to know.