I'm possibly looking at getting a 2013 Ford F150 4x4 Supercrew w/ 3.73 gears. The maximum towing capacity is either 9300lbs. w/ 5.5ft. bed or 9100lbs. w/ the 6.5ft. bed. Is it possible that the towing numbers Ford stated are underrated since most V8 trucks w/ the bigger gears would tow right around 10,000lbs. range?

 

It's capable of towing over the max tow rating, but in reality if you want to tow 10k you need a 3/4 ton truck. There are more ratings than just max tow that need to be considered - GVWR and payload being the most important. You will exceed these before you reach the max tow rating. It's not just Ford, it's everyone. A 1/2 ton truck is not the right tool for towing 10k. With that kind of load you need the beefier frame and driveline of a Super Duty. You don't necessarily need a diesel but you need the stronger truck.

Towing over any of the placarded ratings can cause legal issues if anything bad were to happen in addition to possibly causing premature wear and possible failure of something.

 

This has been discussed to death and can be searched. But the short story is the Max published numbers are inflated IMO. If you throw into the mix a box load that catches wind, truck cargo like people and coolers, altitude or hills etc. Then the capacity falls quickly. I have a 2011 XLT 4wd and 2010 Fx4 screw. My previous truck was a F250 FX4 power stroke.

I towed a Kubota 3550 or so with a brush hog on a 20ft flat trailer. It was about 7,500 lbs and it was a scary tow without weight dist or sway bars. It threw my F150 around like candy no matter where I loaded it at. I drove 55 max.

Our 26ft Keystone RV is about the most I feel comfortable towing, the motor doesn't have the grunt to pass on the highway IMO. It gets us everywhere safely at 65-70mph generally. I get 8.5mpg and the trailer is only 5,400 lbs.

Most stock tires are only 4 ply P metric that barely support the truck. I changed mine out for E load Michelins...

I used to haul overweight in my younger years but these days I like to be a little smarter and more respectful of the people I share the road with.

 

^^^^^^^ What he said. Great post!

I towed a 5k lb travel trailer with my F150, and it was all I felt comfortable pulling. I upgraded to and F250 so I could get an 8k lb (empty) fifth wheel. No way would I tow that much with an F150.

 

Moving to Ohio from Mississippi I towed a uhaul around 7000 and with the wind hills and all the stuff in the bed I was barely able to keep it in 6th gear. I was somewhat disappointed with it with also having a towing tune installed too.


Posted from F150online.com App for Android

 

Towing that much you should have had 6th locked out. Just my opinion.

 

I towed my 5400lb Jeep (7150lb roughly with trailer) from Iowa to Black Hills. Barely shifted out of 6th with EB, and it was a very comfortable tow at 65mph. No load distribution hitch, stock SR-A's. It got a little squirrely once on a big hill outside of Sioux Falls, on I-90 heading west, but the Jeep was about 6" back on the trailer from its normal position. The built-in antisway did it's job, I pulled off, adjusted the Jeep forward, and away we went. That was the only towing related 'instability' in 1400 miles.

The rest of the trip was very uneventful except for a broken Jeep axle running Iceman in Deadwood.

 

Car haulers and open trailers pull much easier than RV's and big boxes. The manual has a calculation for frontal surface area of trailers and how it de-rates towing capacity etc..

Another annoying thing about my 2010 is that I cannot lockout 6th. So she hunts all the time...

 

thx for the input guys. I don't plan on towing anything near the maximum towing capacity. The max I would be towing is 5200lb. boat 1 or 2 times a month or 7400lb. travel trailer?

 

You'll be fine with the boat. With the TT, you need to watch all of your waits. Chances are, by the time you load it up with people, gear, and a dog, you're going to be pushing (or over) your limits. If that 7400 lb is unloaded trailer weight, then you WILL be over your limits by the time it is loaded too.

With my 8k lb (empty) fifth wheel, I'm right at the limits on my F250 Super Duty diesel by the time everything is loaded up with 2 adults, 3 kids, and a 12 lb dog.

 

Damn dog needs to go on a diet.....

 

All she does is sleep all day!

 

Lol, yeah. My fiance had a miniature dachschund and when it got to be about 10-11 pounds, that was overweight(apparently). Made me laugh because her tiny dog would pick fights with my 65lb lab. Not the brightest bulb, her dog....

 

Ours isn't overweight, but she does try to pick fights with bigger dogs. My brother's big lab came after her once and she thought she was a goner. Hilarious to watch! She likes to act big, but she's really just a big wuss!

 

I have personally owned an F 150 crew max tow with 5.4/3.73. I towed an 8500# boat/trailer quite a bit so I am familiar with the performance and feel of the rig.

My new 5.0/373 handles the same rig as well if not better.