Everything you need to know
It's a Ford F-350. Of course it was bound to be a great all-round truck.
The Ford F-350 boasts an impressive lineup of new capabilities, including technology focused on making towing much more streamlined. If that isn't enough, the F-350 is clad in a plethora of new parts that trickle down to the truck's frame. Possibly the best part of Ford's new lineup is the fact that the best upgrades and options are primarily utility and performance based. Suffice it to say, the best truck in the universe award is Ford's to lose, but that won't be happening with the F-350.
Just like the F-150- Except the F-350 is twice as big
There is a large center console and armrest, lots of buttons on the steering wheel and a big dash screen.
It may appear harsh to say the Ford F-350 feels like a bigger Ford F-150 on the inside, but that's a genuine complement considering how nice the cabin of the smaller truck is. The Ford F-350 is similar, with high-quality leather seats and hard plastic pieces, however it's just a bit bigger. There is a large center console and armrest, lots of buttons on the steering wheel and a big dash screen.
Interior dimensions on the Ford F-350 are nearly identical with rivals like the Chevrolet Silverado 3500 and Ram 3500 though.
This is a concoction for a fairly luxurious truck, and especially with the crew cab option there's enough space for the family or four full sized adults to be comfortable. Interior dimensions on the Ford F-350 are nearly identical with rivals like the Chevrolet Silverado 3500 and Ram 3500 though, so if you go for one of the other models interior space won't be sacrificed. Ford seems to have its customer-base down in terms of what's convenient, with handy features like easily accessible storage space underneath the rear seats or a 110-volt, 400-watt power outlet.
The handling certainly doesn’t suffer, but it is still a truck
The truck's steering is super light, yet eerily responsive.
The sheer size of the Ford F-350 is enough to intimidate almost anyone, but the truck handles quite differently than it looks. Despite its massive presence, the Ford F-350 handles a lot like the smaller Ford F-150. That means the truck's steering is super light, yet eerily responsive.
The Ford F-350 is very stable on areas like highways.
Despite this steering sharpness, though, the Ford F-350 is remarkably well behaved on the open road. Though the vehicle's sheer size means it can be tricky at times to thread the Ford through tighter streets or maneuver into parking spots, the Ford F-350 is very stable on areas like highways. Even the ride's fairly good by truck standards – though, if you go for the more towing-oriented dual rear wheel, or DRW, setup, the ride quality does get a little bit bouncy over rougher surfaces. As expected from such a beefy truck, the Ford F-350 is also pretty adept when tackling tougher off-road terrain. Though admittedly how much punishment your truck will take depends on what equipment you decide to have fitted (in this case, all-wheel drive is a must-have), but the Ford F-350 can still deal with rougher surfaces fairly well.
Even the least potent engine has lots of power
The 6.2-liter eight-cylinder gasoline engine has 385-hp and 430 lb-ft of torque.
One aspect of the F-350 that will help towing is what Ford is calling the highest horsepower and torque combination available for any heavy-duty pickup truck it's ever made. The 6.2-liter eight-cylinder gasoline engine has 385-hp and 430 lb-ft of torque. Is a single overhead cam (SOHC) engine outputting 385 horsepower. Those figures are quite impressive, even though the eight-cylinder options in the Chevrolet Silverado and Ram 3500 aren't that far behind the Ford F-350 in the horsepower sweepstakes.
The F-350 also has a 6.7-liter turbocharged eight-cylinder diesel available for serious truckers.
The F-350 also has a 6.7-liter turbocharged eight-cylinder diesel available for serious truckers (who are willing to fork over an extra $8,000). It has 440 horsepower and an incredible 925 lb-ft of torque, which is substantially more than what equivalent diesel engines in the Chevrolet and the Ram offer. While the Ford F-350 is capable of carrying up to 7,600 payload pounds, and up to 32,000 in tow (with a gooseneck hitch), depending on the configuration, the Chevrolet Silverado can tow up to 31,300 pounds, and the Ram 3500 can tow about 31,200 pounds. The Ford F-350 is lacking when it comes to transmission, though: the only one you can equip is a six-speed automatic.
There are some things to consider when buying the F-350s
The F-350 seems like the perfect heavy-duty pickup truck.
Depending on what combination is configured, the Ford F-350 can price as low as around $33,700, or as high as around $70,000. That final number might sound like a lot, but that belongs to literally the largest Ford F-350 you can buy, complete with an 8-inch truck bed. The F-350 seems like the perfect heavy-duty pickup truck. The Ford Starts at around $33,000 (XL model), which is competitive with the Silverado and Ram.
Fundamentally DRW is worse for off-roading.
Depending on how much payload you want, Ford will force you to choose the dual rear wheel (DRW) system. Though it does make the vehicle a bit trickier to control on less grippy surfaces like snow and mud, it's more planted and safer when towing on pavement. Fundamentally DRW is worse for off-roading, because it requires handling precision by the driver.
Conclusion
In short, the Ford F-350 is a luxurious work truck, capable of towing tens of thousands of pounds while providing a comfortable ride. It may be big, it may even be too big, but the handling doesn't suffer because of it. One thing that may suffer is practicality, when it comes to parking and close-proximity circumstance like highway driving can sometimes provide. All in all, among its competitors the Ford F-350 holds strong, and we feel you should definitely consider it if you're after this sort of truck.