Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 

Go Back   Keystone RV Forums > Keystone Tech Forums > Tow Vehicles
Click Here to Login

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 05-12-2023, 05:12 PM   #1
MrRobalo
Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2019
Location: Grant
Posts: 40
2016 f250 6.7 advice

I’m looking at the truck it’s extremely nice and was a 1 owner fleet truck but was never used as a Truck, even the bed looks like new. My son picked it up at a super price ($20k) from a friend before the auction (he’s a dealer).and he knew we were looking for one. BUT it has 300,000. on the clock. Our thought was to get a F250 to pull our Bullet 220RBI for now but looking into the future a half-ton 5th.Wheel or longer travel trailer. Bucket trips to Blue Ridge next year and following year out west to Nevada. I figure I will get a honest and hands on advice from the forum members that have been going down the road with high mileage vehicles. I know I will have & do (have done) preventive maintenance. One big question is should one always get the transmission serviced ( the best service transmission shop in Orlando) Any advice is welcomed and appreciated.
Thank You in advance
__________________
Sammy Joe Quattry
4 Generations of Fishermen, 1 ROBALO
MrRobalo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-12-2023, 05:53 PM   #2
JRTJH
Site Team
 
JRTJH's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Gaylord
Posts: 26,841
You started your post with, "a 1 owner fleet truck" and somewhere around the middle, you stated, "Our thought was to get a F250 to pull our Bullet 220RBI for now but looking into the future a half-ton 5th"

I didn't see any comments about the load capabilities of the "fleet truck" or even if it was a HD truck or maybe a half ton fleet truck"...

As for F250's, some older ones (2011-2016 or so) with diesel engines AND luxury trim level options, can have a payload within a couple hundred pounds of a "typical half ton from any manufacturer"... It's not uncommon to find a diesel F250 Lariat or King Ranch with a payload capacity of 2000 pounds or close to that. Now, if your "fleet truck or the F250 is a gas engine truck, you'll get roughly 800 pounds increased payload over the diesel, so you do get breathing room with a gas engine vs a diesel powered truck.

When looking at a F250 for towing a fifth wheel, even a "half ton fifth wheel", many simply do not have the payload to accommodate that kind of trailer pin weight....

So, what are the specs on that "fleet truck" and what kind of "F250 to tow a future half ton 5th" are you wanting to fill both needs ????

As is often said on here, if you're looking at a 3/4 ton diesel, you'd be much better off skipping up to the 1 ton (same size, same ride, much improved payload) if a fifth wheel is in your future....

I've got a 30' Cougar XLite fifth wheel and EVERY (did I mention EVERY) trip is a hassle, trying to keep the pin weight under the truck payload.... If I'd have known in 2014 when I bought this truck what I know today, I'd have bought the F350 sitting next to it instead... Same negotiated price, same equipment, same color but 1200 pounds more payload and I could have skipped all the BS I've gone through with DW who simply doesn't understand why we can't take 6 lawn chairs and 2 patio mats in case we have guests that she wants to invite over for an evening.....

This is "not really about a high mileage fleet truck purchase" but rather, IMO, a beginning requirement for any truck purchase.... And IMO, a diesel F250 isn't equipped to tow a fifth wheel.....

Let the arrows begin to fly......
__________________
John



2015 F250 6.7l 4x4
2014 Cougar X Lite 27RKS
JRTJH is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-12-2023, 06:43 PM   #3
wiredgeorge
Senior Member
 
wiredgeorge's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Location: Mico, TX
Posts: 7,395
To toss in my 2 cents... there are 3/4 ton trucks and there are 3/4 ton trucks. My sister's Ram Laramie 3/4 ton has a payload of less than 1900 lbs. Those "half ton" 5th wheels have gross weights in the neighborhood of 10K lbs and almost NO half ton truck has the payload. My sis's 3/4 ton Ram doesn't. Check the payload of that F250; if it was a fleet truck and is a non-luxury line (such as an XL model) it may have enough payload (over 2500 lbs) to handle some of the lighter 1/2 ton towable fifth wheels. If you are thinking about moving up, suggest you forgo the purchase and pick up a one ton that won't cause you to have to make hard decisions on which camper you can pull.

I had a 96 F250 w/7.5L gas motor, 2WD and short bed/super cab. The literature I saw said over 3400 lbs payload but there was no sticker and I never took it to a weigh station. I pulled my same 5th wheel and the main downside were the rear drum brakes. While I was probably safe and within payload limits (just making an educated guess), I bought a 1 ton as soon as I was able. Turns out the 96 F250 is a fairly desirable truck even with the gas hog 7.5L gas motor. I made a nice profit when I sold it; almost enough to purchase my 1 ton.
__________________
wiredgeorge Mico TX
2006 F350 CC 4WD 6.0L
2002 Keystone Cougar 278
2006 GL1800 Roadsmith Trike
wiredgeorge is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-13-2023, 03:11 AM   #4
jasin1
Senior Member
 
jasin1's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2020
Location: Upper Chesapeake Bay
Posts: 4,804
Since it is your sons truck (at least for now) i’d take it to a reputable local diesel mechanic…every city has one that specializes in turbo and injector rebuilds and complete engines..have the engine looked over and you could even have them do an oil analysis on the engine. If they also do vehicle inspections i’d let them look over the whole truck for worn out suspension and drivetrain parts then you will know the full price of the truck.

An engine replacement or rebuild on a diesel truck is way more specialized and expensive then a gas version…you could easily be over 10k or more for a rebuild or long block install after the mechanic puts everything back together…a transmission could be over 5k installed for a rebuilt unit.

The old 7.3 Ford diesel could probably go 500,000 miles without a hiccup but the modern emission saddled diesels of all manufacturers are not likely to see that without expensive repairs along the way.

If you pass on the truck you could add the cost of the inspections to the selling price

Usually when looking at a used vehicle you don’t get the luxury of a thorough inspection but since it’s your sons truck it looks like you may have the opportunity
__________________
2020 Cougar 315 RLS
2020 Ram 3500 6.7HO 4.10 Dually Aisin
jasin1 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-14-2023, 10:41 AM   #5
MrRobalo
Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2019
Location: Grant
Posts: 40
Thank you all for the info and I was able to dig deeper and I went through the FORD website using the VIN to get all the numbers and here’s what I found pertaining to weights & towing on this truck from the build sheet. I’m working on getting a fishing buddy to run down with us to look it over. He was the lead supervisor of the city’s vehicle and construction service and maintenance garage. If not I’ll just bring it home (130 miles apart) and go over it here. And if I’m understanding this right. If this was about boats I’d be answering instead of learning . Lol

Gross vehicle weight rating 9900 lbs = people,,fuel, cargo in truck ??
Wt. Distribution hitch ( I have an Anderson) max trailer wt. 12200
Dead weight hitch tongue wt. 500
5 th.Wheel hitch max trailer wt. 12100.
5 th Wheel Hitch max t wt. 3025
—————————-
From firs site

Gross Vehicle Weight Rating Cap
9900, 10000 *lbs *9900.0 min 10000.0 max
Gross Combined Wt Rating
23500, 22000, 19000 *lbs *19000.0 min 23500.0 max
Dead Weight Hitch - Max Trailer Wt.
5000 *lbs *5000.0 min 5000.0 max
Dead Weight Hitch - Max Tongue Wt.
500 *lbs *500.0 min 500.0 max
Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Trailer Wt.
14000, 12500, 12200 *lbs *12200.0 min 14000.0 max
Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Tongue Wt.
1400, 1250, 1220 *lbs *1220.0 min 1400.0 max
Fifth Wheel Hitch - Max Trailer Wt.
15900, 15100, 12100 *lbs *12100.0 min 15900.0 max
Fifth Wheel Hitch - Max Tongue Wt.
3975, 3775, 3025 *lbs *3025.0 min 3975.0 max
Maximum Trailering Capacity
14000, 12500, 12200 *lbs *12200.0 min 14000.0 max
__________________
Sammy Joe Quattry
4 Generations of Fishermen, 1 ROBALO
MrRobalo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-14-2023, 12:45 PM   #6
notanlines
Senior Member
 
notanlines's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Germantown, TN
Posts: 6,308
What is ‘cargo capacity’ from the sticker on the door jam?
It will read “Combined cargo cannot exceed xxxx”
__________________
Jim in Memphis, Wife of 51 years is Brenda
2019 F450 6.7 Powerstroke
2018 Mobile Suites 40RSSA
2021 40' Jayco Eagle
2001 Road king w/matching Harley sidecar
2021 Yamaha X2 Wolverine 1000
notanlines is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-14-2023, 12:52 PM   #7
MrRobalo
Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2019
Location: Grant
Posts: 40
Ill look when i get down there this week to see in person. Ill ask the grandson when he goes to the showroom take a pic n send it.
__________________
Sammy Joe Quattry
4 Generations of Fishermen, 1 ROBALO
MrRobalo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-14-2023, 05:23 PM   #8
JRTJH
Site Team
 
JRTJH's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Gaylord
Posts: 26,841
Those "specifications are HIGHLY SUSPECT" !!!!!

First, Any "relatively new" Ford Superduty diesel will have a curb weight of at least 7500 pounds. So, with a GVWR of 9900 pounds and a vehicle weight of 7500+, the best cargo capacity you can expect is around 2400 pounds. (9900-7500=2400).

So, the first "glaring inconsistency" that I picked up is the maximum fifth wheel hitch capacity.... AIN'T GONNA BE MORE THAN THE GVWR minus TRUCK WEIGHT, so when you factor in the hitch weight, any cargo weight, passenger weight, driver weight (over 150 pounds) and the change in the ashtray, you won't get anywhere close to 3025 pound fifth wheel pin capacity....

From there, I pretty much stopped trying to run any "valid specification comparisons" because that data is HIGHLY SUSPECT as being wrong.....

In short, you can't carry more fifth wheel hitch weight than the maximum cargo capacity (payload) that's on the yellow sticker on the driver's door jamb of the truck in question, and that won't be anywhere close to 3000 pounds......

I'd hold off on any "firm plans" until you at least get the accurate specifications from the truck... Payload is critical limiting factor on any 3/4 ton from any manufacturer.
__________________
John



2015 F250 6.7l 4x4
2014 Cougar X Lite 27RKS
JRTJH is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-18-2023, 11:43 AM   #9
MrRobalo
Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2019
Location: Grant
Posts: 40
Want to thank you for the help. I learned a lot but still a lot more to go. We decided getting this one as it would need new tires on it and a lot of front end work so we passed.
__________________
Sammy Joe Quattry
4 Generations of Fishermen, 1 ROBALO
MrRobalo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-20-2023, 04:35 PM   #10
Stircrazy
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2016
Location: Kamloops, BC
Posts: 369
if you are planning to get a 5th wheel later don't buy an f250 now. a good F350 will give you more capacity for later and the price should be relatively similar or even cheaper seeing as way more F350's are sold than F250's.
Stircrazy is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3
Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Keystone RV Company or any of its affiliates in any way. Keystone RV® is a registered trademark of the Keystone RV Company.


All times are GMT -8. The time now is 04:19 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.