nihilus

Pickuptrucks.com is gearing up for a new shootout between the updated F-450 and Ram 3500 HD. As you know, Ford was bested in nearly every category back in 2013. The difference this time around is that Ford will now come prepared with a TRUE F-450 with 10 lug wheels and a beefier axle. Also, the 2015 now has improved power with better engine braking.
Here is the link:
http://news.pickuptrucks.com/2014/07...d-part-ii.html

Short story even shorter: Both trucks drag 24,000 lbs up 3 1/2 miles of 6% grade. It is in west Virginia, so lower elevation.
Ram 6:22
Ford 5:42

These differences should be extrapolated even further when going up the 9 minute long Ike Gauntlet. Ford should make the lower 8 min mark.
We will see how Ford does downhill.
Pickuptrucks.com agrees with TFLtruck.com that the interior of the Ford falls behind that of the Ram and GM heavies.

Hope this wasn't already posted

nihilus

Upcoming test will be here soon:
http://news.pickuptrucks.com/2014/08...challenge.html

nihilus

Part 1 is here - 3/4 ton gas
http://special-reports.pickuptrucks....challenge.html

Pretty mush as expected. Ford took last as it is getting long in the tooth.
Ford=good powertrain, ok truck
Chevy= ok powertrain, good truck
Ram= goodpowertrain, good truck
Obviously objective on some scoring, but they all had their strengs and weaknesses.

Ford was using a 3.73 instead of the competitors 4.10, but that would not have changed the judges opinions.

Power- As expected the Ram had it, followed closely by Ford, then Chevy always in the back.
Brakes- Chevy was best here, but overall close
MPG- Ford and Chevy were both a bit better than the Ram, but not much

The most interesting test was the Eisenhower. To me, this is the best TRUE test for a truck as it shows how a vehicle will handle one of the most difficult situations. This was the only test where trucks were NOT given the same weight. They were all loaded to 90% GCWR. It seems Ford and Chevy are WAY more honest with their numbers than RAM. The RAM took over 12 minutes! They show max top speed but slowest speed should have been most important. With those numbers, the RAM must have bogged down to dangerously slow speed at times. The Ford was awsome going down the hill as well.
Enjoy!

Dirttracker18

Why are they testing an F450 against Chev and Dodge 1 tons. It would seem that the F450 should have a distinct advantage here.

king nothing

I thought the same thing but apparently the numbers line up between the two

Ftruck150

So the Ford F350 is inferior to the other 1 ton duals ? I don't get it

BassAckwards

You can't go by the archaic 1/2 ton, 1 ton rating anymore it seems.

We all know good and well our F150s can easily be built in 3/4 ton payload options and I've even seen cab and bed configurations that offer over 3k lbs on the current body style. Current F350 DRW 4x4 have 6k lbs payload.

The model name just doesn't truly describe these trucks anymore.

The F450 appears to lose a small amount of payload likely to being heavier but gains a lot of tow capacity.

Dirttracker18

Apples to apples

The f450 is more money and more truck then the other 1 tons.

The direct comparison is the F350 for the other brands 3500 series. Apparently the F350 does not measure up?

Ftruck150

I understand what you're saying and how payloads don't mirror the identifying term for each class (half ton.. 3/4 ton etc) but still it makes no sense why they wouldn't use a 350 to compare to the other '1 ton' models. Obviously the 450 is more capable, that's why they build it, Ford wouldn't build it to be equally or less capable than the 350. Using a 450 in a shootout with 2 other 3500 series trucks doesn't make any sense at all..


If it were a Chevy 3500 a Ford 350 and a Dodge 4500, everyone would cry foul

nihilus

No a Ram 4500 is a class 4 truck.

The F-450 and ram 3500 AND F-350 are all 14000 GVWR - class 3. It doesn't matter if they call it an f-950, it is still 14000 GVWR.

Interestingly enough, the commercial grade F-450 is 16,500 GVWR, but it might be a bit different.

These are the biggest, nastiest class 3 trucks someone can buy.