Ricktwuhk

Your reading is lacking. You missed FRAME, AXLE...

massspike

I could be totally wrong on this but I think the 15/16 HD package isn't the same as the older HD packages. The latter also had a beefed up frame and axles, 7 lug wheels, etc. (it was a legitimate 1/2 ton truck). The newer models seem to have what was the max tow package previously.

Given what you want to do, why not consider the new 250? It's a 150 interior with the older HD towing capability. I would have but our principle use of the truck is as our family car (towing is secondary)

massspike

[QUOTE=Zunee;4953437
If I put a leaf spring in and lt tires do you think of be safe?/QUOTE]

I have looked at the leaf spring option as well (its pretty cost effective) but based on research on this forum and measuring my truck, I am not sure the springs are the problem. Without my WDH (and similar TT weight to yours) I am only getting a 2 inch drop in the rear and 1 inch rise in the front (measuring fender heights) and my WDH easily restores the weight to the front.

There is a thread with a fair amount of discussion on the shocks (the comments indicate that the new truck is over-sprung/under-shocked) and I was surprised to see that even with the new design (700lb lighter) they are still using the old (cheap) shocks. That is why I am going to replace them in the new year...I'll add Timbrens at the same time to help the shocks under load (just in case).

Zunee

For me the truck is 80% family hauling I tow probably 8-10 times a year max. I'm guessing with the HD payload package and max tow you end up at 2100+ lbs of payload. I don't want a 3/4 tonne when its primary use is family hauling.

Cheers

massspike

An anecdote that may help you appreciate what you could be facing: My old trailer was under 500/5000lbs empty so when I moved it to/from storage I didn't use a WDH. With my 2010 XLT 4x4 I never had a problem. When I got the 2016 I picked up the trailer for the first time and everything was fine till I hit a section of road where the trailer bounced the truck around so badly I couldn't drive the speed limit (90kph). This was straight relatively new pavement and I had never noticed the up/down before. Same trailer, same road, same WDH (none), same payload, and same speed -- different truck.

I like our 2016 but I just wish it handled better while towing.

thrifty biil

And don't forget the weight of a bed camper top if you end up going that route. Myself, a covered and secured bed is a must. But the added weight of the camper top, along with the stuff I store inside the bed, cut my remaining available payload. Fortunately, I have a small trailer, so its not a problem.

Trailer manufacturer dry weights are almost always a joke. First, they don't include the weight of any options on the trailer. Secondly, dry means dry: everything. No water, no propane, etc. Manufacturers seem to love reporting low dry weights, it helps sell trailers. Have the dealer put some water in the tanks and run the trailer across the scale. Even then, you will probably be towing the trailer at a higher weight, given contents added.

TooManyVehicles

Like others, I would recomend the HDPP or going the F-350 route. (When I looked at F-250's and F-350's, I had decided for the very minor price differential why not go F-350 and have TONS of payload.) If you don't want to go that route (your logic of only occasionally towing and wanting the F150 due to it being a daily driver vehicle), I would re-look at the option packages. When I looked, I was able to find a vehicle with > 2000# payload... but to do so I needed to keep it to a XLT 302A SuperCab.

Take a look at the spreadsheet in my signature, you can check out a bunch of 2015/2016 data points of various configurations and the resulting payload values. Perhaps your compromise would be to find a 2016 with enough more payload to make the difference?

Velosprout

Either order the HDPP or buy the XLT you have found, or get a Super Duty. I ordered a 2015 and 2016 HDPP truck, and after they were cancelled or delayed for 54 weeks, I bought a used 2014 XLT F150. Would I prefer the leather, navigation, and sync 3? You bet. But, the effortless towing of the HDPP truck I was able to get puts such smiles on my face that I will likely get another XLT the next time to buy comes around.


HDPP just doesn't get you springs and tires. You have a thicker steel frame, larger rear axle, 3.73 gear ratio, larger transmission cooler, stronger wheels, as well as the aforementioned springs, shocks, and LT tires. No amount of modification can build the capacities of a HDPP truck. You are not going to replace the truck frame.

5.0GN tow

Frame is different, tranny cooler, axle and for the 15 and up trucks wheels are the same. The seven lug wheels were rated higher on the 09 to 14 trucks, but the eco and 5.0 also had the 9.75 axle. The only HD 9.75 was the raptor axle but it actually has lower weight ratings. The spline count and shaft thickness of the 7 and 6 lug 9.75s are the same. Spring packs are different.

The frame is thicker yes but made from lower yield strength steel and with a lower RBM than standard SCREW and SCAB trucks with the 145 WB. Not sure why Ford did it that way unless it was part of a gradual transition to all High Strength Steel frame production. The yield strength was no even close. The standard frame was 49,300 psi yield, the HD was 36000 psi yield. When total RBM was calculated the standard frame is higher, weird but numbers dont lie. The formula for RBM is RBM=SM x YS

Velosprout

Wrong. Look at the data on this link: https://www.fleet.ford.com/truckbbas...F-150_v1-0.pdf The wheels for the HDPP are specific to that truck and not the same as non HDPP trucks, whether the steel XL wheels or the silver HDPP wheels. (see page 16 of the Ford data).