I have a boat I need to tow home and i want to know if anyone has hauled lots of weight and if I will be ok with my truck(08 150 with 5.4 and 3.73).

The boat and trailer together will be around 9,000lbs. I have to tow it about 300 miles, but all on 2 lane 55mph highways, no freeways. Once I get it home, the boat will be sitting in the water. I will only be towing it 2 miles each spring/Fall for storage.

Will my truck handle this weight? I know its on the heavy side, but its only a 1 time deal and I dont want to have to rent a truck to do it. Anybody tow anything like this before with our trucks?


Thanks for any help guys!!

 

I would like to see a picture/specs of the boat. Post it up!!!

 

What type of cab do you have? That makes a difference on what you can tow. Also do you have have mods done to enhance the perfomance? Do you have a bumper hitch or frame hitch? We need to know more about the truck.

 

did your truck come equipped with the towing package? i think they add a transmission fluid cooler on trucks with the towing package. ive pulled a 9000 lb 5th wheel for a couple hundred miles through colorado with my 4.6, so the truck will do it. just make sure your hitch is rated for that much weight and check all your fluids in the truck.

tbraquet brought up a good point about the performance mods too. ive heard that a cold air intake makes your truck run lean, so it wouldnt be a good idea to try it with something like that.

 

Just because you can doesn't mean you should... get a friend with a heavy duty truck...

 

I agree with ManualF150. It were a short distance maybe, but 300+ miles I don't think I would do it.

 

333

 

Plus with that weight, you would need a WD hitch. Anything over about 3k (depending upon state)needs brakes, which means a brake controller, and your vehicle is on rated to 5k if not using a WD hitch.

 

I agree with him to, as far as I know most 1/2 ton trucks are only rated for 5000lbs. it might pull it, but imo you would be a lot better off finding a friend or something with a HD truck.

 

Thanks for the replies guys!

I have an extended cab with the towing package. No engine mods except a K&N filter. It has a heavy duty frame hitch and reciever and i regularly tow my old boat, a 24' Wellcraft which is 5,500lbs no problem.

I am buying a 27' Tiara Open on a Alluminum trailer for my charter fishing buisness. It has a dry weight of 7000lbs. The trailer is about 1500 and it has no fuel in it. I know its a lot for the truck, but I think if I take it easy it would be fine. I cant find a friend who can take a day off next week to help out so I am out of options. I have towed many heavier loads before with bigger trucks, but I dont have one anymore! The 150 may be put to the test. I suppose thats why I got the 100,000 mile warrenty. I just dont want to fry the hell out of my truck doing it.

I thought I had heard of guys towing 8-9 thousand pounds with these trucks and just wanted to see what the thoughts were. Like I said, its a 1 way trip through rural Northern Wisconson and the UP of Michigan. No traffic to speak of, just Deer.

 

I tow my dad's boat that weighs 8,800 pounds fully loaded an hour at a time. My truck has a 5.4L, the towing package and a 3.55 axle. One thing I will say is get an edge programmer. I did it before without the edge and it was doggy. Now, with my edge, there isn't a problem. I was doing 60 with no problem and just turned off the O/D on some of the steeper hills.

Just my two cents. I'm sure I'll get scolded for doing it but my truck never missed a beat doing this. Trans temp only went up about 5 to 7 degrees (and that was while running the A/C).

 

You can pull it all day long. Stopping it on the other hand is a whole new scenario.

 

I just towed my 24 ft Bayliner Cuddy cabin @ 100 miles. Never touched the O/D button, and hte trailer HYD brakes weren't working and as far as the braking you couldn't really tell the boat was back there. I'm running a 08 FX4 Screw with 5.4, 3:73's and the 20's, leveled with exhaust and a CAI, no programmer.

Got on it once to see how it did and stayed right with traffic leaving a light. Take your time, be easy with the throttle, and let her do what she was meant to do........WORK

 

He's right. Just don't forget...you won't stop on a dime with that much weight. Don't forget to leave extra room for stopping.

 

you'll be fine, but like other said, stopping is going to be rough. I'm guessing that trailer has surge brakes? A programmer will help tons, it reduced heat build up in the trans by quite a bit. As long as you have 3.73s with stock sized tires, you can tow it fine. Just remember to keep OD off on all but the most level of roads, and lock the trans into gear when going up a steep hill.