Thinking about doing the switch from 1/2 to 3/4 ton. Anybody made the switch and regretted it? Doing it primarily as I want to be able to tow a 5th wheel.

Thanks,
Charlie

Never regretted it. Bought a 2007 3/4 ton Silverado new 7 years ago. Duramax diesel with the Allison and tow about 12K on a regular basis. Truck has 262,000 miles on it and still runs great. Out of that about 40,000 has been towing 12K including a single road trip that was just over 7,000 miles and hauled the trailer over the continental divide at 11,000 feet on I-70 plus lots of miles over 6,000 feet in elevation - no problems.

All I have done on it is regular maintenance plus one sensor and some work on the front end last year. Still running on the original injectors and I think the tranny will outlive me.

I have been eyeing a new truck but just can't justify it until something major goes on this one.

Mileage unloaded is better than I ever got with any half ton I have owned.

Had a 1/2 ton for years, moved to a F-250 in 06 and haven't looked back. Got 165,000 miles on it now and still runs pretty dang good! I've had company 1/2 ton trucks and honestly, hated driving them, but they were free so I put all that aside. For every day driving and not hauling much, they were fine, but under any load I would rather have my F-250. Truck doesn't get driven much since we normally drive the Jeep and Tacoma back and forth to work. It mainly gets driven when I gotta pull something or the 5th wheel. Right now, running 5.5" on 37's and still tow gooseneck and 5th wheel. Had a decent amount of motor work done and a larger turbo put in, but all that was cause I mainly wanted to. She pushes about 500 hp and 1000 ft/lbs, which isn't the most out there, but she's reliable and that's what i wanted. I get about 12-13 mpg pulling my 30' 5th wheel at 12k lbs, which in my book ain't bad.

Do your general maintenance and everything will be good. Don't get caught up in the whole dodge, chevy, ford thing either. They all are good if you keep up with maintenance and they all have downfalls. I have a 6.0 that I wouldn't trade for any of them right now. Just do a little homework and find the one you want.

Charlie,

I would recommend you get a Diesel if you intend to do many long haul trips. We had a gas 3/4 ton and upgraded to a Diesel 1 ton. World of difference. Most chassis are same between 3/4 & 1 ton. The real benefit is in the diesel engine. Our 5th wheel pulls like it's not even back there with our new truck.

If you're just looking to occasionally (3-4x year) move the 5th wheel around (deer lease, etc) then a gas 3/4 ton is okay. Your gas mileage will not be great.

Back in 2001 I switched to diesel 3/4 F-250. I had a 93, 5.0 f-150 and was considering a new truck. Drove the 5.4 ford and was not impressed, 5.3 chevy a little better. I talked with contractors and those that "used" their truck and they said go with the diesel, I did and don't regret it. I have never tied onto anything that did not move. If you haul a bunch it is the way to go because it doesn't downshift going uphill while towing like gas does. Now with that said, when I got mine diesel was cheaper than gas and not 3.00 a gallon, and while I chipped and replaced the exhaust in mine, unless you haul I'm not sure I would repeat it. I love my truck, and not trading it but 3.50/gal vs 3.00/gal has to be figured in the equation. Oh buy the way mine has 200K and a buddies has close to 400K miles.

Just depends on how much you would pull the 5th wheel and how heavy it is. They do make 1/2 ton towable 5th wheels
As for fuel economy comments diesel engine is a 8k option. You can buy a lot of gas with 8k. Having said that, I have a 05 dodge 3/4 and it would be hard to go back to a gasser

I see people make that analogy a lot...the thing most don't think of is once a gas truck cracks 100K miles it is worth 5k+ less than a diesel with same miles. So you get a lot of that $ back at resale.

I've had 4 and I'd love to be driving one right now. But no more than I tow and what I tow it just doesn't make economic sense to drive one anymore. The .50 a gallon difference in fuel, no better mileage and $100 oil changes just pushed me out. So I have the next best thing ecoboost

I have a 2005 Duramax and a 2008 Duramax. I won't ever go back to a gas truck. I don't tow much and when I do it's never that heavy.

I was on the same fence in 2008. Went into the search sure I was getting a 2500 Diesel. But, that was the first year the EPA introduced new measures like soot capture, regen, etc and it was playing heck with the Ford and Dodge diesels.

Ended up going with a Tundra (big running gear, brakes), and beefing up the suspension for increased hauling. For me it was the right decision at the time, and I have no regrets. Tundra has been a great truck for 114K miles so far, and has cost very little to maintain. Pulls my occasional 8k lbs no problem.

The diesel will cost you alot more initially, and more in maintenance. But, it should give you 200k+ if you take care of it, and will hold resale better. For towing and hauling there is no comparison, and if you want to pull that fifth wheel any distance I'd go diesel. Just a matter of what you can afford and what you "need".

Find a 2wd 3/4 ton 7.3 F250 6speed with less than 200k on it... The one I have gets great fuel mileage and I tow up to 10,000lb loads with it.

You can still buy a lot of gas with 3k

You can still find a few clean 7.3's around. Hard to beat them.

I just swapped from a 1/2 ton GMC to a 3/4 ton Superduty. I towed my JD4720 with the GMC for years and went where I wanted, but lemme tell ya, there ain't no comparison to towing it with the SuperDuty. Gas milage drops about 1 mpg, but I have all the power and performance I could ever want. Passing at 70 mph is just not a problem with the tractor in tow.

The 1/2 ton would gulp gas and took forever to pass at highway speeds, but it did do it.

You would eat that up real quick when you start towing with it. Just depends on how much of a load and how much your going to be pulling I guess

The only regret I have from going to a 3/4 ton is buying a gas rig. I've got a '11 6.0 gas Chevy, CCLB 4x4 with 275/65/18s, and I don't particularly like it. Towing 8k last week I got 6.2 mpg with the wind, 4.8 mpg against it. Empty, or with a 4 wheeler in the bed, I've never seen 12mpg out of a tank. That's generally all highway, no cruise control, letting it run between 65 and 70 depending on hills. I have a real hard time believing anyone who says they get 15mpg or better out of the 6.0.

It's real hard not to go trade it in on a diesel, but it'll be paid for soon, and I don't drive it except to haul or tow stuff. I've had one in the past, and it was nice having a truck that had overdrive, and used it. I came real, real close to trading it on a diesel F250 last month, but I can see the finish line of the payment book on this one, and it's hard to sign up for another one.

I am going to throw another idea out there. I have owned diesels since the 80's and love my diesels. These new ones and the price they want...I just could not pay that kind of money. I went with a new 2013 f-250, 6.2 liter crewcab 4x4 XL...I like plain jane trucks. I got the truck to 29k and then with trade/cash financed 24k. I just broke 10k miles and my fuel mileage on the hwy averages 14-14.5, I have had high so far of 16.4 on one trip. My combo of hwy/city back and forth to work is running right at 12.5 mpg. Pulling G/N with 15k on it, I am getting 8.3 +/- on average. Had low of 6.9 going north into cold front that was coming with 30-40 mph winds.
When I was buying, it was cost for me. I was down to Ford or Chevy gas and Ford made the better deal.
The extra 10k on the sticker for a diesel and .30-.50 cent per gallon price difference @ the pump...I cant see how a diesel truck can come out ahead anymore. Maybe if you drive 70k a year and keep the truck for 400k miles.

I've always been a truck guy, still have my '74 K5 from college, so there's no such thing as too big. We just got our deer lease this year (I have two teen-age boys) and my dad gave us his 5th trailer as he doesn't use it any more. We have a K5, Avalanche and Yukon, none of which can pull a 5th wheel. So I'm not going to be pulling it once a month, just don't like the idea of not being able to if I need to. My '09 Avalanche is paid for, has 75K, so not wore out. This is clearly not a practical decision, have a need, but it's pretty dang weak. Can't let that get in the way though. Always been a Chevy guy, but I was considering a Dodge Megacab and hear good things about the Cummins.

On a sad note, the taxman sent me a letter today wanting five figures from a couple years ago, that will ice this decision for a while...

Charlie

If real quick means 9k Miles of towing then you are right.

Sounds like it may be a bit before you buy anything. You mentioned the Megacab and 5th wheel. Be sure to consider the trailer you have and how much bed space you need. A lot of the short beds are having to buy hitches that extend back or something like that...just be sure to look into what the trailer needs before you buy a truck and then need to buy a special hitch. I bought a used 5th wheel for the ranch, so it was a one time pull of a 100 miles. At the time all I had was a short bed ext cab 1/2 ton chevy with a G/N ball. I made a 5th to G/N conversion and hooked it up. I ended up having to pull my toolbox out so I could make the turns.
I am a cummins fan, love the 5.9 and had very good luck with them. I used them in a hotshot business and ran a lot of miles. The 7.3's were good too, but the cummins got the best MPG. I ran some of them into the 500k range. I still have my last hotshot truck, an 04 and its pushing 450k now. Old truck still gets 20mpg on the highway, may try to restore it one day.

If you tow it a lot, it's a "NO BRAINER." However initial cost and maintenance is considerably more. Also, if you get off road on soft ground that front end is gonna get buried and 4x4 will only dig you in deeper. Can get more when you sell it. But, if you don't tow a lot and IMHO it's a "NO BRAINER" to go with gaser 2500. Just sold my 2005 Silverado Duramax/Allison diesel. Now have 2014 GMC SLT 2500 4x4 Crew Cab as my towing has dropped off considerable in last year. Heavy Duty trucks are much metter build than the 1500 and are for "light duty." Do "heavy" work with them and the 1500 will not hold up in the long run.

Ran 1/2 tons for years.All flavors. Switched to a 3/4 4x4 diesel and thought I had gone to heaven but eventually went back to a 3/4 gas. For towing I miss the diesel but my towing is limited to pulling a gooseneck around the ranch and to the cattle auction. 5000 miles on that truck last year and probably less then a 1000 of those were pulling a trailer. Couldn't justify the additional expense.

I've been curious how the 6.2s would do, what gears have you got in yours? How do you run, generally? 5 over the speed limit, or low and slow?

How big of a 5th wheel do you plan to haul? How far are you going to haul it? I would get a 3/4ton regardless, but the gassers these days aren't such a bad idea anymore. My recommendation will always be a Duramax/Allison, but the big three all have great gas options for the 3/4ton.

When hauling a 5th wheel, the most noticeable benefit in the 3/4ton is in the suspension and brakes.

In addition, the $8k premium is sticker... not final. As best I could figure out mine actually worked out to be about $3k - 3.5 more. I don't recall specifically how much the diesel option was on my sticker but it was for a 2011 F-250.

Yelp about 3-4k on actual paid cost, unless you pay sticker.

After 100k you can't hardly give away a gas 3/4 ton.

I have a 6.7 and brother in law has 6.2. Same options and i paid 2.5k more for mine. Good friend has the v10. He went to trade it in and ended up keeping it, due to trade in value was so bad. Its KR in perfect condition..