Ford Full Size

[portaladmin]

As with many of us, my facination with expedition travel began with the Turtle Expedition. For me it began over ten years ago, as I read the build up of the Turtle IV, and have since followed the development of the Turtle V and most recently the Earthroamer.

The high payload and relative reliability of the Powerstroke make for an excellent platform, as does the availability of service in most of Mexico.

[gene]

You know, I was an "import only guy" for years and years. I've had Troopers, Pup's, Tacomas, Frontiers, Landcruisers. All 4x4, all well driven on dirt roads. Oh yeah! A Mitsubishi L300 4x4 van that I used in the Sahara (a VW bus sized 4x4 built on the Montero chassis). Then the family became 4. The long trips we go on required a full size truck. It ended up being a Ford F250, manual trans, crew. I drove this truck hard almost all of its 30K miles off road. One thing you must do is remove front and rear sway bars! I never ever had a single problem (I was impressed!) and with its 75:1 ratio and 3,000 Lb. payload it was sheer luxury. My daughter was in an pile-up in an F250, there were deaths invoved, she came out of it without a scratch. My mistake was the V10 instead of the V8. I only got 12 Mpg (V8 manual gets 15). I sold it for the superior Dodge Cummins. Now I get 20-22 Mpg, better ride, more articulation. Same payload. Stump pulling torque. I hear the new Dodges are bullet proof, I am keeping my fingers crossed. Once you've had the payload and power of a full size, plus better fuel mileage than a mini truck, it is hard to go back. Oh yeah! I get to run biodiesel, "No War Required".

[goodtimes]

So, the question is, did you get a 12 valve, or a 24 valve? Based on your milage statement, I am going to guess it's a 12 valve. I just wish mine got that good of milage.....I haven't been able to get more than 18.7 out of it, and it is getting worse. I need to look into it before it starts getting worse milage than my jeep.

BTW, welcome to the site. Things are kinda slow right now as many of the most active members are still south of the border.....lucky bastards!

[Scenic WonderRunner]

Did anyone read about and see pics of this Ford truck at the ongoing Detroit Auto show?

Pretty SLICK!

[OutbacKamper]

As with many of us, my facination with expedition travel began with the Turtle Expedition. For me it began over ten years ago, as I read the build up of the Turtle IV, and have since followed the development of the Turtle V and most recently the Earthroamer.

The high payload and relative reliability of the Powerstroke make for an excellent platform, as does the availability of service in most of Mexico.

Although I have not been following Turtle Expeditions for as long - probably 2 1/2 years - they, and the original Earthroamer certainly inspired me to build OutbacKamper (there is an article at www.expeditioncampers.com if anyone wants detailed info)
I have been very happy with the truck (F350, 7.3l) and would not consider any other pickup-truck for long expediton style trips except perhaps a Dodge Powerwagon - but only if it became available with a diesel, or a 2008(?) Toyota Tundra - again only if available with the diesel.
After 30,000km in Australia (75,000km total), including about 10,000km of some VERY rough corrogated roads/tracks and about 1,000km of trails the only problems I have had are tires and batteries. Also the cost of spare parts at the local Australian Ford dealer is shocking ($73 for a paper air filter ).
Cheers
Mark

[Scott Brady]

Mark,

It is great to see you here. Now I am DYING with anticipation to hear how the Australian trip went. I was very impressed with your truck build and the thought you put into completing it. I cant wait to hear about what worked, what failed, etc.

[BajaTaco]

Wow - $73 for an air filter?? What kind of problems did you have with your battery(ies)?

I myself prefer a truck with a smaller profile, but the diesel offerings paired with the heavy duty axles and payload capacity is very tempting. I don't think I would ever choose a full-size petrol in favor of a smaller one (unless it was a race truck ), but a good diesel could make a full-size platform worth it to me. I also really like the Sportsmobile Vans.

[OutbacKamper]

Wow - $73 for an air filter?? What kind of problems did you have with your battery(ies)?

One battery developed a dead cell (red light on the indicator) and the other would not hold a charge. They were both the original Ford sealed/zero maintenance batteries and the technician who replaced them said that they see alot of these failures due to vibration on the severely corrugated tracks in Australia. I would have liked to replace them with Optimas, but none were available in the small town when I needed them. The good news was I was never stranded, but I could tell the batteries were getting very weak when ever I started the truck.

I also really like the Sportsmobile Vans.

I really like these too, but, IMHO the truck and camper configuration is more multi-functional, and also cheaper.
Mark

[blupaddler]

There is also a really good article in the new Austrialian 4WD monthly about a full-size F250 that has travelled quite extensively.