 |
|
|
|
DallasSteve
Texas
Senior Member
Joined: 05/28/2015
View Profile
 Offline
|
Lantley wrote:tomman58 wrote:We see so many folks with dually trucks and wonder how many folks require them. We have always hauled our Jayco 39' travel trailers. I also know we load it to the teeth for our 6 to 7 thousand mile winter trips across the US. I never wanted a 5th wheel as I never cared for the bed and bath up stairs. ( figured after a few beers I might be falling down as well as up ,LOL) Bottom line never had any towing issues and we do put on the miles. I will say any 250 is a great riding towing machine and my GMC loaded with all leather seats, crew cab, short box is wonderful for my long hauls.
You are correct that most TT or bumper pulls can be pulled with a SRW truck because there TW is relatively small.
It's when you get into 5'ers and TC's that the pin weight and payload becomes a bigger factor that can exceed the ability of a SRW truck.
For the OP the bottom line is he has a bigger TT, he needs a bigger truck.
At some point the OP did his research and determined he need the F250.
The reality of driving that bigger truck is now upon him.
To the OP: Don't despair. It gets better. You just need to change your mindset. Park in open areas. Plan to back into parking spaces when it's tight. Trust those big mirrors, they are not in the way.
Big mirrors are your friend, they give you the optimum view.
You will learn to seek larger friendlier parking spaces. Size become more important than close proximity. You will seldom be able tom park up front close to the door. An F-150 in the same body style will be no different.
I agree that I will probably get used to it. 3 years ago I bought a Winnebago motorhome. It was much bigger and it was very intimidating for me to drive, but I got used to it after a few trips. It still kept me white knuckle most of the time, but the stress level went down. The F-250 is much more comfortable to drive, but it is a problem to park. Maybe I'll get to where I can park it in a single space between 2 cars but until then I will just need to park farther from the store and walk a bit. I'm in good physical condition so I don't have a disabled permit. I'd rather have my health than have special parking privileges. I thought an F-250 was a larger truck body, but apparently not. In that case, the F-150 is a very big vehicle, too.
It will be a few more weeks before I can hook up the trailer for a tow, but when I do I expect I will be glad that I bought the stronger truck.
* This post was
edited 03/12/23 11:28am by DallasSteve *
2022 JAYCO JAY FLIGHT SLX 8 324BDS
2022 FORD F-250 XL CREW CAB 4X4
All my exes live in Texas, that's why I live in an RV
.jpg)
|
tomman58
Southeast Michigan
Senior Member
Joined: 06/12/2005
View Profile
Offline
|
"You are correct that most TT or bumper pulls can be pulled with a SRW truck because there TW is relatively small.
It's when you get into 5'ers and TC's that the pin weight and payload becomes a bigger factor that can exceed the ability of a SRW truck." I agree with the weight issue as most 5ers weight a lot and also demand more of everything from sometimes 6 tires to much more fuel.
A TT like ours has an exceptional amount of room (especially for two people). There is also a nice feature that I have a top the truck that holds a lot.
We have been doing the for many years and have seen those with 5ers that also hold two motorcycles and a couple canoes and till has the good wife driving a separate car with the dogs. To each their own, have a great time as you only go by once, enjoy the ride.
2015 GMC D/A, CC 4x4/ Z71 ,3.73,IBC SLT+
2018 Jayco 338RETS
2 Trek bikes
Honda EU2000i
It must be time to go, the suns out and I've got a full tank of diesel!
We have a granite fireplace hearth! Love to be a little different.
|
deltabravo
Spokane, WA
Senior Member
Joined: 09/08/2003
View Profile
Offline
|
I long bed truck will make a more stable towing platform for a trailer the length of the one you have.
My solution for most parking: I don't park in the area of the parking lot where other vehicles are... I park in the back 40 so other people don't park near me.
Seems odd how a F250/F350 could be 10" wider than an F150. Do the specs actually show it being that much wider?
2009 Silverado 3500HD Dually, D/A, CCLB 4x4 (bought new 8/30/09)
2018 Arctic Fox 992 with an Onan 2500i "quiet" model generator
|
Grit dog
Black Diamond, WA
Senior Member
Joined: 05/06/2013
View Profile
Offline
|
^Nope. Just read.
2016 Ram 2500, MotorOps.ca EFIlive tuned, 5” turbo back, 6" lift on 37s
2017 Heartland Torque T29 - Sold.
Couple of Arctic Fox TCs - Sold
|
DallasSteve
Texas
Senior Member
Joined: 05/28/2015
View Profile
Offline
|
deltabravo wrote:I long bed truck will make a more stable towing platform for a trailer the length of the one you have.
My solution for most parking: I don't park in the area of the parking lot where other vehicles are... I park in the back 40 so other people don't park near me.
Seems odd how a F250/F350 could be 10" wider than an F150. Do the specs actually show it being that much wider?
Maybe they are the same width except for the mirrors, as someone here said. I did a Google search for 'F-150 vs F-250 width' and a couple of pages mentioned a 10" difference, but I didn't dig into it.
|
|
|
BB_TX
McKinney, Texas
Senior Member
Joined: 04/04/2005
View Profile
Offline
|
deltabravo wrote:…….
My solution for most parking: I don't park in the area of the parking lot where other vehicles are... I park in the back 40 so other people don't park near me.
…….
That’s great when there is a back 40. But quite often not an option. Seems medical offices, some fast food places, some small businesses, etc have small lots with narrow spaces to squeeze in as many vehicles as possible. My cardiologist, eye doctor, retina specialist, and dentist have small lots and no street parking and a pain parking my F350 CC long bed, even when backing in. Then have to fold the mirrors just to pass between my truck and the vehicle next to me.
|
valhalla360
No paticular place.
Senior Member
Joined: 08/19/2009
View Profile
Good Sam RV Club Member
|
4x4ord wrote:If you focus on the parking limitations you’ll be convinced you would have been happier with a short box. The long box has a bigger fuel tank and is less likely to have the back cab corner get crunched from hitting the fiver nose. I chose maneuverability over the bigger fuel tank and so I’ve been buying short box trucks for the last 20 years. Your might as well focus on the advantages of the long box and be happy ….. or sell it and buy a short box.
If parking is a huge issue, get a regular cab long bed 3/4 ton. As a bonus, it maximizes your payload capacity for towing.
Everything is a compromise.
Basically, the statement about "too much truck" is related to towing. If you need a vehicle to zip around tight urban roads, a Smart Car is much better...but the tow rating isn't so great.
Tammy & Mike
Ford F250 V10
2021 Gray Wolf
Gemini Catamaran 34'
Full Time spliting time between boat and RV
|
mkirsch
Rochester, NY
Senior Member
Joined: 04/09/2004
View Profile
|
deltabravo wrote:My solution for most parking: I don't park in the area of the parking lot where other vehicles are... I park in the back 40 so other people don't park near me.
So do I, but when I come out of the store, more often than not, there's a car parked tight on either side and one behind. They see my truck and decided that's the cool place to park and box me in.
As for the crew cab long bed F250, you're just going to have to come to the realization that it is a LOOOOOONG vehicle, and you're not going to be able to just park anywhere you want anymore. It's going to take more room to maneuver. It's going to take some getting used to. If you don't feel you are capable of that, take your lumps and trade it in on something shorter.
* This post was
edited 03/13/23 07:40am by mkirsch *
Putting 10-ply tires on half ton trucks since aught-four.
|
PA12DRVR
Back in God's Country
Senior Member
Joined: 09/17/2003
View Profile
|
In previous chapters of the life, I used an F350 (DRW, 8' Bed) for my daily driver in Ewe-stun for a couple of years; does it limit you? Yes. Is it impossible? No. Wife and I parked in the same parking garage at work...she had her choice of spots with the Prius; I had to get there early to get a first floor spot, ideally one of 10 that pulled straight in from an entrance. Very do-able. If I wanted to see a show in the Theater District, it was either a cab / Uber / Lyft thing or take the Prius. Trip to Santone for the Riverwalk? Park where convenient and walk. RV trip from Ewe-Stun to points NW? I always enjoyed having "More" truck rather than less. I think a bit of driving / parking / maneuvering will get you more comfortable with the truck.
I also had an F550 Dump truck for a plow business. Had to use that for a daily driver for a 3-4 month period up here in AK....now, that may have been too much truck for anywhere except Los Anchorage, but even that worked out fine. ![[emoticon]](http://www.rv.net/sharedcontent/cfb/images/smile.gif "smile")
..currently have an F250 with the 6.5' bed. Don't tow RV's anymore, but tow the boat, the sno-go's, the ATV etc....and I've repeatedly kicked myself for getting the 6.5 instead of 8' bed. Unless your life is strictly towing with an empty bed, I suspect that once you start outfitting the RV, there'll be times when it's nice to have extra room in the bed. ....and the longer WB does drive nicer.
CRL
My RV is a 1946 PA-12
Back in the GWN
|
spoon059
Just north of D.C.
Senior Member
Joined: 10/03/2010
View Profile
Good Sam RV Club Member
Offline
|
DallasSteve wrote:
The problem for me is parking it and driving it down the road. My research says it's about 10 inches wider than an F-150, and about a foot longer, plus it rides a lot higher so I have to avoid any parking garages.
Per Ford, assuming a 2022.
F150 is 209-250? L x 80-87? W x 75-80? H
F250 is 232-266? L x 80? W x 78-82? H
I'm guessing the longbed is the main 18 inch difference between your preferred short bed F150 and the compromised long bed 250.
Not a chance its 10" wider. In fact, Fords own specs indicate that a F150 can be 7" wider than a F250. Not sure how that happened.
For a 4wd, it appears that the F250 is 2" taller, becuase the suspension needs to be able to handle more weight.
Therefore the difference between 150 and 250 is minimal in reality. You bought a longbed... its gonna have a longer bed. It will ride better and give you more room to carry stuff, probably a bigger fuel tank and higher GVWR too.
2015 Ram CTD
2015 Jayco 29QBS
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
