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Thread: New F-350
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05-17-2019, 12:55 AM #51
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If you are in California, you need a recreational trailers endorsement if your fifth wheel is between 10-15k lbs. This endorsement on your class C license is known internally as “restriction 41”. You will need to take a written exam and the endorsement is printed on your license.
If your fifth wheel wheel is over 15k lbs GVW, you will need a class A non-commercial license. For this you will need to take a written test, get an medical exam, and take a driving test with what you are planning to tow. This is not that easy of a test.
2017 Ford F450 - our kids call her "Big Red"
2018 Grand Design Reflection 28bh
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05-17-2019, 04:43 AM #52
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Thanks Lexx. I heard California was getting strict on that. Class A CDL here with Tank endorsement.
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05-19-2019, 11:55 AM #53
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F350 SRW works great
We bought a F350SRW crew cab with the 8' bed to tow our 337RLS, and we find it very well paired for the task. While a dually provides extra suspension stability, we were concerned about the ease of using it as our daily driver as it is just so big. While not full-timers, we have not had any issues towing with the SRW and found it more than adequate in the hills and mountains. We live in Colorado and that's a good testing ground. Best of luck.2017 GD 337RLS & 2019 Ford F350
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05-27-2019, 08:22 PM #54
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I have finally figured out what we want for a truck. F-350, Duel rear wheel, 6.7 Power stroke, Crew cab. I originally wanted the 3.55 rear end because I thought that it would be better on fuel vs. the 4.10. Someone posted a link to an article about gearing and it stated that the 4.10 might actually be better when pulling heavy loads due to the fact that the motor doesn't work as hard under load which made sense. I am having a very hard time finding the right truck with a 3.55 (with the fifth wheel puck system) but there are an awful lot of ones with a 4.10 with lots of choices in colors and options. I may now lean toward the 4.10. I have found one that is 250 miles away and they seem like they want to deal. Will have more info tomorrow.
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05-28-2019, 05:17 AM #55
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Boomer,
There's no doubt the 4.10 gears will allow the engine to pull heavy loads with less effort, but what defines "heavy"? The other side of the coin is long-term ownership cost due to fuel consumption.
The GCWR of my setup is north of 20K lbs, probably more like 21K with the Goldwing in the truck bed. (The truck alone is 9.3K lbs unloaded.) My towing experience is admittedly very limited to the southeast and ~9K miles, but I'm very satisfied with the performance of the 3.55 gears with the 6.7L.
FYI, my '17 was special ordered by the original owner--I suspect that is why it has the 3.55 gears.
Below is a (short) history of my fuel mileage with the 3.55 gears. (Just food for thought.)
2017 Ford F-350 DRW 6.7L Platinum
2019 315RLTS (purchased 16 Jul 18 from Campers Inn RV in Byron, GA)
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05-28-2019, 08:29 AM #56
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Although 4.10 gears aren't "necessary" in the new F-350 diesel for towing heavy loads, I chose them because in the end towing performance was more important to me than fuel mileage. Based on all the research I've done, I'm probably getting about 1mpg less than a comparable truck with 3.55 gears. But, fuel prices swing by 20% every few months and I don't lose sleep over that.
Do I wish I had 3.55 gears when driving empty on the freeway? Absolutely. But, it's much more important to me to know I have a higher axle ratio while towing my 16,000lb 5th wheel up hills.
I look at this kind of like I look at fuel mileage in my Corvette Z06. It gets 20mpg and uses premium fuel. But I didn't buy the Z06 for gas mileage and I didn't buy my truck for that either. My DRW truck with 4.10 gears is meant for towing heavy loads - up steep hills when encountered - and it excels at that.
I'm not slamming anybody for getting 3.55 gears. The Ford's powertrain does a fantastic job with 3.55 gears. Pretty amazing really. At the end of the day I feel better about having 4.10 gears just like I feel better about having Sailun tires on my RV. Do whatever makes you feel better Boomer!Last edited by bertschb; 05-28-2019 at 02:24 PM.
Brian & Kellie
2020 Solitude 310GK-R, FBP, 1,460w solar, 540ah BBGC3, MORryde IS w/disc brakes
2020 F-350 Platinum SRW Powerstroke Tremor, 60g TF fuel tank, Hensley BD3-F air bag hitch
Previous setups:
2019 Solitude 373FB-R, 2019 F-350 Platinum DRW Powerstroke, Hensley BD5 air bag hitch
2016 Reflection 318RST, 2016 GMC 3500 Denali SRW Duramax, Hensley BD3 air bag hitch
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05-28-2019, 02:06 PM #57
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Interesting.....my 450 with the 4.3 gears gets essentially similar mileage. Towing our relatively light Reflection 28bh last summer on a 6000 mil road trip, we go 8.5-9.8 mpg depending if there were big grades involved. There were some areas like the Canadian Rockies and the Cascades in Washington, where we were ascending some pretty good grades. At no time did I feel like we lacked for power or braking.
Unhitched, the truck gets 12-14.5 depending on the mix of city/freeway driving.
I'm actually pleasantly surprised this monster of a truck gets such good mileage.
2017 Ford F450 - our kids call her "Big Red"
2018 Grand Design Reflection 28bh
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05-28-2019, 08:00 PM #58
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Thanks Brian & Kellie, Lexx, and Howsen for your posts and also everyone else who replied. I have found a truck that I have been watching for over a month now and it has a 4.10. I finally emailed the dealer based on the internet price on Sunday night and they responded right back to me early Monday morning (Memorial Day). I was coming back from Indy so I told them I would talk to them today when I arrived home. I was prepared to drive 4 hours tomorrow morning until they starting backing down on their original quotes. I questioned their tactics and finally told them I won't be out. That's when the fun began, the internet sales person called, the manager called, then the business manager called, all of the sudden there was all of this interest in the truck with everyone inquiring about this truck but if I put down $500.00 on my card they could hold it for me for a couple days. I will wait this one out and see where it goes. I figured that what I could save on the cost of the truck would offset the extra cost of fuel that it would use in it's lifetime. Right now, time is on my side as it will be parked for awhile anyways. I'll keep you posted, Boomer.
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05-28-2019, 09:41 PM #59
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Boomer, what I learned when truck/car shopping is never go by what the dealers "say" or "promise" you verbally. Ask for everything in writing.
When I bought my truck, no dealer had a 450 in Ruby Red. I used Autotrader to do a search for new vehicles. It turns on there was one in Ruby Red, and only one, west of the Mississippi. I negotiated everything over the internet. EVERY car dealer has an internet sales guy these days. I had done my homework before and shopped around a bunch of dealers on the net. So I know what the ballpark price should be.
I also joined the Mustang Club of America for something like $25, which gave me access to Ford's X-Plan. X-Plan gets you the truck at dealer's invoice and limits the fees dealers can charge you. Then on the Ford Trucks Forum, I learned Ford was offering $750 Personal Cash. So I got that as well. I'm not sure if it's expired yet, but Ford was offering $3k Personal Cash. Look into it!
So get the X-Plan and have a game plan on what you're looking for as far as equipment. Then just email as many dealers within the radius of how far you're willing to travel. Play them against each other to get the best price. Don't step out the door until you've got a contract for the truck emailed to you and you're satisfied to give them some earnest money.
Do it this way and the stress of truck buying will be a thing of the past. Good luck!
2017 Ford F450 - our kids call her "Big Red"
2018 Grand Design Reflection 28bh
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05-28-2019, 11:29 PM #60
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If you have time, Special Order one exactly the way you want it equipped. You won’t have to pay for options you wouldn’t use and you get every option you want.
That’s what I did. Plus I had X-plan, $250 USAA Cash, Standard cash rebates and $3,000 PCO.Jerry & Linda
Emma & Abby our Mini Golden Doodles & JR our Amazon Parrot
2017 Reflection 337RLS, Build Date 01/2017, Titan Disk Brakes, Goodyear G614s 235/85/16 G Rated tires
2022 F-450 King Ranch Ultimate, 4,868 lb Payload, Bedrug Bedliner, Andersen Ultimate II Aluminum 5th wheel hitch
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