Ford truck build
I am trying to figure out the best way to get new truck build the way I like it at it turns impossible. Don't want to spend extra $10k for options that I don't need, but when I use Ford site to bui...
Forum Discussion
You need to google for 2016 Ford Super Duty Order Guide. It will tell you EXACTLY what Ford will order on every model. I found the Job 1 order guide on the powerstroke forum. A Job 2 guide would be better because that is what Ford builds after the first of the year and there are sometimes changes. I ordered exactly what I wanted in late 2011 in an F-350 CCSB SRW XLT (cloth seats was one of the wants) except for left/right heating/cooling which was only available on a Lariat in 2012. Since I was at the largest dealer in IN, they tried very hard to sell me a truck on the lot, but I just kept showing them what each truck had that I didn’t want to pay for. The biggest dealers will get shorter order times than the smaller dealers as Ford balances out the inventory pipeline of delivered trucks and component parts. Your strongest tool is the word NO followed by a walk to the door. In my case a Sales Manager was extremely rude to us (while I was saying NO), but I didn’t lose my cool. The salesman spoke with the store manager on Monday who called me up and offered to order the truck for $800 under invoice. When I went in to order they were having difficulty getting the computer to take the rear end ratio that I wanted, so I showed them the order guide—don’t think the salesman had ever seen an order guide. They tried harder and got the ratio that I wanted.
The order guide is the most informative, but the on-line Ford “Build your truck” is usually correct also, but not perfectly friendly. Last year the F-150 build your truck would not let me pick the heavy duty payload package until I discovered that you had to pick the 3.73 rear end first—it wasn’t intuitive, but that was the only way to get the package. I called Ford, and they later fixed it so you could pick the package, and then the program would change the axle to the 3.73. So, the build your truck is helpful and quick, but use the order guide for the final authority.
DO NOT order anything based on resale value—order what you want and can afford. I was not going to buy 4x4 (we live in flat, low snow, Indiana) until I read that the diesel engine adds more than 700 lb. to the front. Combine that with the already low rear weight of a pickup, and you “can” have traction problems. I rarely use it, but I would pay the cost again in a heart beat. I also have the locking rear and use it occasionally, but 4x4 is better. 4x4 seems to hurt fuel mileage 1-2 mpg on half ton trucks. My bet is that the % of weight that it adds to a Super Duty is less and that the mileage hurt is also less. It’s just part of the cost of having 4x4.
I ordered the under bed mount which is basically Reese. Since I had a short bed, I wanted a sliding fifth wheel hitch. The Reese slider (what I ended up with) is crazy expensive. B&W does not make a slider that mounts in Ford (last time I looked) so that ruled them out. If I were doing it again, I would not order the Ford under bed mount, and would instead get the after market B&W under bed system. They make their mounts custom to each brand of truck so the installers have a pretty good chance of getting it right. My son just got the B&W on his F-350 and is very pleased. I found the cheapest good quality bed mat on Amazon and use it when the fifth wheel hitch is not in the bed.
The order guide is the most informative, but the on-line Ford “Build your truck” is usually correct also, but not perfectly friendly. Last year the F-150 build your truck would not let me pick the heavy duty payload package until I discovered that you had to pick the 3.73 rear end first—it wasn’t intuitive, but that was the only way to get the package. I called Ford, and they later fixed it so you could pick the package, and then the program would change the axle to the 3.73. So, the build your truck is helpful and quick, but use the order guide for the final authority.
DO NOT order anything based on resale value—order what you want and can afford. I was not going to buy 4x4 (we live in flat, low snow, Indiana) until I read that the diesel engine adds more than 700 lb. to the front. Combine that with the already low rear weight of a pickup, and you “can” have traction problems. I rarely use it, but I would pay the cost again in a heart beat. I also have the locking rear and use it occasionally, but 4x4 is better. 4x4 seems to hurt fuel mileage 1-2 mpg on half ton trucks. My bet is that the % of weight that it adds to a Super Duty is less and that the mileage hurt is also less. It’s just part of the cost of having 4x4.
I ordered the under bed mount which is basically Reese. Since I had a short bed, I wanted a sliding fifth wheel hitch. The Reese slider (what I ended up with) is crazy expensive. B&W does not make a slider that mounts in Ford (last time I looked) so that ruled them out. If I were doing it again, I would not order the Ford under bed mount, and would instead get the after market B&W under bed system. They make their mounts custom to each brand of truck so the installers have a pretty good chance of getting it right. My son just got the B&W on his F-350 and is very pleased. I found the cheapest good quality bed mat on Amazon and use it when the fifth wheel hitch is not in the bed.
