Half-ton vs One-ton MPG (F-150 vs Superduty MPG)

[redpoint5]

The Maverick can get 40MPG, has a 1,500 payload, and is rated to tow 2,000. Whatever didn't fit in the bed, I'd put in a trailer.

Dodge/Cummins 3/4 ton can get 20MPG or better.

[Piotrsko]

Back when bed liners were brand new, we sealed up the gate and filled it with hot water, 4 beefy guys and drove all over Inglewood Ca all in a 1971 datsun pickup until we got a ticket. Not for overload, but for dumping water and causing a hazard. Figure 3000 lbs back there.

[redpoint5]

Originally Posted by Piotrsko

Back when bed liners were brand new, we sealed up the gate and filled it with hot water, 4 beefy guys and drove all over Inglewood Ca all in a 1971 datsun pickup until we got a ticket. Not for overload, but for dumping water and causing a hazard. Figure 3000 lbs back there.

I got the idea while eating brunch on a Portland sidewalk, and a truck parked on the street right behind me, with some of the water sloshing out. A couple babes in bikinis were back there.

It's legal to be in the bed of a pickup if all seat belts in the cab are in use in Oregon.

You just put a tarp (without holes) in the bed, and it holds the water.

Had my truck serving as a foot pool where about 8 people gathered during the solar eclipse.

[GARETT0439]

Who are the moderators of this site? Can anyone give them a shout? I have posted twice on this thread and it said a mod needed to approve. There were no links or anything. It was days ago, they still arent visible.

[freebeard]

At the bottom of the page is a Contact Us button.

https://ecomodder.com/forum/sendmessage.php

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Once in a while I still see Rangers and other trucks within its size class with some camper module, most often with a pop-up roof instead of fully rigid. But I guess it's worth to remind overseas versions often have a higher payload than US-spec models for this size class.

When it comes to F-150 vs. F-350, about 4 and half years ago I spotted an F-350 with plates from British Columbia in Florianópolis, Brazil, with a camper module. Most likely an F-150 would be exceeding the GVWR with a similar setup, not to mention the overload would also decrease reliability while riding through tough terrain.

Originally Posted by freebeard

My 1961 panel van

That would be quite a good base for an expedition rig, yet it would have some limitations regarding payload... Sometimes I still lurk about picking either a Kombi or a more modern mid-size van and set it up for stealth-camping, but I'm sure a full-size truck and a camper module would be quite tempting, plus the ability to carry one or two 125cc dual-purpose motorcycles.

[freebeard]

There was one summer in the late 1970s when I was an itinerant carpenter. I drove up through the Willamete Valley with a table saw in the back, rolled it out to have a place to sleep at night, and in the morning I'd drive into town and load the roof rack with lumber.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

So you had the van as a mobile tool shed, also serving as a tiny-house, before all that "tiny house movement" became a thing. Might've been a good case for an efficient use of the vehicle's footprint on the streets.

[freebeard]

It also served as a spare bedroom parked alongside the house. No side windows so good for urban stealth camping. It had a small hole in the center of the roof, with an hemispherical boat deck lens in it. Dim light spread all over.

[aerohead]

Just for a comparison, I revisited member orbywan's 1995 Ford E350-based, Class-C motorhome aero-mod thread.
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With the 7.3-liter, turbo-diesel, A40D transmission, and aero mods, between Tucson and Phoenix, he was seeing between 13.1 and 17.26 mpg, with 10-20-mph, intermittent crosswind, for an average 15.97-mpg.
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With modern engines and the 10-speed transmission, a 2023 F-350 could be made to exceed orbywan's performance, depending on mods.