F150 vs F250 towing camper

[Roachie501]

I am currently working to upgrade my tow vehicle and I am on the fence between the F150 Eco boost or the F250 gas. I will be using this vehicle to tow a Rockwood 31' travel trailer. Weight is approximately#9000 loaded. I know I will get some good feedback from the Forest River community. Please help me decide which side of the fence to fall on

[Off Rez]

I tried towing a 33' TT with a Ram 1500 that weighs in at 7600# and it was the "tail wagging the dog". The truck has enough power to pull the trailer, even pull it up steep hills, but that is a big "sail" back there and it pushed the truck around a lot. The Hemi roared going up hills and the oil temp got near 300 so it was time to look for more capability. Some people are comfortable with the "wiggle" or claim that a properly set up WDH eliminates that. Not in my experience. You'll be happier, imho, with a F250 that is designed to tow. But if you only tow occasionally and will use the truck as a daily driver 95% of the time then probably stick with the F150 and take it slow towing.

[A32Deuce]

Buying new or used? New, get the 250 with the 7.3 gas engine with 10 Speed trans.

[ryand]

Many threads and topic here and can speak from experience going from 1500 to 2500 (No matter what power plant) the towing experience is greatly improved with the heavier duty truck. Night and day difference in stability, sag, sway, stopping and confidence. If it’s in your budget you will not be disappointed. To better understand the physics/engineering of things, Take a good hard look at a new 1500 suspension, Driveline and frame and then go take a peak at the 2500. It’s heavier because it can do more safely. Again, not a oil burner vs gas discussion.....this is a completely different platform for towing.

[Roachie501]

We will be buying used looking for a 2018-2019

[NMWildcat]

F250 for an RV that length and weight. And for any future RV purchases

[007matman]

Originally Posted by Roachie501

We will be buying used looking for a 2018-2019

Go with an F250 or even a F350. My F350's actually cheaper on insurance and was less to purchase than a comparable F250.

Don't let people say the ride quality is different.. they're full of it. Personally, I've never experienced that between a 3/4 and 1-ton truck and I've drove many.

There is no comparison between a 1/2 ton and a 3/4 + truck.. night and day. It's also much safer pulling with the larger, heavier duty truck.

[upflying]

Concur, get a F250 for a TT that big.

[Steeljag]

Roachie501 - as a current, and happy owner of a Ford F 150 in my signature, I would go with the F250 for your setup ! That is a long , and when / if fully loaded, heavy TT !

When you factor in tongue weight of the TT, the WDH , and any items you can / will be putting in the bed of the truck.....plus the length.....your best bet is the LWB F250 !

Good luck and happy camping !

[filthy-Beast]

We had an f150 ecoboost. Upgraded to a bigger TT a 31ft Jayco. Just under the max numbers. That ecoboost would get up and go, accelerating on an on ramp to 65 was no issue.

Even with WD hitch it was a little twitchy. We upgraded to a F250 gasser mainly for additional supplies payload in the truck. Handling did get better also.

We are now planning to go to an F350 diesel dually for a 5th wheel. Think about the next 5 years or so and go big to begin with if you see getting a bigger camper. Then you won't need to upgrade twice like we did.

[Kimber45]

Find a lighter camper and get the f150 if you are not ready to commit to an HD truck if it is your daily driver.

[67L48]

You'll be fine on your weights and specs ... F-150s are 1,800+ lbs of payload. So, I wouldn't worry about that stuff.

An F-250 is itself bigger and heavier. This can lead to a smoother towing experience. The longer wheel base, the heavier truck, bigger brakes, etc. can just better balance the huge wind sail behind you. This is why people will recommend the HD platforms for trailers this large -- HD trucks are scaled larger to better handle the larger loads with more comfort.

An F-250 will grow with you if you up-size your trailer later on. The F-150 will have a more difficult time, as you'll run out of capacity very quickly.

[REL]

Check the payload capacity on both ACTUAL trucks ( not published capacity for the truck in general). You're going to have. 1000lb+ tounge weight plus what ever and whomever is in the truck. Not saying the 150 won't be able to do it but The 250 will be a better TV for that weight.

[HangDiver]

Get the F250.

[Columbus340RK]

Originally Posted by Roachie501

I am currently working to upgrade my tow vehicle and I am on the fence between the F150 Eco boost or the F250 gas. I will be using this vehicle to tow a Rockwood 31' travel trailer. Weight is approximately#9000 loaded. I know I will get some good feedback from the Forest River community. Please help me decide which side of the fence to fall on

We pulled a 6000pound fifth wheel with a half tone and were 2000 pounds under our max weight and although it towed it .....ok ,we eventually bought a 12,000 Ib fifth wheel and pull it with a 2500 HD. The difference between the two trucks is day and night. The stability that the 2500 offers and the braking power is day and night. Adding Diesel to the mix adds that much more comfort again because of the power, you aren’t pushing into the gas pedal to go up the hills. But on point you won’t regret the F250 decision.

[Wolf26]

I just went thru this. Traded my 2015 F150 on a new F250 Power Stroke. I'll NEVER go back to an F150 or gas. The F150 was a 5.0 and did the job, but the F250 is awesome. The 150 would downshift a lot, the F250 pulls a lot easier and very rarely downshifts, pulls in 6th gear like the camper isn't even there.

[boogiejack75]

I'd get an F350. Essentially the same price with more cargo carrying capacity.

[ppine]

F-250 in a landslide.
consider a diesel.

[Cabinfever97]

[QUOTE=007matman;2268799]Go with an F250 or even a F350. My F350's actually cheaper on insurance and was less to purchase than a comparable F250.

I agree with either, no info about insurance for either. Depending on state registration may cost more for the 350. In PA we can register as 250 if you don't need the 11000LBS max payload on the 350. The 350 will get you another 1000LBS in truck payload. For towing they both have the same GCW. Around 19000LBS, varies slightly by year, with the same rear end gear ratio. We will be buying a 2015/2016 250 or 350 later this year so I have been looking at the numbers. Until having a heavy camper never paid much attention to GCW. The 250 or 350 do much better than the 2500 for sure. My 2007 2500 GCW is only 16000LBS

[justskipit]

No comparison F-250 S.D. is the only way to go. I've owned one since 08 new & I have towed everything from a 27ft boat to my new 36ft Surveyor without a problem.