F350 drew or F450

[oldav]

I am planning on ordering a new truck to tow a fifth wheel and sometimes a truck camper. The issues I am having trouble with regarding the F350 or F450 are which features are more important. The F350 has 500 lbs more carrying capacity and the F450 heavier components. My fifth wheel is only 13000 lbs and I will not be going any larger. The truck campers I am looking at are in the 5000 lb range. So, which features are more important to consider?

[Area13]

Can't tell you about the new F450/F350's. But will tell you my 2008 F450 turns a tighter circle than my Wifes Audi. It's amazing how well it can turn. Now my 2002 SD, not so good Al, not so good....

[HMS_Beagle]

Boatycall wrote:

In addition, since they have larger rims, they also increased the size of the brakes all the way around.

Straight from the Ford specs, the F450 and F350 brakes are identical for 2015.

I think the main reason to get the F450 is the wheel cut and turning radius are greatly improved. While the rear axle is heavier, I haven't heard of many Dana 80s breaking.

[Kayteg1]

I just picked up new F350 dually and it is lot of truck.
Put my 5000 lb camper on it and it barely touched overloads.
I order mine with 3.55 differential for fuel saving.
Sure if you plan to pull 5th wheel over the mountains a lot, the F450 with stronger differential might be better for those short moments.

[Boatycall]

There are several huge differences in the 2015+ F450's vs. F350's. Ford back in 2008 put the Dana110 rear end and 19.5 tires on 2008-2010, but then went back to the Dana80 on 17's through 2014. Why they did this I'll never know, because all they did at that point was to put in 4:30 gears and call it an F450.

The 2015+ F450's have a rear axle rated @14k just on it's own, and the 19.5 tires that can hold it. Dana80 on 17's is rated @10k per Dana's spec.

In addition, since they have larger rims, they also increased the size of the brakes all the way around. I had an F350 and traded up to the F450 and I can tell you the difference in loaded ride feel is tremendous.

That being said, I needed the F450 because of the weight of the camper I haul+trailer tongue weight of 1,000lbs. You won't need an F450 for just a 5'er or 'normal' camper. However, if someday you decide to ditch the 5'er and get a BIG camper, consider the extra few bucks now on an F450.

[Mortimer_Brewst]

I'm on a learning curve about trucks at the moment, so I won't bother to give an (uninformed) opinion. Here are a couple videos though which might be of interest.

5000 lbs loaded in an F450

2017 F350 vs 2016 F450

[mkirsch]

IMHO the GVWR of the F450 does not increase in proportion to the strength of its components, which is why the payload capacity is actually LESS than the F350 DRW. Not sure why Ford plays this numbers game, except maybe to help keep the cost of licensing and insuring the truck down somewhat, to make it more attractive to buyers.

Compare the axle ratings for the two trucks, and the empty/curb weight of the two trucks. I would expect FAWR+RAWR-CURB for the F450 to be at least 1000lbs more than the F350 DRW. Maybe I'm totally off my rocker here but that is what I would expect.

Probably either would do the job for you, but I feel that the F450 with its heavier components would do the job longer.