2012 F-350 - First Impressions

[Diamondpilot]

I see. It just had me curious. I noticed the pic of the narrow road with the steep incline/decline. How do the 1/2 tons do stopping that load vs the 3/4 or 1 tons? It seems they would be "pushed" a little more. Where I tow, it is mostly flat with some gentle hills, nothing steep by any means. The furthest I have been from home is Atlanta with a trailer.

This whole 1/2 ton 3/4 ton thing is a real wash now days in my eyes when it comes to chassis and brakes. Yes, the diesel option, larger tranny, and heavier axles and suspension come into play but I can see no real difference in braking. Just put the auto tranny in 1st gear and keep the speed 15 mph or so. I would guess that grade is near 30% You go up it in 4 low. Its so steep you just about cant walk up it, you must use a zig zag pattern.

Chris

 

[jeffsw6]

dp, for road use, do your DMAX buddies have anything to say about the engine braking with the new turbo? It's one of those things that looks good on paper but I haven't driven one.

 

[Diamondpilot]

dp, for road use, do your DMAX buddies have anything to say about the engine braking with the new turbo? It's one of those things that looks good on paper but I haven't driven one.

The newest Dmax in our group is a 08 and the most he tows is 7,000#. Most are 06 and 07 classic models and as you know they had a Variable Vane Turbo much like Ford had in the 6.0L and after which was a major improvement over the old waste gate setup. They tow between 9,000 and 12,000# so no real big loads for these guys to really see the difference.

Sorry, no real help.

Admittingly though the Dmax guys have very few complaints over the motor. I did not either on my 05 I had for 9 months. Some of us have or had Glow Plug issues and Injectors stuff but all in all the motor has been good. Tranny leaks, transfer case failures, GM paint jobs, interior parts, and typical GM nickle and dime stuff are most common issues like carrier bearings and U joints. This seems to be the trend among all GM products to me. For the most part the motors and trannys are as good as any, its the other stuff that is frustrating.

Chris

 

[BXinNH]

I can't speak to the Chevy/Duramax engine brake but I have a 2012 Ram 3500 with the Cummins and the engine brake is awesome. I haven't towed too much with it yet but if I shift the auto trans down manually when stopping I hardly use the brakes at all. It has more power than I can use. So far a great truck.
Matt.

 

[sparc]

You don't want the standard 12v socket on your truck? Its taken 25 years to get more than 1 of the things on a vehicle, I say don't mess with it.

You are right, it took too long for that to happen, but it happened so late that its out of date. I'm just saying they need to get with the times and stop using that 12v socket and move to something from the 21st century.

I don't want to give up all the accessory sockets, no way, just looking for something that is more universal so that I don't need a bunch of special adapter cords. I did pick up a cigar lighter to USB adapter so I can plug in any std USB and charge most things that way. I've had that for a while and used it in my other truck.

 

[General Lee]

You are right, it took too long for that to happen, but it happened so late that its out of date. I'm just saying they need to get with the times and stop using that 12v socket and move to something from the 21st century.

I don't want to give up all the accessory sockets, no way, just looking for something that is more universal so that I don't need a bunch of special adapter cords. I did pick up a cigar lighter to USB adapter so I can plug in any std USB and charge most things that way. I've had that for a while and used it in my other truck.

What trim level is your new Ford? In my Lariat, I have a USB port built in the dash.

 

[sparc]

Raining here this afternoon so I got to try out the speed sensitive wipers and the autolamp function.

SSW (Speed Sensitive Wipers) adjust their speed to the speed of the vehicle. So if for example your on the second click on intermittent wipe then as the truck speed increases so does the frequency of the wipers.

The Autolamp feature is something they should have ALL had ever since the requirement came out to have your headlights on if your wipers are on. It's such a simple thing to do electrically that there is no reason for any of the manufacturers not to have done it already. So anyway, when your turn your wipers on IF you have the Autolamp function (which will turn your headlights on at dusk and off at dawn) the headlights will come on automatically and go off when you turn the wipers off IF it is not dark, in which case the photocell will keep the lights on.

Both features worked very well and I found them useful.

Another programmable feature is what Ford calls a "courtesy wipe". No, it's not what you are thinking and apparently they weren't thinking either when they named it but what it does do is when you tap the end of the wiper control arm to squirt some wiper fluid on the glass and have the wipers make a couple swipes to clean it off is it waits about 30 seconds then makes on more "courtesy wipe" to clear any remaining washer fluid off the glass. Worked well but needs a better name.

 

[sparc]

What trim level is your new Ford? In my Lariat, I have a USB port built in the dash.

I have the Lariat and I have the one USB port. But if you are using that for your iPad or other music source then its not available to charge your phone. It's so cheap to put two or three USB ports in if you are already doing one that it is ridiculous not to, at least to my way of thinking.

 

[sparc]

The F-350 is just not needed in my opinion. I dont get it out till the loads get bigger than this. Its also a 06 and I am trying to keep the miles off it. I want it to last. I also like the Titan for driving, not that the F-350 is not nice also. But as you see, where we go lots of times there is some serious grades and the lake was down 70' so you are on gravel sometimes and the diff lockers on the Titan are nice.

That is what sold me on the Titan. We went in a big group a few years back and not a single one of us could get up the ramp. I had my F-350 and we also had a Suburban, F-150, Dmax, Suburban, Diesel Suburban, GMC 1500, Escalade, ect. A guy in a Titan walked right out with 10,000# behind it.

On this trip there were about 40 of us that went, maybe 16 boats or so. There were only 3 diesels. The F-250 I talked about, a older F-250 7.3 pictured, and the Dmax sitting next to me. We all use 1/2 tons for loads like this all the time.

Chris

Why is it no one makes an AWD pickup? you can get plenty of cars and SUVs in various sizes with AWD, but no pickups. The AWD in my hummer was awesome.

Case in point: Super Bowl Sunday 2000 I am on my way back to work in NY on a short term job. Had to be there early Monday morning and I was home 225 miles away so I drove up Sunday night. It is snowing to beat the band and its coming down all wet and heavy. I'm on the NJ Turnpike in the Hummer doing 65 like its not even snowing. Passing 18 wheelers and snow plows which were the only other vehicles on the road and in full control. When I got off the NY Thruway and headed for the Bear Mountain Bridge through the mountains I slowed down of course but still ran 40 to 45 without a problem. The ride took me 20 minutes longer than usual. the Hummer was always in full time 4WD. You could shift to Low or Low Lock but no 2WD and no locking hubs to mess with. And with 19" of ground clearance there had to be plenty of snow on the ground before you started dragging your belly. I'm gonna miss that. This will be my first winter in 14 years w/o the Hummer.

Also, you only needed grip on any one wheel to move. With the Torsen diffs power would go to all wheels and if any wheel was spinning then it directed power to the other wheel. Many people added lockers front and rear but I never saw the need.

 

[Pete6114]

Another programmable feature is what Ford calls a "courtesy wipe". No, it's not what you are thinking and apparently they weren't thinking either when they named it but what it does do is when you tap the end of the wiper control arm to squirt some wiper fluid on the glass and have the wipers make a couple swipes to clean it off is it waits about 30 seconds then makes on more "courtesy wipe" to clear any remaining washer fluid off the glass. Worked well but needs a better name.

I don't care for the courtesy wipe and it was one of the first things i disabled when i got my f150.