2008 Ford F450

[gcatt1]

All of the discussion has centered around the newest F350. Wouldn't the 450 be the ideal vehicle for towing the larger units? Any down side or better alternative?

[Montana Sky]

The F450 could be a nice tow vehicle. One negative on the F450 is you must get either the 4.30 or 4.88 rear end. This will really cut down on both your towing and empty fuel economy. I have not seen the MSRP for a King Ranch or well loaded Lariat on the F450, but my guess is a fella could get into a MDT truck for about the same price. Being the 6.4L Power Stroke is new, one could consider that a positive or negative. To each their own...

[BillyRay]

yup, just a matter of opinion.

[Delaine and Lindy]

Well, can't give info on the F-450 price. But I can tell you the price of a F-350 with the King Ranch option, and every option except the Navigation system. The base price before options was $39,100 with all options $58,050. Got no movement with the price, even with cash in hand.

As to the F-450, with the 4.88 gear the 6.4 PSD RPMs will be much higher, less fuel mileage, but on paper it will tow the heavy 5th wheels. With the 4.30 gear you will have less RPMs but not a lot. And less towing ability. Using the SWAG method I think with the 4.88 your fuel mileage will be below 10 MPG. As for noise of the 6.4 it don't make as much as the 6.0 but with the my Duramax parked beside the 6.4 and standing in front of the Duramax you can hear the 6.4 over the Duramax. Also yesterday I read on the net (?) that Ford has a law suit against Naviastar, and Ford didn't like the price increase on the 6.4 just something to consider. Could be a delay on getting the 6.4. I am glad we didn't reach and agreement on price, but we did try to buy the F-350. The price was much higher than the Chevy Silverado, however can't put the order in until the last week of April and we don't know if it will be a 2008 or a 2007??? But we did order the Silverado 3500 dually with every option except the Navigation system, ($2,000 options ?). I will admit I have never owned a Ford Product. I just don't think it is a good idea to have to remove the body to do work inside the engine?? Good Luck on your choice.... Life is good.....GBY....

[sreigle]

I think the F450 is a good option for those considering a medium duty truck. There are a couple of reasons why we would not buy one.

First, it comes only as a dually. I have nothing against a dually for those who need or want it but it doesn't fit our sightseeing style.

Second, it is sprung heavier than the smaller trucks. The solo ride is reported as very good by those who have tested that truck but I would think the F350 would have a better solo ride. Both trucks have a new rear suspension with longer leaves, eight inches worth of additional length. Supposedly that really tames the ride a lot. I have not yet experienced it, though.

Gearing is the third. Those numerically higher rear gears do take at least some toll on mpg. With today's prices, that's a factor for me. I want "enough" rear axle but don't want to suffer lower mpg if I don't really need to.

For those who do not have the same concerns, the F450 sounds like an excellent choice, in my opinion.

[HamRad]

We have a 2002 450 PSD. It does ride more like a truck than a car. We had a 250 before we got the 450 so we have a really good comparison. It is very "stiff". When towing the ride is much better and it is hard to tell the difference between the two trucks ridewise.

As for the gearing. We have the 4.88 and I thought I'd have a much lower MPG than I had with the 3.73. This has NOT been the case. I am getting about the same MPG as with the 250. With the added benefit of much stronger pulling and stopping power with the 450. I have not had one of the newer pickups with the tow/haul feature but with the 450 and the 4.88 gears I believe it "acts" much the same. With the 250 I could not use the cruise control except on flat or downhill terrain. With the 450 I can use the cruise control almost all the time. Only on the really steep hills do I have to drop out of cruise.

So ridewise the 450 is rougher. MPG wise my experience is that there is not much difference.

The dually does not stop us from going and seeing anything we have wanted. We do not garage the truck so that is not an issue. The truck is huge so we do have to look for very large or "double" parking spaces. This is inconvenient sometimes it has not been a deterrent.

Get the tow vehicle that works for you. My "dream" vehicle is a big rig like FireTrucker has!

Good luck with whatever you get.

HamRad