Currently I have a 2011 f250 crew long bed, this truck is my daily driver about 70 miles each day. This past summer we upgraded our travel trailer to a 5th wheel toy hauler and while the 250 does tow it fairly well with the 3:55 gears and bagged rear I am looking for a dually.
Every dealer in my area I check only has f450's and no f350 dually, honestly I feel a 350 with 3:73 gearing would be perfect for me. So with that said has anyone moved form a 250 to 450 and aside from the obvious big hips were there any regrets with the 450? IS the ride that much worse? fuel mileage?
Have you looked at the money difference by chance? Check your local area for what you would pay for the registration as well. With that F450 you can hitch it and forget it for ANYTHING behind you. It just might be worth it.
I have a F450 King Ranch, and love it. But you should check with what your DMV wants for registering a 450. Mileage you are looking around around 12-16 mpg depending on how you drive. Also my F450 has been re-geared to 3:73, so you can have the best of both worlds.
Thanks, im aware that my reg will definitely go up, in Ma anything with dual wheels must be registered as commercial regardless of who owns it. just going from a 2011 to 2015 I suspect my insurance and taxes will also jump.
My concern is more so if the ride of that 450 is that much harsher than a 350? my driving is mostly highway for about 6 months out of the year, other half of the year I ride a motorcycle to work.
I found a 2015 f450 black king ranch with only 19k miles and the dealer wants to unload it bad, they are supposed to get me an oasis report. Ill go from there depending on what that report shows, im Leary about getting rid of my truck which has been virtually trouble fee for the last 100k miles and buying someone's lemon.
That is the exact move I made. I had a 2011 F250 CC 4wd Lariat SWB and moved to a 2016 F450 Platinum. Love it. No regrets.....how can you have regrets? It's an F450 after all! Well, only unforseen issue is that it's very expensive to move to a larger more aggressive tire because of the 19.5" Alcoa wheels. You would need to replace them with a wider wheel and even then, finding a 10lug replacement is damn costly.believe it or not! I'm actually getting better MPGs with my F450. Probably has something to do with the tires. Also, the ride is as smooth as my F250 was before I did call the suspension upgrades on it (I added Add-a-leaf springs and fox shock to my 2011 which made the ride very stiff and firm).
Oh. Just keep I'm minds that all the suspension components are larger and it is far more difficult to find replacement aftermarket upgrades and lifts. The rear axle is not round, its square and huge. The front is the same as an F550.
You'll LOVE the tighter turning radius, much quieter interior, larger Nav, better reverse camera position, one touch power up and down windows for both front windows, and the stability you get from the dually and commercial spec tires.
A F450 is a lot of truck. The payload rating is way bigger than the F350. Depending where you live registration is way higher. I find my 250 a little long for most parking spaces. I also find them to be narrow as well. If you don't need that much truck then I wouldnt go that route. It's mostly about how much you need to haul or tow and how often you will do it. You may have to pay more to cross toll bridges to. I have the nav system in my 12 SHO and 15 truck and they are worlds apart. the 15 is more refined than my 12. The camera is clearer than my 12 Sync is also better and easier to use.
Actually, the new F450 has a lower payload capacity rating than the F350 dually. This isn't because it can carry less, its because the F450 weighs more and they needed to reduce the payload numbers on paper to keep the GVWC to 14,000lbs or less or it wouldn't have qualified as a Class 3 truck. All the paper numbers are underrated on the F450.
IronCobra, I enjoyed watching your video as I to was looking into ordering a new '16 F450 .... but after talking to my insurance company they said "nope" it will be considered a comm'l veh. no matter if it is a pickup, they have to go directly by the VIN # which = $$$$$$. So after doing a lot of research I'll be ordering a '16 F350 with the high capacity trailer tow package which basically from what I gather is a 2010-13 F450. It has the wide front axel, fenders etc and yes, a 4.30 ratio.
I also looked into that and you can buy brand new take out Dana 60 and 80 3.73 ring & pinion's for around $150-$200. I found a highly recommended shop about 80 miles from me that will change out and set up both r&p's for about $1100. Besides, I REALLY don't need an F450 as my 5th wheel is 35 ft and gross is 14,400 which it will never be, we travel very light. Also I'll be installing 20" wheels and Michelin 275-65-20 LTX AT 2's which will help with the rpm's plus they'll look a hell of a lot better that those 17 inchers. Anyway thanks for the tutorial .... Dave in So. Utah
I ordered an F450 to replace my Ram 3500. I will be hauling a heavy truck camper and towing a horse trailer. I have no doubt the F450 is going to handle the payload better than my current truck. I am nervous now about the insurance but I'll deal with that when the time comes. As of now, I patiently waiting. It seems the F450 has a very long build time of 16 to 20 weeks. Plus the holiday season!
IronCobra, tell me why you say the rear end is not a Dana 110?
If you don't want to wait for one to be built, look up Autonation Corpus Christi Ford, they have 1 instock. Eddie Yalkin Ford 2, Sames Ford has 2. All are deeply discounted right now and range in to from Lariat, King Ranch, to Platinum trims.
thanks for the info, I know I need a dually with my trailer, since it is a toy hauler that weighs in at 13k empty and it has yet to travel anywhere that way! I haven't scaled it yet, but I would have to estimate I am at 15k lbs which is pushing the suspension of my 250.
I will check into the insurance, I can handle it going up a few hundred more but if it doubles then I have to say no and look for a 350. Honestly I like the wheels on the 450 and would keep it stock, I have no plans of lifting It either.
That's not bad, currently in ma I pay $1100 a year for full coverage, I could handle $1500 ...I wouldn't tell my insurance company that though. I could only dream of my truck insurance being under 1000 a year and I have safe driver points.
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