I'm having troubles towing and would like advice.My 96 4.9 f150 seems to struggle when towing my boat.I'm wondering whether i need to change gears.I assume it is factory standard but I'm running 31's now.Does this make any difference?? If i do need to change could anyone tell me what it will cost and how much work is involved? Thanks for your time.

 

Take a look at the tags on the rear and see what ratio you have. Yes, the big tires make a difference.
The cheapest thing to do may be to buy a whole axle assembly from a salvage yard with the right gear ratio and change it out yourself. Changing gears is a job best left to the professionals. If you change the gear ratio in yours you may as well put in a traction lock unit.

 

I looked at the tag but it did not make much sense to a novice like myself.What numbers should I be looking for and what ratio would I need to change to?Thank you.

 

You would want 3.55 gears at the minimum for towing with 31" tires, IMO..... My "guess" is that you probably have the "standard" 3.08 gears.......

Look on your drivers side door jamb and there should be a sticker on there and look under "AXLE". It'll have a two digit code.

18 - 3.08
19 - 3.55
26 - 3.73
27 - 3.31
H9 - 3.55 Limited Slip
B6 - 3.73 Limited Slip

I'm pretty sure these codes are the same for '96 and older F150's as well.....

With the I6, you'll need to get the rpms up as fast as you can get them when starting off.

Do you have an automatic or manual trans??

Mitch

 

It's a manual gearbox.If I change to 3.55 what differences will i notice?

 

Is it rare to get a 4x2 Lariat with the B2/3.73 Limited Slip rear?
I insisted on having this and they had to go to many other dealers to find one so I figured either everyone was buying them up or many dealers did not carry those here in SoCal.
All I demanded was the 3.73 LS axle and black on black leather Lariat.