F250 TOW VEHICLE

Plenty of BT Owners have F250's, us included. I have always been a Toyota owner and had Toyota produced a 4 door Ute that had a decent load & tow capacity i'd still have one. But they don't and the sums didn't add up for me to spend $20k to convert & stretch a wagon, mine is an o4' 7.3lt V8 TD intercooled crew cab, these are no longer available new from Ford Australia but there are plenty on the 2nd hand market throughout Australia, i'm in WA and i flew to Qld to buy ours and drive home, friends have done the same, Qld has the lowest stamp duty charges so worth considering if anyone is interstate.

Car point : www.carpoint.com.au/
Car Sales : www.carsales.com.au/

Now compared to previous 100s TD Cruiser towing, my Effy tows a larger / heavier van and returns similar fuel consumption overall i'd say it's better when towing as i carry more gear which means more weight, It does it with sheer ease, the grunt the Effy has no troubles with hills etc, it can be increased with exhaust mods & engine chips to gain even more Nm & Hp but the weak link is the gearbox, inparticular the torque convertor but nothing that beefing up doesn't fix for good. The CPS [cam position sensor] sensor is another issue with them, mine has been fine but a lot havent, i carry a spare [cost $100 but cheaper now direct from USA]

Turning circle is a pain in the butt, but you get used to it and drive accordingly but it is something important to consider. The truck parks it's wheel base inside most parking white line markers with some overhang, usually i park away from the crowds and walk an extra few metres. Overall i am very happy with the truck [and it is a truck] untill something that suits us better comes along.

There are Dual Cabs, Extra Cabs & Single Cab utes in the Effy range with V8 Petrol & turbo Diesel 8cyl & 6 cyl. There is also the Chev Silverado that is popular as well, you can buy a new F250 from USA and import and convert also.

Check out the for sale links, you may still find something with balance of new car warranty for some peace of mind, Good luck.

Hullo Karen & Pete,

we are also picking up our BT in September. I have a Cruiser TDV8 and also a Cruiser 200 series wagon.

While I love the trayback for outback touring (we presently tow a 16'6" Trakmaster) we will be taking the 200 series to QLD to bring home the BT. Once we are home I will be trying the trayback, after all it has the same power and torque as a 100 series cruiser and there are plenty of them successfully towing 20' BTs around the country.

However, my advice would be: don't do anything about changing vehicles just yet. Toyota is strongly rumoured to be replacing the entire 70 series range this year (2009). Rumours include a dual cab and extra cab variant. Commonsense says that the range should emulate what is available in the Hilux range, so if it comes out with a dual or extra cab, auto box, and the same TDV8 engine putting out a bit more power (like the 6 speed auto and the twin turbo from the 200 !!) then I will be moving both my Cruisers on and getting one of the new rang and a small sedan as our second vehicle.

Again, I think it's well worth putting the decision off to see what Toyota bring out.

cheers

Cheers Mick & Vickie,

Your excellent reply was certainly a help and is sincerely valued.

Thank you.

Karen & Pete

Hi K and P

I can't argue with Bob save to say the F series and the Silverado are horses of a different breed. The F250 is far more of a truck and you'll pay for that extra luxury.

I have an F250 and would agree with everything Mick said above.

I had a steel canopy built for mine which is water and dust proof. If you go with a canopy I understand dust can be an issue.

I love my F250 and because of the weight of the canopy have gone so far as having the rear end converted to dual wheels with a an upgrade of GVM. The main reason I went this way is because the truck and BT are home, literally, we sold everything to travel full time.

We are close to 8.5t (truck and BT fully loaded) and over the last 15 months and 53,000ks have averaged 22l/100k's.

There was an entry on this site a day or so ago where an LC100 user said they were averaging 27l/100. I suggest you check this as I'm going from memory here and I don't want to cause offence or mislead you.

The trouble is there can be sooooo many choices. Enjoy the process.

Regards

John

Hi Karen and Pete

I don't know if there are any young Suburbans on the market. I have met caravanners who preferred them to the F250, and one had bought second hand relatively cheaply (a few years ago). They looked a but low slung for towing a BT to me. Like Mick, we were willing to fly to QLd or any other state for a suitable second hand F250, and were even getting details of one in Tasmania when one came up in WA - darn - still had to fly to get it, and the WA stamp duty was horrendous.

Check out Happy Camper's imported Hummer 2 in thread 5240 - it is an awesome vehicle.

Motherhen

Go on, spoil yourselves, buy a H2, buy some shares in Shell and one will balance the other....but hell, you'll be comfy, as for the ute...buy an EH !

Why walk up the "Rock" when you can drive up..and camp on top :)

Here's hoping for a successful choice.

Good luck.

Al

If you look on carsales you will see our F250 which has the works including camera setup for BT it is a white 05 with 30,000 ks

Look in 80,000 to 90,000 dollar field in NSW

Scott

Hi Karen and Pete,
We are Toyota lovers and felt the cost of the F250 plus the size for round the town driving was prohobitive (for us). We have owned LCs for quite a while and after much discussion and thought ended up with the TD V8 Troopie. For comfort we decided to upgrade the seating to leather buckets (with lumbar support) and decked out the rear so as to still be able to take passengers but also quickly convert to a flat rear section for carting and camping. She tows the BT like a dream and is pretty comfy to ride in. We are very happy but it is a personal decision as to what suits best, hope this helps.
Prue and Peter

Can confirm that we have today taken delivery of a suitable F250.

Many thanks for all the support and advice given us by the BOG community.

Cheers,

Karen & Pete