Tow engines for 5ver's and hitch type
A 250 is a 3/4 ton pickup. If Ford is marking them like Chevy does, it could even be a 'light' 3/4 ton or heavy 1/2 ton. It should be ok for the lighter/shorter trailers, but you could be straining it with a full time rig. Remember to always subtract at LEAST 1000 pounds from the 'maximum towing weight' claimed by the dealer, as that weight is with a stripped (no accessories) truck, a 150 pound driver, a gallon of gas and nothing else in or on the truck. Also remember that 10 to 20% of the trailer weight is 'pin weight' and this value must not cause you to exceed either the GVWR or the GRAR (maximum rear axel weight) of the truck. Usually trucks exceed these values before they exceed the max towing weight.
I have no experiance with the V10, but I suspect that its not a big enough gas engine to overcome the towing limitations of gasoline. Gas engines have their best torque at the upper end; good for acceleration, but crappy for pulling heavy things up hills. My 6.0L gas engine has trouble with the slightest up grade. If you want to use gas for towing, I'd say the 8L/454 ci
range would be where you need to be.
Diesel has its problems, but it does put the torque right where you need it for towing. When it comes to getting a heavy trailer up (or down, with an exhaust brake installed) a steep hill, diesel causes far fewer gray hairs than does gas.
If I was looking for a new 5er hitch, I'd look first at the Pull Rite. They claim that the jaws are perfectly round, with a few thousandths tolerance, and the pins holding the hitch into the bed are also fitted. This allegedly gets rid of the annoying 'startup clunk' you get with Reese, etc. If I had a short bet, I'd look at the Superglide first, second and third, as it is one of the few which you don't need to stop, unlock, pull forward, stop, lock, do your turn (forward/reverse), stop, unlock, back up, stop, lock, and resume travel (if required).
If price is a concern, Reese makes an adequate manual slider for a reasonable price, as do other companies.
Yes, make sure the manufacturer allows fulltiming. Some allegedly will void your warrenty if you spend more than 'x' days per year in the trailer.
By the way, remember the number 1 rule of buying RVs: to tell when a dealer is lying, look to see if his mouth it moving
Get it in writing or it never happened. (If you want to see the funniest faces in the world, watch a salesman and his sales manager when you hand them a sheet of paper with all their claims and promises written down and ask them to sign it before you sign the contract
The second rule of buying RVs is that list price is for suckers. You should be able to get at least 20% and occasionally 30% off of the true (factory) list price. A correllary of this rule is than unless a trailer on the lot is last years model, a special order vehicle should cost the same or less than the same vehicle on the lot. So get what you want. By the way, if you are not willing to walk out the door if you come up in price and they won't come down, then just resign yourself to being taken advantage of.
The third rule of buying RVs is that a good dealer is worth his weight in gold. A bad dealer is worth his weight in Alka Seltzer
A good price will vanish when within 100 yards of a lousy service department.
The fourth rule of buying RVs is that up to the point where you pay the dealer, you are in charge. Once the dealer is paid, he is in charge. So make sure everything is to your satisfaction before transferring the balance of funds. Some form of down payment will usually be required to clinch a deal.
The fifth rule of buying RVs is that the price you agree to is seldom the price you pay. There are all kinds of unstated charges which can appear on the final bill, besides the expected sales tax and registration fee. My favorite (not) is the $80 paperwork fee. Sorry Jack, but that is your job, and besides, there always seems to be several typos on the sheet... I only deal in 'out the door' price - makes them do all the work and no surprises for me. Also, beware the after sales office, where they aggressively push warrenty extentions, paint protection packages, etc. These are always way over priced and often junk. Read the fine print carefully, and if you still want it, don't pay over half the asking price...
