Goods/Bads - 2003 Ford 350 Diesel

[Custom Landscape Concepts]

Hey guys, I'm in the market for a dump truck and looked at an 03 Ford F350 Diesel today don't know much about the ford engine in that year. Truck has 60,000 on it and I am still trying to find out if its 2wd/4wd. Any help on goods and bads in that year would be greatly appreciated. Always been a chevy guy but havent heard great things about the 6.5 chevy diesel and I'm starting to look for other options. Thanks so much.

[Gravel Rat]

That year it could be the 7.3 or the 6.0 it probably is the 6.0 which is okay if its a good one.

Myself I wouldn't be buying a F-350 dump not enough payload.

[bigw]

the 7.3 is 10x better then the 6.0 trust me!

[SuperiorService.110mb.com]

Go and talk to the local Ford Diesel Guy and ask him his opianion, he works on them every day and can tell you everything you want to know. What size dump bed? What will you be hauling the most? I have a 1997 F350 dually with a 12cy aluminum dump and I can hold 5 tons. 5 tons is not alot when it comes down to rock, but mulch or compost I can carry about 8cy worth. Brush and crap like that I can fill over the sides without a problem. Nother thing to look at is the dumping capacity of the dump hydro. If its less than the capacity of the truck then why buy it. For a few hundred $$ you can put air bags in the back and increase the ride quality and payload a bit.

[SuperiorService.110mb.com]

Oh yah,
my truck has the 7.3. its a real workhorse

[Gravel Rat]

I don't know how you guys can get away with running a regular 1 ton they can't carry enough weight. Your awfully stupid if you are putting more than 5000lbs on them. I learned my lesson years ago and stopped using 1 ton trucks 10 years ago.

For one all it takes is one accident and your in deep chit. I guess some of you don't know what it is like going down a highway grade and can't stop because your overloaded. A regular 1 ton if you gross the truck anymore than 12,000lbs you will melt the brake rotors right off the truck.

A regular 1 ton plan on doing brakes ever 3 to 6 months and you burn through tires every 6 months.

There are places I go I run out of brakes with a F-450 with a 6000lb load on it. Even on highway grades with a F-450 if you decend a hill too fast you can distroy your brakes with a legally loaded truck.

All the loads of gravel I haul are scaled I think some of you guys are way off on what you are hauling.

[SuperiorService.110mb.com]

Rat,
9800 lbs is only 200 lbs shy of 5 tons. When I go pick up rock I tell them just shy of five ton and he's always within 400 lbs as he has loaded for years. When you go to pay you drive onto the same scale as when you drive in so I do know what I haul with my truck. Same with the dump scale in scale out. Two things I DO NOT do with a heavy load is drive in the rain or wet roads and only drive local, so I pickup as close to the dumping site as possible. If your having problems with your brakes look into a trans brake for your truck plus a trailer with brakes can help with stoping with a bobcat or something on it. The air bags in the back have really helped with carring a heavy load.

[TXNSLighting]

Originally Posted by SuperiorService.110mb.com

Oh yah,
my truck has the 7.3. its a real workhorse

Well if its a 97 its obviously a 7.3..

[TXNSLighting]

Yeh it could be a 6.0 or a 7.3. If its a 6.0 pull an oasis report, and that will tell you if you want to buy it or not.

[T_S_S]

If its a 6.0 be careful, they are very finiky. But after removing the emissions crap, and adding head studs, you can make gobs of reliable power , and have an engine that will last a long time.