Cargo Capacity differences - F150 vs F250 gas vs F250 Diesel - Surprising

[jsallman1]

So I went and test drove 2 new trucks today. In a situation where if long term I am going to make a change in my TV, this is the opportune time to do it.

1 was a 2015 F250 Lariat Supercrew 156" wheelbase with the Powerstroke Diesel and the 10K GVWR package. The Tire and Loading info sticker combined cargo weight on this vehicle was 2093LBS. http://fordlabels.webview.biz/webvie...7W2BT7FEA11038

The second was a 2016 F250 XLT 156" wheelbase (so possibly slightly less weight in options but not much) Supercrew with the Gas V8, and the 10K GVWR package. The Tire and loading info sticker combined cargo weight on this vehicle was 2791LBS. http://fordlabels.webview.biz/webvie...7W2B60GEA81735


My current vehicle is a 2013 F150 Supercrew Lariat 145" wheelbase Maxtow, Tire and loading info sticker combined cargo weight is 1832LBS. http://services.forddirect.fordvehic...FW1ET1DFC57639

I must say I was in SHOCK when I saw that the F250 with the powerstroke (priced about 14K MORE new than mine was new) had a whopping increase of only 261LBS.

At the last CAT scale visit a few weeks ago my truck with the camper on was 120LBS over GVWR, which can be adjusted with what we had in it and really watching passenger weight, but moving to a F250 Diesel with these numbers I still feel like I am going to be fighting to be under the numbers and almost need to look at a F350, which seems insane to me.

Am I missing something here? Is the Diesel engine really that much heavier than that gas accounting for the difference? From what I saw today, I almost don't know how I can even consider the Diesel, especially when the Gas engine is several thousand cheaper. I am just really concerned its gonna have less acceleration and hill power than my current Ecoboost with the 2 turbos.

Should I expect any difference with GM or RAM products?

In case anyone is skeptical, I have pictures of all 3 of the stickers :-)

[clubhouse]

Regardless if it's GM, Ram or Ford the Diesel engine is about 800lb heavy than gasoline, so yes the cargo capacity is lower. If cargo capticity is a concern then look at SRW 350/3500, they are essentially the same price as a 2500 and solve the cargo capacity issue.

I would not want to tow with a gasser now after using a diesel for the past few years.

[jsallman1]

Originally Posted by clubhouse

Regardless if it's GM, Ram or Ford the Diesel engine is about 800lb heavy than gasoline, so yes the cargo capacity is lower. If cargo capticity is a concern then look at SRW 350/3500, they are essentially the same price as a 2500 and solve the cargo capacity issue.

I would not want to tow with a gasser now after using a diesel for the past few years.

Honest question, Am I worrying too much about cargo capacity here? I guess my main concerns are legality on the road, liability, passenger safety, etc. I must admit, its a little frustrating that this whole cargo capacity thing is relatively unknown. My truck can "pull" 11,200 lbs which is well over my trailer gross weight, I think the 250's are around 12,600 if memory serves. Find a travel trailer that weighs that and at 12-14% hitch weight is under the cargo capacity of the TV however seems to be challenging if not impossible

[need-a-vacation]

Reaching the tow rating of a 150/1500 before exceeding the payload when towing a tt is impossible as you have found. A 250/2500 & 350/3500 make it possible to come closer to the tow rating before exceeding the trucks payload.

As for the diesel weight, yes- it is that heavy!!! Not sure about the new GM Twins, but comparing my '13 Chevy 6.0 to a '12 GMC D-Max, I think it was only about 400lbs less. Both crew cabs, GMC had leather buckets, we have the cloth 40/20/40 seats. Buddy's '13 Ram Mega Cab CTD has about 2250lbs payload as a comparison.

For about a 200lb gain, not worth it in my opinion. As mentioned, look at a 350 if you want a diesel for the extra payload. Can't say for the Ford 6.2, but our 6.0 pulls ~9200lbs pretty good. Not sure how it would do in the mountains, the "big hills" we have encountered here in Mi it has done well (pretty decent grade north of West Branch). Trans dropped into 3rd and just wanted to go! Just can't be afraid to let the motor rev some when needed.

[WrenZ71]

Yes diesel is heavy:

My truck:
15 Silverado 2500,crew cab standard box with the 6.0 gas motor
Cargo carrying capacity on the door sticker reads 2900 lbs

My cousins:
15 Silverado 2500,crew cab standard box with the 6.6 diesel motor
Cargo carrying capacity on the door sticker reads 2300 lbs

600 pound difference

Now

My Gvwr 9500 lbs
His Gvwr 10000 lbs

600+500=empty the diesel option weighs 1100 pounds more.

[clubhouse]

Originally Posted by jsallman1

Honest question, Am I worrying too much about cargo capacity here? I guess my main concerns are legality on the road, liability, passenger safety, etc. I must admit, its a little frustrating that this whole cargo capacity thing is relatively unknown. My truck can "pull" 11,200 lbs which is well over my trailer gross weight, I think the 250's are around 12,600 if memory serves. Find a travel trailer that weighs that and at 12-14% hitch weight is under the cargo capacity of the TV however seems to be challenging if not impossible

I think it's wise to be aware of cargo capacity. I have no issues running right at the limit. My duramax has ~2300 lbs of cargo capacity and use all of it.

I would be far less concerned about legality than I would safety. I have never witnessed LEO ticketing a RVers for exceeding their TV ratings. Nor have I ever been convinced that insurance company will abandon you if you have an accident while bring overweight. Both of these situations are always "warned" against, but reality is no one on these forums have ever showed proof it happened to them. If someone is adamant it's always happened to a neighbor's BIL's friend, never first person.

[Ont Pete]

Originally Posted by clubhouse

Regardless if it's GM, Ram or Ford the Diesel engine is about 800lb heavy than gasoline, so yes the cargo capacity is lower. If cargo capticity is a concern then look at SRW 350/3500, they are essentially the same price as a 2500 and solve the cargo capacity issue.

I would not want to tow with a gasser now after using a diesel for the past few years.

So as you can see in my signature line i run a F350 Diesel. I had a Toyota Tundra before the F350 and thought I would use it to pull my 29.5 but peeps here told me that i would be way over weight and when I ran the numbers I was. I decided that the for price difference I would get the 350 over the 250 and i wanted the diesel. I think it was one of my more intelligent choices. I really enjoyed my towing experience this past summer when i put on about 600kms towing the fiver. It took me about 4000kms towing before i felt any wind at all! And what i felt was just enough to say "hey I finally felt some wind". I had a buddy with me one day traveling back from a racetrack and he said to me"you drive this like its a car" and I said "I hardly know the trailer is there". It doesn't push me around, sway or give me any uncomfortable feeling when driving. On the other hand my buddy who has a toyota tundra and a 28' tt almost took it back when on his first drive home from the dealer was a 2hs white knuckle experience.

I know everyone has their own opinion and so here is mine, I love my F350, I love my Diesel and I love my 29.5 fiver and I would recommend that when it comes to a TV bigger is better, safer, legal and more comfortable.

[tjpolsin]

If you really want to scratch your head in confusion, look at the build sheets for a 250/2500 vs a SRW 350/3500 and compare it to their respective capacities.

For the RAM (which I have), The engine is the same, the transmission is the same, the front and rear axles are the same, the axle ring gear is the same, the brakes are the same.

The ONLY difference is the size of the rear axle spring pack.

Tim
2010 ram 2500 CCLB w/cummins

[need-a-vacation]

Originally Posted by tjpolsin

If you really want to scratch your head in confusion, look at the build sheets for a 250/2500 vs a SRW 350/3500 and compare it to their respective capacities.

For the RAM (which I have), The engine is the same, the transmission is the same, the front and rear axles are the same, the axle ring gear is the same, the brakes are the same.

The ONLY difference is the size of the rear axle spring pack.

Tim
2010 ram 2500 CCLB w/cummins

Not sure if this is the same now for GM, but through the '14 trucks they were the same in a 2500 or 3500 if a diesel, just the spring packs were different. BUT the gas 2500's had a slightly smaller rear axle (10.5" vs 11.5") than the 3500 gas trucks as well as the spring pack.

[spoon059]

Food for thought... the F-150 is at the absolute maximum with that 1800lbs payload rating. The axles are maxed out, the suspension is maxed out, the brakes are maxed out, the tires are maxed out. It can do it... but it is going to have a lower duty cycle because it is at the upper end of its engineered ratings.

The F250 numbers are artificial, because the F250 is limited to a total 10K lbs GVWR. The axles can support more weight, the suspension can support more weight, the brakes can support more weight, the tires can support more weight. The F250 has a MUCH higher duty cycle because it is well below the engineered ratings.

If looking NEW, why not take a glance at the F350? The ride will be the same as the F250, the cost will only be slightly higher and you will have another 1500+/- lbs of payload over the F250, because it isn't limited to a 10K lbs GVWR.

[jsallman1]

Originally Posted by spoon059

Food for thought... the F-150 is at the absolute maximum with that 1800lbs payload rating. The axles are maxed out, the suspension is maxed out, the brakes are maxed out, the tires are maxed out. It can do it... but it is going to have a lower duty cycle because it is at the upper end of its engineered ratings.

The F250 numbers are artificial, because the F250 is limited to a total 10K lbs GVWR. The axles can support more weight, the suspension can support more weight, the brakes can support more weight, the tires can support more weight. The F250 has a MUCH higher duty cycle because it is well below the engineered ratings.

If looking NEW, why not take a glance at the F350? The ride will be the same as the F250, the cost will only be slightly higher and you will have another 1500+/- lbs of payload over the F250, because it isn't limited to a 10K lbs GVWR.

Good points, appreciate all the feedback. Curious, why is it that the 250(0) is limited to 10K LBS while the 350(0) isn't? I guess I don't follow the benefit, I know it may push it to a different truck class as far as the highway departments are concerned, but are there really drivers licensure differences or registration differences required in some states between a 3/4 and 1 ton pickup? It seems to me if the 250(0) is actually capable of higher payloads then the ratings should be revised to reflect that, and if the builds are really nearly identical in axels, brakes, transmissions, etc, maybe there isn't much benefit to having the 2 classes?

[Knauby]

Yes there are differences in registering a 3/4 vs. 1 ton in some states. Can amount to hundreds of dollars.

[need-a-vacation]

Originally Posted by WrenZ71

Yes diesel is heavy:

My truck:
15 Silverado 2500,crew cab standard box with the 6.0 gas motor
Cargo carrying capacity on the door sticker reads 2900 lbs

My cousins:
15 Silverado 2500,crew cab standard box with the 6.6 diesel motor
Cargo carrying capacity on the door sticker reads 2300 lbs

600 pound difference

Now

My Gvwr 9500 lbs
His Gvwr 10000 lbs

600+500=empty the diesel option weighs 1100 pounds more.

I forgot about the gvwr being higher!

The difference I mentioned was also the door jamb yellow sticker payload capacity.

[WrenZ71]

Originally Posted by need-a-vacation

I forgot about the gvwr being higher!

The difference I mentioned was also the door jamb yellow sticker payload capacity.

That's were the numbers for both truck came from.Just couldn't remmber the exact numbers off the top of my head.One was something like 2964 the other was around 2342.

[Flapper]

Ummm...for a fact, if you get a 2016 F150, with the "Heavy Duty Payload" option, you can have a payload capacity of 3,240 !!! (2016 Ford F-150 Full Size Pickup Truck | Payload Specifications | Ford.com)

Surely, there must be similar options/packages for the 250 class!

[Sledgehammer]

The 10000lb gvwr is only a sticker for the f250-f350. In some states anything with a gvwr of 10001+ lbs require different registration and insurance, im told. A superduty without the 10000lb gvwr package is 12500lb i believe.

[TCNashville]

Originally Posted by Sledgehammer

The 10000lb gvwr is only a sticker for the f250-f350. In some states anything with a gvwr of 10001+ lbs require different registration and insurance, im told. A superduty without the 10000lb gvwr package is 12500lb i believe.

You hit that nail right on the head.

[Ottawasteve]

Researched and looked everywhere and despite being in the brochures for the purposes of advertising the highest payload in class, the 2016 F150 cannot be ordered with the heavy duty payload package. You can research it on the Ford Forums and I tried to price one out at 3 different dealerships here with no luck. Perhaps for 2017. The HD payload package pushes payload up over 3000 lbs which is pretty impressive for a half-ton.


I have also read up on the debates between the F350 and F250 (Can't comment on Chevy and Dodge) and there is a HD payload or camper package that brings the F250 capacity up to the equivalent payload rating on the F350 SRW. The F350 DRW significantly bumps up the payload.


If someone knows differently, I would appreciate hearing as we are considering the new 2017 F250 or F350 when they become available.

[TWP723]

Originally Posted by Knauby

Yes there are differences in registering a 3/4 vs. 1 ton in some states. Can amount to hundreds of dollars.

I've known people to replace the badges on the F350 to a F250. See it alot.

[Mustang65]

Originally Posted by Sledgehammer

The 10000lb gvwr is only a sticker for the f250-f350. In some states anything with a gvwr of 10001+ lbs require different registration and insurance, im told. A superduty without the 10000lb gvwr package is 12500lb i believe.

When the dealer registered the truck with the Florida DOV (their registration paperwork) it went through as a commercial vehicle because of the GVWR. We had to go to the DOV and have them redo the registration as a truck with the commercial GVWR as a truck for "PERSONAL" use only, it was then registered as a normal F150. No special license plate or insurance required.

Don