Questions on road testing of 2017 Ford 250 and 350

[womps]

Before I ordered a 2017 350 Superduty I read many road tests. Car and Driver gave the 350 three stars out of five. Biggest fault was rough ride. They tested a similar 250 and give it a five out of five. Biggest reason, smooth ride. I tested both out on the same road back to back before ordering. Both with 18 inch wheels and the FX4 package. I couldn't tell a difference. Car and driver has the 2017 Duramax showing the best miles per gallon on their test loop, the Cummins second and the Powerstroke third but only 2 mpg separating the top to bottom. Motor Trend in their Truck of the Year evaluation has the Superduty beating the Cummins by over 4 mpg on their test loop. I wonder why such variance. One possible reason could be a regen happening during the mileage test and the reviewer isn't savvy enough to know the difference.

[alexleblanc]

Me Again wrote:
Until you know to tire inflation differences between the two the ride comparison of the two is meaningless.

80 in the rear of our SRW 3500 makes it ride like a brick truck empty. Lower rears to around 45-50, greatly increases ride quality.

Quoted for truth - mine arrived with 80PSI in the rear tires, it rode noticeably worse than with 60-65PSI in them like the F250 I had tried would of had.

I lowered mine to 65PSI and I have no complaints since.

[nremtp143]

tatest wrote:
Ride quality is subjective.

DITTO! All that should be different between the 250/350 are the rear springs now. Another possibility would be that either one was supplied with a camper package or snow plow prep package. These two options change the spring rate. Plus, a stiff ride to you may mean a firm ride to me. "Similarly equipped" can mean different things to different people. For instance, our new truck to pull the mass casualty trailer at work is a '16 F250 4x4 6.2L gasser that was replacing a '12 F250 4x4 6.7L diesel. The new one with the gas engine will jar you to death, but the 6.7L rode great. I'd have to compare window stickers line for line with the weight differences and the options before deciding anything like that.

[dodge_guy]

Magazines reviews are a joke. I`ve seen the same types of tests. they give a bad review because a truck rides too hard? really, that's what it is for! I`ve seen the same complaints on sports cars, too rough a ride as one of the negatives, seriously. I`ve also see other crazy complaints, like a minivan with not enough side bolstering in the seats, such as when tested on a track!

They aren't worth even reading anymore, which I don't.

The reviewers need to realize what they are testing and not compare it to something that it isn't!

[4x4ord]

My 2016 F350 gets poor fuel economy. My brother has an identical Platinum F350 which I drive on occasion...it gets slightly better. I have an employee who just bought a new F350 with 3:31 gears. I drove it the other day and it appears to use about 25% less fuel than mine does with 3.55 gears.

If you want a nice ride buy a Chevy.

[tatest]

Ride quality is subjective.

[Redwoodcamper]

patriotgrunt wrote:


I love a Cummins diesel but when you're talking about trucks, what surrounds it is questionable in quality. Talking about generators is one thing while trucks are another. And before you label me a Ram hater just realize that I used to be a loyal customer who's owned three Dodges.

I don't blame you. My 98 Dodge and 07 had sub par bodies and interiors. My 11 has 278+ k miles and not one rattle. Everything electronic works just like new. Only complaint is the seat. I think the have improved a huge amount in quality.

[ACZL]

FWIW, here's my take:

You want a vehicle that gets good MPG's, get a econo-box car.
You want a vehicle to tow, get a truck (your choice--they are all good).
You want a vehicle that rides, smooth, get a Caddy or Lincoln.
You want a vehicle that will haul "X" but know your in a vehicle built to haul, get a truck.

MFR's have to decide wether or not they want their trucks to either ride smooth or harsh and yet still retain HD payloads/towing. I bought a truck to tow and haul with. Doesn't bother me any if it rides a tad rough and if I feel the pebble I ran over. If just cruising and not towing, will take the car.

[FishOnOne]

The problem that most people don't consider when measuring fuel economy for a diesel powered truck is the "Regen" process. In one of these fuel economy tests all it takes for one truck to regen and the other two don't and that truck will have lowest fuel economy every time.

In order to get real fuel economy on a diesel truck is to drive the truck from 1 regen to the 2nd regen and then measure fuel economy. The engine that regen's the least frequent will have the best fuel economy.

BTW... Congrats on that new 2017 Super Duty 6.7PSD. They're a jewel. If I were ordering a truck today it would be hands down another F350 6.7 Power Stroke.

[womps]

Me Again wrote:
Until you know to tire inflation differences between the two the ride comparison of the two is meaningless.

80 in the rear of our SRW 3500 makes it ride like a brick truck empty. Lower rears to around 45-50, greatly increases ride quality.

They both had 60 in the front and 80 in the rear. Checked by the service department after my test drive.

[patriotgrunt]

Redwoodcamper wrote:
Think about this. In the diesel community, there are literally tens of thousands of Cummins swaps into other truck bodies. There are about a dozen swaps of a Ford engine into another truck body, and a few hundred Duramax swaps. Next time you go to a small hospital or radio station or police station go out back and see what kind of generator they have. It will have a big "c" on the side for Cummins, because it has to work. Every time. Even if Ford sold generators, no one would buy them.
Fast lane truck found the ram had the best mileage of the new three. They all are very comparable. If you don't work on the truck yourself, or if you don't keep them for more than 100k miles, then they will all treat you well. If you work on it yourself the Cummins is the smart choice. Parts are cheaper, much faster to install. Out of my last three Dodge/Rams I have nearly one million miles racked up with very few problems. Just my opinion.

I love a Cummins diesel but when you're talking about trucks, what surrounds it is questionable in quality. Talking about generators is one thing while trucks are another. And before you label me a Ram hater just realize that I used to be a loyal customer who's owned three Dodges.

[Grit_dog]

So what was the question?

[Me_Again]

Until you know to tire inflation differences between the two the ride comparison of the two is meaningless.

80 in the rear of our SRW 3500 makes it ride like a brick truck empty. Lower rears to around 45-50, greatly increases ride quality.

[womps]

Redwoodcamper wrote:
Think about this. In the diesel community, there are literally tens of thousands of Cummins swaps into other truck bodies. There are about a dozen swaps of a Ford engine into another truck body, and a few hundred Duramax swaps. Next time you go to a small hospital or radio station or police station go out back and see what kind of generator they have. It will have a big "c" on the side for Cummins, because it has to work. Every time. Even if Ford sold generators, no one would buy them.
Fast lane truck found the ram had the best mileage of the new three. They all are very comparable. If you don't work on the truck yourself, or if you don't keep them for more than 100k miles, then they will all treat you well. If you work on it yourself the Cummins is the smart choice. Parts are cheaper, much faster to install. Out of my last three Dodge/Rams I have nearly one million miles racked up with very few problems. Just my opinion.

Totally agree including the fuel economy. That's what makes you wonder the low fuel economy test by Motor Trend. Same loop driven same driver and speed. But fuel economy is all over the place in the real world. The confusing part is the huge ride difference between the 250 and 350 according to Car & Driver yet so many owners say no difference noted in the real world. Uh!

[Redwoodcamper]

Think about this. In the diesel community, there are literally tens of thousands of Cummins swaps into other truck bodies. There are about a dozen swaps of a Ford engine into another truck body, and a few hundred Duramax swaps. Next time you go to a small hospital or radio station or police station go out back and see what kind of generator they have. It will have a big "c" on the side for Cummins, because it has to work. Every time. Even if Ford sold generators, no one would buy them.
Fast lane truck found the ram had the best mileage of the new three. They all are very comparable. If you don't work on the truck yourself, or if you don't keep them for more than 100k miles, then they will all treat you well. If you work on it yourself the Cummins is the smart choice. Parts are cheaper, much faster to install. Out of my last three Dodge/Rams I have nearly one million miles racked up with very few problems. Just my opinion.