Thats a heck of an upgrade!!
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I have a 2013 Ram 1500 Outdoorsman. The truck is meh, but the towing capability is amazing for a half ton. 10,000 lbs. has transmission cooler, integrated trailer brake controller and a few other nice features. Towed my toy hauler with no issues. Tows my 6x12 like it isn’t even back there.
If you can afford a diesel, absolutely get one, but with your set up and limited distances, I wouldn’t be afraid of a newer half ton at all!
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So my entire life I have been a Chevy/ Toyota guy and I hate Ford. But I have to admit, I recently drove an F-150 with the Police package and two things jumped out at me:
- That 3.5L Ecoboost motor hauls a$$ and 14K towing
- The milage was suprisingly good. I took it on a long trip 60/40 highway/city split and it averaged 22.7 MPG. And that was with me romping on it a far bit to feel the power of that engine.
I was really impressed with the F-150, as hard is that is for me to say given decades worth of bad experiences with the brand.
The Ford also felt “sturdier” then our new Ram 1500’s at work which feel very cheap and plasticy.
I was holding out for the new Tundra, but once it was released, my inital thoughts were “that is 3rd world ugly."
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When it comes to 1500s the only one that interests me is a tundra. I like the new ones. The hybrid has big towing capacity. And unlike the others. Will hold its value.
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I agree with everything you said. But with that said, its a very ugly truck and a missed opportunity (design wise) IMHO.
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I see a lot of Pickups, that’s sad you dont get the diesel version of sedans in the US
I’m in a similar boat looking for a new tow vehicle that also has to be a family truckster/daily. I’ve been towing with my Saab 9-7x Aero which is a fancy Trailblazer SS for more than a decade at this point. It’s been completely solid, but as GM vehicles in the rust belt do, it’s turning to dust with every drive.
Since you’re like me towing with an older V8/4-speed combo any newer vehicle with a better transmission will immediately feel like an upgrade. Avoid the GM 8 speed though that’s now going thru a class action lawsuit. Their 10speeds are great.
Newer v6 SUVs can be found with 5k lb tow ratings and will handle small enclosed trailers, but you’ll need to be more concerned with towing speed and conditions like wind/hills. I’m quite inclined to lease one and tow with it and turn it back in after 3 years like a rental.
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I’ve been hauling my kit up and down the Australian east coast in a 2010 Nissan X-Trail for the last 11 years and it has never missed a beat. It’s just clocked over 100k miles. It’'s not a massive trailer and only carries the one kart plus paraphernalia.
Eventually I will need something new and another Nissan will definitely be high on my list to check out.
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Our corporate overlords don’t want us to use less fuel.
Small diesels don’t exist over here. If we do get them, it’s for a year or two before the government changes regulations or the manufacturers have just plain got them priced so high they don’t sell and they quietly get discontinued.
We don’t get diesel versions of the Transit or Ram Promaster vans anymore either. A diesel Transit goes for twice as much as a gas version on the used market.
My wife drives a diesel Chevy Cruze, which we had to fly to the other side of the country to bring home. The diesel accounts for 1% of all Cruzes sold in the US despite it being the most powerful AND fuel efficient version.
I agree… I have a VW Jetta SportWagen TDI with a manual transmission. Pulls like a train when you need it to and gets ~35mpg around town and 45 over the road. It has almost 200k miles on it now. I’m keeping it but I’m not sure what will be out there to replace it when it’s time. 
I sold the F150 which struggled a bit with the toy hauler, bought the 2500 diesel and barely notice there is a trailrer there, especially in the wind, its so stable.
Now if i hadnt bought the toy hauler, and kept using a cargo trailer, I never would have sold the F150.
Was that F-150 the 2.7 or 3.5L?
The replacement for the TDI is… the GTI. Mine gets 33 mpg towing, and 41 mpg if I keep it at 73 MPH or less on the freeway.
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2.7, fantastic fuel mileage when daily driving, atrocious mileage when towing, and it was working hard especially on hills.
Only reason I ask is a guy I work with swore the 3.5L (when towing) was a night and day difference than the 2.7L. I guess he had owned both.
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That’s the difference with the big diesels. I’m getting OK average mileage, but it barely dips when towing, heavy or up the mountains makes very little difference. The change to small gas engines is great to pass emission restrictions on manufacturers and for light use…towing and L/T reliability is a different thing.
3.5L is night and day over the 2.7L for towing…the 6.7L diesel is night and day over the 3.5L when it comes to just towing
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Ive heard that too. The big thing i noticed with the 2500 is how stable it tows in wind. Even with the weight distribution hitch and sway control on the F150 hitch, the 2500 with a normal hitch is way more stable.
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yes, that is a function of wheelbase and weight of the truck.
I really never liked trucks but I slowly changed my mind once I finally had to get one
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I have an F250 Superduty with the 6.7 and it’s a beast of an engine. Mpg is surprisingly good for what it is too, better than my 2010 F150 V8.
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I never posted my tow rig. I’ve been using a camperized 2001 Chevy Astro 4wd for 7 years or so with a 6x12 cargo trailer. It gets along at 60-65 when it needs to but only gets about 12mpg on a good day.
I have other options for day trips as well, a FJ Cruiser or my wife’s 12 Silverado 3500 diesel, which gets the best economy out of the three.
However, I don’t really care for trailers and wanted better mileage while still not having to get hotel rooms (nearest track is 2.5 hours away) so I picked up a project sprinter this week.
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