Outback Ultralight 240 URS

[JRTJH]

Ford does not penalize the payload with fuel weight. The Ford payload is for a "fully fueled truck"...

The problems you're facing with that 1911 payload are three major factors.

1. Diesel: The diesel weighs approximately 700 pounds more than the standard gas engine for the SuperDuty line. So "there goes 700 pounds of payload"....

2. The F250 is restricted to a GVWR of 10,000 pounds in order to remain categorized as a "Class 2B vehicle".... Ford, RAM and GM have, in the past couple of years, "fudged on the GVWR rating, going as high as 10,800 pounds on some diesel equipped 250-2500 series trucks. They can "get away with this" as long as they keep the percentage of "higher GVWR trucks" below a certain percentage of the total annual vehicles in that class.....

3. Ford is the heaviest of all three manufacturers of 250/2500 class vehicles. That's one of the reasons they were forced to switch to aluminum body panels sooner than GM and RAM. Then there's the options "loaded on the Lariat package"... You can pretty much depend on an extra 600-800 pounds of optional equipment that "eats up any reasonable payload capacity" and the King Ranch, Limited and Platinum series are even heavier, so they have less payload than the Lariat.....

All told, if you're going to buy a Ford diesel SuperDuty, I'd strongly urge you to skip the F250 and go straight to the F350. It's the same size truck, equipped the same, rides the same, costs within $300-$400 of the same MSRP, and the GVWR is 11,400 rather than 10,000, so you "gain" 1400 pounds of payload with the F350 SRW SuperDuty.....

As the "proud owner" of a F250 diesel, I can tell you that there are very few days that go by that I don't kick myself for making the mistake of buying a F250 rather than the "identical" F350....

If you're "dead set" on an F250, go gas power.... If you're "dead set" on a diesel, then skip the heartache and buy a F350.....

ADDED: Here is the EPA Truck Classification Chart. You can see the 10K GVWR of the F250 limits it to the 2B class and the 11400 GVWR of the F350 puts it in a different class. It's all about "Gubmint rules"

[nfortierc514]

Thanks again for all the replies. I have come a long way since the first post since I actually understand what everyone is talking about !

We seem to have 2 different max payload ratings for this one truck.

1911 lbs from the yellow sticker on the door frame. Then the dealer sent us information that showed the curb weight at 7682 lbs and the max payload at 2560 lbs. I am assuming that the yellow sticker is the correct number and that the 2560 lbs may be from a different truck?

On a positive note, we did find a Lariat 250 diesel with a payload of 2818 lbs as per the yellow sticker. Hopefully we can get this one as it does have what we need/want.

Nathalie

[sourdough]

Don't rely on anything the dealer "sent" you, the sticker inside the door is THE number to adhere to. Sounds like you may have a truck in sight....let us know how it goes.

[wiredgeorge]

The dealer has 3 walnut shells with a slip of paper under two. He manipulates the shells around and you pick the payload you like? Sounds fishy and I suggest the manufacturer has the correct number right in your door frame. Next step for the dealer is to pull out a brochure and wave it around and tell you the max payload for an F250 is 5,243 lbs. They never mention that your truck you are looking at ain't the truck from the brochure.

Danny, FYI, my sister has a 3/4 ton Ram top of the line and it's payload is just over 1800 lbs. Nice truck with all the bells and whistles. Kind of like a 1/2 ton as far as towing capability.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

The dealer has 3 walnut shells with a slip of paper under two. He manipulates the shells around and you pick the payload you like? Sounds fishy and I suggest the manufacturer has the correct number right in your door frame. Next step for the dealer is to pull out a brochure and wave it around and tell you the max payload for an F250 is 5,243 lbs. They never mention that your truck you are looking at ain't the truck from the brochure.

Danny, FYI, my sister has a 3/4 ton Ram top of the line and it's payload is just over 1800 lbs. Nice truck with all the bells and whistles. Kind of like a 1/2 ton as far as towing capability.

Yes there are some big gaps in those payload ratings for 3/4 tons. My 4x4 Big Horn had everything I thought I wanted/needed and it had 3190lbs as I recall, gas engine.

[travelin texans]

There's also dealers, also some truck owners, that will shout from the roof tops that the only difference if 3/4 & 1 ton trucks is an added leaf in the rear springs, just another slip of paper under one of walnut shells to sell a truck by the dealer & an owner trying convince themselves they did really buy the right truck.....maybe.

[nfortierc514]

Funny but also accurate! Yes, we are going by the yellow sticker for sure...

[Kirk's Keystone Outback.]

Originally Posted by nfortierc514

Wow, thank you so much for everyone’s input. It has been very helpful. We will be trading our F150 Lariat hybrid for a F250 Lariat - not sure whether we will go diesel or gas yet, depends on what is out there. The equalizer is on my shopping list as well. Looking forward to the first trip !

Nathalie

The factory weights (Dry / GVWR) on my 30' TT are similar to your numbers, slightly higher, and I pull with a gas F250 XL Sport Short Bed, with 3300 lb payload, hitched with the Equalizer 10K Hitch. It's been a perfect match for us. We feel very safe with this arrangement.
2 things I hate most when on the Interstate: Cross Winds and Box Trucks, and my rig handles both well.

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by Kirk's Keystone Outback.

The factory weights (Dry / GVWR) on my 30' TT are similar to your numbers, slightly higher, and I pull with a gas F250 XL Sport Short Bed, with 3300 lb payload, hitched with the Equalizer 10K Hitch. It's been a perfect match for us. We feel very safe with this arrangement.
2 things I hate most when on the Interstate: Cross Winds and Box Trucks, and my rig handles both well.

How does the 6.2L d in the hills? Kinda wish I had a gas engine in my clunker but the offering in 2006 was a 5.4L which was known to be puny in a one ton. I have a 28' 5th wheel and it pulls great and not bothered by semis or cross winds as it probably is around 8K lbs loaded. I have never scaled it as I am pretty sure my truck is more than up to the task. I moved up from a 3/4 ton F250 but that was because the truck was a 97 and had read drums and 300K miles (still pretty reliable though). Come to find out 95 through 97 F models trucks are pretty desirable for some reason and sold it for double what I paid.

[Kirk's Keystone Outback.]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

How does the 6.2L d in the hills? Kinda wish I had a gas engine in my clunker but the offering in 2006 was a 5.4L which was known to be puny in a one ton. I have a 28' 5th wheel and it pulls great and not bothered by semis or cross winds as it probably is around 8K lbs loaded. I have never scaled it as I am pretty sure my truck is more than up to the task. I moved up from a 3/4 ton F250 but that was because the truck was a 97 and had read drums and 300K miles (still pretty reliable though). Come to find out 95 through 97 F models trucks are pretty desirable for some reason and sold it for double what I paid.

Hello George.
On steep grades, it kicks down to 4th gear (TORQSHIFT 6) and it keeps the speed up around 55 comfortably without any laboring. It also has the manual shift capability if you want to search for the right gear yourself. It's not gonna be a rocket like a diesel would be, but that's ok with me and the DW.
I'm happy with the truck and trailer combo, and we're not planning on getting any bigger trailer, maybe similar size 5th wheel. I do want to research the 7.3 liter for a possible trade in way down the road.

[JRTJH]

We had a 2013 F250 6.2L and traded for a 2015 F250 6.7L diesel. We towed our Cougar 27RKS with both trucks, in fact we towed the trailer with the gas truck the day before trading it in and we towed the trailer with the new diesel as soon as we had 1000 miles on it.

Although there is a marked difference in torque (significantly lower RPM on the diesel) which leads to a perception of "not needing to shift to lower gears and scream up the hills" but the gas 6.2L really never left us with a feeling of being underpowered. I really never "felt a need for more power" when towing with the gas truck and never had a situation where we had to "fall in behind the slow 18 wheelers because we couldn't keep up with traffic in the left lanes".

That said, yes, there is a "easy to see difference", but it isn't a "gosh, how did I ever survive that other truck" feeling.... Right now, I'd have no reservations about hitching to a 6.2L gas superduty and heading anywhere in the lower 48.

For our trailer (10K GVWR) it's more a personal choice than a need for diesel...

[WDPatterson]

I know this is a subjective point of view, but I really do like our F350 XLT over our F250 King Ranch.
We bought the F-250 King Ranch to tow a 2004 Laredo 27rl. The trailer pulled great with the f-250, and we never really noticed much drop in the rear of the truck when we hitched up.
The F-250 was stolen out of our driveway in 2017, and we were hard pressed to find a new truck. We got a 2006 6.0 liter F350 XLT. Unexpectedly, the difference was like night and day. While it was easy to tow with the f250, you could still feel it was back there. With the f350, even in windy conditions, you could barely feel that trailer. There was a great deal more confidence, a lot less white knuckling, and I felt like I didn't need to take a nap at the end of a 200 mile drive.
Like I said, this is purely subjective. You can go into the numbers, and see the advantage of an F-350 over an F250. But, at the end of the day, your personal comfort is going to matter as much as safety. Your comfort is a facet of your safety. The easier it is for you to tow that trailer, the less mental and physical fatigue you will experience, and the more Focus you will have on the driving.

[Mike-Newberg]

Really like the floor plan for the 240urs.
The specs say it is 28’6” in length.
Does anybody know if that length is including the rear slide being out or not? Thanks.

[NH_Bulldog]

That is with the rear slide closed.

The 240urs has a “box” size of 24 feet. When the spare tire in the back the hitch in front is added, you get 28’6” in total length. I have a 240BH and my length is the same.

[Mike-Newberg]

Originally Posted by NH_Bulldog

That is with the rear slide closed.

The 240urs has a “box” size of 24 feet. When the spare tire in the back the hitch in front is added, you get 28’6” in total length. I have a 240BH and my length is the same.

Thanks much for the info!