I have a 2012 F150 Super Crew XLT 18" Wheels with 145" Wheel Base with the 5.0 with 3.31 gears & towing pkg.

No where on my owners manual or online does it show my tow rating with that gear combo. Ive searched hundreds of threads, asked my dealership & no one has the answer so this is my last resort. I tow a 25' Dusky Boat about 6000lbs & a Starcraft Starstream travel trailer about 7000 lbs loaded right now. Truck handles it fine but I just dont know the max tow on the truck. We may be replacing the boat to a 28' that will bring me close to 8500lbs and do not want to over do it. Anyone out there can you help? 5.0 3.31 gears/ 5 1/2 bed???

 

I think there was a chart in my 2010's owner manual that breaks down towing capacities based on 2x4, 4x4, and some other options. But when you start getting into towing that weight the question that comes into play isn't necessarily the weight of the trailer, its what the total weight of your truck is loaded with the weight of the trailer tongue on your hitch. And for us half ton pickup guys actually isn't a whole lot compared to 3\4 tons. The GVWR of my supercrew FX4 with the 5.4L is only 7700lbs, with the max payload of 1548lbs, which when you think about it with people and gear and whatever is in your bed, is not a lot.

Do a search, or check out this post or others like it.
https://www.f150online.com/forums/20...ow-rating.html

 

Page 274 of your owners manual. And you will hit one of your other limits (GAWR, GVWR, GCWR) before you will hit your tow limit.

 

My '11 brochure show's 13,500 GCWR and 8,000 lbs max towing wt. Same as the what the 3.55 show's.

 

Thanks guys.. I will definately look into this. The 3:55 gears seem to have the info but not the 3:31 but it seems to be the same for the 4x2 which is what I have. It seems to handle the loads fine with 2 adults in the cab. I love the power of this 5.0 had the 5.4 before & what a diffrence with this one.

 

http://www.trailerlife.com/wp-conten...wing-Guide.jpg

8000#.

HOWEVER, you will run out of payload before you reach that limit. Load up the truck with everything you take on your trips (people, cargo), go fill the gas tank, and run it over a scale. Subtract the weight from the GVWR on the door sticker, that's your max TONGUE weight.

You are probably okay with your 6000# boat, because they usually have a relatively light tongue weight. I'd bet that you are somewhat over with your TT, and an 8500# boat would be a no-no.

 

Your base payload is 1700-1790. Max tow is showing to be 8000lbs for 4x2 with 3.31 gears. I'm seeing on average a 200-400lb loss in towing going from 4x2 to 4x4... so your safe range would be 7300lbs-8000lbs. Your GCWR(combined weight) is 13,500lbs.

http://media.ford.com/images/10031/2012_F150_Specs.pdf

Easiest thing to do would be to go weigh your truck on a certified scale with a full tank of gas... then subtract that from your GVWR listed on your door jamb sticker. Whatever is left is payload that you could use for trailer tongue weight and extra cargo in your truck. Figure about 10-15% of total trailer weight to be on the tongue unless you have a weight distribution hitch setup.

 

I honestly believe that Ford really under estimates the power that these trucks can deliver under load. Before my 2012 I had a 2007 fx2 with the 5.4 and 3.55 gears and had to tow my brothers boat after his f250 took a dump. He has a 36ft contender that weighed a little over 10000 lbs and it towed it with out any issues with 4 adults un the truck and bed full of gear coolers and fish at about 70mph. we never want to over load our trucks but when push comes to shove These trucks rule.

 

It's not the power thats the issue. Its the brakes, frame, etc.

You can make a smart car tow 10k lbs, doesn't mean it's a wise decision.

Also look at it from a design perspective. Do you build something to hold a max of 15k lbs and let it constantly hold that load, or do you build something to hold a max load of 15k lbs but limit it to 7500 lbs so it will last. You always over design and build.