New f 150 diesel

[DKB_SATX]

Originally Posted by sheriff1

4wd is no harder to drive around town, 250 is the same truck as the 350, 350 just has heavier springs. And yes, I use mine every day.
I believe the f150 is the same length as F250-F350 in the short bed crew cab is exactly 20’

The longest F150 is a bit longer than the shortest 250, but that's not a fair comparison. Short wheelbase F250 SuperCrew is 250 inches long. Short wheelbase F150 SuperCrew is 231 inches long.

Also, a 4X4 F150 has independent front suspension, where the SuperDuty gets a solid axle with its inherent driving characteristics. Turning circle for a short-box 4x4 F150 Supercrew is under 48' curb-to-curb, the F250 supercrew shortbox takes 53'.

[RVDreamer]

Originally Posted by Ridgerunner3

I love my 2500 with gas engine as a tow vehicle for our AS but it sucks as a daily driver. Mine is a dedicated tow vehicle. If I needed it to be a daily driver, I would be shopping for the best setup 1500 I could find. You need to really test drive a 2500/3500 around town before you consider buying one that will have daily driver duty. They take a huge amount of area to turn around in. People back them into parking places because that is the easiest way to park one. Reading truck statistics really does not explain the difference of actually living with a 2500/3500 vs a 1500 as a daily driver.

I have used an F-250 diesel as my daily driver for about 20 years. I have to say that the new camera technology available on the 2018 models is incredible. It makes basic maneuvering tasks much easier.

I love the 360 degree overhead shot. Now I can easily maneuver into tight spaces with ease. Makes a huge difference when you can see from multiple angles and know exactly to the inch how much room you have, the orientation of you vehicle precisely, and all obstacles visible around the perimeter of your truck.

New Blind spot radar systems take all the worry out of changing lanes and then noticing a small car or motorcycle pop up out of the blind spot. I don't have any qualms at all paying for the new tech. It makes driving the big rigs a joy!

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by RVDreamer

I have used an F-250 diesel as my daily driver for about 20 years. I have to say that the new camera technology available on the 2018 models is incredible. It makes basic maneuvering tasks much easier.

I love the 360 degree overhead shot. Now I can easily maneuver into tight spaces with ease. Makes a huge difference when you can see from multiple angles and know exactly to the inch how much room you have, the orientation of you vehicle precisely, and all obstacles visible around the perimeter of your truck.

New Blind spot radar systems take all the worry out of changing lanes and then noticing a small car or motorcycle pop up out of the blind spot. I don't have any qualms at all paying for the new tech. It makes driving the big rigs a joy!

I don’t have the blind spot system on my F350 but with the mirrors adjusted properly the entire side of the truck is visible in the mirrors. Sitting up high helps too. There’s no blind spot (unlike most cars and suvs).

[brick1]

Parking my new F250 has not been too bad. I park the front half in Parking Lot A, and the back half in B and C...
��

[ITSNO60]

I park my F-350 in the outer edges of the parking lots.....thus I get my walking exercise.

[brick1]

Originally Posted by ITSNO60

I park my F-350 in the outer edges of the parking lots.....thus I get my walking exercise.

I do, too. Then I catch the shuttle...
brick

[Hans627]

Originally Posted by Myelfself

Just picked up our F 150 Platinum diesel today. Omg what a beautiful truck. Should be able to handle our 28' Overlander without much trouble, just have to finish it now. Lol

Just curious if you have towed your Overlander with your F-150 diesel?

Or any other updates to report?

Thanks!

[upnorththree]

Originally Posted by Ridgerunner3

What happened to the days when the 1/2 ton International Travelall or Suburban 1500 with relatively low torque engines, drum brakes, and manual transmission were considered a great tv for an Airstream. Now we think we need to be able to climb a mountain pass at the speed limit and stop a 9000 lb trailer with the truck brakes alone without any trailer sway. : )

I'm going to guess you are much younger than me and I don't mean that as an insult.

There was a day, before your Suburban, when a family of six adults could hitch a camper to the back of a "full size" Chevy Malibu, luggage carrier on top, and travel from coast to coast for two weeks.

Here's your answer you probably were not looking for . . . the EPA, Cafe~ standards, and the ongoing push for green vehicles is why you are now looking at trucks to do the job our dads did with a car.

I'd like to know how I made things greener by buying bigger.

[SilverHouseDreams]

Originally Posted by upnorththree

Here's your answer you probably were not looking for . . . the EPA, Cafe~ standards, and the ongoing push for green vehicles is why you are now looking at trucks to do the job our dads did with a car.

I’m not sure I follow the line of thought here, how exactly do any of these rules impact this at all? Every car you buy today likely has more power than “our dads car did”...in fact my little 4cylinder turbo would exceed those cars in likely every measure, burn less gas doing so, and not contributing to living in a pit of haze and smog.

[Myelfself]

I'm willing to bet that the buying bigger truck you now need to pull a good size camper gets better fuel economy than dad's full size car did back in the day. Second, not everyone needs to or wants to pull a camper, so it's more important for the average car to get double the fuel economy than be able to pull a good size camper. Also campers are heavier today for the same length.

[Myelfself]

My Overlander is still gutted, I was hoping to get the outside sealed up and subfloor in before winter, but alas life has gotten in the way again. The only thing I have towed is my little teardrop, which of course was no problem at all. Mileage dropped to about 21 mpg from 25 mpg on about an 800 mile trip

[xyzabe]

Originally Posted by SilverHouseDreams

I’m not sure I follow the line of thought here, how exactly do any of these rules impact this at all? Every car you buy today likely has more power than “our dads car did”...in fact my little 4cylinder turbo would exceed those cars in likely every measure, burn less gas doing so, and not contributing to living in a pit of smog.

Dad's car had a steel frame, much stronger than today's unibodies. Today's cars are designed to collapse and have crush areas to make them survivable in an accident. In dad's day, an accident you could walk away from today normally meant severe injury or death.

That steel frame made it possible to pull the trailers of the day. They were "heavy" but for the most part lighter than today (no microwave, no tv, smaller holding tanks, etc). Those trailers met the "needs" of those who owned them. Today's trailers are larger and heavier.


Sure you can tow with a unibody car, but since they aren't really designed for towing, but rather for urban driving (for the most part), towing limits are low and most cars aren't set up to accept a tow receiver. Brakes are lighter, cooling systems are smaller, why take the chance?

[SilverHouseDreams]

Are you trying to convince yourself? As you aren’t going to convince me that anything about those old cars was better than modern cars. Those cars may have had frames, but they weren’t “designed” to tow. Inadequate brakes. Inadequate cooling. Inadequate transmission. You describe everything of “our dad’s cars” right there.

[xyzabe]

Originally Posted by SilverHouseDreams

Are you trying to convince yourself? As you aren’t going to convince me that anything about those old cars was better than modern cars. Those cars may have had frames, but they weren’t “designed” to tow. Inadequate brakes. Inadequate cooling. Inadequate transmission. You describe everything of “our dad’s cars” right there.

I didn't saw they were designed to tow, just they had a steel frame and were heavier. That and lighter trailers means they could tow, even if overweight. I said many accidents people walk away from today ended with severe or fatal injuries in older vehicles. My parents towed a softtop Coleman camper. Something like 700 lbs empty. But when you added cooler, luggage, people, cook stove, etc, we went down the highway front end high and my dad either white knuckling on long downhills or pulling over to let the brakes cool.

Yeah, cooling was poor, brakes were inadequate in most cases, shocks were lousy. But then towing a 6000lb trailer with a modern small or mid size car is nuts too because the brakes are inadequate, cooling is poor, stock shocks are lousy for the tow. No WDH will fix that. And drivers who want to go that route (and they are out there) are a hazard to themselves, their families and everyone on the road (other drivers and pedestrians).

If you are going to tow, you need to have a vehicle designed and rated for the tow. The salesman who tells someone they can tow with an inadequate vehicle is no better than the person who plays on a computer flight simulator and then decide they can fly an Airbus 380.

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by SilverHouseDreams

Are you trying to convince yourself? As you aren’t going to convince me that anything about those old cars was better than modern cars. Those cars may have had frames, but they weren’t “designed” to tow. Inadequate brakes. Inadequate cooling. Inadequate transmission. You describe everything of “our dad’s cars” right there.

People must be learning to drive differently nowadays. I never had a problem with those “inadequate” cars or trucks. I could drive rings around most people in the new stuff even today.

The answer today seems to be cars that will stop themselves if you’re not paying attention. With side airbags to save you when you coast through that green light when you could’ve actually looked first.

Love my new truck but this is just BS.

[farafield]

It's been a few months, wondering what the @Myelfself thinks about the diesel 150 now? Very curious!

[jcl]

Originally Posted by xyzabe

Dad's car had a steel frame, much stronger than today's unibodies. Today's cars are designed to collapse and have crush areas to make them survivable in an accident. In dad's day, an accident you could walk away from today normally meant severe injury or death.

That steel frame made it possible to pull the trailers of the day. They were "heavy" but for the most part lighter than today (no microwave, no tv, smaller holding tanks, etc). Those trailers met the "needs" of those who owned them. Today's trailers are larger and heavier.


Sure you can tow with a unibody car, but since they aren't really designed for towing, but rather for urban driving (for the most part), towing limits are low and most cars aren't set up to accept a tow receiver. Brakes are lighter, cooling systems are smaller, why take the chance?

My dad towed with a series of 60’s and 70’s Torino, Galaxie, and LTD Country Squire wagons. I currently tow with a BMW X3 sport utility, built on the 3 series platform (E46).

The Torino weighed 3509 lbs, the larger wagons ranged from 3600 to 4100. The X3 weighs just over 4000 lbs.

When these 60’s and 70’s vehicles were put up on the hoist in our family garage, we unlatched all the doors half way so when the vehicles sagged at the ends (they were very flexible) they didn’t pull the doors out of alignment. The X3 is incredibly rigid, much stronger. That is part of why it handles so much better, as the wheel alignment is maintained when one vehicle goes over a bump.

No comparison on the brakes. The BMW stops much shorter, despite more weight. And the four wheel discs don’t fade as quickly the old brakes did.

The X3 has 260 hp, more than any of the wagons Dad had, even the 76 LTD with the 460 cid. The X3 gets to 60 mph 5 seconds faster than that wagon.

The X3 is designed for towing. It has a BMW designed receiver available from the dealer, a wiring harness available from the dealer, and a trailer stability control built in.

It is far more responsible to tow with such a vehicle than the vehicles you hold up as examples.

[Roadtech]

I would love to know the payload on the door sticker of a fully loaded Platinum diesel F150.

[Myelfself]

Originally Posted by Roadtech

I would love to know the payload on the door sticker of a fully loaded Platinum diesel F150.

I posted a pic of door sticker earlier in thread. Only options not on mine are the self parking and adaptive cruise technology package, which is mostly software so no added weight.

[slowmover]

Originally Posted by xyzabe

Dad's car had a steel frame, much stronger than today's unibodies. Today's cars are designed to collapse and have crush areas to make them survivable in an accident. In dad's day, an accident you could walk away from today normally meant severe injury or death.

That steel frame made it possible to pull the trailers of the day. They were "heavy" but for the most part lighter than today (no microwave, no tv, smaller holding tanks, etc). Those trailers met the "needs" of those who owned them. Today's trailers are larger and heavier.


Sure you can tow with a unibody car, but since they aren't really designed for towing, but rather for urban driving (for the most part), towing limits are low and most cars aren't set up to accept a tow receiver. Brakes are lighter, cooling systems are smaller, why take the chance?

Wrong. The most popular cars “in the day” were Chrysler. Every one of them unibody. Best drivetrain had much to do with it, but owners soon understood the suspension/steering/handling & braking were well ahead of Ford & GM. For better than two decades Dodge was the highway pursuit vehicle of choice (as it is today) as they were the only brand that could stand up to hard use as well as being all around higher performance.

A pickup is still dead last choice when brains are applied. 1968 or 2018.

Do you really want a TV that is less stable than the TT?

.