DRW or SRW?

[ModMech]

Right now I'm looking at the 3-valve 5.4L Triton in an F250 3/4 ton.
300hp, 365 lb-ft torque with 80% below 2000 rpm, 10,500 lb towing.
Seems like a pretty strong engine to me.

I agree, most people with 1 tons don't NEED more, but when you can get almost 400HP and 700 lb-ft from a 6.7L Disesl.....

For over 30 years people pulled anything they wanted with a 454 or 460 at 235HP and 360 lb-ft (using today's rating system). There isn't one person who said "This 1 ton won't pull, it's a dog" with those big block engines.

Funny how times change.

 

[QRTRHRS]

I agree, most people with 1 tons don't NEED more, but when you can get almost 400HP and 700 lb-ft from a 6.7L Disesl.....

For over 30 years people pulled anything they wanted with a 454 or 460 at 235HP and 360 lb-ft (using today's rating system). There isn't one person who said "This 1 ton won't pull, it's a dog" with those big block engines.

Funny how times change.

Same with 4x4. My first 4x4 was a new 72' IH that I bought when I got out of the army. Prior to that, most people used snow tires and/or chains. My dad had a friend that owned a lot of apartments. He would pick up 2x4 duallys with a plow, throw on some weight and some chains and have at it.

Thinking back, two vehicles come to mind as being super in the snow. Both had posi rears and six bangers with three on the tree. One was a 56' Chevy wagon and the other a 66' Chevy van.

IMHO, the best choice these days is a heavy duty truck for fun/work/play and a cheapo' beater that gets halfway decent milelage for a daily driver. Let's face it, gas and tires are not getting any cheaper.

 

[mojoinco]

Hello, having gone through a similar discussion 2x over the past ~8 years, some thoughts:

-Skyco has it there. There are a couple of products out there to 'block up' the over loads so that you have a solid leaf pack for a slide in. Haven't worked that issue yet, but even my F350 with rear sway bar (std) had more left/right rock than I expected.

- I have added sway bars to a couple of trucks that didn't have them. Works great for the slide in. Latest is our 2500 Duramax. Just installed a rear sway bar a week or so ago. Haven't taken the camper off yet to see the empty ride, but the sway bar definitely made a difference. Took me 1-1.5 hours to install. Simple bolt on.

- The duals require additional brackets for the front of slide in campers. No mention by Wvpolecat for that use.

-The last truck was a 92 F350. Both trucks are crewcab, long bed, 4x4, srw. 2005 and up Ford's have coil spring front ends and reduce the turning radius by 10' from leaf spring models (about the same now as the Dodge and GMs). You will regret the turning radius of a leaf spring truck (unless it was a really sweet deal). You will be adding in at least 12" of wheelbase going to the full crew cab (after having had one, we will likely never go back for our pulling rig).

-DRW wheel wells block your rear view to your trailer. Body shops love seeing the rear fender jobs they get in, which by the percentage I see with broken fenders appears to be fairly high (30% or more). As mentioned, the local tire stores love them too. Isn't there an issue with tire rotation of the inner wheels to the front wheel position (have to move the tires)? Not sure, just something I'd want to know.

-When you reach over the side of the bed of an SRW pickup bed truck you grumble. When you reach over the side of a DRW you swear. You will be in the bed of the DRW far more often.

-You will likely add nerf bars to your new(er) truck. We had running boards on the Ford, they lasted about 30 days. They load up with snow/mud and slippery. The nerf bars (used) I bought will be replaced by 4" diameter units with full length steps (of I'll make some). Steps look like a nice thing to snag and get dragged off to me.

-Look at the hitch ratings and see if you need a bigger one. I didn't like the light weight build of my Chevy, so off it came (the Ford's are probably more conventional and don't require attachment to the bumper like the GMs).

-I bought a rear view camera for $100 at Walmart -- wow, only one trip out back to drop the hitch now. Autozone has something similar for ~$70 now. I mounted the display in the little overhead bin on a block of wood with velcro. You will never see the tailgate, in the down position, again with a crewcab (from the drivers seat). Maybe you can't see it now, haven't had an extended cab to know.

I know, not much to add to your srw v drw debate, but figured these might add some color to your considerations for details.

 

[mustangsallysdad]

The Ford gas options are the 5.4 and the 6.8. The 5.4 is way undersized for a one ton truck empty, let alone with 10,000+ lbs behind it. 6.8 (which I have now) works, but you pay for it at the pump and on the hills. With my camper and all associated stuff, I have been to the floor and down to <25 mph at the top of a long hill. One in PA in particular on the way to one of our favorite campgrounds. Mileage while towing is well into single digits. A 1 MPG difference is a 10% gain at those levels, doesn't take much to make up the difference in fuel costs and break even and even get ahead on that.

As for the price premium for diesel, I am going to have to disagree with you there. 1st, gas 1 ton trucks are like hens teeth, just aren't that many out there. The ones that are out there, are cheap because nobody wants them because they are dogs.

I don't know about gas offerings in the other lines.

Cost of tires is no big deal. Talking about adding $300-400 every 4-5 years to cost of ownership. At least at the rate I go through tires.

The only real pause that I am having about DRW is driving in snow. But, I suspect it will be better than my 2wd pig now at any rate.

I am not financing this, so the only difference in cost is upfront, no interest on the difference in cost. Which, by my math is a pretty significant difference.

The people I know in the RV world universally recommend DRW purely for stability when towing 5th wheels.

What rear gear do you have? Could the engine need tuned? My truck with the V10 and 4.30 rear will pull and pass anything...and I have no trouble with hills...I regularly tow a 20' car trailer loaded from SW VA up through the mountains and into the Lewisburg/Mifflenburg area of PA and I couldn't be happier with the towing performance. Granted, it's only a 8,000-9,000 lb. load, but I have plenty of reserve. I tow with O/D off and get around 10 1/2 MPG loaded.

 

[FlaDon]

What rear gear do you have? Could the engine need tuned? My truck with the V10 and 4.30 rear will pull and pass anything...and I have no trouble with hills...I regularly tow a 20' car trailer loaded from SW VA up through the mountains and into the Lewisburg/Mifflenburg area of PA and I couldn't be happier with the towing performance. Granted, it's only a 8,000-9,000 lb. load, but I have plenty of reserve. I tow with O/D off and get around 10 1/2 MPG loaded.

I agree. Those people who have the V-10 geared for towing or those who have a Chevy 8.1 geared for towing will never call them dogs. I enjoy passing semis on the hills doing the legal speed limits. Last trip north was at 14K GCW which meant about 8K load and it stayed in OD most of the trip. I don't notice the weight until I get up in the 18K range. And at that, it just drops down to unlocked torque converter or 4th if the temps are high.

 

[FlaDon]

And as for the OP question, I have no problem finding parking places. I just take 4 in some places.

 

[FlaDon]

Good point, but..... Let's take this from memory and make a bit of a generalization.

An OEM SRW truck will come with something like a 6000 pound rear axle with tires and springs to match that approximate figure. An OEM DRW truck has a rear axle rating near 7500 pounds with tires and springs to match, usually increasing the GVW or at least the rear GAWR. Therefore, the DRW will have stiffer springs and better roll resistance. The DRW may also come with a rear anti-sway bar that will also enhance roll stability. So an add-on kit isn't worth much.

7500 lb rating.:laughing: My tag on the door for a stock, dually, locking rear 4.10 axle has a gross rear axle weight rating of 8550 lbs. Front is 4670 lbs.

 

[Skyco]

Good point, but..... Let's take this from memory and make a bit of a generalization.

An OEM SRW truck will come with something like a 6000 pound rear axle with tires and springs to match that approximate figure. An OEM DRW truck has a rear axle rating near 7500 pounds with tires and springs to match, usually increasing the GVW or at least the rear GAWR. Therefore, the DRW will have stiffer springs and better roll resistance. The DRW may also come with a rear anti-sway bar that will also enhance roll stability. So an add-on kit isn't worth much.

I had no stability problems at all with the SRW, and therefore the DRW added nothing, except peace of mind in the event of a rear tire blowout. BTW my 96 SRW came with factory sway bars front and rear. As I said..my 2 cents worth. To me the dually wasn't worth the hassle. To others it may be. I just think the "stability" thing is overblown. Of course I always puzzle over why so many say 5th wheels tow better when I've never had any complaints with some pretty darn heavy conventional trailers.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I had no stability problems at all with the SRW, and therefore the DRW added nothing, except peace of mind in the event of a rear tire blowout. BTW my 96 SRW came with factory sway bars front and rear. As I said..my 2 cents worth. To me the dually wasn't worth the hassle. To others it may be. I just think the "stability" thing is overblown. Of course I always puzzle over why so many say 5th wheels tow better when I've never had any complaints with some pretty darn heavy conventional trailers.

I agree with you 100%. DRW is a false security in my mind. Now if I need the rear axle to carry X pounds and could not do it with SRW I would go Dually but that is the only time I would do so. As for the blow out issue my fear would be the front tire blowing not the rear.

I have noticed also that all my new county plow trucks and street department along with most new airport equipment is going to SRW. I know our plow trucks are 36,000# at the airport and run SRW for traction. I have also seen a change over in Semi Equipment. Just this weekend I had to make a delivery to a guy 130 miles each way. I did 90% of the driving on mayor interstates and noted about 1/2 the semis and trailers are now running Singles on the tractor and trailer.

Chris

 

[MikePA]

I have to discount the stability talk...I have an F350 SRW, well I spent big bucks on an Arrowcraft duallie kit.

Does the Arrowcraft kit make a SRW mechanically the same as a factory DRW? Interesting they're located in Michigan, based on this thread I'd have guessed Arizona or Southern California or anywhere but the snow belt.

Most of the 1 tons around here are DRW as are the county and state plow trucks and I've never seen a SRW tractor trailer around here. Never saw one on our drive out to Denver and back in the Fall of 2008. I don't spend much time at the airport in the winter, so I can't say what they use there.