2011 F250 Super Duty towing

[DwangerF250]

I have a new 2011 F250 Super Duty Ford. It is a 6.7l diesel, 4x4, crew ca, short bed with the 10000# option. It was originally rated to 5th wheel tow up to 15800#. It has subsequently been downgraded to 14300#. I can't get anyone at Ford to explain why this has happened and/or what they changed on the truck. Further, the same truck in the 2012 model is rated for 15200#. Does anyone know anything about this and if it is correct, can I do anything to upgrade the capacity? I want to tow a 15000# 5th wheel.

 

[polarbear]

First off, Welcome to FTF!

I'm confused otherwise. I see the tow rating of 15,200 for a '12 F250, but have no clue what the '11 rating was. What is the GCVWR stamp in your doorjamb? That's the real bible. "Gross combined vehicle weight rating." That's truck, cargo, fuel, people, and trailer (including everything inside the trailer). No matter what the trailering rating is, the total cannot exceed that number.

(*and why is a GMC Sierra 2500 rated for 17500?)

 

[73F100Shortbed]

(*and why is a GMC Sierra 2500 rated for 17500?)

Probably so you can have a really big trailer to sleep in when you are broke down on the side of the road.

 

[DNFXDLI]

Sell the Ford, buy a GM cause there is simply nothing better in the entire universe.
Tomorrow, I am selling everything and buying GM as it is a better product, they have better engineering skills and my tax dollars are at least providing me with a return on my investment
**** me I get sick of this ****.

 

[polarbear]

Sell the Ford, buy a GM cause there is simply nothing better in the entire universe.
Tomorrow, I am selling everything and buying GM as it is a better product, they have better engineering skills and my tax dollars are at least providing me with a return on my investment
**** me I get sick of this ****.

Nope- missing the point again Duncan. (And learn to read more carefully, fer chrissakes- it was a question, not a statement). Ford SD's have always had higher tow ratings than comparable GM models. That's been true for as long as I've been in the biz. I'm frankly surprised, because other than the chassis/frame upgrades in '11 (which only draw GM even to Ford GVW's), they didn't do anything that I'm aware of that would justify a bump in tow rating of 3,000 lbs.

Which all goes back to the OP's question- how do manufacturers rate these trucks? What procedures to they use to certify/validate? Is it still an educated guess? I remember when Toyota rated the Tundra's for over 10,000 lbs, but two years later dropped the ratings to 8500-9000 lbs, without changing anything on the truck. Any they never came up with a good explanation as to why. If the manufacturers are playing a numbers game with the ratings, how is a consumer supposed to be able to judge what a safe and true tow capacity actually is?

 

[blackhat620]

I have a new 2011 F250 Super Duty Ford. It is a 6.7l diesel, 4x4, crew ca, short bed with the 10000# option. It was originally rated to 5th wheel tow up to 15800#. It has subsequently been downgraded to 14300#. I can't get anyone at Ford to explain why this has happened and/or what they changed on the truck. Further, the same truck in the 2012 model is rated for 15200#. Does anyone know anything about this and if it is correct, can I do anything to upgrade the capacity? I want to tow a 15000# 5th wheel.

First off, Welcome to FTF!

I'm confused otherwise. I see the tow rating of 15,200 for a '12 F250, but have no clue what the '11 rating was. What is the GCVWR stamp in your doorjamb? That's the real bible. "Gross combined vehicle weight rating." That's truck, cargo, fuel, people, and trailer (including everything inside the trailer). No matter what the trailering rating is, the total cannot exceed that number.

First is it has the 10,000 package which de-rates the trucks GVW & GCVWR from the factory. The 10,000 package is offered so that people who live in states that pay vehicle license fees based on weight and/or states that require more stringent drivers licenses based on weight (CA is one) can purchase this truck and not fall under the more expensive/restrictive licensing requirements.
As far as the second part of the this equation Ernie hit it on the head, it all depends on the exact vehicle build, ie engine, transmission, gearing, body style, transmission, 2WD/4WD, even trim level. The Factory brochure always list the max rating for the best rated model truck in the line. A Standard cab, 2WD drive truck will always have a higher GCVWR than a Crew Cab, 4WD truck. The real key to weight ratings of a particular model truck is to look at the trailer towing guide for exact ratings of each specific configuration.

Welcome to FTF

 

[Painted Horse]

As mention Ford offers some of their Superduties with a down graded payload so you don't have to pay the excess fees IF you live in a state taxes based on Gross Vehicle Weight. Ford doesn't discriminate against which states the lighter rated trucks can be sold in. It's more a matter of what the dealer orders. And I suspect that early on, Some dealers thought the 10,000lb option ment a heavier load.

I would suspect the fact that you got the 10,000lb Gross vs the 11,500 that normally comes on a Superduty has some effect on your trailer capacity.

 

[SanTanSmith]

10,000 GVWR option

This is a direct quote from Ford's web site if you go and "build it" for a truck.
"The optional 10,000 GVWR raises the gross vehicle weight rating for F-350 SRW models. Available on Super Duty F-350 SRW models."
From this statement I would say it increases the capacity not decrease...

Where can I find in print what the GVWR is if you don't select this option?

 

[blackhat620]

This is a direct quote from Ford's web site if you go and "build it" for a truck.
"The optional 10,000 GVWR raises the gross vehicle weight rating for F-350 SRW models. Available on Super Duty F-350 SRW models."
From this statement I would say it increases the capacity not decrease...

Where can I find in print what the GVWR is if you don't select this option?

First off welcome to FTF

It "may be" a "direct quote" from the FMC consumer "build it" website but it is an incorrect statment, probably mis-typed by $5 dollar an hour part time worker they hired to input data.
The 10,000 GVWR package on an 2011 SRW F350 PSD is a de-rate of its standard GVWR which runs from 10,500 - 11,400.
You can find the specifications on the Ford Fleet website under data for upfitters.
https://www.fleet.ford.com/truckbbas/topics/2011/2011_SD_Pickup_specs.pdf

Main page www.fleet.ford.com/truckbbas/index.htm
Look under Publications, Vehicle Specifications then select the vehicle series and year you want.

FYI my 06 SRW F350 PSD has a GVWR of 11,400. If I would have ordered the 10,000 package I would have lost 1,400 pounds of GVWR.

 

[SanTanSmith]

Thanks!

Thanks for the info. Can I sue Ford for false advertising? I ordered my new F-350 and wanted the heavy duty everything on it as I pull a 38' 5th wheel.
After the first trip, I had to install 6 leaf overloads as the back end dropped too much. This really P#sses me off!

Thanks again for the info..

 

[blackhat620]

Thanks for the info. Can I sue Ford for false advertising? I ordered my new F-350 and wanted the heavy duty everything on it as I pull a 38' 5th wheel.
After the first trip, I had to install 6 leaf overloads as the back end dropped too much. This really P#sses me off!

Thanks again for the info..

Don't want to rain on your parade, but I am not sure if any F350 SRW is rated to tow your trailer. A 38' fiver can easily weigh 16-17k which will push you into an F350 DRW or F450.

Have you weighed your truck & trailer on a multiplate CAT scale to see what everything (FGAW, RGAW, trailer weight & GCW) actually weighs loaded wet?
If you have not done this you need to before your next trip.

Adding overload springs will not up the GVWR, GAWR or GCWR of the tow vehicle.

 

[DNFXDLI]

After piles of my own research on 5th wheel toy haulers, even the double axle 16k ones are pushing the limits of a 350 SRW.
Mine, with full fuel and me in it weighs 8000#, that leaves 3400# for the truck GVW to be legal.
Even if you got away with a 2800# pin weight that leaves very little margin.
The big triple axles units, 18k+ have pin weights in the 3300# and up area.
Not to mention that you would be well over the 23.5k max for truck and trailer.

 

[blackhat620]

After piles of my own research on 5th wheel toy haulers, even the double axle 16k ones are pushing the limits of a 350 SRW.
Mine, with full fuel and me in it weighs 8000#, that leaves 3400# for the truck GVW to be legal.
Even if you got away with a 2800# pin weight that leaves very little margin.
The big triple axles units, 18k+ have pin weights in the 3300# and up area.
Not to mention that you would be well over the 23.5k max for truck and trailer.

Exactly
And lets not forget that the 5th wheel rating on a 2011 F250 is 14,400 & F350 SRW 15,700 but these values are based on the lightest weight cab & acccessory configurations, as the cabs get bigger and you upgrade the trim package the usable weight goes down quickly.

Also if you want to tow safely and not run your tow vehicle into the ground prematurely you should not exceed 85% of the rated GCVW.