What fuel mileage do you get in your 3/4 or 1 ton diesel? Which brand is best?

[coobie]

I'm not whining just filled up this AM for 30.00! Don't drive pick ups daily anymore there just for plowing and towing my tractor or hauling woodwith my 2500HD.

I find it somewhat amusing folks pay big $$ for pickup trucks and know darn well they are not cheap to drive but decide to park them when gas prices go over a certain $$ amount..

 

[jack707]

I find it somewhat amusing folks pay big $$ for pickup trucks and know darn well they are not cheap to drive but decide to park them when gas prices go over a certain $$ amount..

No it is not new it's a 01 4x4 with 197xxx

 

[Steve1300]

Personally, I like getting a lot of miles per gallon of gas. I have purchased cars that are fairly fuel efficient and bypassed those that aren't.

However, my truck is not a car and it shouldn't be. I bought it for capability and it works well for that. I am satisfied that I can get nearly 20 MPG getting back and forth to work. That certainly beats my '01 F150. The deal is, I wanted to be able to haul and pull more than my F150 was rated for. Each time I looked for a 3/4 and 1-ton truck, the price for a diesel engine went up by $8,000 dollars. And, with the total price, the niceties went up even higher.

So, I don't complain about diesel prices because I was aware of it all along the way. I use a car if I take trips where MPG is an issue.

If we get the wrong person in the White House, brace yourselves for higher prices and stricter federal government laws that will trample all over our cars and trucks.

 

[tractorshopper]

I drove the new '17 F-250 Lariat Powerstroke and a '16 Chevy Z-71 LTZ Duramax Friday. The Ford had about 400 miles on it since the dealership owner has been driving it. It's trip computer showed an average of 16.9 MPG.

The LTZ showed 11.9 when I got in it with only 50 miles or so total. I reset it while on the test drive, but only drove semi-short distance around the city and was halfway through my drive already. Went way up when not on the pedal and down quickly when on it. Avg was 13.9 when I pulled back into the lot, but that's really not a fair comparison or real world because I was putting my foot into it to see how much power and was going uphill most of that time.

Really torn. Will have to take more test drives. The F-250 had more mid-range punch. The LTZ could burn the tires off the line. Both had plenty of power. Both had all the bells. Both have engine braking.

 

[Soldier415]

I drove the new '17 F-250 Lariat Powerstroke and a '16 Chevy Z-71 LTZ Duramax Friday. The Ford had about 400 miles on it since the dealership owner has been driving it. It's trip computer showed an average of 16.9 MPG.

The LTZ showed 11.9 when I got in it with only 50 miles or so total. I reset it while on the test drive, but only drove semi-short distance around the city and was halfway through my drive already. Went way up when not on the pedal and down quickly when on it. Avg was 13.9 when I pulled back into the lot, but that's really not a fair comparison or real world because I was putting my foot into it to see how much power and was going uphill most of that time.

Really torn. Will have to take more test drives. The F-250 had more mid-range punch. The LTZ could burn the tires off the line. Both had plenty of power. Both had all the bells. Both have engine braking.

Does the F250 have the exhaust brake?

 

[rustyshakelford]

Does the F250 have the exhaust brake?

Yes. I believe they started getting it in the '14 model year. My '13 doesn't have it

Brett

 

[tractorshopper]

Yes, it has an aux control (as does the Chevy) for what the Ford salesman called a Jake Brake. This is a separate button than the tow/haul mode switch. I would have assumed it would just be included in tow/haul, because that's how my friend's 2005 F-350 is, but both trucks are separate switches from tow/haul.

Overall, I think I liked the Ford better for it's cockpit. I think the Chevy was a bit smoother ride. Will have to do more test drives before finally deciding. I did build your own on each website and pretty much found the 1 ton duallies to be actually a little cheaper than the same optioned 3/4 tons. Might cause me to look more at the 1 tons.

The Ford dealer had 250s, 350s, and a 450 all together. Literally the only difference that I could notice is each higher model had one more leaf spring. The 450 they had fully loaded stickered at $73k.

 

[rutwad]

I have a 2016 Silverado Crew 4x4. I towed an RV last weekend about 900 miles and averaged 11 MPG, probably driving average of 75 MPH. I'm not sure what it weighed, but I think it was rated as max GVWR of around 11k. I'm not sure what is involved, but it has Hill Decent Control. It will maintain a set speed I assume by downshifting and exhaust brake.

I used my friends F350 6.7l crew cab flatbed 2wd recently on another 900 mile trip. Overall noise from the engine was quite a bit more than my Chevy. Fuel mileage wasn't as good. Driving 75 MPH really got the RPM's up. And I was literally amazed at how often it went into regen.

I drove a 2008 Dodge 3500 2wd flatbed regular cab for a while. I never thought I would say this growing up, but I actually liked the Dodge...mostly. Turning on the headlights made a noticeable pull on the engine. I've heard another say the same about his. It had exhaust brake also that worked very well.


Unless Ford or Dodge have changed, a GM will turn quite a bit shorter due to a different front end configuration.

I definitely recommend a crew cab. Even travelling alone I find myself filling my cab on trips.

I've pulled lots of trailers over the years but never a RV until recently. Although it pulls with ease, I would probably go with dual rear wheeled 1 ton if I were to tow an RV regularly. The tandem axle single wheels on the trailer would wander depending on the pavement grooves sometimes and I noticed it more than I expected. I feel a 3500 would offer more stability.

For performance I think the GM has the others beat when towing. I recently read an article comparing them.

20 years ago you could not have given me a slipomatic. Now, an automatic is all I want.

Resale, I think a 3/4 ton will do better than the 1 ton just due to demand. I have seen a HUGE difference in used 2wd and 4x4. 4x4 is handy when needed, out of the way if not needed, and definitely will interest more people and bring more money for resale. Also, people now are almost all going for loaded vehicles. I'm not saying you have to get a sunroof or heated steering wheel, but leather and all power for sure.

If you are considering a new GM get a 2016. The 2017 will have quite a bit more power, but I don't like first year changes. If GM is changing for 2017 it may be stricter emissions so all the Big 3 may be different for 2017.

 

[tractorshopper]

Good info rutwad. Thanks.

I'm going to spend some time in the coming weeks/months driving all 3 again and seeing what I can get out of forums. I've been thinking 1 ton dually trucks lately. In all my comparisons, I keep seeming to find that they are the same price or less for the same optioned 3/4 ton trucks, so why not get the extra capacity. Only drawback I see is the extra 2 tires every 50,000 miles.

 

[rutwad]

I think this is the article. Did not read through it now to see though.
King Of The Hill: Silverado vs. Super Duty - Diesel Power Magazine

Good info rutwad. Thanks.

I'm going to spend some time in the coming weeks/months driving all 3 again and seeing what I can get out of forums. I've been thinking 1 ton dually trucks lately. In all my comparisons, I keep seeming to find that they are the same price or less for the same optioned 3/4 ton trucks, so why not get the extra capacity. Only drawback I see is the extra 2 tires every 50,000 miles.