Everyone I know with a diesel truck plans to go to a gas engine next time if they haven't already done so. With the initial cost ( about $9000 with Ford) along with higher fuel and maintenance costs the are much harder to justify economically any more. Especially for recreational use. If someone tows/hauls heavy on a regular basis and they use their truck to make a living then maybe. But for guys who pull a travel trailer of boat a few times a year you'll never break even on costs. Our local school system has bought new school buses with gas engines the last 3 years. Diesel just got too expensive.
And then there is payload. The diesel engines are so heavy that they eat into trucks payloads. I have a friend who recently traded his F250 diesel for a 1/2 ton. His F250 was rated to TOW 15,000 lbs, but due to the weight of the diesel engine he only had about 2000 lbs payload. He was over loaded with a 10K trailer and 3 adults in the cab.
You don't list trailer weights, but I'm of the opinion that a 1/2 ton, properly equipped should be OK up to about 7000-8000 lbs. Not all 1/2 tons will be OK with that so "properly equipped" is the key. There are some 1/2 tons rated to tow over 10K, some as much as 13K, but I'd feel much better with a 3/4 ton over about 8K.
I don't plan to ever tow over 5 or 6K so I'm OK with my F150 which is rated for 7700 lbs. I wouldn't pull over 6 K with my truck due to payload ratings though. But I've considered an F250 with the 6.2 gas engine for my next truck. The price just isn't that much more. And for guys wanting a more basic truck I could probably find an F250 gas engine truck cheaper than a fancy F150.
