I'm particularly nterested in hearing from anyone with experience on the newer F350's with the 6.2L or 7.3L gas engines. I' exploring the possibility of picking up an F350 4x4 CC short bed or SC long bed with the camper pkg to haul a hard side truck camper with a dry weight in the 2,600 lb range. Most likely either one of the smaller Bigfoot or Northern Lite fiberglass units. I had a '99 F250 4x4 with the 5.4L V8 for quite a few years with a Grandby FWC on it. Sold it two years ago and am now exploring alternatives with a few more amenities than the FWC. Obviously these Super Duties are not targeted for taking down jeep trails although we had the '99 F250 in some spots over the years that, in hindsight, was pushing the limit. A newer rig with a hard side would primarily be used on the miles of BLM & NFS roads in the PNW and the Great Basin and also knocking out some road miles outside of the PNW in situations where we do want to be towing. Particularly interested in feedback from anyone whose had either of these gas engines and was also carrying a hard side camper. Elsewhere, I've seen others suggest adding air bags and/or upgraded anti-sway bars vs what Ford offers in their camper pkg.
Seeking input on newer Ford F350's with the 6.2L or 7.3L Gas engines.
- Thread starter TGK
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eyemgh
Well-known member
I'm building a rig to carry a Hallmark K2 (now Guenella Overland) fulltime, with a deck and boxes. I don't have it yet, but I opted for the 7.3. Nothing will get great mileage carrying that weight all the time, so I elected more power. I don't like airbags and it will be on full time, so I'm going with Carli tuned Kings, a Deaver leaf pack from Carli and a Fox 2.0 stabilizer. If you want to see the possibilities of that truck with a full time hardside, we need to bring @montypower into the conversation. He'll change your impression of where a SD can go. 
It is impressive to read or watch some of the places people have taken the full size rigs. However, given that we're just north of 70, we've decided to dial it back a bit. That's OK, it's all relative. While I haven't seen the Hallmarks in person, they do seem to make very good looking units from what I've read about them. The Overland unit you reference looks great. While I haven't totally eliminated a pop-up, we're leaning toward the Northern Lite due it's construction and amenities. Of course, the trade off is weight and height. While Hallmark's largest unit the Cuchara XL is up in a similar price range as the Northern Lites, it's 700 - 1000+ lbs lighter. Not quite as much elbow room or storage, but that's all part of the inevitable trade off game. Anyone know what the lead-time for Hallmarks are in today's crazy high demand environment?
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Explorerinil
Observer
I’d look hard at the 7.3, more power down lower in the rpm range and allot less complicated of an engine. Consider 4:30 gears and a rear locker when you get your truck.
tacollie
Glamper
We are probably a little lighter. All loaded we are around 2000lbs of payload. The rear sagged ~1" with the camper. The 6.2 is adequate imo. We have no issues holding speed or passing even on 35s. Loaded down doing 80 11mpgs is standard. 60mph I see 14mpg. We spend a lot of time in Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, and Idaho. Lots of high speeds and passes.
The truck was awful on rough roads when it was stock. 35s and good shocks really transformed the truck. It's super comfy and controlled now. We spent 4 days at Thanksgiving chasing a heavily modified Tacoma and Tundra. The Tacoma was faster because it's lighter which just kept us out of the dust. As long as it fits it goes!
The truck was awful on rough roads when it was stock. 35s and good shocks really transformed the truck. It's super comfy and controlled now. We spent 4 days at Thanksgiving chasing a heavily modified Tacoma and Tundra. The Tacoma was faster because it's lighter which just kept us out of the dust. As long as it fits it goes!
montypower
Adventure Time!
Keep in mind the 2017+ 6.2L was tuned to improve the low RPM torque and overall power. It likes to run at low revs even with the 3k lb camper. When pulling our 14k dump trailer it will bump the RPM up. It is a workhorse. More power is always nice but this engine gets the job done and never a hinderance. We are coming up on 2 years of ownership. Zero repairs or issues (other than dead battery).
Compared to the 5.4L this engine is an absolute rocket! I had a 2000 F250 5.4L 4x4 5 Speed Manual. It was a gutless dog and barely achieved 13mpg (empty) under ideal conditions (stock tires). You'll be impressed with either engine for sure!
Overall average (all tanks) since new is 10.446mpg with 37s and 4.30 gears. Never run an entire tank unloaded! It's always towing or hauling. MPG increased after 15k miles by about 1mpg. We are seeing 11-12mpg on trips now. 9-10mpg on off road tanks (like running Idaho Back Country Route). Our best tank was 13.7mpg. We rarely exceed 65mph.
I have no complaints. 6.2L is well proven. Just saw someone post their service truck with 600k on the 6.2L. These engines typically see rough lives too...
Compared to the 5.4L this engine is an absolute rocket! I had a 2000 F250 5.4L 4x4 5 Speed Manual. It was a gutless dog and barely achieved 13mpg (empty) under ideal conditions (stock tires). You'll be impressed with either engine for sure!
Overall average (all tanks) since new is 10.446mpg with 37s and 4.30 gears. Never run an entire tank unloaded! It's always towing or hauling. MPG increased after 15k miles by about 1mpg. We are seeing 11-12mpg on trips now. 9-10mpg on off road tanks (like running Idaho Back Country Route). Our best tank was 13.7mpg. We rarely exceed 65mph.
I have no complaints. 6.2L is well proven. Just saw someone post their service truck with 600k on the 6.2L. These engines typically see rough lives too...
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Trail Talk
Well-known member
We lucked out when looking for a platform for the OEV Summit as the only F350 SC C&C in the province actually on the ground at a dealer was a farm-spec'd unit with the 7.3 and 4.30, dual alts, dual batts in XLT trim. All I can say is WOW, this engine/drive combo is a monster and I've never wanted more power for passing or hills.
Side rant: I appreciate that anyone following behind us will be frustrated by a lack of forward vision but why do they pass and then slow down?? Godzilla only has to charge back in front again...
The 10sp is seamless and the selection of gears useful for both braking and climbing so I want the paddle shifter mod soon.
The torque is astonishing, especially noticed when trying to hold a stop in 4LO. The 2LO mod is also on the short-list.
This C&C came with 7-leaf + overload rear springs (our previous 6.2L F350 FX4 had 3-leaf + overloads). FWIW, there is still plenty of room beneath the overloads when fully loaded at #11,700.
Now entering our second winter with this rig, I've found it confidence-inspiring in all weather and road conditions from high speed paved and gravel to low speed FSRs (admittedly more highway). The one minor annoyance being when the front end judders mildly under 60Kph on hard surfaces. Custom-tuned Radflos are inbound to address this but otherwise the stock suspension has been adequate for our all-round driving.
Hope this has been helpful
Side rant: I appreciate that anyone following behind us will be frustrated by a lack of forward vision but why do they pass and then slow down?? Godzilla only has to charge back in front again...
The 10sp is seamless and the selection of gears useful for both braking and climbing so I want the paddle shifter mod soon.
The torque is astonishing, especially noticed when trying to hold a stop in 4LO. The 2LO mod is also on the short-list.
This C&C came with 7-leaf + overload rear springs (our previous 6.2L F350 FX4 had 3-leaf + overloads). FWIW, there is still plenty of room beneath the overloads when fully loaded at #11,700.
Now entering our second winter with this rig, I've found it confidence-inspiring in all weather and road conditions from high speed paved and gravel to low speed FSRs (admittedly more highway). The one minor annoyance being when the front end judders mildly under 60Kph on hard surfaces. Custom-tuned Radflos are inbound to address this but otherwise the stock suspension has been adequate for our all-round driving.
Hope this has been helpful
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Explorerinil
Observer
I agree, the 7.3 and 10 speed is tuned together perfectly, it’s always in the perfect gear with plenty of power.We lucked out when looking for a platform for the OEV Summit as the only F350 SC C&C in the province actually on the ground at a dealer was a farm-spec'd unit with the 7.3 and 4.30, dual alts, dual batts in XLT trim. All I can say is WOW, this engine/drive combo is a monster and I've never wanted more power for passing or hills.
Side rant: I appreciate that anyone following behind us will be frustrated by a lack of forward vision but why do they pass and then slow down?? Godzilla only has to charge back in front again...
The 10sp is seamless and the selection of gears useful for both braking and climbing so I want the paddle shifter mod soon.
The torque is astonishing, especially noticed when trying to hold a stop in 4LO. The 2LO mod is also on the short-list.
This C&C came with 7-leaf + overload rear springs (our previous 6.2L F350 FX4 had 3-leaf + overloads). FWIW, there is still plenty of room beneath the overloads when fully loaded at #11,700.
Now entering our second winter with this rig, I've found it confidence-inspiring in all weather and road conditions from high speed paved and gravel to low speed FSRs (admittedly more highway). The one minor annoyance being when the front end judders mildly under 60Kph on hard surfaces. Custom-tuned Radflos are inbound to address this but otherwise the stock suspension has been adequate for our all-round driving.
Hope this has been helpful
A good reason to choose the 7.3 over the 6.2 besides the 10 speed is a single overhead cam with forged internals, 8 spark plugs vs 16 and allot less electronics (No cam phasers).
Does the F350 or 250 10spd with the 7.3L gas come with a "manual" mode? I have that on my F150 with the 3.5L Ecoboost with the floor shifter.