Towing with a Ford

[Kellys]

I am going to buy either a 2013 or 2014 ford f150 and I have a 2006 jayco 23b and we are planning to take through the mountains of colorado and other parts of US .My question is I am trying to compare different types of engines can someone out there share their towing experiences with a ford truck

[DanNJanice]

In general you will want either the V8 (Can't remember if they had the 5.4 or 5.0 in those years) or the 3.5 ecoboost. They are all well regarded engines. Due to the turbocharger, the ecoboost makes better power at a lower RPM.
A couple of other things to think about.
Get one with the towing package, that should include the transmission cooler.
Look at the rear axle ratio. Higher number means the engine will turn at higher RPMs for any given speed. More pulling power at the expense of fuel economy.
Look at the sticker inside the door jam. It will tell you what the payload for that specific vehicle is. Payload-Tongue weight will tell you how much carrying capacity you have left for all you family and stuff.

[TWP723]

The 3.5 EcoBoost will have more torque. The 5.0 is no slouch though and is more than capable of yanking that trailer. The EcoBoost has a higher resale value and demand than the 5.0. Wouldn't be a bad thing to find one with the Max Trailer Tow pkg either.

[abart]

I have a 2014 F-150 extended cab 4x4 with 3.31 gears and the 3.5 TT. I pull a 26BH with it and even with 3.31 gears it is perfect for me. When I was looking for an F-150, I was really just looking for a 4x4 extended cab and didn't matter which motor but I was leaning towards a 5.0L. When I test drove the 3.5TT I was really impressed with the power of the V-6 and especially in the lower RPM range so I went with the 3.5TT. I'm absolutely sure either motor would tow great but the powerband of that twin turbo is perfect and probably about as close to a diesel feel as any gas motor out there. The 5.0L is a awesome motor but, in my opinion, that 3.5TT is tough to beat for towing. It pulls my 26BH like it isn't even behind me. The only thing I miss is that sweet v-8 sound....

[ALJO]

For the rear gearing always look at how much will it pull the TT and how much for daily driver purpose. The truck will pull it easy (in your case) anyway. If used as daily drive you want fuel economy.

[kayakterp]

My nephew is a mechanic and anFord guy. His dad owns a 5.4 and he uses it to haul ATV's. Before I bought my Ford he advised me to stay away from the 5.4 because they tow horrible. He said a 5.0 would be better than the 5.4.
I have also read this on Ford Forums as well.
When I was looking at a new truck I test drove a V-6 Eco boost (long bed). It wa originally set up to pull a 5W. I was scarred of the Eco Boost because it could potentially need more money for repairs if something was to go wrong. However I did see a YouTube video showing that pulled better power-wise than anything else in its class!
Good luck with your decision

[Isaacs]

The max tow package will give you large extendable mirrors and a factory installed brake controller. Both are very nice to have.

I did, however find myself having to fold the mirrors in when I was parked in a tight parking lot but having said that I miss them in my current truck.

[SilverEscape]

Originally Posted by Isaacs

The max tow package will give you large extendable mirrors and a factory installed brake controller. Both are very nice to have.

I did, however find myself having to fold the mirrors in when I was parked in a tight parking lot but having said that I miss them in my current truck.

The mirrors and brake controller may depend on the model? We have Max Tow and have the regular power folding mirrors. 2014 Platinum. The Platinum came with brake controller, even without the Max Tow package. The Max Tow changed the gear ratios (3.73 I believe we got with it) and that gave us about 450 pounds more payload than the models without Max Tow.

We love our mirrors though and wouldn’t want the large tow ones for daily use. We use some add ons for when we tow the trailer. We tend to go out for a couple weeks at a time and our usable season for the trailer is really only 3-4 months so the majority of our driving time, we don’t need tow mirrors. I can see them being nice to have if a person towed more.

[Atlee]

I got the 3.5L Ecoboost engine in my 2014 XLT, 4x4, Supercab, MaxTow & HDPP. It came standard with LT245/75R17 LRE tires and 3.73 rear end.

I got the Eco not only because of the relatively low and wide power band, but hope the twin turbos will keep the power higher when rummaging about the high elevations of the Rockies, etc. like diesels do, due to the turbos.

One draw back to the ECO in the high mountains, that little V-6 will not have great engine braking.

[BCK]

My 2014 Ecoboost with the max tow does just fine with our 26bhs. It would be worth looking into the timing chain issue on ecoboosts of those years and make sure you get one built after the fix. It is a well documented and known problem but for some reason no recall from Ford. I have 2 friends that had to do engine rebuilds on their trucks that would have been very expensive had they been off warranty.

[JeremiahM]

For high elevation like the Colorado mountains, you'll definitely notice a huge power difference with the 3.5 like mentioned above, forced induction kinda makes up for lack of density of the thinner air. I believe naturally asperated motors loose roughly 20% of their power at those higher elevations, not the case with the ecoboost, you'll appreciate those turbo a lot up there

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

[SkyBound]

Tow mirrors came standard with the MaxTow package in the USA for these years, in Canada they were optional with the MaxTow package.

The MaxTow package came with 3.73 gears in these years as well, and 4.10s were available only with the Heavy Duty Payload package. In 2015 Ford made 3.55 gears standard with the MaxTow.

The EcoBoost is a powerful engine and the SelectShift 6spd is a stout transmission. The engine braking isn't great, as stated before, and that's just due to the nature of the design. 2 less cylinders to provide that engine drag compared to V8s. The F150 truck itself is comfortable, spacious, quiet, and tough.

The MaxTow offers upgraded transmission cooler, 3.73 gears, heavy duty hitch, increased GVWR and higher rated axles above and beyond what the conventional tow package offers (3900 front 4050 rear). It's worth holding out for, albeit difficult to find in the used market. It was on my must have when searching dealerships for trucks in inventory.

[SkyBound]

I have also heard that naturally aspirated engines lose about 2% power per thousand feet above sea level. I'm sure the published HP/TQ numbers from the manufacturer are based on sea level performance, too.

[Moseh]

I recently bought a 2017 F150 3.5 ecoboost. I love it, although I'm a bit nervous it may not be enough truck for my 2017 29RKS. With my truck, I got the max tow package, which gave me 3.55 gears. 3.73 came with the max payload pkg, which I didn't get.. but now wish I had. The package also came with the standard size mirrors w/ BLIS, but I chose the option for tow mirrors, and glad I did. If I had a do-over, I would go with an F250 diesel. Instead, I'll probably get a propride hitch.

[Demiles]

[QUOTE=Moseh;578882]I recently bought a 2017 F150 3.5 ecoboost. I love it, although I'm a bit nervous it may not be enough truck for my 2017 29RKS. With my truck, I got the max tow package, which gave me 3.55 gears. 3.73 came with the max payload pkg, which I didn't get.. but now wish I had. The package also came with the standard size mirrors w/ BLIS, but I chose the option for tow mirrors, and glad I did. If I had a do-over, I would go with an F250 diesel. Instead, I'll probably get a propride hitch.[/

For a trailer that large, yes a bigger heavier truck would have been a better choice. You can control how it’s loaded though so go light on the front storage pass through and the under bed storage. If it has 30lb propane bottles only fill one or possibly switch to 15lbers or maybe a single 15. Load as much as you can close to the axles and don’t fill either of the two fresh water tanks until you reach your destination. If Jayco did a good job with the design and weight distribution she just might tow pretty well. I was able to get my tongue weight down from 1100 to 950 by doing the things listed above and I tow with my water tank full. If money isn’t an issue then go for the Propride , just be aware that the hitch itself does add about a 100lbs over the standard types. A trip to the scales is highly recommended so you know where you are, I think you should be able to get the hitch weight down to 1,000 lbs.

[North of 49°]

I have a 2013 Ecoboost with the 3.55 rear end. Since this is my daily driver, the 3.55 gears were a nice compromise between my towing needs and gas mileage -- also, since I bought it used, I didn't have much of a choice. But since this truck was built for the Canadian market, it has the regular Towing package which included the hitch and brake controller, but not the towing mirrors. I use strap-on mirrors, which work just fine for my uses. They vibrate slightly, but I only need them to see if there's a car in the lane beside me, not the license plate on that car.

Plenty of power while towing with the Ecoboost. Even in a strong headwind, it has no problem maintaining the speed limit, but I really notice it at the gas pump after. It tows so much better than my old 2004 Silverado with the 5.3 litre engine and 3.73 gears.

[Murff]

I have a 2011 F150 and bought these mirrors from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Scitoo-Mirror...50+tow+mirrors

Easy addition and worth the price!

Murff