Tow Rigs what do you use?

[78Class3]

I'm in the market for a tow rig and was wondering what everyone here is using or has used and their opinioins on them. As much as i'd love to have the new ford 6.7L I'm not ready to part with 50K. I'm kinda partial to Fords but any reliable rig would do, it is not a daily driver.

Ford guys.... all I hear is good words about the 2001-2003 7.3 super duty, is this justified?

What about all the crap I hear about the 6.0 and 6.4L Fords, there are lots of them out their and they can be had cheap but i don't want a problem child?

I'm not much of a Dodge fan but hear they tow well.

Any thought would be great, Thanks

[ESHALLBETTER]

If you go with a 1999-2003 variety, the 2002/2003 will get you the Dana 60 front axle which is more desireable than the previous years Dana 50's. I would not get the 6.0/6.4

[PaulW]

Any 7.3 with a towing chip will be the best. Do NOT get any involvement with a 6.0 or to a lesser extent with a 6.4.
These two designs are interim attempts for an emmision Diesel by a company (International/Navistar) that did not understand Diesel technology.
The 7.3 is pretty much bullet proof, however the automatic needs some attention for towing.
The 7.3s are dirt cheap for what you get. The cherrys are the ones with low miles used by an old guy to tow an RV infrequently. Most of these guys understand what upgrades are correct for power and reliability.
Look for an F350 for the strongest chassis. The 6 speed manual is also OK if you can avoid driveing in city traffic. Expect to add the missing gauges for any choice.
Its correct that a 7.3 for 10k is not as good as a 6.7 that costs over 50k.

[gunit]

I have a 2005 GMC 2500 with the Duramax. It has been the best tow vehicle I have ever used. The Allison transmission is a big part of that and it totally outshines the others. My brother had a 7.3 and then a 6.0 Ford and the Duramax easily out pulls either in stock form. One other item on the GM is that they have great brakes that last forever, my truck has 130,000 miles on the original pads and they still have considerable pad left.

[ChaseTruck754]

I'll echo the "skip the 6.blow or 6.4" deal.

my buddy loves his 2000 7.3L and the earlier ones are great too. The idi differences, etc. are a whole other thread though so we can hold off on that unless you are really considering a '97 & earlier truck.

I've heard good things about the duramax motors but haven't dealt with one.

The cummins diesel in the dodges are GREAT, it's just too bad the truck they wrap around them isn't as great.

In a perfect world you'd build your own with all the cool parts AND it would cost much less than the $5ok price tag of a new truck, but that takes waaaay too long for most. Ask me how I know

[78Class3]

I wish i could find a 7.3 for 10K. There just not that many out there here in FL and the ones I'm finding with low miles are closer to 20K, which to me seems like a lot for a 10+ year old truck.

Would anyone bother with a gas engine: Ford 5.4 Triton or Chevy 6.0? I just don't think I wanna tow across the country with one.

[ChaseTruck754]

A gas motor would drop the purchase price of the truck a BUNCH. Buddy bought a 2010 super-dookie with the v10 and very low miles for a song. He loves the thing and says for the $$ he saved in purchase price it would take a LOT of fuel/miles to reach the price of a diesel.

As for he 6.0 - they are supposedly great motors and get very good mileage. Haven't owned one personally so can't say, but I've heard good things from people who do.

[philofab]

The V10 has less power and worse mileage than my 460. This was on two similar trucks (2000 CCSB 4.10 35" & 1997 CCSB 35" 4.10). I'm not a fan of the 5.4 engine either. Gas motors get horrible mileage towing and don't make the power a diesel does.

I'm a diehard Ford guy but I'd probably get a 2004-2006 5.9 Dodge Cummins before anything else. Second choice would be a 7.3 Ford 1996-2003.5

The 6.0 diesel can be a good motor if you do a lot of upgrades and modifications, however it may cost you a lot to get there if it's been damaged at all.

[Agui-E7TE]

The V10 has less power and worse mileage than my 460. This was on two similar trucks (2000 CCSB 4.10 35" & 1997 CCSB 35" 4.10). I'm not a fan of the 5.4 engine either. Gas motors get horrible mileage towing and don't make the power a diesel does.

I'm a diehard Ford guy but I'd probably get a 2004-2006 5.9 Dodge Cummins before anything else. Second choice would be a 7.3 Ford 1996-2003.5

The 6.0 diesel can be a good motor if you do a lot of upgrades and modifications, however it may cost you a lot to get there if it's been damaged at all.

That's spot on what I was thinking.

Personally I too would look into getting a Cummins Ram simply because they're awesome tow rigs (once you beef up the 46-47RE transmission depending on what you have). ATS Diesel makes an awesome Co-pilot programmer for the transmission. It'll lock the Torque converter and makes it super freaking awesome when you pair it with the exhaust brake. I drove across the Rockies from Denver, Colorado back to Moab, Utah and I honestly didn't really get a chance to use the brakes coming down the mountain with the exhaust brake on the whole way and the Co-pilot keeping the Torque convertor locked.

Now as far as the GM's go... I've heard nothing but excellent things about the duramax.. the complaint everyone has is the IFS.

For the Ford's.. All their diesels (except the new 6.7L) are Navistar engines so as far as them not understanding diesel technology.. that's just simply not true. The 7.3L is regarded as the best because it's "bulletproof" which means people usually don't take care of these as much as say a 6.0L. There's a few 7.3L that bend pushrod's so be careful with that (not sure if '02 or '03 is the year to get)

That being said, the 6.0L is an awesome engine that was way ahead of it's time when it was introduced. People seem to think the heads blow really often but the truth is that most of the time it's a leaky EGR cooler which coincidentally will show the same symptoms. Also, the 6.0L has a variable geometry turbo which really helps get it moving even with heavy loads. The reason these engines got a bad reputation has a lot to to with high maintenance as well as owners who figured plugging in a tuner and adding go fast parts wouldn't hurt the motor at all. If you don't watch your EGT's, it doesn't matter what you're running.

I've personally been in a 6.7L while towing up steep passes and high elevations and it is a great engine although I'd still prefer a cummins with an exhaust brake for the downhill sections. The funny thing is I've also towed with a 6.0L on 40's and it drove awesome. I'd honestly take the 6.0L over the 6.7L just because I like the amount of power a hopped up 6.0L can deliver and the sound it makes is unbelievable.

Bullet Proof Diesel makes some great products that eliminate all the issues that people bring up with the 6.0L Ford.


And if you're considering gas.. Philo's right, the 460 is way better than any modular motor and has plenty of power for heavy loads.

[Agui-E7TE]

I don't know very much about the 6.4L Ford other than it having dual turbos. I think Tom has one of these so maybe he can tell you more about it.

[PBR]

my 2002 chevy hd with the duramax is an awesome tow rig! dave moore (gunit) is right about the allison trans, it's leaps and bounds better then anything else out there.

i don't bleed blue, so it's easy for me to call a spade a spade!

the 7.3 was good but the trans sucked!

the 6.0 is a disaster! the 6.4 is really no better.

the 5.9 cummins is a great engine but the trans needs mucho work and the rest of the truck is just ok. when cummins went to the 6.7 the trans got better but the mileage blows and again the truck is just ok.

for the best all around tow rig you can't beat the duramax with the allison behind it!

[flyinbronco]

Well unlike Ollie I do bleed blue. Never owned any thing but a Ford so I have little input on other choices. I have an 08 F-350 with the 6.4. I've passed 60k with just one issue and it was a bad sensor in the exhaust system, one of four, which shut the truck down basicly. It was an easy fix and was covered on the warranty. No other complaints. It will tow my Bronco on Dave's overbuilt 4,000 lb by itself trailer up the grapavine at 65mph with the ac cranking. I average 13.5 mpg towing and about 17 the rest of the time. 20-21 mph is possible if you drive like a total grandpa with an egg under the pedal. The tow command system works good and holds the load back with little braking effort.

We've had nothing but trouble with every 6.0 we've had at work but as Augi said all those issues can be corrected via the aftermarket.

Good luck what ever your choice.

[hobbyturnedobsession]

I bleed blue but my father in law has a duramax with every bolt on aftermarket part from ppe including an exhaust brake. It pulls a 38 foot weekend warrior loaded like nothing. Its got stupid power and 0 internal work. He runs a gear vendor and id run that over a kodiak. I would love to have a 95 ford diesel myself. As far as gas, my buddy has a 2500 hd with the 6.0 and he just turned over 200k miles. He just changed the original water pump. That truck is driven harder than most and towes at times more than its supposed to.

[bajabuck]

I have an 03 Dodge CTD with about 80k miles on it. I bought the diesel thinking I would save money with the better fuel mileage but quite frankly it takes a bunch of miles to make up for the initial price difference. Since you are looking at used it probably wont make as much of a difference. The trans is the weak link on this truck. Smoked mine at 50k. I would have beefed it up then but it was under warranty so the dealer rebuilt it. The bummer thing was I serviced it at 25k and had just done a service with Amsoil ATF when it went. I was largely at fault due several to very high speed runs to the dunes and river towing heavy. My toy hauler is about 12K lbs loaded and I was not turning off the overdrive due to the speeds I was maintaining. She only likes to cruise at 65 with no OD. So weak trans or dumb driver, take your pick. Either way the Allison does kick ass. I like my truck but I will never buy another Dodge but that's because the dealer nearest me SUCKS.

I had a unique opportunity before I bought my truck. I had two buddies with almost identical F250s. Same year, same tire size, same everything but one was a V10 one was a 7.3 diesel. I hooked my trailer up to each one and made identical runs up highway 67 form Lakeside to Ramona. Each truck had the power come on at different points in the run (obviously) but at the end of the day there was not a significant difference at the top of the hill.

The only other thing I would add is, depending on what year you are actually looking at, is the newer trucks have to run the ultra low sulfur fuel. Could be an issue in Mexico if you plan to take it there. I have not had to pay attention to it so maybe there is a way around that like taking off the cats. Just something to keep in mind.

[XRMikey]

Just my 2 cents.
When I was with Enduro Racing we towed with everything that Ford had.
F150 4x4 extra & standard cab, F250 4x4extra cab,F350 4x4 dually, crew cab,extra cab, standard cab.
All 350's were diesels & the 250 & 150 Gas.
We felt all the Trucks were OK.
But the overall best tow rig that we used to tow a 1500lb Trailer with a 5500 lb Trophy Truck to & around Mexico with was the E350 7.3L Diesel extended length Van.
At times we forgot we were even towing something.
We could haul a large crew lots of gear & have plenty of room for everything.
All our gear was also all locked up inside when we had to leave it somewhere or if it was raining.
As far as I'm concerned, You just can't beat a Diesel Van for towing.

But that's just me. and a lot of other team mates. LOL

[PaulW]

The best way to get involved with a Druamax or a Cummins is to think you can baby a 6.0 or 6.4 Powerstroke. If you drive one of these powerstrokes and have not paid many thousands of repairs you would be one of the very few lucky ones.
6.0 or 6.4 Powerstrokes are not and have never been state of the art like the Cummins ot the Duramax.
I know of several die hard Ford guys the are now driving Cummins Dodges. The bad 6.0/6.4 motors would make any reasonable person give up. The proof is to be a regular reader on the various Powerstroke forums and lists.
PW

[Silverslk]

Just my 2 cents.
When I was with Enduro Racing we towed with everything that Ford had.
F150 4x4 extra & standard cab, F250 4x4extra cab,F350 4x4 dually, crew cab,extra cab, standard cab.
All 350's were diesels & the 250 & 150 Gas.
We felt all the Trucks were OK.
But the overall best tow rig that we used to tow a 1500lb Trailer with a 5500 lb Trophy Truck to & around Mexico with was the E350 7.3L Diesel extended length Van.
At times we forgot we were even towing something.
We could haul a large crew lots of gear & have plenty of room for everything.
All our gear was also all locked up inside when we had to leave it somewhere or if it was raining.
As far as I'm concerned, You just can't beat a Diesel Van for towing.

But that's just me. and a lot of other team mates. LOL

Good to hear!! When my dad passed, I got his 1995 E350 powerstroke van. Its extended length cargo. Once my mom moves out of Oklahoma, it will end up with me. For now, she has it.

As for 6.0 Fords. We were pulling the race trailer home from Vegas a year ago and the truck died at Yermo (my Bronco had to pull it AND the trailer out of traffic lanes). While on side of road waiting for AAA, a friend called my friend from Mexico with a 6.0 that died just like the one we were standing next to.

[300]

Lots of good information above already. The only thing I would add is that diesel is still under $3 a gallon in Mexico, and if you are going to be doing a bunch of towing down there, it makes a big difference. I will never tow with a gas engine again if I can help it, but then I wouldn't want to drive a diesel every day when I wasn't.

[Agui-E7TE]

I guess if you can afford it, buy a cool Super Duty with a blown engine.. swap it out for a 24 valve Cummins, have the transmission beefed up and call it a day. It would be the ultimate tow rig for sure. I will say that each of the big three's diesels have their merits. Duramax seems to be incredibly reliable, Cummins is just a torque monster, and the notorious 6.0L Ford can haul the mail with a few simple mods or even in stock form (although this is definitely not an engine for everyone)

If I were to build a diesel, I would probably do it the way Steve is doing it with his crew cab. That thing will be the envy of many men when it's done (heck it already is). Classic body with room for the whole family and a Cummins to get it moving, how can you beat that?

[ChaseTruck754]

how can you beat that?

By having something you can get in and drive/enjoy TODAY

But yes, my thought is a mix-breed is the best as all trucks have their high points and downfalls, so combine the good to dump the bad.
Being on the forums I'm on I see TONS of 6.blows being dumped and replaced with cummins. IMO this is a GREAT way to go and honestly costs much less than a new truck. BUT, there is some effort involved and while it would result in a great all around truck it's not the way most people would go.