Tow rigs(aka pickup trucks)

leeawalden

Well-known member
Feb 21, 2005
2,401
1
Atlanta, GA
My old man just picked up a 17 f150 with the ecoboost and pulls a 25' OTA gooseneck with a kioti 7320cab with loader with zero issues. IIRC it has more towing capacity than the v8, which still does not make sense to me. Its more than my older 5.3 sierra wants to tow.
 

jastutte

Well-known member
Nov 10, 2009
461
71
it's been mentioned, but a 7.3 Powerstroke. these trucks run for ever. my 2001 has over 350,000 miles on it.

of course, it does eat starters. i think i have put five or six in it.
 
Jan 3, 2005
11,745
70
On Kennith's private island
My old man just picked up a 17 f150 with the ecoboost and pulls a 25' OTA gooseneck with a kioti 7320cab with loader with zero issues. IIRC it has more towing capacity than the v8, which still does not make sense to me. Its more than my older 5.3 sierra wants to tow.

The V8 has a broader torque band and pulls hills better than the Eco. They're about the same on paper. Biggest difference is when something breaks, that's when you wish you didn't have the Eco.
 
Jan 3, 2005
11,745
70
On Kennith's private island
it's been mentioned, but a 7.3 Powerstroke. these trucks run for ever. my 2001 has over 350,000 miles on it.

of course, it does eat starters. i think i have put five or six in it.

Sold mine for what I paid for it with 360,000 miles on it. Third transmission, second t-case, but only two starters. Just as many front ends. They run forever, just a bitch to get started in the cold.
 

ERover82

Well-known member
Nov 26, 2011
3,899
450
Darien Gap

jastutte

Well-known member
Nov 10, 2009
461
71
Sold mine for what I paid for it with 360,000 miles on it. Third transmission, second t-case, but only two starters. Just as many front ends. They run forever, just a bitch to get started in the cold.

yeah, i forgot it is on it's second transmission. OG t-case though.

and they do hate the cold. in the winter if i ever forgot to plug it in the night before i knew i was getting to work late that morning.
 

bri

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
6,178
152
US
I use a 1997 F350 SD Crewcab XLT 7.3 PS SRW.

Most reliable vehicle I have ever owned.

I should sell it but cant bring myself to do it.

I think it has 180k miles on it.

Air suspension was a must. It's kind of a kidney buster unless you load it up.
 

leeawalden

Well-known member
Feb 21, 2005
2,401
1
Atlanta, GA
The V8 has a broader torque band and pulls hills better than the Eco. They're about the same on paper. Biggest difference is when something breaks, that's when you wish you didn't have the Eco.

I agree with that. I would say with a 50k budget you can get a quality tow rig in a newer powerstroke anywhere with bells and whistles. If solely using for towing long distance, I would look at a diesel 3/4 ton for long haul comfort. If you are using it around town and medium payload hauls I would look at a gasser. Again, at that budget you can pretty much choose based on personal preference IMO.
I'm sure there is plenty of opinion, but I personally prefer a gooseneck over a bumper pull car hauler on any half ton truck.
 

chris snell

Administrator
Staff member
Aug 15, 2005
3,020
152
My 2017 Dodge Ram 2500 with the 6.7L Cummins has been just about flawless. I've had zero repairs done to it, other than a few things that never failed but were recalled. It hauls ass, pulls whatever, and is comfortable. I love driving it and will most definitely buy a new one in a few years.

The Ram of today is a completely different truck than the Ram of just four or five years ago. I originally planned to buy one in 2013 and went to look at them and they felt like pieces of shit. Decided to get the LR4 instead. Then got back in the market for a diesel pickup in late 2016 and looked at the Fords and GMCs, not even considering the Ram because of the previous experience.

Went to the Ram dealer for the hell of it one day at lunch and was blown away. It's changed completely. The interior has been fantastic. Much better quality and the electronics are far more intuitive than the LR4. It only took one test drive and I was sold. Forgot about the Fords and GMCs and bought a Ram the next week.
 

Nomar

Well-known member
Apr 23, 2004
6,078
13
Virginia
it's been mentioned, but a 7.3 Powerstroke. these trucks run for ever. my 2001 has over 350,000 miles on it.

of course, it does eat starters. i think i have put five or six in it.

My 2002 7.3 Excursion(actually for sale) just turned 250k and I have heard the same.
Runs forever. A trucker buddy of my dads says he's seen them go 600-700k miles.
I've never put a starter in...almost 5 years/50k miles?



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