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Old 06-17-2021, 06:33 PM   #41
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I found a 2004!Avalanche 2500 one owner 45k miles, clean Carfax for $20k. 8.1, 4 speed, 3.75, tow package. I’m going to look at it tomorrow. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Jim M

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Originally Posted by jsm5394 View Post
Ben,
Thanks for the advice. The truck was pretty decent but has a passengers side manifold issue. Dealer said he didn’t notice it before (yeah right). He’s bringing it into the shop. My bet is that it has a cracked manifold and that’s why it was sold.
Jim
Hi Jim,

Sorry late to the party. I see Ben and Henry got you covered and already said most of what I was going to say.

What about the 2004 2500 Avalanche above? Did that sell or still an option?

Good used trucks are hard to find, and now is worse then pre-covid. Not sure about your mechanical abilities, but if all that is wrong is a cracked manifold, and the the fuel lines, transmission lines, brakes lines and the main frame is not a bucket of rust, dealing with the exhaust manifold while a bear of a job, can yield a great tow vehicle.

As far as gas mileage, I would say the 8.1 big block with the 3.73 may even get slightly better mileage on the T2499, then my 2003 2500 Suburban with the 6.0 L and the 4.10 rear end. The 6.0L with the 4.10 axle was rated at 16,000# GCWR. The 8.1L with the 3.73 I thought was 17,000# GVWR. The 8.1 is not working as hard to create more power.

Here is our 2003 2500 Burb with our prior 2004 T2499.


The 2500 Avalanche is a unique vehicle. You can still haul a 4 x 8 sheet of plywood, have a crew cab with luxury, it can handle the weight and it can pull the load. Granted it is an older truck and that is a trade off if you get into an accident and total it. The total loss payout I assume is lower then some of the newer vehicles. There is risk in all of this.

If you cannot do the repairs yourself, ask around on the cost.

I must admit, I do miss our 2003 Burb, it even has the rear wheel steering. When we bought the T310SR, that put the Burb at its limit, I knew it and that was why the F350 came to be.

Going from an SUV to a Pickup is a difference. Being in SUV towing for so long and then converting to a truck bed with a tono cover was for sure a change. It will take time to adjust, but in time it is old news. Just make sure to keep the wife happy if she is part of the one who will be using it.

If you are looking into the Ford 3/4 or 1 ton trucks, let talk. As BenB said, all the trucks have their share of issues. Last year I put a little over $,4500 in parts in my 2005 F350 to get another 100K miles of dependable tow vehicle. See this thread. https://www.sunlineclub.com/forums/f...avy-19574.html

While I did the work, I'm happy with what I have. To replace that truck today in a gasser, is big bucks, heck even the new 1500's are big bucks... so for me, fixing an older truck I knew since 2007 when I got it, made good sense. That thread touches on some of the Ford gasser V10 and 5.4 V8 engine issues of the time period, spark plugs, broken manifold studs, and oil delivery issue to the overhead cam drive. The plug issue was solved in 2008 redesign of the heads, the manifold studs was solved when they went to stainless studs with the flat washers, not sure what year, the 6.2 V8 went to stainless. The oil delivery to the cam drive issue was sorted out, well I'm not sure what year. Ford in 2005 at least gave me stainless fuel lines and coated brakes lines, just the transmission lines did rust out.

If you go the F150 route with the exact right payload like Henry was talking about, gas mileage towing may not be the reason. To create the power needed to tow a camper like the T2499, the power has to come from a larger block engine with smaller gears, or a high revving turbo charged engine with mega speed transmission. The wind resistance is there, there is no magic bullet for towing gas mileage. Which engine drive train will last longer? Not sure, what the high mileage F150's issues are.

My F350 with the 6.8, V10 has a GCWR of 23,000#. I get 7.0 to 8.5 on my best day MPG towing 17,600# worth of camper and truck. I got 8.0 to maybe 8.5, with my 2500 6.0 liter / 4.10 rear axle with 16,000# GVWR towing ~ 14,000 # of camper and truck.

The F350 would tow the T2499 and get around 9 to 9.5 MPG. It would do better if it had real gas. That era truck does not like ethanol gas. The F250 and the F350 SRW truck used the same drive train, just different payloads.

I only tow at 60 mph as a top end average speed. No need to go faster. If you drop down to 55 mph, the fuel economy will go up. Not a lot, but will go up. It will go down fast at 65 mph or above if your trailer tires are rated that fast.

Good luck on the truck hunt.

John
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Old 06-17-2021, 06:45 PM   #42
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Originally Posted by jsm5394 View Post
Here are a couple pics. Is friction ok or should I go dual cam?
Jim,

Your pics did not come through. If you need help getting them up, let us know. Glad to help.

For help on posting pics, see here.

There are 3 ways to add pics.

1. Upload pics to a specific post attaching them at the end of the post.

2. Linking them in from a public viewable web photo hosting service you have.

See here for 1 and 2 https://www.sunlineclub.com/forums/f...html#post86041

3. You can upload pics to the forum in your own personal photo album. Then link them to anywhere in the text of a post. See here on how to create an album. https://www.sunlineclub.com/forums/f...html#post87945

Once we can see your hitch, we can help with that too. We can then tell better if you can adapt to the Reese DC or not with the hitch parts you have.

The truck is part of a stable towing rig also. Once you sort out 1500 or 2500, that will help with what anti sway control as well. The T2499 with it's high tongue weight helps the trailer track well, just the truck has it hold it up. Having towed our T2499 with a 1500 Tahoe and a friction bar, and then a 2500 Suburban with the DC, there was a large difference in stability, you can feel it just driving down the driveway.

John

PS. if you go with the Reese DC, lets talk on it. There are setup requirements that need to be understood to make the low ball height of the T2499 and the DC work well together.
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Old 06-19-2021, 04:32 PM   #43
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I think I found a nice TV. 2009 Silverado 2500 with no rust and $100k Miles. New trade. I am seeing it when first available on Wednesday. 6.0 gas ext cab. Any advice as to what signs to look for would be appreciated.

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Old 06-22-2021, 05:17 PM   #44
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The 6.0l is pretty tried and ture a good workhorse. The early engines had piston slap issues noticed on startup, but you should be past those issues by 2008. Exhaust gaskets/studs are common like the 8.1L. Just underbody/body rust are the other issues I know about, but that depends on where/how it was used.
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Old 06-22-2021, 09:07 PM   #45
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I tow my 2499 with a 2011 Ford F250 super Duty. I upgraded from a 2012 F150, much better once you get WD hitch set up right. I saw this on facebook, 2010 Ford F-350 Lariat Pickup 4D 6 3/4 ft
$23,999
Vehicles
Listed 9 weeks ago in London, OH
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Old 06-26-2021, 11:24 AM   #46
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Hi Jim,

How did the 2009 2500HD turn out?
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Old 06-26-2021, 01:23 PM   #47
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Guys,,
I know I would be better off with a 3/4 ton but just can’t find one on my price range that hasn’t been beat.

I am looking at a 2012 F-150 FX4. 3.5L V6 EcoBoost. Label is attached. What is the tow rating of this truck, and will it handle a T-2499?

Please respond ASAP so I don’t lose the truck if it would work. Thanks.

Jim M
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Old 06-26-2021, 02:01 PM   #48
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It didn’t. Dealer painted over rust.
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Old 06-26-2021, 04:28 PM   #49
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F150

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Guys,,
I know I would be better off with a 3/4 ton but just can’t find one on my price range that hasn’t been beat.

I am looking at a 2012 F-150 FX4. 3.5L V6 EcoBoost. Label is attached. What is the tow rating of this truck, and will it handle a T-2499?

Please respond ASAP so I don’t lose the truck if it would work. Thanks.

Jim M
This is what I had before I upgraded to a F250 Super Duty 6.7 L diesel, the only problem we had was fuel millage. when we would get on the highway towing with the EcoBoost, the mileage pulling the 2499 would drop to around 7-8 MPG, ours was not a FX4, just a 2 wheel drive, but the FX4 would get a little poorer milage.
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Old 06-26-2021, 05:25 PM   #50
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J&A, that answers one question and raises another. Yes, I can tow it with an F150. But is there a better 1/2 ton to go after? F150 w/v8? Dodge hemi? Any suggestions? I am cautious about the turbo Ecoboost?
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Old 06-26-2021, 05:51 PM   #51
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Hi Jim,

The 35 psi tires sort of gave it away. With that spring package and tires, your payload is gonna have a problem

Henry said this,

Quote:
Originally Posted by henryj View Post

Snip...

1/2 ton GVWRs can be all over the map and Ford is one of the worst. Look for some towing options, 1800lb payload, at least 3800lb rear axle and 7000lb GVWR. All numbers are on two stickers on the driver's door or door jamb--yellow payload and tire sticker and silver VIN and axle sticker.

Henry
And this,

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What year? Towing numbers mean nothing. You need at least 1800lb of payload from the yellow door sticker. Our F150 is 1853lb, but that's factory. Owner accessories like a tonneau etc. deduct from that. Our '15 Silverado was 2152lb.
Your yellow payload sticker says this.



The payload for that VIN truck is 1,187#. The T2499 empty and with LP gas in the tanks and a battery is a little over 800# of empty camper tongue weight. A loaded T2499 can range typically from 1,000# to 1,200# loaded tongue weight. It is the floor plan that drives the tongue weight up that high. That beautiful rear big picture window and swivel rocker is really nice, but there is not a lot of storage in the back to offset all the storage forward of the axles. So, the loaded tongue weight just goes.

If you are wanting to stay under that F150 GVWR and most likely the rear axle rating as well, If you have a 1,000# loaded tongue weight it only leaves 187# left in the truck for passengers. That means nothing in the truck bed, nothing in the back seat. While a WD hitch will move some weight to the trailer axles, you are cutting hairs and so close to the edge the bed load will still be empty. We all have our stuff we bring camping, and for a pickup, it goes in the truck bed.

They do offer heavier towing packages on the F150 that up the payload. And they use to offer load range D LT tires to go with the up'ed payload. But that truck does not have that option.

Weight wise, that truck is not a good match in my opinion . I did not check the GCWR as I do not know the rear axle ratio etc to know.

Hope this helps.

John
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Old 06-26-2021, 06:28 PM   #52
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I really feel a 3/4 ton is the right answer even if you have to back off on age a little to find something you can work with. My F150 EcoBoost did well pulling and stopping and towing, but although Ford Dealer said I was not over the Max towing capacity, I feel much better with the F250. I had a Pull Rite hitch on the F150 which made towing a breeze with absolutely no sway. I did not put it on the F250, but sometimes wish I had.
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Old 06-26-2021, 06:52 PM   #53
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J&A and John B,
Again you correctly give me the same answer as before. I really need a 250 or 1500HD. I’m just getting frustrated by what I’m finding in 250’s. Most up to $30k have high mikes, rust, plow frames, and high miles. I drive to look at a truck and find spray paint over rust. Exhausting and a waste of time. Again I thank you to keeping me on the right road. I’ll keep looking.

Jim M
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Old 06-26-2021, 07:44 PM   #54
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Wish you could find one like I did a few years ago, 2011 250SD 6.7L Diesel 103,000 $19.5 but the used truck market has gone plain crazy.
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Old 06-26-2021, 08:14 PM   #55
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I do not know your location, or your price range, but this looks nice from the KBB advertisement.
2008 Ford F250 4x4 Crew Cab Super Duty.
6.4L V-8 DIESEL ENGINE
VIN: 1FTSW21R18EA42224
LOW MILEAGE: 110,000
EXTERIOR: WHITE
INTERIOR: BLACK CUSTOM LEATHER
STANDARD AND MANY EXTRA DEALER INSTALLED OPTIONAL EQUIPMENT

Selling very good/excellent well maintained and cared for F250 4x4 to downsize to fit my needs.
I am the second owner since 2010 where my truck has been used/located in California until I
brought it to New York in 2017. On time scheduled maintenance and repairs done at Ford
Dealerships for most of the life of truck. I love this truck and constantly get compliments on its
looks and cleanliness. Truly a one-of-a-kind truck.

Pros:
Clean title-no accidents (replaced hood with OEM part after tree branch fell on it in 2017)
Carfax report on hand, just ask
Purchased and used in California up until 2017 (no harsh weather)
Many extra optional dealer installed equipment (see options on window sticker)
2 inch rear lift, 1 inch in the front
Rear wheel airbags
Adjustable suspension
Ziebart yearly weatherproofing for undercarriage and body paint (transfers to new owner for free)
Automatic steps
Very Low Miles Diesel engine (does not need DEF!!!!)
Well maintained
Clean interior
No major dents, dings, or body damage
No major mechanical issues (good A/C and heat)

Cons:
Front and rear bumper dents (my fault for having to park in tight spaces)
Intermittent driver seat heater not working
Registered in California so not quite sure how transfer works here in NY, but should not be an
issue and will work with buyer to figure it out (I am not in a hurry to have to sell the truck).
No trades
Cash, certified checks (verified with bank), bank loan payment only
Will meet to show and test drive to serious buyers only at safe location. Potential buyers to
show proof of identification and insurance prior to seeing vehicle.
$19,000 Private seller Albany, NY 12204
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Old 06-27-2021, 06:01 AM   #56
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I found a 2009 Ram 2500 hemi. There is talk in the internet about “death wobble”. Does anyone know about this truck?
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Old 06-27-2021, 08:05 AM   #57
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I found a 2009 Ram 2500 hemi. There is talk in the internet about “death wobble”. Does anyone know about this truck?
In general the "death wobble" is a byproduct of worn suspension/steering components and unbalanced tires. At a certain speed the front end/steering wheel begins to shake sometimes violently hence the term. The Dodges aren't the only one that end up with this, also on Jeeps and Ford SD some of the other major ones, all of these have solid front axles. Larger tires and lift kits only make it worse. We had a Jeep all stock steering, suspension and tires but components were old at 55+ it would start to shake.

Early 90s and up GM 3/4 and 1tons used independent front suspensions instead solid front axles like the Ford/Dodge. So the GMs don't seem to have these issues as much due to the different suspension style. They ride differently than the Ford/Dodges.

If the truck is stock and has factory size tires it should be able to ride properly. If it has a vibration some of the components are in need of replacement or repair.
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Old 06-27-2021, 03:44 PM   #58
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Death wobble

BenB, Thanks for this information, I had not heard of this, nor have I experienced it.
Jack
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Old 06-29-2021, 07:55 PM   #59
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My search is over! I bought a 2011 GMC Denali 2500HD. It has the towing package and Z85 suspension. Thank you all who offered such great advice. Happy camping!!

Jim M
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Old 06-29-2021, 08:35 PM   #60
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My search is over! I bought a 2011 GMC Denali 2500HD. It has the towing package and Z85 suspension. Thank you all who offered such great advice. Happy camping!!

Jim M
Jim;
Wishing you happy and safe camping also.
Jack
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