2013 f-150 ECO BOOST

[warsw]

Originally Posted by raycan2

So here is the deal being that I just bought the truck on Wed the 15th,Should I just go back and exchange it for a 3/4 ton F-250 or should I keep it? Now I will use my 5th wheel say 6-7 times this summer..That's the good thing about the forum you learn all this...I should of had this conversation before I bought the truck...But hey I can always take it back being that I just got it....

I hate to say this Ray but I think you would be much happier if you could make the trade now.

I made the same mistake you are about to. I bought 2011 Toyota Tundra that I really liked. It did a great job pulling the TT that I had then.

One year later we decided that we wanted a larger trailer and that a 5th/W was the way we wanted to go. (There are so many advantages to a 5th/W). I tried to find a 5th/W that the Tundra could handle but we now had to compromise on the trailer because of the truck’s limitation.

We decided that to get what we really wanted that we would just have to bite the bullet and trade the Tundra in on a truck that would do what we needed. Waiting a year before we made the trade cost us a bundle.

It is way better (less expensive) to get what you want the first time than to do as I did and have to make the change later on down the road.

Your new truck may pull your trailer but I guarantee you will not like it. You will be working it to death, which will take the fun factor right out of it. With the right truck you will be looking forward to the next trip each and every time.

[davidjsimons]

Originally Posted by warsw

Your new truck may pull your trailer but I guarantee you will not like it. You will be working it to death, which will take the fun factor right out of it. With the right truck you will be looking forward to the next trip each and every time.

That statement is the best advice yet.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Bob Landry]

Since I'm on my third truck in four years, I feel like I'm qualified to throw in my $.02. I started with a Jayco 22fb and a Toyota 4Runner. Naturally the salesman siad it would be fine. It wasn't, so here comes the Tundra 4.6L. The salesman said that combo would be fine, and it was OK, but marginal. That truck was rated to pull 8000 lbs. I didn't know anything about payload capacities and limitations at this point, but I wanted to upgrade the trailer and I knew I needed more truck for that, so I traded it in on a 5.7L. That was a great truck towing wise, but again, the payload crunch hit home, along with the limited fuel tank. Why any builder would put a 26 gallon tank on a truck that's sold to tow is beyond me. Anyway, now I'm in a F250 pulling a 227rl and that's where I need to be and should have started there. Fortunately, A shooting buddy was the GM at the Toyota dealer so I didn't take a bath on the Tundras, and the Ford dealer gave me a great deal on the F250 with my trade. I consider myself lucky. It could have been a much more expensive lesson than it was. Bottom line is, no one ever woke up one morning and said, "Man, I wish I had less truck". The only people who are going to tell you that you are going to have a good experience pulling a fiver with a 1/2 ton truck are the truck salesmen, the trailer salesmen, and the people who are doing it and just don't want to admit they made a huge mistake. Take the truck back and start over. Even if you have to settle for fewer whistles and bells, towing safety and comfort are more important than that wood trim on the dashboard.

[raycan2]

I agree with all you guys...I think I am gonna take it back and x/out for a 3/4 ton....I will call the sales guy today...Its just so confusing cause you here all different stories...Just this morning I was talking to a guy that is a driller where I do my engineering work and he said " He had a ECO BOOST and he pulled the 5th wheel all around with no problems up in Canada" He traded it in after he sold the 5th wheel and bought a Ford Raptor (Not for pulling) just to have to take his Moto X out to the desert..But I just have that GUT FEELING that I need to go with.

[Javi]

Originally Posted by raycan2

I agree with all you guys...I think I am gonna take it back and x/out for a 3/4 ton....I will call the sales guy today...Its just so confusing cause you here all different stories...Just this morning I was talking to a guy that is a driller where I do my engineering work and he said " He had a ECO BOOST and he pulled the 5th wheel all around with no problems up in Canada" He traded it in after he sold the 5th wheel and bought a Ford Raptor (Not for pulling) just to have to take his Moto X out to the desert..But I just have that GUT FEELING that I need to go with.

A word of advice from someone who has made the same mistakes. I too belived the hype and drank the kool aid on the 1/2 ton. My gut feeling as a design engineer kept telling me no but everyone kept saying yes, so I ignored my gut and bought into it.
A year later I made another mistake while rectifying the first and traded for a 10K F250 which is plenty of truck for my Passport but very limited if one decides to upgrade the trailer.
I'm not suggesting a dually but I will storngly suggest a F350 SWR, the difference in cost is minimal but the difference in capability is huge. You won't regret it later like I'm currently doing the decision to buy the F250.

[raycan2]

I here you. I drank the Kool Aid

[labs4life]

Originally Posted by Javi

A word of advice from someone who has made the same mistakes. I too belived the hype and drank the kool aid on the 1/2 ton. My gut feeling as a design engineer kept telling me no but everyone kept saying yes, so I ignored my gut and bought into it.
A year later I made another mistake while rectifying the first and traded for a 10K F250 which is plenty of truck for my Passport but very limited if one decides to upgrade the trailer.
I'm not suggesting a dually but I will storngly suggest a F350 SWR, the difference in cost is minimal but the difference in capability is huge. You won't regret it later like I'm currently doing the decision to buy the F250.

Javi, I am in that boat as well. I have a '13 250 that is 10k GVW. Guess what trailers the DW now LOVES, ones that are out of my comfort zone to put in the bed of the 250! We have an awesome TT that we love, but as everything else one loves to look and that spells trouble!!!!

[Trent McCain]

I think in the long run you'll be happier. My dealer must be the only honest one. The F1 might have handled the 29' Excel OK if we left the boat and kids at home. But we knew we wanted to travel more and eventually upgrade to a larger coach. The F3 allowed us to do that. I'd agree with the others find another 350. You might want the higher payload later. I'm probably going to hold on to the F350 awhile. Kansas property tax is terrible on a new truck and this one is finally getting reasonable. My folks pull a 2012 Montana Mountaineer 346LBQ with a 2011 F350 6.7 diesel. Mileage is far better than our 6.4.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

[Bob Landry]

We are really happy with our truck/trailer combo. We eyeball fivers occasionally, but if I were to go to a fiver, I would still stay in the 27-28' range because that's all the two of us really need. I don't see a need to have to buy, maintain, and tow more than we need. Truthfully, If I ever go to another trailer, it will probably be a conventional tow rig. Some people have problems getting a conventional rig in and out of CG spaces and gas stops, and I agree that fivers are probably more maneuverable,but I haven't found that to be a problem with my rig. I've gotten so used to having 35' of trailer hanging on the back of my truck, it doesn't bother me anymore. Also, I think it's pretty obvious that dollar for dollar, you get more trailer for the money with a conventional tow. At least that's the way I see it.. YMMV.

[Javi]

Originally Posted by labs4life

Javi, I am in that boat as well. I have a '13 250 that is 10k GVW. Guess what trailers the DW now LOVES, ones that are out of my comfort zone to put in the bed of the 250! We have an awesome TT that we love, but as everything else one loves to look and that spells trouble!!!!

Yeah, I was in my Ford dealer's yesterday getting the 15K service and he chatted me up on how I liked the F250/6.7.... I told him the truth, I love it, great fuel mileage and more than enough power.... but I will never own another SRW until I'm too old to tow a trailer... and as soon as I can affordably trade I will....

[labs4life]

Originally Posted by Javi

Yeah, I was in my Ford dealer's yesterday getting the 15K service and he chatted me up on how I liked the F250/6.7.... I told him the truth, I love it, great fuel mileage and more than enough power.... but I will never own another SRW until I'm too old to tow a trailer... and as soon as I can affordably trade I will....

Agree 100%.

[rhagfo]

Originally Posted by SteveC7010

The 2,310# payload is for the 8,200# GVWR option.

In your opening post, you list your truck with the 7,700# GVWR package. Your correct payload is 1,840#.

That and it is based on the base trucks GVWR minus the BASE trucks weight (stripper truck), all options reduce the payload.
The door sticker takes that into account.
Sure you have heavy duty tires, stiffer springs, but still semi floating rear axle!! Why not just but a F250, then you have a real towing axle supporting the pin weight.
The 250 has four big bearings supporting the load, rather than two.

[raycan2]

So i read somewhere that if the truck has 7 lugs on the tire its a heavy duty suspension, Mine has 6 lugs what does that mean.

[SteveC7010]

Originally Posted by raycan2

So i read somewhere that if the truck has 7 lugs on the tire its a heavy duty suspension, Mine has 6 lugs what does that mean.

It means what you originally told us in your first post: 7,700# GVWR

As someone else pointed out a few pages back, the HD 8,200 GVWR option in an F150 is extremely rare. That's most likely because it is a special order only, and the price tag would be high enough that most buyers would find an F250/350 Super Duty to be a better choice.

Think about this: The F250/350 Super Duty is commonly stocked at every Ford dealership. If they don't have the trim level or engine or color or whatever that the buyer wants, the dealer gets on the phone and finds the right truck at another dealership, usually within a few hours. They arrange an inventory trade and the customer gets the truck he wants almost immediately. On the other hand, since the 8,200# GVWR HD optioned F150 is so rare, there may not be one to be found in a multi-state region. Special order only, and as we all know, many special order vehicles can only be ordered once or twice per production year.

Plus the Super Duty trucks offer much higher payloads and pull ratings in the standard models, let alone a wide range of options that directly appeal to the towing crowd.

My long standing rule of thumb has been that 1/2 ton trucks are totally suitable for trailers up to 8,500# GVWR, give or take a few pounds. Given the somewhat improved numbers for the newer 1/2 tons, I'll concede another 500# of GVWR. But beyond that, I think a 3/4 ton truck becomes the more logical choice. We could debate my numbers all day, but most folks with trailers of 10K# GVWR or greater will tell us that they prefer the 3/4 ton. There's a gray area in there where fivers and conventional pull trailers diverge in the numbers a bit, too.

[labs4life]

I would assume it has reduced payload as opposed to "max tow" or however they call it. If u are serious about getting out of hat truck, I would present the facts to the salesman first, then to the sales manager and explain the situation.

There is no way that truck was designed with this type of service in mind. Just salesmen giving their "spin" on the facts to move trucks!! Happens also in the camper industry!

[Ken / Claudia]

If you are not willing to fix a $30,000 to maybe $35,000 truck, would you salavage it?or list it on here. Repairing what you said, many could do in a garage and get a fine TV for the right price.

[Trent McCain]

The statement about only being able to special order only a couple times a year is false. We've ordered a few trucks before and time of year wasn't an issue. Now it might make a difference in how long it takes to build it. We usually had ours on the ground in 30-60 days

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

[Bob Landry]

Steve's rule of thumb is pretty reasonable and would fall pretty much in the unwritten 20% parameter, as most newer 1/2 tons are rated to tow around 10K. I'll even go a little more conservative than that and add as long as the payload capacity of the truck isn't exceeded. That's more important than how much it can pull, something that most new RVers don't know about and salesmen don't want to talk about. I would rather see the trailer weight over by a couple of hundred lbs than have the rear axle load and braking capabilities compromised. I would venture to say that almost everyone that is pulling more than 8K with a 1/2 ton truck is overloaded.

[Trent McCain]

My last post was harsh. You can special order at anytime, but certain options might not be available at all times. I'm hoping that's what the above poster meant and hopes they don't think I'm accusing them of lying.......wasn't my intent anymays.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

[SteveC7010]

Originally Posted by Trent McCain

The statement about only being able to special order only a couple times a year is false. We've ordered a few trucks before and time of year wasn't an issue. Now it might make a difference in how long it takes to build it. We usually had ours on the ground in 30-60 days.

Thanks for the update. Things have changed a bit since I last ordered a new vehicle.

I'd still maintain that the 8,200# GVWR optioned HD F150 is a rare, rare beast. Given the range of cab, drive train, engine, trim level, and color choices, I be even more certain that finding one that meets a specific customer's requirements would be even more remote.