Man without a tow vehicle

[Tex-man1714]

Hello I am torn between the Ford 6.2 and the gm 6.0 engines for towing 31 ft fifth wheel loaded about 9500lbs any help would be appreciated I live in Montana and will be pulling to the southwest and Texas thanks!

[D2Reid]

Hmmm! 31' fifth wheel at 9500 lbs. I would recheck those numbers, but I really don't know because you didn't list the unit you are pulling. For me, towing a 5th wheel, I will never go back to a gas engine, diesel (to me) is money well spent. Ford vs GM, personal preference.

[RVRunners]

Hmmm! 31' fifth wheel at 9500 lbs. I would recheck those numbers, but I really don't know because you didn't list the unit you are pulling. For me, towing a 5th wheel, I will never go back to a gas engine, diesel (to me) is money well spent. Ford vs GM, personal preference.

I tend to agree here that you should double check the numbers and consider the camper loaded. Towing out west with the mountains a naturally aspirated gasoline engine will struggle at times towing a large load. A diesel power plant with torque produced over a larger range of RPM plus turbo will be your friend. My opinion here of course. Good luck!

[huntr70]

Either one will handle it fine.

Just make sure your cargo carrying capacity will cover the loaded pin weight.

[Ditchdigger]

I have had gas and diesel T.V. and I would not two with a gas T.V. again. I have a Chevy one ton DRW tow a Momentum 397th 21000 lb it tow it great. I am from Montana and I am down in West Texas now.

[Guzinta]

Hmmm. My 303 is 9385 lbs uvw , pin weight 1785. My 2500HD gaser is rated just shy of 2800 lbs payload with plenty to spare in gross. This setup works well. You wouldn’t want a 2500 diesel, though, because your payload drops several hundred lbs. If I was in the market for a new truck it would be a one ton diesel. YMMV

[Dreamin' Dreamers]

D2Reid I bought a '19 F-350 6.7 psd and just LOVE IT!!! Will be towing a 315rlts. Overkill but I planned for future larger purchase. Visit The FTE forum and there is A TON of truck towing info. Very helpful community as well. Go big or stay home-get the diesel!!!

[jasonl78]

This is a tough one on so many levels. Obviously everyone's situation is a little different. Are you looking at a 250/2500 or a 350/3500? Are the camper weights you listed from a scale or are they advertised weights from the manufacturer?

I'm not sure if you have your mind set on a gas truck or not but it's hard to argue about what others have said about the ability to tow with a diesel especially in the mountains of Montana. Can you elaborate on your towing habits? Like how often you tow, is the vehicle your daily driver, do you tow more in Montana or other areas of the country, will you upsize the camper etc? All of these things had an impact on my decision to go with a gasoline engine. I tow less than 10% of the time, my towing is all in relatively flat ground in MN, I couldn't afford the $10k upcharge, my fifth wheel is 11k loaded and I'm not trading up to anything bigger. My 6.4L does pretty well for me even with 3.73s. I'd even suggest giving one a try :-)

I have multiple relatives who also tow with gas engines and one with a diesel. One went from diesel to gas because he got tired of maintenance. I'm sure there were other factors as well. There was no doubt that diesel pulled great but he wasn't satisfied with it. I have two relatives with 6.0 GM gassers. One relative with a 6.4L hemi who used to have a 6.0 GM. Big upgrade pulling with the 6.4L he says. One relative with a 5.7L Hemi and another with a new 6.2L Ford. Combined there are thousands of miles of towing travel trailers, fifth wheels, stock trailers, boats, utility trailers etc. So far everyone with gas engines has been very satisfied. I'm not saying a diesel wouldn't do the job better but for them it's about the best fit for their situation.

Good luck with your search and maybe providing more detail can help narrow your search.

[Bamaman]

If you were towing 15 miles to a local state park and the topography was Arkansas, you'd be okay with a gas tow vehicle @ 10K lbs.

But you're planning on towing long distances and elevations vary greatly on your itinerary. Diesel is the only way to go. And a single rear wheel 8' bed one ton would work better than a single rear wheel 3/4 ton short bed unit. Better yet, go with duallies unless your truck is a daily driver into tight parking places, etc.

[Ditchdigger]

This is a tough one on so many levels. Obviously everyone's situation is a little different. Are you looking at a 250/2500 or a 350/3500? Are the camper weights you listed from a scale or are they advertised weights from the manufacturer?

I'm not sure if you have your mind set on a gas truck or not but it's hard to argue about what others have said about the ability to tow with a diesel especially in the mountains of Montana. Can you elaborate on your towing habits? Like how often you tow, is the vehicle your daily driver, do you tow more in Montana or other areas of the country, will you upsize the camper etc? All of these things had an impact on my decision to go with a gasoline engine. I tow less than 10% of the time, my towing is all in relatively flat ground in MN, I couldn't afford the $10k upcharge, my fifth wheel is 11k loaded and I'm not trading up to anything bigger. My 6.4L does pretty well for me even with 3.73s. I'd even suggest giving one a try :-)

I have multiple relatives who also tow with gas engines and one with a diesel. One went from diesel to gas because he got tired of maintenance. I'm sure there were other factors as well. There was no doubt that diesel pulled great but he wasn't satisfied with it. I have two relatives with 6.0 GM gassers. One relative with a 6.4L hemi who used to have a 6.0 GM. Big upgrade pulling with the 6.4L he says. One relative with a 5.7L Hemi and another with a new 6.2L Ford. Combined there are thousands of miles of towing travel trailers, fifth wheels, stock trailers, boats, utility trailers etc. So far everyone with gas engines has been very satisfied. I'm not saying a diesel wouldn't do the job better but for them it's about the best fit for their situation.

Good luck with your search and maybe providing more detail can help narrow your search.

As I stated in my in last post I have towed with both gas and diesel. I started towing with gas engine trucks back when diesels were not available,back in the early 70s. I had a chevy 1 ton with a built 383 stroker truck, built for towing, i thought it was a great truck, but was not 4x4. went I got to Montana I found out I needed a 4X4. In 2001 I bought a 1 ton dodge 24 valve Cumming DRW, that was a great truck for towing but did not get great fuel eco. about 12mpg. So I thought I would go to a gas engine truck 3/4 with a 6.0 2001 chevy this time. I did not like it, because everytime I got to a little grade it would shift down even empty. So when I lost every thing to the wild fire 2013 I went back to Diesel, this time Chevy DuraMax diesel, what a difference, in towing and I get better mileage, both hyw/city, my 2012 Chevy DuraMax can get 18 mpg on hy running empty an 12 mpg in town Towing I average about 8 mpg with my Momentum 397th, 45 feet 21,000lb. And the diesel has less maintenance. In my book DIESEL is the only way to go weather it is your daily driver or not, mine is.