2021 7.3 vs 6.7

Jynx09

Tremor Newbie
Joined
Sep 19, 2020
Messages
3
Reaction Points
9
Location
California
Hi Guys,

Im going down on Tuesday to order a new 7.3 or 6.7 F250 XLT with the Tremor package. I went to the dealer last week to order the 6.7 but the dealer was thinking the new 7.3 engine would suit my needs better. I plan to get a 30-32 foot toy hauler within the next year or two. There will be a 4 seater rzr being towed inside the toy hauler. After reading numerous reviews and watching videos I'm starting to think the 7.3 will be sufficient but don't want to regret my choice. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks!
 
Hi Guys,

Im going down on Tuesday to order a new 7.3 or 6.7 F250 XLT with the Tremor package. I went to the dealer last week to order the 6.7 but the dealer was thinking the new 7.3 engine would suit my needs better. I plan to get a 30-32 foot toy hauler within the next year or two. There will be a 4 seater rzr being towed inside the toy hauler. After reading numerous reviews and watching videos I'm starting to think the 7.3 will be sufficient but don't want to regret my choice. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks!

You're not gonna like 9 miles to the gallon if your hauling that thing with any kind of distance or frequently.

I went with the gasser, because I tow a boat 2 times a year, short distances. Sounds like you might be a Diesel candidate.
 
Hi Guys,

Im going down on Tuesday to order a new 7.3 or 6.7 F250 XLT with the Tremor package. I went to the dealer last week to order the 6.7 but the dealer was thinking the new 7.3 engine would suit my needs better. I plan to get a 30-32 foot toy hauler within the next year or two. There will be a 4 seater rzr being towed inside the toy hauler. After reading numerous reviews and watching videos I'm starting to think the 7.3 will be sufficient but don't want to regret my choice. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks!

Get the 6.7. Have no regrets
 
A 32' toy hauler is pretty big. Your towing mpg will be more like 6 rather than 9. Empty the 7.3 gets 11-12. Either one will probably due the job on more or less on flatter terrain just don't go to the mountains. TFL did a tow test up to the Eisenhower Tunnel in Colorado towing around 15,000 lbs and it did the job... at 2 mpg. A buddy of mine has a 6.7 and tows a 13,000 lb 5th wheel from Texas to where ever and gets about 11-12. Do the math on a 34 gallon gas tank. Not much range. I bought the 6.7
 
I ordered a diesel because I want to own a diesel truck (explanation below).

The 7.3L will tow anything you would want to tow this side of a dually. Especially if you plan to stay legal with GAWR, GVWR, and GCWR. The benefits of the gas are lower purchase price ($8k), lower maintenance costs, and it’s way easier to work on. I haven’t done the calculation in a while but it’s unlikely that, in fuel alone, you will make up the additional purchase cost. Diesel benefits are better fuel economy, more power/torque, better resale value.

In my opinion, in the next 10 years, the question won’t be “why would you buy an electric vehicle” it’ll be “why wouldn’t you buy electric”. The power is there, the torque is there, we just need one more generation of storage capacity in the batteries to make them viable.
 
The diesel is more of a long term investment. If you want a heavy duty truck with a bullet proof engine there’s no question, get the whistler.
 
After looking at trailer weights I believe I won't be exceeding 13K and realistically weights will be around 10-12k. The truck will also be used as a daily driver since I sold my F150 eco boost.
 
Do you want a truck that will tow your trailer or do you want a truck that will tow your trailer and put a huge smile on your face when going up and down hills? I had a 2019 F-350 6.7 which was a fantastic tow vehicle and my 2020 with the new 6.7 and 10 speed is even more impressive. I tow a 15,000lb 5th wheel and it pulls hills effortlessly.

I've owned lots of tow vehicles that would tow my trailers with screaming engines, low MPG, lackluster climbing performance. Never again.
 
Last edited:
Except for MPG the gas makes more sense............. That being said, one of the best Tremor characteristics is the sheer power and torque in this 6.7L motor, almost 500 Horses -- One Thousand pound feet of torque....oh my GOD! a Turbo Charger the size of a cantelope........

All I can compare it to is a 69 Mustang with a 429 Cobra Jet...........It makes you Crazy like Crack Cocaine!!!!!!!!!
 
After looking at trailer weights I believe I won't be exceeding 13K and realistically weights will be around 10-12k. The truck will also be used as a daily driver since I sold my F150 eco boost.
If you haven’t purchased the trailer then I would wait on the truck.
I learned the hard way... same exact situation... bought a 250 then a trailer that the RV dealer says... that truck will be just fine. 6 months later I start realizing that pin weight was 20-23 % more than advertised which on 12,000 LB trailer is approaching 500 lbs. that now meant I was at my 3000 LB payload capacity listed on the trucks sticker. So then you add a 250 LB hitch and another 350-400 lbs of people and cargo and all of the sudden I’m at the dealership getting a 350.
 
Let me guess the dealer had a 7.3 on the lot? Same thing happed to a buddy of mine. The dealer told him it’s a better truck and would have a higher resale value. Nope it’s a boat anchor.
 
This is what I have learned owning my first Super Duty Diesel purchased 15 Jan 2020:

1. If you are gonna tow a 5th wheel with a GVWR of over about 10500 LBS.....you have to get the 350
2. It IS the same truck 250=350.....there is not 1 bolt different in the TREMOR version.
3. There IS a diference in what Ford Certifies the F250 and F350 to haul legally.
4. If you are going to purchase a Tremor to haul a fitfh wheel........BUY the F350 TREMOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
A 32' toy hauler is pretty big. Your towing mpg will be more like 6 rather than 9. Empty the 7.3 gets 11-12. Either one will probably due the job on more or less on flatter terrain just don't go to the mountains. TFL did a tow test up to the Eisenhower Tunnel in Colorado towing around 15,000 lbs and it did the job... at 2 mpg. A buddy of mine has a 6.7 and tows a 13,000 lb 5th wheel from Texas to where ever and gets about 11-12. Do the math on a 34 gallon gas tank. Not much range. I bought the 6.7

It was a 17k lb trailer at elevation and it did the route 3.5 minutes(30%) faster than the GM.
My 7.3 is between 13 and 14 in the city. Others have towed at near 9 to 10 mpg with 10K lbs plus trailers.


Let me guess the dealer had a 7.3 on the lot? Same thing happed to a buddy of mine. The dealer told him it’s a better truck and would have a higher resale value. Nope it’s a boat anchor.
What? That’s crazy! It can tow 15k lbs effortlessly, dyno at 450hp 500tq at the crank. Unless someone is towing 15k + regularly and driving 50k miles a year the 7.3 is the better choice.

OP I’d go 350 7.3 XLT and get a killer truck at $60k or less! Or the lariat at $65k.
 
Last edited:
Hi Guys,

Im going down on Tuesday to order a new 7.3 or 6.7 F250 XLT with the Tremor package. I went to the dealer last week to order the 6.7 but the dealer was thinking the new 7.3 engine would suit my needs better. I plan to get a 30-32 foot toy hauler within the next year or two. There will be a 4 seater rzr being towed inside the toy hauler. After reading numerous reviews and watching videos I'm starting to think the 7.3 will be sufficient but don't want to regret my choice. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks!

Welcome to the forum @Jynx09 - I went back and forth for months trying to decide between the two motors. I think the 7.3l would offer plenty power and you do gain more payload with the gas.

I ultimately decided on the diesel for a few reasons.

1. Fuel range - I'm not all that worried about the mpg but when I tow I like to have as much range as possible. If the kids are sleeping while on a trip, I'm not stopping period.

2. Power - The diesel with the new tranny is such a smooth setup and power delivery is incredible. Also the diesel exhaust brake is nice when towing up in the mountains.

If I used the truck more for a daily driver, I would have probably gone for the 7.3l.
 
If you look at my previous posts, you'll find that i had the same dilemma.
I had a 16 titan xd with the cummins ( 555 ft lb of torque & 4.10 metric rear end) and i have a 34 ft bumper pull. 12k fully loaded. 12ft tall and 8.75 ft wide.

The titan motor had more torque than the godzilla, and it had issues towing over 60-65 mph. Anything more than a 3% grade killed my truck.

I drove both gas and diesel multiple times, hemmed and hawed over my choice for months.

From a financial prospective @ 20k miles a year, 15% towing, mostly city driving.
7.3l - way cheaper. on avg 7-8k from what i see here. Exhaust sounds awesome. my wife in general noticed that all the gas units had a stiffer suspension and didnt ride as good. (Im not picky, but she notices those things a lot more then me)

6.7l - takes me 5 years to break even with all maintenance and MPG. To me ( im a racer, cars and motorcycles, real tracks- not straight lines) the diesel is so much fun to drive. Coming back from farmingtion to denver, i got 18.9 mpg the enitre way back. doing 80-85 the whole way. I even have a 6 point "performance award" to prove it. I hit 22 mpg going from den to fort collins just this week. Its just fun to drive.

in the end, the diesel is the clear winner if you dont want to doubt yourself. the hardest time for me, was knowing that even though the 7.3 is a beast, i didnt want to be stuck in the same spot ( or even a little better) Do it right the first time, so you dont have to worry about it later. it gives you more options in what type of camper you want to get. you wont limit yourself. My titan could pull my toyhauler, but it was slow going. if my toyhauler was smaller i might've gone gas, but then i probably wouldnt have traded in my titan. you want to buy your truck for want you want to pull. Dont do what i did, buying the smaller truck ( ie the titan xd) to only have to do it when you find that "right" trailer.

feel free to message me if you have more questions, or want to talk more.

Thanks
 
I went back and forth between the two options as well and decided to go with the 7.3. Originally I was set on the 7.3 but then started to consider the 6.7 to "future proof" the truck if I ever decided to get a trailer or something. After researching and talking to others I finally decided back on the 7.3 as I believe it will suit me best in the long run. There were a few reasons that kept the 7.3 the choice for me.....

Towing, other than a boat in the near future, maybe 5-7k lbs, I have no real heavy towing needs or plans.
Miles, I drive maybe 10K miles a year at most. I probable put more miles on my UTV for work, that is my daily driver honestly.
Emissions, I deal with mostly heavy duty ag equipment daily and know how much trouble all these emissions and sensors can be. For the low number of miles I drive the emissions systems was a worry for me.
Cost, I could have got the 6.7 no problem but I went with the 7.3 and got a new dirt bike for less than the cost difference of the diesel that I can enjoy with my kids.

To me and as others have stated the diesel is a good choice if you are towing on a regular basis and/or putting on a lot of miles yearly. From my experience these new diesels need to be worked and if you are not working them is when problems begin to creep up. Short trips, extended idles, and not running them at operating temps is what can really hurt the new emission systems. In the end everyone has an opinion and really both engines seem to have great reviews just need to decide what works for you and makes you happy.

Good Luck
 
Your well within 7.3 territory, you decide.
 
Back
Top