Brief review of F-350 6.2 DRW and heavy camper
I've had a request or two on how I like my truck and how it handles my camper (an AF 1150). I have had it for 6 months now and just finished a 1,600 mike road trip including mountain driving in Washington and Oregon. The truck now has 4,400 miles on it.
Bottom line, I am really pleased with the truck (and camper)
Truck:
The truck is a 2013 F350 4x4 DRW CC 6.2L 4.3 in Lariet trim. The truck was chosen specifically to handle the weight of the camper so for this (desel hauling capacity is almost 1,000 lbs less) and other reasons I selected the gas engine. The truck is stock except that I added Stable Loads for the camper to ride level (maybe slightly lower in the back). The center of gravity on the camper is about 1 to 2 inches behind the rear axel.
Weights:
The camper sticker from Ford lists a capacity of: 5,379 lbs and the door sticker gives a maximum cargo capacity of 6,229 lbs. I have not been able to weigh the truck alone yet but a little math shows it should weigh 7,770 lbs. At the start of the trip I stopped by a CAT scale. With three people, a Lab, full water and propane tanks, and loaded for the trip the results are:
Ford door sticker Limits. (CAT results)
GVW: 14,000 (13,660)
Front axel: 5,600 (4,540)
Rear axel: 9,650 (9,120)
So the truck with full load is within Ford's sticker limits.
Engine:
The engine and 6 speed transmission work very well together. I never had a lack of power, I could accelerate up any mountain road I hit, and the engine braking allowed me to descend any grade I came across without having to use the brakes. At times the engine was spinning at high rpm's but it seemed happy to do so. I think the choice of the 4.3 rear axel ratio was a good one in that the truck could hold 6th gear pretty well on "average" terrain and I never felt I had to lock it out. Tow haul also is a great feature especially on descents. I don't know if I would have had more problems at higher mountain passes or steeper grades but since the combination is rated to tow 15,000 lbs it seems there is plenty of reserve for a truck camper weighing only 5,000 lbs or so.
Gas mileage was all over the place as you might expect. Very high mileage descending :), low mileage ascending. On a flat stretch at 55 It was almost 9.9 mpg. On the freeway at 65 maybe 9.1. Over the entire trip I averaged 9.0. The mileage has been improving as the engine breaks in. I don't know if it is fully broken in and will continue to improve or this is what to expect.
Suspension:
The truck is comfortable to drive and is very stable. Passing semi trucks or strong side winds have little impact. There is a bit of "rocking" back and forth if one wheel hits a big bump (like dropping off a curb). I suppose better shocks or a thicker anti-sway bar would fix that but it only happens for relatively large bumps and I right now I'm not going to bother. The ride is good though big bumps can "jar" you. (It is amazing how poor I-5 in Seattle is).
Last notes:
As noted, I am very pleased with the truck and camper. I will end with a picture of some of us on the beach at Long Beach WA where we stopped for lunch.
Bottom line, I am really pleased with the truck (and camper)
Truck:
The truck is a 2013 F350 4x4 DRW CC 6.2L 4.3 in Lariet trim. The truck was chosen specifically to handle the weight of the camper so for this (desel hauling capacity is almost 1,000 lbs less) and other reasons I selected the gas engine. The truck is stock except that I added Stable Loads for the camper to ride level (maybe slightly lower in the back). The center of gravity on the camper is about 1 to 2 inches behind the rear axel.
Weights:
The camper sticker from Ford lists a capacity of: 5,379 lbs and the door sticker gives a maximum cargo capacity of 6,229 lbs. I have not been able to weigh the truck alone yet but a little math shows it should weigh 7,770 lbs. At the start of the trip I stopped by a CAT scale. With three people, a Lab, full water and propane tanks, and loaded for the trip the results are:
Ford door sticker Limits. (CAT results)
GVW: 14,000 (13,660)
Front axel: 5,600 (4,540)
Rear axel: 9,650 (9,120)
So the truck with full load is within Ford's sticker limits.
Engine:
The engine and 6 speed transmission work very well together. I never had a lack of power, I could accelerate up any mountain road I hit, and the engine braking allowed me to descend any grade I came across without having to use the brakes. At times the engine was spinning at high rpm's but it seemed happy to do so. I think the choice of the 4.3 rear axel ratio was a good one in that the truck could hold 6th gear pretty well on "average" terrain and I never felt I had to lock it out. Tow haul also is a great feature especially on descents. I don't know if I would have had more problems at higher mountain passes or steeper grades but since the combination is rated to tow 15,000 lbs it seems there is plenty of reserve for a truck camper weighing only 5,000 lbs or so.
Gas mileage was all over the place as you might expect. Very high mileage descending :), low mileage ascending. On a flat stretch at 55 It was almost 9.9 mpg. On the freeway at 65 maybe 9.1. Over the entire trip I averaged 9.0. The mileage has been improving as the engine breaks in. I don't know if it is fully broken in and will continue to improve or this is what to expect.
Suspension:
The truck is comfortable to drive and is very stable. Passing semi trucks or strong side winds have little impact. There is a bit of "rocking" back and forth if one wheel hits a big bump (like dropping off a curb). I suppose better shocks or a thicker anti-sway bar would fix that but it only happens for relatively large bumps and I right now I'm not going to bother. The ride is good though big bumps can "jar" you. (It is amazing how poor I-5 in Seattle is).
Last notes:
As noted, I am very pleased with the truck and camper. I will end with a picture of some of us on the beach at Long Beach WA where we stopped for lunch.
