Super duty vs. standard F series

Looking for my new truck and would like to know the following....

Is a F250 available in anything other than the Super Duty? If so, what would the differences be between the two?

Also, with the new engine offerings since my last 351, for basic farm work what are the recommendations? Some pulling, lots of hauling hay, tree limbs, building materials, etc.

Interesting, because I thought I had seen one. Why didn't this make it!? How was it light duty if it was a 3/4 ton?

If I plan on keeping the truck for a very long time, should I consider a diesel? I know the Dodge Cummings has a terrific reputation, what about the Powerstroke? Is the maintanence more frequent or just more expensive when needed?

What about mileage comparison? I'm looking at buying an F-550 crew cab to haul a 14,000 lb. fifth wheel. I have heard that others doing this with a V-10 get 3 to 5 miles/gallon.

Dodge diesels are just too NOISY! They sound like a trash can full of nuts and bolts being rolled down the road.

I don't think there would be any comparison, especially with the new diesel that gets even better mileage than the old one. I also doubt any v10 is going to do much after 200,000 and the diesel should still be working fine.

It's possible they had them in 00 too, but I'm pretty sure it was a one year thing when the Super Duty came out. I know they haven't had them beyond that. I'm not sure why they didn't hang around but I guess they weren't a big seller. I never checked the specs, but I'd guess the payload of the 250 you are talking about was between the 150 and the Super Duty. "3/4 ton" (or "1/2 ton") are misnomers in this day and age as they don't reflect the actual payload capacity. Only useful designations for comparing classes of trucks between makes.

If you don't have a seriously heavy load to tow, then the choice will likely fall more to preference. Personally, I like gas engines. I like the power, the noise level, and the cheaper entry/operating costs. Diesels are louder, expensive to purchase and the fuel is smelly and oily. (Yeah, I'm whining!) If I towed heavy though, I'd have a diesel. I don't know about maintenance frequency, but the services themselves cost more. The 7.3 Powerstroke has been pretty reliable. The jury is still out on the new 6.0, but I'm sure in time it will be a good engine too. The diesel will fare better at trade-in time regardless.

Matt

99 V-10 Super Duty, Super Cab 4x4

I hear this reasoning a lot, but even if the diesel is sailing along fine at 200K, I don't really want to deal with the rest of the truck's problems by this time. I haven't seen an American vehicle yet that wasn't having issues of some type at this kind of mileage.

Oh for the time before power everything, computer controls and etc!.......

Matt

99 V-10 Super Duty, Super Cab 4x4

Yeah, we ALL really long for the good old days when we had to replace points, plugs, cap and rotors every 24k, deal with malfunctioning chokes, pumping the gas to get them started, flooded engines, vapor lock, carburetors, SWAG repairs, vacuum operated windshield wipers, drum brakes, armstrong steering, et al. Things were so much easier back then.....

Where'd you get the one that you only tuned upt every 24K miles? Mine had to have a valve job every 24K or so and a rebuild around 50K - if you properly changed the oile evy 1k miles or so which was usually a sunday morning every 3 or 4 weeks at the "filling" station where everyone else in the area had their cars serviced. If you filled up the tank at the same time you got your oil changed, you got a $.02 per gallon discount. The whole shootin' match set you back about ten bucks and you may lose another buck pulling Cokes from the machine while you waited a couple of hours to get it all done. If your car only used a quart of oil every 500 or so miles and didn't smoke, it was a definite keeper. Geezzzz!!

Believe it or not, there is a happy middle ground. My POINT is today's technologies and advancements could be combined with yesterday's simplicity to make entire vehicles, (not just diesel engines), capable of 200,000+ mile without all the nit-noy crap going wrong with them that does today.

........He says as he trudges out to fix the power window motor that has died at 67,000 miles.......

You can gripe about carburators and points all you want, but there is something to be said for being able to fix a vehicle sitting on the side of the road with a pocket full of cheap parts. I can't do that with either of my current vehicles....

Matt

99 V-10 Super Duty, Super Cab 4x4

While I wouldn't want to lose some of the advancements of today, I agree a bit with the last statement. More than once, I bailed myself out of a problem with little more than some wire, a bandaid and some paper-clips or a stray screw or whatever else was floating around in the tool box in back. Carburetors and points were sloppy, but would be worked on. Hell, once when I totally wore the points to the base metal, I bent the floating side with vice-grips just enough to make the contact required to work, just so I could get to the parts store (grin). It was a 1965 Cevy wagon, straight-six (230) 3-speed manl on the column. No power ANYTHING. Strong-arm steering, both-feet on the brake stopping, etc. A beast. But that beast (change oil every

2kmiles w/o fail) delivered 350,000 miles us>Believe it or not, there is a happy middle ground. My POINT is today's

I have been reading this thread and now I got to ring in. I new to the diesel thing. I just bought a 2000 F-250SD PSD 6-spd. about three months ago. I pull a 25' travel trailer that weighs about 5000lbs loaded. I use to pull with a 1989 Bronco XLT 5.0L 5-spd. I loved that Bronco but it sure wasn't a very good tractor for my camper. This Super Duty Diesel pulls it with ease. I got about 12mpg on my first pull using cruise and AC all the way from Pasadena, MD to northern Lancaster, PA. As far as the noise, I spent hard earned money and valuable time making my second (first one lasted about 100K) 5.0L in my Bronco sound good and loud. I had custom 2.5" exhaust, 2 chamber flowmaster, ceramic coated shorty headers and she did sound awesome! Now I get to listen to my buddy sound great while he drives it! This 7.3L Powerstroke isn't any louder than my old truck was. Granted, it aint as pretty a sound as the low drone of a gas V-8 but the db level aint no worse either. All in all I wouldn't trade this Powerstroke for any other powerplant around. I don't drive it so much (about 3,500 miles per year) so the extra couple bucks for oil changes aint so bad. If I ever get rid of the camper, the Super Duty will likely go too as I won't need the awesome pulling power and really miss the low purr while cruising and loud growl under power of my old gas V-8.

-BunnMan

The old Dodges sound like a piece of construction machinery, agreed. They remind me of my days as a labourer on a roadbuilding crew. Check out the new Cummins. It's as quiet as any diesel on the road. The Chevy diesel and Cummins are the quietest by far. The Ford 6.0 still sounds like a 'diesel'. My buddy just bought a Duramax diesel, and he's been averaging 25mpg(Imp Gal, about 21mpgUS) on highway trips with no load behind, and the truck isn't broken in yet. I think he's only got 14,000km on it.

Even though the old Dodges sounded like hell, try driving one - they're not so bad in the cab. I saw a guy with a new 2003 3/4 ton Dodge diesel in a campground recently, and it seemed like he had electric radiator fans cycling on/off, so they've done away with the noise from the engine driven fan too. A gas motor is still the ultimate quiet motor in a truck.