TV Advice for new Classic 30!

[forssd]

looking at 2019 F250 for TV for new classic, what would be the best bed length with the super duty crew cab? Is the heavy duty front end needed? We had been looking at a new 2019 Ford Expedition for the job, but after viewing some comments and advice on this site, it doesn't look workable. Any comments?

[uncle_bob]

Hi

Are you ordering one or buying one off a dealer's lot?

At least in the northeast, there are a pretty limited set of options that all the dealers seem to go for. For instance - finding a 2WD on the lot is darn near impossible.

I'd vote for the short bed with the crew cab. The truck gets crazy long with a full sized bed and the big cab. Parking begins to get nutty with all that length. Even if it's just a tow, you still have to park it in the campground.

I'd vote for HD everything you can get ( = turn it into a 350 or just get a 350). The price delta between a 250 and 350 is mighty small. Ride and handling wise they are very similar.

Why go HD? I'm assuming that you have a bunch of .... errrr ... fine stuff ... that you will bring along with you when camping. Tossing a 7KW generator and a couple of dirt bikes into the truck seems to be pretty common. Much easier to spend the extra few percent upfront than to try to upgrade things after the fact.

Some people have reported weird insurance / registration issues going from a 250 to a 350. It's probably worth checking on if you decide to go that route.

Bob

[turk123]

I have an F-250 Platinum and it pulled my 27' very easily. I am assuming my new 30 will be just fine also. My payload is at 2250 on the truck. The larger tires and higher pressures make this a wonderful truck for pulling a trailer.

We are putting about 700lbs in the trailer and rarely pull with full tanks (another 1000) We have a ProPride hitch that would be a good investment for you.

By the way, if you are worried that the F-250 has a stiff ride, don't. It rides better than the 3 F150's I've owned. Great ride!

Get the super crew with the short (6') bed. The wheelbase even on the short bed takes a little getting used to. If you can get the full camera set, it is great for getting the 250 into parking spaces. I use the cameras every time.

[brick1]

I traded my 2016 Expedition Ecoboost for an F250 diesel, pulling a 2018 Serenity 28. Glad I did. Not even a comparison.
brick

[rgg123]

I have a 30 ft Classic and originally pulled it with a gasser F250. Ok on flat land but very underpowered up hills and difficult down hills. Traded it in for an F250 diesel - no comparison! Go with the diesel

[kendrick.l.j]

Love my RAM 2500 diesel, short bed, crew cab, and everything else plus Classic 30, Hensley hitch combo. I use the RAMbox every day, makes getting little things so much easier than crawling into the bed. The only thing I wish I had is the bed slide..I will in time, just haven’t done it yet.

[Daquenzer]

1. How much are you going to tow?
2. Where are you going to travel?

So let’s say you are only going on short trips near home. 4 to 5 hours. Maybe once in awhile a longer trip. Why would you need a diesel? I live in WI and use an F150 Ecoboost to pull my 28’ International. I pull with a propride. Pulls great. I hum along at 65 no problem. And I’ve taken longer trips to Indiana through Milwaukee and Chicago. No problem. So a diesel is not necessary unless you want to spend 9,000 more and have the possibility of some expensive repairs at around 100,000 miles.

Now if you are going to be pulling the 30’ Classic a lot; I mean weeks and months at a time then maybe a diesel is the way to go. Especially if you are heading to the Rockies. But the only real reason to go with a diesel would not be climbing the mountains but descending since the diesels have the engine brake which can make towing a lot more pleasant. Sure a diesel is going to pull that 30’ Classic better than a gas. But what’s the hurry? You only should drive so fast anyway.

I have a propride hitch. Not sure it would be necessary with a 3/4 ton. But they are nice.

So think about how much and where you are going to go with it. Most of the people that pull AS’s do so with gas engines. And they do just fine. A Ford F-250 with the gas engine has plenty of power. Heck a well equipped F150 would do it. You might need to put different shocks in or get a bit stiffer tire, but it has plenty of power to pull a 30’ Classic.

You are going to get so many opinions on this it will make your head swim:
1). Will a diesel pull that 30’ better than a gas. Yep.
2). Is a diesel necessary to pull that 30’. Nope.

[pteck]

Why stop at a F350. F450 is the way to go. Only incrementally more money - http://www.airforums.com/forums/f463...ed-187468.html

[kendrick.l.j]

And there are folks who sware you can tow a Classic with a mid sized sedan on the ball. It’s entirely up to you.

[uncle_bob]

Hi

The gas vs diesel debate goes on here for thousands of posts a month. People look at their 1973 gas truck and compare it to a 2018 diesel. Gas powered trucks have come a long way over the years. It's not just the engines, but also the transmissions. You can accelerate from 60 MPH going up an 8% grade with a 30' Classic on a loaded (= bunch of crap in the bed) F-250. I'm not at all sure just how much more power you would need that that ....

Bob

[pteck]

Originally Posted by Daquenzer

You are going to get so many opinions on this it will make your head swim:
1). Will a diesel pull that 30’ better than a gas. Yep.
2). Is a diesel necessary to pull that 30’. Nope.

To add to this, as there's a lot of misconceptions. There's also pros and cons to everything.

3) Does a diesel have more power?
Not necessarily. Torque is as measure of grunt at low engine speeds. HP is the measure of overall power, especially as it concerns how quickly something can be done. I.e. time up a hill. This is tempered by weight, i.e power to weight. Diesels are heavy. Don't be surprised that a gasser can be faster up a hill.

4) handling and braking?
Diesel's are no lightweights. Just like work truck, trains, cargo ships... they've never been known for their braking or handling.

5) open road
And this is where diesels shine. When steaming full speed ahead, they are resolute and stable. Because of their high torque (and power) at low engine speeds, they operate in a seemingly more relaxed manner.

[rgg123]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi

The gas vs diesel debate goes on here for thousands of posts a month. People look at their 1973 gas truck and compare it to a 2018 diesel. Gas powered trucks have come a long way over the years. It's not just the engines, but also the transmissions. You can accelerate from 60 MPH going up an 8% grade with a 30' Classic on a loaded (= bunch of crap in the bed) F-250. I'm not at all sure just how much more power you would need that that ....

Bob

Bob: with all due respect you won’t be going 60 mph up an 8% grade with a gasser F250 pulling a 30 ft Classic. Been there done that. 30 mph maybe and the engine will be roaring with all it’s got. And you will get white knuckles on the way down the backside of the mountain. Enjoy your ride as best you can because I didn’t - and thus upgraded to a diesel. Now, maybe it will work with less cargo and a shorter trailer - but not anything equal to or greater than a 30 foot AS.

[Daquenzer]

Originally Posted by rgg123

Bob: with all due respect you won’t be going 60 mph up an 8% grade with a gasser F250 pulling a 30 ft Classic. Been there done that. 30 mph maybe and the engine will be roaring with all it’s got. And you will get white knuckles on the way down the backside of the mountain. Enjoy your ride as best you can because I didn’t - and thus upgraded to a diesel. Now, maybe it will work with less cargo and a shorter trailer - but not anything equal to or greater than a 30 foot AS.

Not true. Go to gauntlet test of F250 gas. Averaged 60 mph up 7% grade. And that was with heavier load than a classic.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9gMV35SbAOY

[rgg123]

Originally Posted by Daquenzer

Not true. Go to gauntlet test of F250 gas. Averaged 60 mph up 7% grade. And that was with heavier load than a classic.

A “test” is very different than my experiencing it firsthand. I know what I experienced and am convinced that an F250 gasser is not up to the mountains task. Safe and comfortable is very different than possible

[Thiss]

12 brake applications on the way down and 2.6 mpg on the way up while yelling “back it off!”

Haha no thank you. I will keep my diesel

[Thiss]

12 brake application on the way down and 2.6mpg going up with the copilot yelling, “back it off!”

I will keep my Cummins

[pteck]

Originally Posted by rgg123

Bob: with all due respect you won’t be going 60 mph up an 8% grade with a gasser F250 pulling a 30 ft Classic. Been there done that. 30 mph maybe and the engine will be roaring with all it’s got. And you will get white knuckles on the way down the backside of the mountain. Enjoy your ride as best you can because I didn’t - and thus upgraded to a diesel. Now, maybe it will work with less cargo and a shorter trailer - but not anything equal to or greater than a 30 foot AS.

Sorry, don't know what particular vehicle you had prior. But please speak for your own particular under performing vehicle.

Not all 1/2 and 3/4 ton vehicles perform the same. Gassers and Diesels included. So just because a 3/4-ton 6.7 diesel might be great, there are just as many under performing passenger car based diesel vehicles out there. Just like there are many under and over achieving gassers. With many modern ones able to easily pull the load up any grade.

[mikeinca]

Originally Posted by forssd

looking at 2019 F250 for TV for new classic, what would be the best bed length with the super duty crew cab? Is the heavy duty front end needed? We had been looking at a new 2019 Ford Expedition for the job, but after viewing some comments and advice on this site, it doesn't look workable. Any comments?

I would go with the 6 3/4' bed unless you really need the 8' bed length for some reason. The F250 Crew cab is big enough as it is. I don't believe you need the heavy duty front suspension on an F250. I would suggest the Trailer Tow Package - High Capacity which includes an additional overload spring in the rear plus a larger differential. Pricewise, this will put the initial cost on par with a F350 but the 350 will ride a little firmer due to stiffer rear springs and you won't have the option to register it as a <10,000lb vehicle which will cost you additional annual registration fees in some states. OTOH, a 350 will have increased payload capacity. It depends on your needs.

There are many opinions on both sides of the gas/diesel debate. I'll just say that I love the Power Stroke diesel in my F250. It provides seemingly limitless power to pull our 30' Classic almost without effort and with no screaming revs. Being turbocharged, there is virtually no power drop off at altitude pulling a load up a mountain grade, unlike a normally aspirated V8 gasser. It all comes at a price, but to me it's worth it.

[Countryboy59]

What was the original poster asking again?

I’ll check back in a couple days and watch this one go off in the weeds. But I’ll add if you’re doing 30 mph uphill with a 30’ airstream and a 385 horsepower engine it’s probably driver error. Mine will do better than that all day long (both my gas and my diesel truck will and my diesel is an older model with less than 300 hp).

[Daquenzer]

Originally Posted by Thiss

12 brake applications on the way down and 2.6 mpg on the way up while yelling “back it off!”

Haha no thank you. I will keep my diesel

They weren’t yelling back it off. Talk about exaggeration. And they were loaded to the max. Why don’t you watch the diesel tests and look at their mileage?

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2GxztJit22A