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BradW's avatar
BradW
Explorer II
Jan 17, 2018

2018 SuperDuty DRW - 3.55 or 4.10 Gears?

We are close to ordering the following:
2018 XLT DRW F-350 SuperDuty Powerstroke, 4-door, 4X4

It will seldom be driven empty. It will primarily be used to haul a 4,000 lb truck camper while towing a 7,000 lb jeep/carhauler. Total weight of truck camper and jeep/carhauler will be right at 18,000 lbs. Quite a bit of our towing will be in the mtns.

Our current truck is a 2006 F-350 DRW PS 6-spd manual with 4.10 gears. I luv the 4.10 gears on that truck with the manual tranny. But I'm afraid 4.10 gears will be too low on the 2018 with an automatic, but they don't offer 3.73 gears and 3.55 seem too high for 18,000 lbs. I've never owned a tow rig with an automatic tranny, so I have zero experience in that area.

It appears that Ford only offers 3.55 or 4.10 gears in 2018 truck we want. Anyone have any suggestions on which gear ratio? I'm not tremendously concerned with fuel mileage because we will likely be driving the truck less than 6,000 miles per year. Probably will not be exceeding 68 mph while interstate driving.

Thanks for any help,
BradW
Tow Vehicles
  • BradW's avatar
    BradW
    Explorer II
    Jan 17, 2018
    ib516 wrote:
    Can you get 4.10s in a SRW diesel?


    I don't know.
  • BB_TX's avatar
    BB_TX
    Nomad
    Jan 17, 2018
    Can’t help a whole lot as I have a different configuration. I have a 2012 F350 SRW 6.7 3:55 auto trans towing a high profile 5er weighing about 12,000#. Has no problem over Colorado mountain passes. And cruises at 70 in cruise control and tow/haul on flat to rolling highways rarely dropping out of 6th (top) gear. The 2018 has more hp and torque than my 2012.
  • ib516's avatar
    ib516
    Explorer II
    Jan 17, 2018
    BradW wrote:
    ib516 wrote:
    Can you get 4.10s in a SRW diesel?


    I don't know.

    To my knowledge, it's 3.31 and 3.55 only in a SRW diesel.

    I think you have to go to a DRW to get 4.10s.
  • rjstractor's avatar
    rjstractor
    Nomad
    Jan 17, 2018
    I don't think 4.10s will be too low geared for an automatic truck. The top gear is a taller ratio than your ZF manual, so the new truck would be turning lower rpms at the same speed than your current truck. Having said that, a 4K camper and 7K trailer is childs play for the current 6.7 with 3.55s. The difference in power between the 6.7 and your current truck is pretty dramatic.
  • GoPackGo's avatar
    GoPackGo
    Explorer
    Jan 17, 2018
    I have a 2013 F350 DRW diesel with 3.73 gears. I've been pulling a 14,000 GVWR fiver as a fulltimer all over the country since it was near. I'm very glad I chose the 3.73 gears instead of the 4.10s. It simply is no problem for the truck to pull this weight. Been in the Smokies, Colorado (Wolf Creek Pass !), Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and over Donner Pass. No big deal.

    As somebody else stated, these new diesels are dripping with torque and HP and you really won't be hauling all that much if it's just 4000 + 7000 plus the weight of the truck so I would think the 3.55s would work.

    Are you SURE Ford still doesn't offer 3.73s for duallys ?
  • Lwiddis's avatar
    Lwiddis
    Explorer II
    Jan 17, 2018
    These new transmissions are making the gear issue less important.

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