Light 5th Wheels
Hi all. Been lurking for a couple of years and researching 5vers and TTs. Probably looking to buy sometime this year. This will be my first towing experience and my girlfriend and I will use it pri...
Forum Discussion
Camper117 wrote:
So, what I'm understanding is that because it is called an F250, the most GVWR that will be on the sticker is 10000 lbs,, even if it had a greater capacity than that, right?
And also, since this truck has the same engine, transmission, tires, transmission, ect as an F350 (I'm assuming) the whole issue is about payload. If this is true, would adding some type of auxiliary springs or airbags take care of the problem.
Thanks
I don't know about the first paragraph. I've never before heard that statement but can't say it's not true. My old (2000) F250 PSD with camper package had an 8,800 pound GVWR. They've been inching upward since (and before) then.
However, I'm fairly certain that your assumption is wrong about an F250 having the same wheels and tires as an F350. That's one place you can beef up fairly easily, however. I installed slightly larger tires on my old F250, as I drove it the last few years considering to buy a larger 5er and wanted the highest load-carrying capacity I could get for a few bucks -- so if I found one I could carefully tow it home and park it until I got the bigger truck. You can also switch wheels to get even heftier tires. And add a spring leaf for stability. I'm not positive, but I think that would give you the added capacity that you'd get with an F350 (wheels, tires, leaf).
A neighbor of mine "converted" his F250 to an F350 dually by getting a wrecked F350 and switching out the bed, axels/wheels/tires/differential/springs. I kept driving past it seeing the "F250" on the side of it and "F350" on the tailgate. Then he put a for sale sign on it, and I had to stop and ask about it. I think he said it only cost him about $2000 for the upgrade, doing it all himself. I think he found a bargain for the upgrades.
The last (3rd) 5er I towed with my 2000 F250 had a GVWR of 10K pounds, and I thought it was about perfect (at 8-9K pounds loaded). It was small enough to get me into most FS campgrounds and large enough that we never wanted for more room during weekend and 1-2 week vacations. It was 27' long with a small slide-out. I was slightly over the truck's GVWR but only by a couple hundred pounds. I started with a smaller one, then got a larger one, then got one "just the right size." :)
