Community Forums

ESBeasley · 04-07-2005, 08:47 AM

Looking to buy a new 3/4 ton crew cab tow vehicle but want to stay away from a diesel if possible. Has anybody had any experiences with the NEW V-10 Fords : milage loaded/unloaded, ride, trans, etc ?? How about the 8.1 V-8 GM engine & trans ? New trailer weights around 9000# loaded (dry tanks). Thanks

ESBeasley · 04-07-2005, 08:47 AM

Looking to buy a new 3/4 ton crew cab tow vehicle but want to stay away from a diesel if possible. Has anybody had any experiences with the NEW V-10 Fords : milage loaded/unloaded, ride, trans, etc ?? How about the 8.1 V-8 GM engine & trans ? New trailer weights around 9000# loaded (dry tanks). Thanks

Jumbo Jet · 04-07-2005, 10:44 AM

I have never understood why people want "to stay away from a diesel if possible". I guess that's one of the things about freedom.

I just completed an 1,861 mile round trip to/from Bristol, TN pulling my 10,000 lb. 5th wheel RV. Up and down lots of hills and had serious head and cross winds.

Engine hour meter registered 30.0 hours. That's sitting in construction traffic as well as race traffic leaving the track and I still averaged 62 mph for the entire trip.

Fuel milage was 12.0 mpg for round trip. I never got below 65 mph on the Cumberland Plateau hill on I-40 - passing trucks, cars, and gassers pulling RVs. Traveled between 70-75 mph most of the time.

If I had a gasser, I guess I could have stopped more often for fuel. Last time I pulled with a gasser was 1999.

The Ford V-10 will pull just fine. It too will pass everything on the road - except a fuel station.

tps0424 · 04-07-2005, 04:27 PM

I can not comment on the new 3 valve V10 but my 'old' V10 is great. I only have about 7900 miles on it and most of it was while towing. While towing I get about 7.5 to 8 mpg. Driving around town with some highway thrown in, I get 12. People on the ford-trucks.com website (V10 forum) have been known to get 14 to 16 mpg on the highway.
The 8.1 with the Allison is fantastic from what I read on gm-trucks.com. The 8.1 is more thirsty than the V10 and has a tendancy to consume oil. The Allison is a great transmission.
Both are great. If the Chevy dealer hadn't try to substantially change our deal after it was signed, I would have a GM right now. The Chevy dealer had tried to 'adjust' the price by almost $6500 so for the first time in my life, I own a Ford and have been very pleased.
I did not want a diesel either. They are stronger and do somewhat better on gas and last a long time. They also cost more as does the fuel. They make more noise and have an aroma to them. They require more maintenance and a different driving style. I don't dislike them, gas is just easier for me.

TXiceman · 04-07-2005, 05:13 PM

ESB, welcome aboard. You will find lots of experience here towing with gasser and diesel.

The new big block V-8's and V-10's are real gas hogs. The V-10 I had in my 1999 31' class C never did better than 8 mpg (14,000#). It was a strong engine, but you did have to rev it to get the power.

Do not ignore the new generation of diesels. They are not as noisey as older ones and not prone to smoke of bad smells. I'm running right at 20,000# GCW and we get 10 to 11 MPG running 65 to 70 MPH. A gasser can't touch that and the diesel won't even break a sweat on a grade that will have a gasser down a gear and gasping for breath.

If you plan to tow much, you should check out a diesel. Otherwis a gasser should work if it is large enough and geared right.

You could not get me to tow with agasser again.

Ken

Red Rover · 04-07-2005, 06:37 PM

My three year old V-10 gets 9.8 MPG when towing my 9100 lb 5th wheel and 14.9 MPG not towing. These are averages for over 40,000 miles towing half the time.
I would think the three valve would be a little better than that.

camper1b · 04-08-2005, 03:55 AM

I have a '03 Ford E-350 van with the V-10 and tow a 6500# Sunnybrook. I average 10-13 MPG whether I'm towing or not. (Not a real heavy trailer). The MPG seems to be much more related to the speed and driving conditions than to whether I'm towing or not. Just another data point.

I wanted the pulling power of a diesel but decided on a gasser because of the noise and extra cost for fuel, maintenance and purchase price.

edhan · 04-09-2005, 06:47 AM

I have the 8.1 with the Allison and gross about 20,000. Can't recall all the diesels passing me on the hills but have had quite a few pass me on the flat as I only run between 60 and 65. I get about 8.5 towing, last week coming out of Fl with a 20mph tail wind I got 10. Get about 14 hwy. I have 2wd and 3.73 rear. Ed

Jumbo Jet · 04-15-2005, 06:47 AM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">They make more noise and have an aroma to them. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Diesel exhaust for a man that drives a Cummins diesel equipped Dodge Ram is like Chanel #5 to a French Prostitute.

RustyJC · 04-15-2005, 06:54 AM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Jumbo Jet:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">They make more noise and have an aroma to them. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Diesel exhaust for a man that drives a Cummins diesel equipped Dodge Ram is like Chanel #5 to a French Prostitute. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Perhaps the noise and smell (and torque) are tastes that all of us non-common-rail Cummins diesel owners soon acquire.

Two Bit · 04-15-2005, 07:10 AM

This is Ford's planned buildout for 2006 F250's. You will see it is mostly diesels. The F350 buildout leans much more towards diesels....

F250.......XL.....XLT.....LARIAT

5.4 v8....76%.....40%.......9%
6.8 v10....4%.....10%.......7%
6.0 PSD....2%.....50%......84%

I now have an old Ford 460 gas hog. I am saving my bottlecaps for a diesel.

WWFan · 04-18-2005, 02:50 PM

I've had two F250 gassers, and now my 2000 F250 TD. I can't begin to tell you how disappointed I'd be if I had to go back for ANY reason.

Even one more reason to have a diesel is the resale on them doesn't go away...if you sink in an extra $5000 into one, you'll get it back years down the road- not to mention fuel savings (but oil changes are a little steep I must admit).

If I were you I'd re-think my position on a diesel- best thing we ever did (sorry 'ya 'ole gassers!).

DPtoo · 04-18-2005, 07:46 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by ESBeasley:
Looking to buy a new 3/4 ton crew cab tow vehicle but want to stay away from a diesel if possible. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I see no point in buying a 3/4 ton. For less than a grand more (at MSRP, and you can do much better than list) you can get a lot more payload and towing capacity. On the Fords, mileage and everything else will be the same, but your legal GVW and GCVW will be much better with the 1 ton.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Has anybody had any experiences with the NEW V-10 Fords : milage loaded/unloaded, ride, trans, etc ?? How about the 8.1 V-8 GM engine & trans ? New trailer weights around 9000# loaded (dry tanks). Thanks </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I have a 2003 F-350, SRW, V-10, 6M, 4WD, 4.30 gears. Unloaded, I get 14-15 mpg on the freeway, 8-10 around town.