How about that new 7.3-liter V-8 in the Ford Super Duty? It measures up at 430 hp and 475 lb-ft, and it’s able to hit 60 mph in a 7,200-pound F-350 Tremor wearing knobby off-road tires in just 7.3 seconds. Not just poetic, but pretty good for a factory-built monster truck, right? Eh. Have you heard you can get it with a diesel?
And not just any diesel. The 2020 Ford F-Series Super Duty trucks get a 6.7-liter Power Stroke turbodiesel V-8 that makes 475 hp and, seriously, a ridiculous 1,050 lb-ft of torque. But wait, there’s more. You can get this gargantuan engine with the new Tremor off-road package on most F-250s and single-rear-wheel F-350s. A thousand lb-ft of torque in a factory off-roader with a lift, 35-inch tires, and a winch. It’s a beautiful thing.
It just keeps getting better, because this isn’t some slow and steady rock crawler. Are you ready for this? It’s quicker than the 7.3, even though it’s 674 pounds heavier than the F-350 Tremor we tested. Quicker than a gas-only Ram Power Wagon, too. Let this thing rip, and it’ll hit 60 mph in 7.2 seconds and the quarter mile in 15.5 seconds at 92.2 mph. That’s a tenth quicker to both marks and traveling 1.3 mph faster at the end. That’s what a turbo the size of a volleyball will do.
Don’t think that means endless lag, either. Not only is the engine good at keeping that windmill spinning, but it also makes so much torque without the compressor that the truck leaps forward any time you get into the throttle just a little. Getting around a 55-mph dawdler in the right line? It won’t even drop out of 10th gear. Yeah, an F-250 diesel on stickier street tires is quicker to 60, but by less than half a second.
Of course, there’s still the matter of stopping a nearly 7,900-pound truck, and those off-road tires don’t do it any favors. The lighter F-350 Tremor needed 147 feet to stop from 60 mph, but this four-wheeled freight train needed 163 feet to stop its diesel self. Like I told MotorTrend editor-in-chief Mark Rechtin before he drove home, leave some extra space on the freeway.
Shockingly, those cheese grater tires aren’t much for handling, either, but they do all right, considering. The lighter F-350 was able to pull a perfectly respectable 0.71 average g on our skidpad; this nose-heavy F-250, however, only managed 0.67. Normally, I’d say who cares, it’s an off-road truck, but it’s a very tall one, and you can definitely feel the tread blocks squirming around under you when there’s a bend in the freeway. Best to take it easy in the twisties.
The other thing you’ll feel is the truck’s bounciness. Senior features editor Jonny Lieberman found it enough of a reason to prefer the gas 7.3 in his review, and I see his point. The extra weight on the nose makes itself known, and it’s compounded by the extra-heavy rear axle that comes with the diesel. Those balloon tires have plenty of give in their sidewalls, too. Point is, you’re going to get bounced around a little in this one, but that’s the price of a thousand lb-ft of torque. I mentioned that, right? 1,050 lb-ft. What a time to be alive.
Of course, none of this is the point of the Tremor package. You’re not paying nearly $4,000 for street performance. The big wheels and tires, lift, twin-tube shocks, locking rear diff, limited-slip front diff, skidplates, rock slider side steps, a rock crawling mode, and off-road cruise control are for dirt dominance, while the winch is an extra $3,000. Really testing this thing is going to require a seriously tough trail, which is exactly where we’re planning to take it, along with its competitors from Ram and GMC.
| 2020 Ford F-250 Super Duty Platinum Tremor Turbodiesel 4WD | |
| BASE PRICE | $82,520 |
| PRICE AS TESTED | $85,070 |
| VEHICLE LAYOUT | Front-engine, 4WD, 5-pass, 4-door truck |
| ENGINE | 6.7L/475-hp/1,050-lb-ft turbodiesel OHV 32-valve V-8 |
| TRANSMISSION | 10-speed automatic |
| CURB WEIGHT (F/R DIST) | 7,874 lb (59/41%) |
| WHEELBASE | 159.8 in |
| LENGTH x WIDTH x HEIGHT | 250.0 x 80.0 x 79.3 in |
| 0-60 MPH | 7.2 sec |
| QUARTER MILE | 15.5 sec @ 92.2 mph |
| BRAKING, 60-0 MPH | 163 ft |
| LATERAL ACCELERATION | 0.67 g (avg) |
| MT FIGURE EIGHT | 29.0 sec @ 0.57 g (avg) |
| EPA CITY/HWY/COMB FUEL ECON | Not rated |
The post 2020 Ford F-250 Super Duty Tremor Diesel First Test: An Unstoppable Force appeared first on MotorTrend.
from MotorTrend https://www.motortrend.com/cars/ford/f-250/2020/2020-ford-f-250-super-duty-platinum-tremor-diesel-first-test/
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