Ford F250

Drivers of Ford’s 4X4 F250 can be forgiven for getting an A-Team cum Tony Soprano attitude while out on the road. The enormous tow vehicle has a don’t-mess-with-me kind of presence due in no small part to its impressive size and aggressive styling. Add to that its wide, smick alloy wheels, rollbar and polished grille, and a dazzling paint job, and you’ve got the recipe for a genuine head-turner. It’s the sort of truck that completely fills Cautious Claude’s rear-vision mirror when he’s drifting along at 80kmh in the fast lane of an arterial freeway.

Trailer Boat had the opportunity to test the XLT Super Cab pickup that formed part of our display outside the recent Melbourne Boat Show. Although towing duties were limited to shunting our 24ft Boston Whaler around the concrete concourse out the front of Jeff’s Shed, we did put a few miles on the petrol-engine dual-cab version with the boat on behind. This gave us a pretty good idea of what these machines are capable of.

The Super Cab, the subject of this brief test, packed 7.3lt of turbo diesel V8 power, which threw the 3146kg vehicle down the road at impressive speeds. Low-down torque (a whopping 648Nm at 1800rpm) was, not surprisingly, incredibly impressive. The 5.4lt petrol V8 engine (194kW as compared to the 175kW diesel) had crisper acceleration and pickup, but couldn’t hold a candle to the pulling power of the diesel. Although, the 5.4 is no slouch in the towing department, delivering 475Nm at 4500rpm. But the diesel sported a rather sexy turbo whine when you put your foot down, and scored extra points on the revhead-o-meter.

Although measuring a substantial 6.28m long by 2.03m wide, the F250 didn’t feel unmanageably large on the road. After all, it’s not that much wider than a Falcon or Commodore, and the ride height, superb vision forward and big wing mirrors go a long way towards making you feel secure and in control when behind the wheel.

The engine is linked to a four-speed automatic slushbox with a left-hand column shift. Changes felt reasonably smooth, and with 3.1 tonnes of American sportsfishing boat on behind (the petrol version, that is, also packing a four-speed auto), the shifts were predictable. The four-wheel anti-lock (ABS) brakes did an admirable job of pulling this 3.1-tonne vehicle up in short order. It felt very safe in the stop-start Melbourne peak-hour traffic. And, as mentioned at the beginning, people tend to give you plenty of room.

As these trucks are imported from America, the indicator stalk is also on the left-hand side of the steering column, which initially took a little getting used to. Back in my Falcon I found myself making left-hand turns with the windscreen wipers in overdrive and no indicator on, so it doesn’t take long to get into the groove of driving a Yank Tank.

Both driver and passenger seats were comfortable, but power adjustment was not included on the models we drove. The Super Cab gets its name from the second row of seats behind the driver’s – accessed via cool reverse-opening half-length doors. A little bit cramped for long trips, but an inclusion that makes a vehicle of this type that much more versatile.

Overall, the cabin is best described as midrange – not as basic as say a base-model Toyota Troopy but not as lush as a range-topping LandCruiser. It’s certainly comfortable, tastefully finished and reasonably appointed. An options list offers things like CD player, but we stuck with good old Triple J.

The tray features a scuff-proof liner and has a rated payload capacity of 1073kg. That’s a lot of groceries. Listed towing capacity is 3500kg with a braked trailer, although in the US with certain trailer accessories, this vehicle easily pulls about 4500kg. Either way, towing a maxi-trailerboat is a snack for this machine.

F250s and 350s are increasingly common sight on Australian roads, especially popular with boatbuilder’s who do a lot of towing. John Zac of Pakula tackle recently swapped his Chevy Suburban for the Sports Cab 250 and say’s he’ll never go back.

Bottom line: If you’re towing a big, heavy boat and don’t want to be left in the dust on the hills, the new F-Series trucks from Ford could be just what the doctor ordered.