Home Forums Gear Hunting Trucks and Four-Wheel Drives 3/4 ton gassers

Wondering if there's a preference between GM and Ford..

Looking for a 4x4 crew... '24 or '25

My 3/4 ton crew cab is a 2002 F250 Super Duty with the V10 6.8l gas engine. I may very well be in the market to upgrade it soon so I will be very curious to hear what people with some experience with late model gassers have to say.

The only 3/4 gasser I’ve had is my ‘23 F250 with the 7.3, and so far, no complaints….

John

I have a '24 F250 7.3 and am happy with it so far. There were no '25s on the lot when I traded two weeks ago. Over the 2,000 miles I've put on it in the last two weeks, it gets 2-3 miles per gallon less than my '22 6.7 diesel that it replaced but gasoline is 25-30% less per gallon than diesel on average, which offsets that difference. Plus maintenance and repairs run about 1/2 as much as the diesel and no CP4 or DPF worries with the gas. It doesn't have the torque of the diesel but it seems to have enough. I will know more when I latch onto a trailer in a couple of weeks.

So far, I'm happy with my 3/4-ton gas purchase. I wish the manufacturers would do turbo inline 6 hybrid with about 300 cubic inches in 3/4 ton trucks. With current technology, I don't know why they couldn't get 22-24 MPG unloaded and 600-700 foot pounds of torque with a combo like that.

Ford just starter production of the 25’s this week so don’t expect to see any on the lots for a few weeks.
Consider buying a F350 instead of the 250. They are the same basic truck with maybe one or two different parts on the rear suspension. They ride the same.
F350 is about $1100 more and brings a much higher resale value and is more desirable in the used market. They also have the door jam sticker with the higher payload ratings.

While true, keep in mind that the 3500 GVWR is over 10 K, which puts you in DOT territory if used commercially. A whole lot of paperwork and expense a 2500 with airbags doesn’t have….

So it’s legal to overload an F250 or 2500 with airbags commercially?

I don't think it's the case now but for many years the only difference between a Dodge 2500 and 3500 single rear wheel was the springs. Everything else was interchangeable.

Friends have a ‘23 F350 w/ the 7.3L gas engine. 18K miles and no problems. The fella has a ‘25 F150 for himself and says it’s like a Cadillac ride by comparison.

For sheer comfort I would say the Ford is the way to go. Having said that I just bought a 1-ton GMC because it had one future the Ford doesn't-- Auto-4. If the Ford had that system I would most likely be in a Ford right now. I have talked to one person who has bought a new Ford for his business. He says he had to get a special rack to fit his truck because of the Aluminum body (He hauls glass panels around.) He also said a friend who hauls heavy metal containers in his new Ford had the ribs in the bed flatten out from the weight on the aluminum. Ford does not recommend slide in campers for certain models of their heavy-duty pick-ups if you want to do that. I have heard that is the same in the GM trucks but am not sure about it.

Current truck is a 24 Ford F350 CC SB with the 7.3 gasser and 4:30 gears. Great rig, zero issues to date (11K miles), OK mpg. Hauled a 7K trailer and had over 3K in the bed during my drive from TN to AK and averaged in the low 10's for the entire distance. Towing is interesting in hilly country as it will often downshift and bring the rpms up to 4,000 or higher. Kind of alarming until you get used to it.

The ride is totally dependent on the load and the tire pressure. When not towing or carrying less than 1,000 pounds I run 45-48 in the rear tires and 55 in the front. Rides great. If you want to run empty with the tire pressure that is on the door jam sticker expect to be bounced all over the place.

When I ordered my 2022, I bought from a friend that at one point owned a bunch of small-town dealerships (around 50, I think). I spec'd it out as both an F250 with heavy duty suspension and towing package with all the bells and whistles and an F350, which came with all that as standard. As a SRW shortbed, both had the exact same towing and payload ratings and were within $100 of each other regarding price. I called the manager of my friend's dealerships when ordering and asked which would have the better trade-in value. Based on his advice for his dealerships, I went with F250. They were otherwise same-same.

The law has nothing to do with load, just GVWR. A commercial one ton truck with a box of apples in the back across state lines is subject to the DOT rules. Logbooks, drifer qualification files, medical card, vehicle maintenance program, annual inspection, etc, etc. And going to a car race or rodeo to compete for prizes is considered commercial by the DOT. If you don't need the GVWR, best not to volunteer for those priviliges.

As Rockchuck pointed out, the only difference is the rear springs. If if bothers you to exceed the GVWR with airbags, you are more than welcome to go the DOT route.

The DOT rules for race car prize money is only if you claim it as a business which very few do in ours for the sportsman racing. But it still may under the various low weight limitations of 10,001 lbs for the trailer.

Exceeding the legal load or towing limit in a non commercial vehicle would likely only be an issue if you were in an accident. Then you are [bleep]’ed. You could argue all day long the vehicle can do it but the door jam sticker will have the final say.

All fine and good, but DOT determines if it is business or not, not the operator......... There's a bit of case law on this.

Please cite the case law where DOT determines whether or not I claim a hobby as a business.

What is the pressure stated on door sticker?

Does dropping it trigger the TPMS?

Not sure about the 24s. My 19 the door jam pressure is 80psi. TPMS doesn’t light up until under 55psi. Unless I’m pulling something heavy I run them at 60psi all the way around and the ride is much improved.

I think TPMS parameters can be adjusted with ForScan.

Mine says 75 pounds, I run 65 when empty or not pulling, No TPMS notice. I run 85 when fully loaded with trailer and slide in camper