F250 and even F150 cost more than F350 (Help with insurance)

[M1Accord]

I am still hunting road warrior vehicle and went to several dealerships and came away with total disgust with the prices. The only vehicle I think is of a reasonable deal is the F350 crew cab gasoline (four full-size door and 4x4). It is a XL model and I did a quick comparison against a similar trim and F250 cost a little more. Even the Edmund pricing structure show either no difference or the F250 is slightly a little more. A further comparison of the F350 against the F150 of higher trim and the F150 mid-trim runs above $67k while the F350 is only $62k.

Had anyone notice this? With that in mind, I would rather get a F350 for my eventual truck camper road warrior setup. I am very frugal so it has been economical to buy new and keep for as long as possible before having to junk things out.

My only concern is insurance cost. Should I be worry that a F350 will be considered commercial vehicle in Virginia or in general and the insurance would be +30% for a similarly price F350 for an eventual same usage 3-5 years from now.

My plan is to get the truck and use it as a toy for a few years to get familiar with driving a big rig, then add a camper top on it.

My reason for not going diesel is my limited understanding of diesel had caused me to be influenced by information that newer diesel rigs are not nearly as reliable as before and the ownership cost is much higher due to DEF and all the epa crap. For just hauling nothing but one person and no business to write off, I can't justify it.

What would folks get? Would insurance be that much higher for F350 versus F250? For the same engine and same usage, the F350 should lasts longer, correct?

Thank you.

 

[Rand]

I dont think insurance would be much higher, however registration which is state dependent might be higher.
At state farm I can go add a vehicle and see all the differences before making any policy changes..
your insurer probably has the same.. in other words... no reason to guess.. go check.

 

[meep]

If you are putting a drop-in camper on it, that should be a good match. If you are just driving it around empty, it could likely make you sad. I’ve not driven a recent F250 but have driven the newer F350 and it doesn’t track or handle like the IFS F150. It’s much closer to driving a U-Haul, and admittedly by comparison I’ve driven U-hauls that handle better. Not trying to throw shade on it at all - it’s designed to carry a load. As a “toy,” however, it all depends on what you are looking for. The ride will soften some with the drop-in camper, however, and should be a great match. Agree, gasoline will be less maintenance and complexity than diesel. I’ll say this, though, the diesel has great power, and if your camping trips rack up longer distance miles, you might prefer it.

 

[Zee09]

I am still hunting road warrior vehicle and went to several dealerships and came away with total disgust with the prices. The only vehicle I think is of a reasonable deal is the F350 crew cab gasoline (four full-size door and 4x4). It is a XL model and I did a quick comparison against a similar trim and F250 cost a little more. Even the Edmund pricing structure show either no difference or the F250 is slightly a little more. A further comparison of the F350 against the F150 of higher trim and the F150 mid-trim runs above $67k while the F350 is only $62k.

Had anyone notice this? With that in mind, I would rather get a F350 for my eventual truck camper road warrior setup. I am very frugal so it has been economical to buy new and keep for as long as possible before having to junk things out.

My only concern is insurance cost. Should I be worry that a F350 will be considered commercial vehicle in Virginia or in general and the insurance would be +30% for a similarly price F350 for an eventual same usage 3-5 years from now.

My plan is to get the truck and use it as a toy for a few years to get familiar with driving a big rig, then add a camper top on it.

My reason for not going diesel is my limited understanding of diesel had caused me to be influenced by information that newer diesel rigs are not nearly as reliable as before and the ownership cost is much higher due to DEF and all the epa crap. For just hauling nothing but one person and no business to write off, I can't justify it.

What would folks get? Would insurance be that much higher for F350 versus F250? For the same engine and same usage, the F350 should lasts longer, correct?

Thank you.

I posted about this many times here. I always got far better deals on F350s than F150s because the 150s were really in demand.
And insurance in MD. Was cheaper than my cars because the 350s were considered very safe.

 

[wpod]

The F350 is much heavier duty than a F250 . It has a bit heavier duty springs and the trans is a bigger heavier model than the F250 with the Gas engine. The Wife sold her diesel Ford F250 because she messed up her knee on either a horse or bike crash or both? I really didn't want her to know I forgot. Any way she loves the 2018 F350 with the gas engine and get the 4X4 .The wifes truck is an XL and it is nicer than the 2002 XLT F250 with 7.3 powerstroke engine. When we bought the 2002 F250 it had the camper package on it which was F350 springs and sway bars and I forgot what else. It will take an afternoon to a few days to figure out the bigger vehicle.

 

[fdcg27]

A one ton truck is going to have a much worse ride and road handling than a half ton.
Just something to consider.

 

[ATex7239]

F250 (or F350) gassers are solid work trucks. Had two 250s with the 6.2L. However comfortable and economical transportation they are definitely not. They are boring reliable but ride like covered wagons, when not loaded up, compared to half tons. I would be looking at a half ton with some creature comforts personally. Easier to drive, easier to park, cheaper on gas, and plenty capable for light duty.

Popularity affects cost quite a bit. I would imagine your insurance provider could answer the insurance question the best.

 

[CarbonToast]

Gas engine - weighs less, costs less, less maintenance cost

I don't think you have anything to worry about regarding the commercial vehicle.

https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title46.2/chapter3/section46.2-341.4/#:~:text=%22Commercial%20motor%20vehicle%22%20means%2C,as%20defined%20in%20this%20section.

The following are excluded from the definition of commercial motor vehicle:

1. Any vehicle when used by an individual solely for his own personal purposes, such as personal recreational activities;

 

[97prizm]

Gas engine - weighs less, costs less, less maintenance cost

I don't think you have anything to worry about regarding the commercial vehicle.

https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title46.2/chapter3/section46.2-341.4/#:~:text=%22Commercial%20motor%20vehicle%22%20means%2C,as%20defined%20in%20this%20section.

The following are excluded from the definition of commercial motor vehicle:

1. Any vehicle when used by an individual solely for his own personal purposes, such as personal recreational activities;

In theory you could drive a school bus around in many states and not need a different license, and it not be considered commercial use. One of the writers on Jalopnik did just that. She was told that she'd need whatever class of license for a motorhome but not for a school us.

 

[johnmyster]

My only concern is insurance cost. Should I be worry that a F350 will be considered commercial vehicle in Virginia or in general and the insurance would be +30% for a similarly price F350 for an eventual same usage 3-5 years from now.

Call your insurance agent with a few VINs and have them run the numbers.

I'm in Virginia. You would be able to plate any pickup truck with a <10k registration and avoid somewhat higher cost of the >10k "truck" tag, which is what most folks call "commercial." Someday when you add the camper, if you wanted to increase your registration you could replate the with the "truck" tag, at additional annual cost, if you were so inclined. Above 10k you get to name your weight and you pay by the pound. You could register at 11k, 12k, 13.5k, etc.

To address 97prism, Virginia does not require classified licenses for non-commercial use (yet) but this wouldn't apply to the OPs case in the majority of states anyway, as his gross will be <26k.

In most cases, a 3/4 ton and a 1 ton SRW, similarly equipped, will be nearly identical trucks in terms of drivetrain and chassis hardware. Maybe the axle/R&P/carrier will be one size up. (There may be some other differences associated with gas vs diesel.) An extra overload spring on the rear, maybe a different axle ratio, a notch higher grade tires, etc. I wouldn't have the mentality of it lasting longer. It will have a higher GVWR and rear axle rating, both being ideal for a slide-in camper.

 

[14.1 Grms]

As noted above, there's not a significant difference in an F-250 and F-350, generally speaking. Axles vary slightly depending on the different packages, F-350 will have a slightly different spring package, and unless they changed it the F-350 will have hydro-boost brakes (that may only be DRW, I can't remember if SRW F-350s get hydro). A lot of that is predicated on archaic, outdated DOT requirements, but generally speaking an F-250 will be able to mechanically do the same thing as a SRW F-350, just not "legally" because of said DOT rules. Going to an F-350 DRW set up as a hauler will be a bit different, but that truck isn't competing with SRW trucks for end use

The step from an F-350 to an F-450 is a much bigger change than that from an F-250 to an F-350.

I wouldn't say ownership of a diesel is "much higher" than a similar gas-engine truck. DEF is relatively cheap, and while oil changes are a bit more expensive (especially if you do fuel filter changes on time), the biggest "ownership cost increase" is the initial buy-in price for a diesel. There's more emissions stuff to deal with, but gas engines in these trucks have their own issues just as likely to cause an expensive repair. Right now diesel prices are on par with premium fuel, so that's a wash.

For frugality, I wouldn't touch a new truck right now; even on stripper models that sit on lots because no one wants them, the pricing is still too high.