F150 or F250 for small hobby farm?

[dungrulla]

My fiance and I recently bought a 5.5 acre hobby farm with a 4 stall horse barn on it, and are going to buy a truck and trailer. We both work from home so the truck is mostly going to be used for farm chores and towing the horses. He has never owned a truck or driven a trailer, FWIW.

I have been trying to convince him that we should really get a F250 because it is safer and has room for us to grow into.

He argues that it looks like a 2018 F150 with the 3.5L engine can tow upwards of 10,000 lb, which seems plenty powerful for any 2 horse trailers. I think the F250 will have better brakes and generally be more stable. While that’s true, it seems like it compromises in handing and gets about 3/4 the gas millage. What do people recommend? Should the F150 be enough truck for our purposes, or am I right and we should get a F250?

[Quelah]

I guess I have similar farm to yours, 5 acres, 4 horses. Granted my horses are BIG (I have two Shires) but the farm chores are probably the same. I have a 2007 F250 4x diesel. I cannot fathom having a half ton truck for the stuff I use my truck for. When you like, you know, but 2,000 of in the bed and drive home with it and feel secure.

[clanter]

be sure to get that auto trailer backup parking option if you are buying new (Pro Trailer Backup Assist)…since you have never had a trailer it will be wondrous to have .

http://autoweek.com/article/car-revi…eel-less-idiot

[Bluey]

Everyone here has or had F150 ( or similar in other brands) for decades to do all farm work, pull farm wagons and stock trailers and go to town.
Many of those were not even today’s really powerful pickups.

Now, a 250 is sure better for pulling, but that doesn’t make the 150 “bad”.

My F150 4x4 is using 22 going to town, 18 around town and 16 pulling a 16’ stock trailer with two horses or several cattle.
We have hills and canyons, but we are not in mountains.

4x4s are an absolute necessity for us.
May not be if you are always on highways, not bouncing across pastures all day and down dirt roads.

If you will be hauling much, don’t mind a bit more fuel, harder to turn and park, bigger is always better.

If you won’t be hauling that much and mostly driving around, 150 should be enough, just don’t overload it.

[enjoytheride]

@dungrulla

My fiance and I recently bought a 5.5 acre hobby farm with a 4 stall horse barn on it, and are going to buy a truck and trailer. We both work from home so the truck is mostly going to be used for farm chores and towing the horses. He has never owned a truck or driven a trailer, FWIW.

I have been trying to convince him that we should really get a F250 because it is safer and has room for us to grow into.

He argues that it looks like a 2018 F150 with the 3.5L engine can tow upwards of 10,000 lb, which seems plenty powerful for any 2 horse trailers. I think the F250 will have better brakes and generally be more stable. While that’s true, it seems like it compromises in handing and gets about 3/4 the gas millage. What do people recommend? Should the F150 be enough truck for our purposes, or am I right and we should get a F250?

The 3.5L EcoBoost F-150 has a payload rating of 3,180 pounds and a towing capacity of 5,100 pounds. To put that into perspective, the V8 5.0L F-150 has a payload capacity of 3,300 pounds and a towing capacity of 11,100 pounds.

Your husband needs to make sure he lines up the right motor with the right towing capacity. The 3.5 is not adequate for towing a trailer, the larger engine will most likely meet all of your small farm needs unless you are wanting a large trailer. I would purchase one with a long bed and/or an extended cab especially if you plan on towing a lighter gooseneck. The bed length helps your turning radius and the wheel base is what helps your stability.

[Bluey]

@enjoytheride

That motor is a V6. Double check your tow ratings and consider a F150 with a bigger motor to meet more needs.

Oh, yes, be sure you buy a “pulling” pickup, with the extra pulling package, high rated cooling system, etc.
That goes for 150 and 250.

[Palm_Beach]

@dungrulla Congrats!!! Any pics? How is your horse? No further questions.

[poltroon]

In addition to the pulling, the most frequent use for my truck is bringing home hay. People load up their trucks with all kinds of loads and you will know better what you are likely to get in a single go, but watch in the F-150 that it has the payload capacity you will want and need for farm chores.

The worst thing you can do is bring home a bed full of gravel or garden soil, or a big tank of water, or a load of pavers, any of which can easily overwhelm the weight carrying capacity of the truck even if it fits in the volume.

I have never been sad to have the full size bed on the truck.

[workin_onit]

LOVE my F250!!! Its 16 years old and going strong! Never regretted the purchase. The F150 has a smaller gas tank which can make longer trips tricky, gotta time your fill ups.

[dungrulla]

@Palm Beach

@dungrulla Congrats!!! Any pics? How is your horse? No further questions.

No pics at this moment but I can get some still dealing with yucky barn odor that at this point I am convinced is raccoons or a skunk…we don’t yet live here full time so it hasn’t been addressed yet. Both my horses are doing great! The in laws have not yet been informed of my new oldie.

[Brigitte]

You will never regret going bigger, (F250)!

[js]

You can never have too much truck but you can have too little. Get the F250, better to have more than you may currently need. If you end up with 4 horses and get a 4 horse trailer you will need the F250.

[JoanP]

I ended up with a 250 because I felt that hauling a loaded trailer in the hills and mountains, even if it was on good pavement, put too much stress on the 150. I would consider the terrain that you’ll be hauling over. I fought getting a bigger truck for years but am now mostly glad that I did so. I found out that I needed to know much more about a truck (engine, transmission, towing pkg, cab arrangements, bed length, 4x4, lug patterns, tires, brake boosters, and more…) before I made a purchase. Have fun shopping for your truck!!

Actually, I ended up with a 2500. Wink.

[sherian]

we looked at both this year - went with the 250 due to the higher payload (skid of pelleted bedding is easily 2000lbs) also the f250 was cheaper with the options we wanted go figure

[soloudinhere]

@sherian

we looked at both this year - went with the 250 due to the higher payload (skid of pelleted bedding is easily 2000lbs) also the f250 was cheaper with the options we wanted go figure

At least here, 2500/250 class pickups do not sell and have crap resale value. The price difference to get to the 350/3500 class is not so great that it makes sense to “only” get a 250. You rarely see them used and when you do, they’re the same price as a 150 because they’re just not popular. Speaking regionally but that’s been my observation.

[Jarpur]

I’ve had two half-tons and two three-quarter ton gas trucks; I currently drive a half-ton (four door with a 6.5 foot bed) while my husband drives a three-quarter diesel. My current half-ton V8 gets the kind of mileage Bluey posted above.

I’d say it depends on your terrain and your frequency of hauling, plus whether this truck also needs to be someone’s daily driver. I agree that a longer wheelbase is superior for towing, and I find the capacious back seat on a crew cab quite handy for hauling bedding and feed on rainy days.

IME, my three-quarter ton trucks were great for towing, but they were also significantly more expensive in regards to everyday maintenance (as the service manager explained it to me, all the parts of a larger truck are heavier duty and proportionately more expensive) – tires , for instance, or brakes, as well as fuel – and they had larger turning radii and were more difficult to park. Used to kinda worry me in tight parking garages, as an example, although I never had an actual incident. And the larger trucks beat me up a bit more, as they tended to have a stiffer ride - I notice this, for instance, when in the diesel workhorse.

So, if looking for a dual purpose daily driver in non-mountainous terrain, for only occasional towing of moderate loads, I wouldn’t automatically rule out a late-model, properly-equipped half-ton pickup. But, if this is to be a dedicated tow vehicle, initial purchase cost/cost of maintenance is not an issue, terrain is challenging, towing will be frequent and/or of heavier loads, then a three-quarter-ton truck would be a better choice.

[Miss_Motivation]

Lots of possibilities to consider… one thing is that rumor has it Ford will be producing an F150 diesel sometime this year…intersting all-purpose machine if you are considering buying new.

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/20…l-details-news

30 mpg and 11,400 towing capacity… quite the little monster.

[Painthorsemilo]

I’ll chime in. I have owned an f150 for 7 years, 2 of which while I’ve owned my 4.5 acre farm. I love my truck. It’ a commuter, it can get grain, hay, and some farm supplies. It tows my two horses well.

a year ago my bf bought a 2500 dodge diesel. And although I stI’ll use and love my truck it is so nice to have his.
bigger loads hauling, full ton of hay space, and an 8ft bed for gates, posts, whatever can’t fit in my 6 ft bed.

[Guilherme]

Sometimes there is no substitute for horsepower.

Nor is there a substitute for bigger brakes!!!

I’d be very wary of the huge numbers for towing capacity on half ton trucks. IMO they are marketing, not engineering. As with all things YMMV.

G.

[clanter]

and 11,400 towing capacity

in some states if the towing capacity exceeds 11,500 pounds the licencing fees are sustainability greater