f150 pulling capacity
Senior Member
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 4,761
Likes: 0
F-150fifthwheel- welcome to F-150 online. Most of the people here are nice and helpful. Keep those posts coming. Nice truck.
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2000 F-150 XL,RC,LB,5.4,4R70W,3.55LS,
Class III tow/Payload #3/Convenience pkgs.,
4-wheel disc/ABS,Chestnut/Parchment 40/60,
Ford bedliner & gas/wheel/spare locks,
3" cold air box modification,Superchip,
Dynomax ultra-flow welded 3" cat-back.
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2000 F-150 XL,RC,LB,5.4,4R70W,3.55LS,
Class III tow/Payload #3/Convenience pkgs.,
4-wheel disc/ABS,Chestnut/Parchment 40/60,
Ford bedliner & gas/wheel/spare locks,
3" cold air box modification,Superchip,
Dynomax ultra-flow welded 3" cat-back.
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 1999
Posts: 295
Likes: 0
From: MS
Underated in the sense of that they can pull a larger load than rated. I relize it may be more comfortable big a bigger rig but my point is that I think people go by the numbers too much. Meaning if it is rated to tow a trailer at 8,000 lbs and your trailer weighs 8,200 lbs it is not going to grenade on you. And you don't need a bigger truck to carry 200 more lbs.
Senior Member
Joined: Nov 1999
Posts: 237
Likes: 0
From: NC
F1505thWheel:
Thanks for clearing it up. From your early posts, I thought you were the owner of a 4.6L and were endorsing that you could tow your 7200+ # trailer..
I was mistaken as you have the 5.4L.
Sorry about that..
fyi: you can put a quick truck config in your signature, so folks know what your driving.
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Y2K F250 XLT SC 4x2 5.4L 5sp 4.10LS
Thanks for clearing it up. From your early posts, I thought you were the owner of a 4.6L and were endorsing that you could tow your 7200+ # trailer..
I was mistaken as you have the 5.4L.
Sorry about that..
fyi: you can put a quick truck config in your signature, so folks know what your driving.
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Y2K F250 XLT SC 4x2 5.4L 5sp 4.10LS
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 1,544
Likes: 0
From: Kalamazoo, MI, USA
Dear f150fifthwheel:
I miss the days where one could actually tow someting with a big car. In fact, I wish I could get a big car!
I drove mostly wagons while raising my kids; and traded off the old Suburban (my largest 'wagon' of the fleet) when planning my daughter's wedding.
The combination of Wedding, Ford dropping the twin-I-beam front suspension, the 'new-look' F-150 and the intro of the Triton 5.4 all pointed to the F-150.
That '97 did an admirable job -- my little setup is a 20' Wilderness -- which, with wife and travelling petting-zoo, weighs in at 11,500#. The Suburban would pull it at 75 MPH WOT; and both the '97 with 3.55 and Nick can do 75MPH at WOT too. Not much more, if any.
In Michigan, the legal limit for POV's with Trailers is 55 MPH. Nobody goes 55 MPH -- myself included.
I suspect that when Ford rates vehicles, it does it per the legal (speed) limit -- which nobody follows (?) -- herein lies the dilemma.
Do you set up your truck/trailer combination to run with the big-dogs -- or play it safe?
If you play it safe -- you can pull all day at 55 MPH.
If you want to run with the big-dogs, then having a bit of reserve is wise.
My puny little 20-foot setup is perfect. By the book, it has the right amount of reserve to get me up and down the hills of Dolly Pardon's neighborhood -- hopefully without cooking the tranny and rear axle.
This same setup (on the Suburban, not the Ford) got the rear end (3.42 with P235/70R15) so hot that the undercoating "sheeted-off" -- now I don't know how hot that was -- but it did tell me that I was working things pretty well (I did use Roadranger(r) synthetic lubricant -- which probably didn't hurt). This was with a 130 HP diesel -- surely the 260 HP gasser will put at least as much load on the gearset and cooling system etc. as the diesel did.
If you're going to trade off your truck every 40,000 or 60,000 -- none of this matters. But I'd like to top the 180,000 and 13 years I put on the Suburban with Nick -- and won't be loading it to the max intentionally.
I'm sure we both hope that Ford did it's job in designing and specifying -- and we can laugh over a coffee at Yogi's Jellystone some day.
Happy Cramping (Cramping: n. where you have all the conveniences of home -- only smaller).
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Y2K™ Jim Gorka
Toreador Red, Keyless XLT SC SB 5.4L E4x4 4wDisc/ABS, 3.73LS, Skid, HD 7700# Towing, LT-245's on Chrome, Tube-Steps, Captain's, 6CD, Tonneau, named: "Nick"
I miss the days where one could actually tow someting with a big car. In fact, I wish I could get a big car!
I drove mostly wagons while raising my kids; and traded off the old Suburban (my largest 'wagon' of the fleet) when planning my daughter's wedding.
The combination of Wedding, Ford dropping the twin-I-beam front suspension, the 'new-look' F-150 and the intro of the Triton 5.4 all pointed to the F-150.
That '97 did an admirable job -- my little setup is a 20' Wilderness -- which, with wife and travelling petting-zoo, weighs in at 11,500#. The Suburban would pull it at 75 MPH WOT; and both the '97 with 3.55 and Nick can do 75MPH at WOT too. Not much more, if any.
In Michigan, the legal limit for POV's with Trailers is 55 MPH. Nobody goes 55 MPH -- myself included.
I suspect that when Ford rates vehicles, it does it per the legal (speed) limit -- which nobody follows (?) -- herein lies the dilemma.
Do you set up your truck/trailer combination to run with the big-dogs -- or play it safe?
If you play it safe -- you can pull all day at 55 MPH.
If you want to run with the big-dogs, then having a bit of reserve is wise.
My puny little 20-foot setup is perfect. By the book, it has the right amount of reserve to get me up and down the hills of Dolly Pardon's neighborhood -- hopefully without cooking the tranny and rear axle.
This same setup (on the Suburban, not the Ford) got the rear end (3.42 with P235/70R15) so hot that the undercoating "sheeted-off" -- now I don't know how hot that was -- but it did tell me that I was working things pretty well (I did use Roadranger(r) synthetic lubricant -- which probably didn't hurt). This was with a 130 HP diesel -- surely the 260 HP gasser will put at least as much load on the gearset and cooling system etc. as the diesel did.
If you're going to trade off your truck every 40,000 or 60,000 -- none of this matters. But I'd like to top the 180,000 and 13 years I put on the Suburban with Nick -- and won't be loading it to the max intentionally.
I'm sure we both hope that Ford did it's job in designing and specifying -- and we can laugh over a coffee at Yogi's Jellystone some day.
Happy Cramping (Cramping: n. where you have all the conveniences of home -- only smaller).
------------------
Y2K™ Jim Gorka
Toreador Red, Keyless XLT SC SB 5.4L E4x4 4wDisc/ABS, 3.73LS, Skid, HD 7700# Towing, LT-245's on Chrome, Tube-Steps, Captain's, 6CD, Tonneau, named: "Nick"
Member
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 19
Likes: 0
From: Great USA
Thanks Y2K,
Just use it for pulling on the weekends and 2 vacations a year, no more than 300 miles from home with this one.
What we like to do is find campgrounds that will allow you to leave it there over the week and just come on the weekends. (you only have to pay the weekend rate and they let you store it on site) We will stay about 3-4 weekends there and then go to another campground and do the same. This works great, you only have to tow about 6-8 times per season and get to visit different places and not tax your towing.
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Fifth-Wheel
F150 XLT SC
5.4l 3.55LS
Towing package.
[This message has been edited by f150fifthwheel (edited 07-31-2000).]
Just use it for pulling on the weekends and 2 vacations a year, no more than 300 miles from home with this one.
What we like to do is find campgrounds that will allow you to leave it there over the week and just come on the weekends. (you only have to pay the weekend rate and they let you store it on site) We will stay about 3-4 weekends there and then go to another campground and do the same. This works great, you only have to tow about 6-8 times per season and get to visit different places and not tax your towing.
------------------
Fifth-Wheel
F150 XLT SC
5.4l 3.55LS
Towing package.
[This message has been edited by f150fifthwheel (edited 07-31-2000).]