First 6.7 Drive and i'm VERY IMPRESSED

[sawtooth1]

Well stopped by the dealer today and they were in the process of selling a 2011 F250 with the new 6.2 engine. I was kinda bumbed cause i wanted to drive it but really a 6.7 diesel even more. Low and behold they had a white king ranch F250 that was just delivered and was in service for final checks. I asked the salesman when it would hit the lot and he said about an hour. So i decided to return about 2pm and there it was. I asked for a test drive and the salesman gladly got a tag and we were off. I ended up putting about 18 miles on the truck which consisted of in town, one curvey road and 8 miles of highway. The first thing i noticed was immediate power and i mean both immediate and power. Hardly any turbo lag and the engine has balls to it before the turbo even hits. Guys this is probably the most responsive diesel I've ever driven. Gobbs of power and let me just say that if you want to smoke the tires its no problem. I love my 6.4 but this new engine feels and sounds more like a gasser because its so quiet (still sounds good to me though) and has amazingly quick and strong throttle response. Overall the engine feels very aggresive and wants to party. Reminds me of some of the Cummings but even better. Torque is immediate and i belive this new engine shows max torque about 500 or 600 rpms sooner than my 6.4 engine. If i'm correct this should be in the neighborhood of around 1500-1600rpms compared to 2100 of the 6.4 engine. Next is fuel mileage. I cleared the computer before i left. In city which is where we started stayed around 14-14.8 then on the highway we got the average up to 17.6mpg. Overall for the entire trip we averaged just above 16 mpg. Considering a new truck and me jumping all over the throttle i was impressed. Next, the seats are much improved as well as the driving position. More support and better overall position while driving. I also loved the addition of adjustable steering wheel of not only up and down but also in and out. The interior layout is great and looks good. I'm not overly excited about some of the exterior items like grill etc but its not totally bad either. Another thing l liked was the ride. The truck is a good bit smoother riding than my 2008 model. I tried to see why and found that the rear leaf springs only consist of 3 stacks versus my 5. How is this? I think it still handles the same 2500lb load as mine but not totally sure. The one thing i'm suprised that Ford didn't do was to go to a fully boxed frame. I know in the past they have offered the thickest and strongest C channel frame but both Dodge (has been boxed for a while) and now GM for 2011 are fulley boxed front to back of the truck. Anyway, Ford has made a big improvement to these trucks and i'm anxious to see how they are rated by everyone and how reliable the new engine and 6 speed tranny preform over time. I wish it luck and plan to buy one provided they prove to be reliable.
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01 Supercrew 4x4, 5.4 eng, 160K Awesome Truck
08 Dark Stone F250, 6.4, 3.73, 4x4 Lariat, Job3
ATS Color Matched Street Flares
Eaton Elocker "front" / Truetrac Limited Slip "rear"
Banks Ram Air Intake

[dhanna6powerstroke]

I too test drove one tonight and will disagree on 2 mentioned items. Will not smoke the tires off and rode rougher than my 04. Does have a lot of power and shifts extremely well but I'm not as impressed with it as I was the 6.4 when it came out.

[sawtooth1]

Really? Man not at all my experience. The ride was amazing to me and i'm all stock even with factory tires. I wonder if the trucks we drove had different suspension options? Did you notice the 3 leaf springs in the back vs. our 5? Also power wise i hit the on ramp and actually got the back end a little loose by accident. Its like bam and all the power is instant.

[freekyFX4]

I drove one yesterday, and I was impressed by how quiet it was, but the power didn't seem much different. I am not a fan of the new exterior stuff, but the seats are better.

[MGM]

I'm surprised about the comment on how rough it rode because I thought the exact opposite. I drove a new 6.4 King ranch back to back with a 6.7 Lariat and i thought the new one was much smoother. It doesn't have gobbs more power overall but much improved in the lower rpm with almost zero turbo lag!
And without meaning to both my dad and I easily broke the tires loose.

[Lifted 94 Bronco]

Don't think there is to big of a problem with the C channel frame. For one its so much easier for aftermarket companies to mount beds and equipment. Its plenty strong enough. Also with a boxed frame it adds torsional rigidity with the same equivalent thickness. The boxed frames of dodge and chevy may not be as thick (I don't know the thickness) and may be similar to equal strength as the ford C channel. Its all in the details on size and thickness of each on how the structural engineers designed the frames.

I like what I hear on the 6.7. I just have afew styling cues that I wish they didn't do. Like add a crease to the fenders over each wheel. Whay add a crease just to do it. Yeah it may make the fender buldge more pronounced but it looks goofy. Also I don't like how the headlights extend flatwise past the hood.

[sawtooth1]

I agree on the power in that i didn't mean the 6.7 had goobs more power than the 6.4 engine. I was trying to say its much more responsive off the line with a sudden rush of power. Once up to speed both trucks feel more equal but i still say the 6.7 feels a tad stronger than my truck stock. The feeling is that the 6.7 is much more responsive both before the turbo hits and in the time it takes for the turbo to hit. I love my truck but the power delivery and overall driveability of the new truck is much improved with the 6.7. Since i have Spartan now these issues are much improved but still has a little more turbo lag than the new engine.

[freekyFX4]

I really don't like the fact that the grill no longer lifts with the hood. That is one of the my favorite things about the 08-10.

[dhanna6powerstroke]

Originally Posted by sawtooth1

Really? Man not at all my experience. The ride was amazing to me and i'm all stock even with factory tires. I wonder if the trucks we drove had different suspension options? Did you notice the 3 leaf springs in the back vs. our 5? Also power wise i hit the on ramp and actually got the back end a little loose by accident. Its like bam and all the power is instant.

Originally Posted by MGM

I'm surprised about the comment on how rough it rode because I thought the exact opposite. I drove a new 6.4 King ranch back to back with a 6.7 Lariat and i thought the new one was much smoother. It doesn't have gobbs more power overall but much improved in the lower rpm with almost zero turbo lag!
And without meaning to both my dad and I easily broke the tires loose.

I'm also comparing the ride quality to my truck which is a little longer wheel base and has 79k on it so the 2011 that I drove should be stiffer since it only had 36 miles on it. It just seemed like the rear hopped a little more and easier than mine. I really think the 6.4 will run with this 6.7. As far as breaking the tires loose, I crammed the throttle and never got it to slip the tires once. I think you guys were on some sand!

[richc22a]

I test drove both the dually 350 (3:73's), and the 250 (3:55). I played with both, manually shifting at 2800 rpm, (taking off in 2nd). The 6.7 is responsive, (the tranny is FRIGGEN AWESOME, 6.4 tranny feels way outdated now...) compared them on the same on ramp, on the way to the dealer; the 6.4 from a rolling start about 20 mph hit 70 at the merge point, the 6.7 hit 80 (felt like my chipped 7.3). Reset the mpg avg when we left the dealer, did a 4 wheel launch, boosted and nailed it, played a bit, the 250 averaged over 16, the 350 was about 15.4. I don't know how the gci block will affect break-in.. but performance, and mileage should increase as this tight unit loosens up. This truck is a workhorse, not a sportscar, the tranny is equally as impressive as the 6.7.. excellent match, it'll move, looks good, ((the electronics will require reading the manual (might need a 8 year old to show me how it all works!!))...the reverse camera is surprisingly clear...pretty decent truck...pretty popular.... here in Ms they seem to be selling them as fast as they prep em.

(mine rolls off the assembly line tomorrow!!)