Towing ~8000 with new F150.. fun or scary?

[Dirtpig]

Im considering downsizing my current F350 diesel to a more tame F150 crewcab 6 1/2ft box with the max towing and payload package. Anyone towing large trailers with this truck. Are you comfortable towing with it or is it scary & working very hard? My F350 tows my trailer easy right now. Trailer is in sig, 28.8' Nash including hitch and bumper. approx 7300lbs on scale and 850lb pin weight.

What do you think? New F150 or New F350?

[atwowheelguy]

One difference between the 150 and the 250/350.

Moderator edit to re-size picture to forum recommended limit of 640px maximum width.

[Grit_dog]

jake2250 wrote:


Hmmmmmm so your saying that based on your ownership of less than a dozen half ton trucks,,The one ton is basically the same vehicle??
Yeah maybe that it carries a license plate,has headlights and a horn.
And if I were to buy a newer F150 I would be getting the heavier frame,springs differentials,transmission, cooling package etc etc that comes with a one ton truck???
Just because Ford put a turbo on a six cylinder does Not make it a F350,, hell they can even call it an HD and it still wouldn't be near an F250!!
Switching to an aluminum body and giving you a couple of hundred more cargo pounds to haul does not make a half ton truck a one ton vehicle.
I believe the running gear and frame and suspension dictates that!!
Just for giggles,, park your half ton next to a one ton,,,,,Hey something is different,,, for one thing kinda obvious,,,stance and lug nuts..
goofy huh??

Jake 420, try to stay with me here. I quoted someone who said the F250 would be a great compromise between the 350 and a 150. I told him they, F250 and F350 are basically the same truck so no point in reccomending basically the same thing when the op wants out of a HD chassis truck.
I can tell the diff between a F150 and a super duty.
Btw, I haven't owned a ford since about 1991, but have almost exclusively driven them as company trucks for over 20 years. My motto is "the only good ford is a free ford", lol. Plenty of 150s, few 250/350s here and there and the odd Chevy and a couple Rams as of recent. All doing heavy civil or heavy commercial construction, so pretty good litmus test of how well a truck holds up when used daily for long commutes and construction work. Combined with the dozen or so Rams and GMs I've actually owned over the same time period, I've put plenty of miles and wrenches on most models of the big 3 trucks over the same time period.
But thanks for your mis interpretation here!

[sele]

If you are looking at just mpg My F150 3.5 Ecoboost with max tow haul which means a 3.73 rear end gets about 16.5 to 18 highway and city combined. Pulling the f'ver in my signature I get somewhere between 9.5 and 11 depending on terrain and wind. I will say that I love my pickup and for what we do pulling our f'ver we are plenty happy. mostly flat ground here Illinois and some hills in Missouri. A long trip for us is about 5 to 6 hours. I have about 9500 miles from towing and 60,000 total. Also with that rear end once both turbos kick in it has ONE heck of a hole shot, lol.

[4BIGAL]

Sorry tot he op, I did mean to hijack the thread. I am having the same thoughts about downsizing. It is looking like less of an option all of the time. Thanks to headed west for your mileage numbers. My v10 pulling my old 5th wheel (which was a single slide 34' 9500 lb) got 7 mpg towing out west and 8 headed south. 12.5 solo hey at 70 mph. 2016 F350 only 1 mpg better.

[Headed_West]

Headed West wrote:

4BIGAL wrote:
HeadedWest, can you tell me your unloaded mileage between the 150 and 6.2L 250? What engine did you have in the F150 and what rear end ratios. Thanks.

Sure my 150 got between 19-21 mpg on the hwy unloaded. My 250 struggles to get 15 mpg on the hwy. That's if I keep it under 65. I average right now 12 to 13 mpg unloaded normal driving. I pulled my trailer about 45 miles and got 7.9 mpg. and that was during a storm here. I hope to avg 9 mpg going to Maine. HOPE!!!

I forgot I had the 3.5 eco boost in the 150...

[Headed_West]

4BIGAL wrote:
HeadedWest, can you tell me your unloaded mileage between the 150 and 6.2L 250? What engine did you have in the F150 and what rear end ratios. Thanks.

Sure my 150 got between 19-21 mpg on the hwy unloaded. My 250 struggles to get 15 mpg on the hwy. That's if I keep it under 65. I average right now 12 to 13 mpg unloaded normal driving. I pulled my trailer about 45 miles and got 7.9 mpg. and that was during a storm here. I hope to avg 9 mpg going to Maine. HOPE!!!

[jake2250]

Grit dog wrote:

humblerb wrote:

IdaD wrote:
That's right at or just a bit over the limit of what I'd personally want to try to tow with a half ton, but lots of guys on this site are doing it and report good results. I guess I'd say a lot depends on how you use the trailer. If you don't leave the island much and mainly just camp fairly close to home I would be more apt to do it than if you plan to haul it on longer trips into the Rockies regularly.

I definitely would not spend the money on an F250 since you have an F350. If you want an F250 it would be much cheaper to simply remove your overload springs.

He was asking about a New F150 or a New F350. Looks like he is going to buy a new vehicle, but wanted advice on F150 versus F350. To me, the F250 is the best of both worlds - downgrade from the current F350, but enough truck to not have to ask if he would be comfortable pulling his rig.

But it's basically the same truck as a 350, so this is really not a valid answer.
A new or newer F150 will pull your trailer smartly if you choose to go light duty. I've beat the tar out of at least 10 F150s over the last 20 years towing and hauling as much or more. I'm not a Ford guy but they're tough trucks and the last chassis (haven't had a new '15-up yet) is very strong/ stiff frame, great brakes and trans and both the 5 liter and the big Eco boost have enough snort.

Hmmmmmm so your saying that based on your ownership of less than a dozen half ton trucks,,The one ton is basically the same vehicle??
Yeah maybe that it carries a license plate,has headlights and a horn.
And if I were to buy a newer F150 I would be getting the heavier frame,springs differentials,transmission, cooling package etc etc that comes with a one ton truck???
Just because Ford put a turbo on a six cylinder does Not make it a F350,, hell they can even call it an HD and it still wouldn't be near an F250!!
Switching to an aluminum body and giving you a couple of hundred more cargo pounds to haul does not make a half ton truck a one ton vehicle.
I believe the running gear and frame and suspension dictates that!!
Just for giggles,, park your half ton next to a one ton,,,,,Hey something is different,,, for one thing kinda obvious,,,stance and lug nuts..
goofy huh??

[Grit_dog]

4BIGAL wrote:
HeadedWest, can you tell me your unloaded mileage between the 150 and 6.2L 250? What engine did you have in the F150 and what rear end ratios. Thanks.

You'll not like the mileage of a gasser 250. My last '13 model and current '15 get 13mpg avg city/hwy/commute combo. More hwy than stop n go.

[Grit_dog]

humblerb wrote:

IdaD wrote:
That's right at or just a bit over the limit of what I'd personally want to try to tow with a half ton, but lots of guys on this site are doing it and report good results. I guess I'd say a lot depends on how you use the trailer. If you don't leave the island much and mainly just camp fairly close to home I would be more apt to do it than if you plan to haul it on longer trips into the Rockies regularly.

I definitely would not spend the money on an F250 since you have an F350. If you want an F250 it would be much cheaper to simply remove your overload springs.

He was asking about a New F150 or a New F350. Looks like he is going to buy a new vehicle, but wanted advice on F150 versus F350. To me, the F250 is the best of both worlds - downgrade from the current F350, but enough truck to not have to ask if he would be comfortable pulling his rig.

But it's basically the same truck as a 350, so this is really not a valid answer.
A new or newer F150 will pull your trailer smartly if you choose to go light duty. I've beat the tar out of at least 10 F150s over the last 20 years towing and hauling as much or more. I'm not a Ford guy but they're tough trucks and the last chassis (haven't had a new '15-up yet) is very strong/ stiff frame, great brakes and trans and both the 5 liter and the big Eco boost have enough snort.

[4BIGAL]

HeadedWest, can you tell me your unloaded mileage between the 150 and 6.2L 250? What engine did you have in the F150 and what rear end ratios. Thanks.

[IDoMyOwnStunts]

jake2250 wrote:

smkettner wrote:

jake2250 wrote:
I wouldn't tow it with anything less than a3/4 ton, I don't care if that F150 has a blown or super charged 427 in it, its still a 1/2..
I had a 2004 F150 Screw 5.4 HD, I tow a 23' trailer just shy of 5000lbs loaded closer to 6000lbs, Towed it with that F150 for two years,, It progressively got worse and worse. It was actually wearing that truck out,, let alone wearing me out!!
The 5.4 was advertised at 300 HP,,and I can tell you my foot was in that thing ALLOT!!!

After a transmission flush and new Bilstien shocks it was still a handful!! Last trip was the proverbial Last Trip!! Towed in a head wind of 25 to 30 mph, I could barely keep it at 60mph, And god forbid I got passed by a semi,, I was blown all over!!
Got to the camp ground and the wife even admitted,, "Need a bigger truck"

Seems odd to me. My truck is older (260hp) and my trailer weighs more. Wind and passing semis are never an issue. I just set the cruise and wander on down the road.

Amazing how the perception is so different.

Do believe I answered Dirtpigs question with my own experience. Learned the lesson and now have a 2500HD with all I need to get from point A to point B with out worry,, My F150 experience differs from yours. I any other poster asks the same question I would answer the same. Also,, I drive over the road trucks,,80,000 lbs, wouldn't do it in a half ton either,, but thats just my perception!!

I agree with you. My "perception" was that, while my 13' F150 had plenty of power to tow my 10k gvw toy hauler, it absolutely got rocked in the crosswinds of the Gorge and pushed downhill. I don't have those problems anymore with my 3500. Some people are comfortable with it. That's fine. I'm not one of them and that's why I traded. OP is asking for experiences. So to answer OP, it was fun on a clear day with no wind or traffic. Scary otherwise. Now it's not scary, period.

[Headed_West]

I just upgraded from a 2013 F150 super crew. to a 250. The 150 had plenty of power and pulled great. Where I ran into trouble was coming down the Big Horn Mt range last summer. The engine braking of the v6 was not enough to hold or slow my rig. I was breaking heavy and white knuckling it all the way down. Thought I was going to smoke my brakes. Stopping was my biggest concern. Much more comfortable in the F250. Only pulled it about 45 miles so far but what a difference. Headed to Maine in month. Cant wait to pull it with the new truck.

Side note: My 150 averaged 11.5 mpg from Indiana to Yellowstone and back. Curious the difference in mpg with the F250. We will see soon.

[jake2250]

smkettner wrote:

jake2250 wrote:
I wouldn't tow it with anything less than a3/4 ton, I don't care if that F150 has a blown or super charged 427 in it, its still a 1/2..
I had a 2004 F150 Screw 5.4 HD, I tow a 23' trailer just shy of 5000lbs loaded closer to 6000lbs, Towed it with that F150 for two years,, It progressively got worse and worse. It was actually wearing that truck out,, let alone wearing me out!!
The 5.4 was advertised at 300 HP,,and I can tell you my foot was in that thing ALLOT!!!

After a transmission flush and new Bilstien shocks it was still a handful!! Last trip was the proverbial Last Trip!! Towed in a head wind of 25 to 30 mph, I could barely keep it at 60mph, And god forbid I got passed by a semi,, I was blown all over!!
Got to the camp ground and the wife even admitted,, "Need a bigger truck"

Seems odd to me. My truck is older (260hp) and my trailer weighs more. Wind and passing semis are never an issue. I just set the cruise and wander on down the road.

Amazing how the perception is so different.

Do believe I answered Dirtpigs question with my own experience. Learned the lesson and now have a 2500HD with all I need to get from point A to point B with out worry,, My F150 experience differs from yours. I any other poster asks the same question I would answer the same. Also,, I drive over the road trucks,,80,000 lbs, wouldn't do it in a half ton either,, but thats just my perception!!

[time2roll]

jake2250 wrote:
I wouldn't tow it with anything less than a3/4 ton, I don't care if that F150 has a blown or super charged 427 in it, its still a 1/2..
I had a 2004 F150 Screw 5.4 HD, I tow a 23' trailer just shy of 5000lbs loaded closer to 6000lbs, Towed it with that F150 for two years,, It progressively got worse and worse. It was actually wearing that truck out,, let alone wearing me out!!
The 5.4 was advertised at 300 HP,,and I can tell you my foot was in that thing ALLOT!!!

After a transmission flush and new Bilstien shocks it was still a handful!! Last trip was the proverbial Last Trip!! Towed in a head wind of 25 to 30 mph, I could barely keep it at 60mph, And god forbid I got passed by a semi,, I was blown all over!!
Got to the camp ground and the wife even admitted,, "Need a bigger truck"

Seems odd to me. My truck is older (260hp) and my trailer weighs more. Wind and passing semis are never an issue. I just set the cruise and wander on down the road.

Amazing how the perception is so different.