98 F-150, 4x4, 4.6L, Lariat . As near as I can tell, it has a tranny cooler, but someone told me those are pretty much stock on these trucks. What all options came with the tow package?

 

I believe it was a tranny cooler, different fan, and a bigger stock battery along with a class 3 hitch with 7pin trailer connection.

Adrianspeeder

 

Lets put it this way, you need all those items.
My 02 had nothing but the hitch and 4 pin connector.
I outfitted with a two core radiator, a 7 pin trailer socket and dual aux trans coolers beside switching to syn blend Mercon V fluid and added trans temp and oil pressure gauges.
Why? Pulling nearly 12,000 lbs gross combined weight.
Granted this is the extreme but the towing load is up at the max limits for this truck.

 

Shortly I'll be towing an aluminum boat from LA to GA. It's only a 16 foot bass boat, I guess weighs about 1600 pounds. It's a flat drive all of the way across (all I-10). I don't reckon I'll have any problems, just wanted to get someone's opinion that has more expirience towing long distances than I do. The farthest I ever towed anything was my buddys boat, a 21 foot Pro-Liner, with my wife's Grand Cherokee. Pulled it for about 3 hours. Let me tell you, that 5.2 L is a beast. Got into traffic on Jacksonville and without realizing it was at 95mph. The truck never even felt the boat back there. But like I've said, I've never towed with this truck and don't expect any problems.

 

I'd recommend not towing at 95 mph even if the boat is light and the truck can do it with no problem.

You're trying to control two entities going down the road, but you only have a steering wheel for one of them.

 

back in the late 70's we used to tow the race car on a open trailer with a '76 F-100 with a transplanted 390 G-T motor and a C-6 with 350's in the rear

100+ mph was so e-z with that combo back then

(we were also young and stupid)


now the E-350 van with the V-10 and the chip is lucky to go 90.....downhill with the wind

...zap!

 

I by no means intend to tow at that speed. I didn't mean to last time, either. If you've ever driven in Jacksonville, FL, you'd know what I mean. I swear, all the dirvers ed teachers down there must be women. Don't anyone get offended, it was a joke.

 

My HD tow package consist' of;
130 amp alternator
oil cooler
Reese type 7 pin hitch
HD cooling system(radiator,fan clutch)
trans cooler
battery
suspension(brakes,leaf springs,shocks)
power steering cooler(this might be factory on all F150s,dunno)

 

7 pin connector is pretty much a give away if it's equipped with the tow package or not.

What part of Georgia are you headed to?

 

Do all F150s have an oil cooler? I see a large fluid cooler (and the PS cooler) behind the bumper but I am not sure if it's a tranny or oil cooler. I planned on checking when I changed my oil the first time, but spent all of my available daylight making a mess and cleaning it up -- gotta love the filter being right on top of the suspension member.

 

No, if you have 2 coolers up front then you most likely have the Aux cooler. The one with a bent tube and fins on the tube is the power steering, the other will look more like a radiator. Stacked Plate I think it's called.

 

Yeah. I have the stacked plate and tube and fin cooler.

I use an Earl's cooler on my race car and street car that look almost identical to this one (except larger and full of oil).

Thanks.

 

Seriously, We're from St. Augustine, and every time you go up through Jax they WILL push you until you're running about 85. And that's downtown with all of the seizure billboards telling you to go every which way, right through downtown. 95 is nothing with a boat, go any slower and you won't have a steering wheel for any vehicles :-D!

 

Now there's a man 'in the know'....

 

Haha, thanks! I thought so too