Hi Gang,

Good morning. I am looking for a 92-96 F150 to use mainly for towing, not a daily driver. I will be towing the following:

- 20' Sea Ray Bowrider, about 3500#, or
- 2001 Jayco Kiwi 23B, about 5000# fully loaded.

The Sea Ray would be towed mostly within an hour of home. The Jayco could be towed up to 4 hours away, and not generally in the mountains.

I have been looking at a 96 F150 reg cab long bed, with the 5L engine, trans code "U" and axle code "H9". So am I right that this has the 4R70W with a 3.55 limited slip axle? If so, it looks like this has a towing capacity of a little more than 6000#. Is that correct? The F150 has 177,000 miles, and it looks like it has been maintained properly. I have a few questions regarding the transmission, though. When driving, it seems as though the shift from either 2 to 3, or from 3 to OD, it shudders a little. Also, when depressing the accelerator, it shudders when going into lower gears. It otherwise runs perfectly. Is this something that I should live with for a truck with these miles? Would a fluid flush help correct this, or would a fluid flush be advisable? And finally, given the weight of the camper, am I expecting too much from this truck? According to the book, it should be no problem, but I wanted to get the expert's opinion. By the way, the truck looks a lot like my 95 in the signature, just a year newer, and with a better rear end.

Thanks,
John

 

In general for a tow pig you're better off with an E4OD (Code "E") than with a 4R70W. Also the 302 is not the best engine for towing, the power band is at too high an RPM to be all that useful. The 351 pulls way better but has a drinking problem, the 300 sems to pull a load better than the 302 because it makes all of its power at low RPM but its overall performance is lower.

As for the tranny problems, any auto trans with 177K on the meter is living on borrowed time. A flush and tranny service won't hurt but it cannot cure 15 years of normal wear and tear

 

if you want good towing get a little bit older like 88 to 91 with a 4.9 and a t18 4 speed has granny gear but no od if you are ridin bobtail u dont need 1st but ive towed heavyer loads easyer in a 2wd with 4.9 t18 then my old 4wd 318 dodge

plus without a load i get 15 around town and upto 21 on the highway

 

You should be looking for a 300 or 351 with a E4OD or any manual except a Mazda M5OD (code M). A 302 and 4R70 is not really a good towing combo.

 

if you want a truck with overdrive f250 of these years offerd the 4.9 and a zf that had overdrive the newer trucks have the zf6 double overdrive but they have sycro probs

all in all ive owned the t18 m5od and drivin lots of zfs my favorite is the t18 real heavy duty its got pto and its cast iron that never goes bad

 

Well - if you really want a towing beast, look for a F-250/350 with a diesel or a 460.

 

Yes.

That seems VERY high. Where did you get that number?Probably, and definitely IF you replace the fluid with MotorCraft MerconV (not any aftermarket fluid).Sounds like it. That truck is too small & light to handle that much weight. The truck barely weighs 4Kip, and most of that is on the front axle; I certainly wouldn't try to double it with a trailer. My Bronco has nearly 50/50 weight distribution, and it's much heavier, so it can handle more.

 

Yeah, that would be taxin' that little truck.

Adrianspeeder

 

Thanks for all the information. I think I will pass on this one, and look for something a little better suited for what I am towing. I have also been looking at Broncos, with 351's. Would these be better for what I am towing? I don't really need 4WD, but that's all I am seeing for sale. If I find one with high miles and reasonable well-maintained, can I expect the transmission/transfer case, etc up to the task? I know less about Bronco's than the F150's.

Thanks,
John

 

I have a 1989 F150 4x4 longbed with 351 5.8L, C6 auto, and 3.55 gears. I normally do all my towing with my 2002 F150, but I've used the old 89 occassionally too. I too have a 2005 Jayco 23B camper. The 89 pulls it fine. I have no od gear so I'm turning plenty of rpm's going 60 mph and pull hills with no problem. My only suggestion would be add-a-leaf or air bags to level the truck out when loaded.

Like previous post said the 351 does like its gas. I get around 12 mpg empty and 8 loaded. But in comparison my 2002 5.4l only gets 10 mpg loaded. Remember my 89 has a C6, so I don't go over 60 mph. But I recommend a C6 for a used work truck. Very reliable and the cheapiest to rebuild if you have to.

 

All Broncos ('66-96) are 4WD. BroncoIIs aren't Broncos. '78-96 Broncos are built on the F150 platform, so almost everything is the same. Broncos aren't suited to towing long trailers because of their short wheelbase (105"), so you should be looking at pickups for towing. But a heavy Bronco with the towing package, stock-size HD tires, & well-maintained brakes can tow if the driver (YOU) knows what he's doing and pays strict attention to keeping it all under control. I had a little lapse once, & rolled.

 

[QUOTE=Kraft1982;4659476]My only suggestion would be add-a-leaf or air bags to level the truck out when loaded.

jc whitney has universal helper coils in 1000 or 2000 lbs i put them on my 90 f150 and i put a dual axel 24 foot camper n it only squats the truck maybe a 1/4 inch look in my albums for the white truck in my signature and it has pics of loaded and unloaded the only thing is the clamps that come in the kit are 2 small u will need 3 1/4 exhaust clamps the kit only cost 35 shiped and anouther 8 for the clamps