Floridaguy80

a 3/4 ton gas truck (F250) will be sufficient as well.

Floridaguy80

I had a 2013 Screw Ecoboost. Pulling a 7200lb trailer a few times a week wrecked havoc on my truck. I purchased a 16 F250 gas 2 weeks ago and its night and day compared to the F150. These little 1/2 ton trucks are good for a boat or trailer every now and then.. But not heavy towing nearly maxing out your truck every single day IMO

5.0GN tow

It depends on how they are set up. I tow heavy(8 to 9k) 3 weeks or more a month average trip 500 miles round trip. My truck has been doing this week in week out for over two years with no adverse effects. Its a 2013 STX SCAB 4x4 V8, bone stock and works very well. Its about as light as an F150 gets as far as options go, so payload is just under 1800lbs. I have exceeded GCWR at times but managed to stay under GVWR, I have had no issues. The trailer has brakes on both axles and the trailer is pretty tongue light for a GN.

smokeywren

A big-block V8 was the answer back in the day. 460 Ford. 354 GM or 440 MOPAR. Even the 429 Ford before the smog rules killed them. Gas-drinking monsters. But that day is long gone. Today the twin-turbo V6 in an F-150 can tow a lot more weight than the chassis can handle the hitch weight of that trailer.


For example. my 2012 EcoBoost with 3.15 axle can easily tow its tow rating of 8,000 pounds over the hills and dales. But it can also pull a much-heavier trailer if you don't mind overloading the chassis and getting awful MPG. One time I needed to tow a gooseneck dually trailer that grossed over 20,000 pounds for 300 miles across the Hill Country of central Texas. Gross weight with pickup and loaded trailer was 27,500 pounds. No problem with power and torque to pull that load. Of course I was severely overloaded over the GVWR and rGAWR, and even the GCWR of the F-150, but I made it with no problems - if you don't consider 6 MPG on premium gas a problem.


As far as problems? I haven't had even one problem in over 58,000 mostly-towing miles. Ford has years of experience with turbo-charged engines, so I wasn't worried about the twin turbocharged engine in my F-150 holding up. Previous tow vehicle was a turbocharged F-250 PowerStroke Diesel (PSD), and Ford was turbocharging diesels in the USA several years before I ordered my 1999.5.



As a general rule, the bigger the number the more leverage you have for towing heavy. My 3.15 is fine for towing my 5,000-pound TT, but it would probably be happier with 3.55 and get a smidgen better MPG because those turbos don't have to work so hard. 3.73 is probably overkill if you don't overload the tow vehicle, but Ford includes it in the max tow pkg and in the heavy-duty payload pkg (HDPP). You can get a 4.10 ratio with 20" tires and the 6.2L gas engine, but that's about the same towing result as the 3.73 with the 3.5L EcoBoost.


The GCWR of the pickup will indicate the difference the axle ratio makes. For 2013 F-150 SuperCrew with 6.5' bed and EcoBoost drivetrain, max GCWR is
14,000 with 3.15 axle,
15,100 with 3.31 axle
15,500 with 3.55 axle, and
17,000 with 3.73 axle.


Of course you probably cannot reach even the 14,000 combined weight without exceeding the GVWR (and payload capacity) of the F-150, but the GCWR indicates the power and torque of your drivetrain to pull a wagon-style trailer with minimal hitch weight.


The GCWR tells you the max weight you can gross without overheating anything in the drivetrain and without being the slowpoke holding up traffic on hills and passes. But payload capacity is usually the limiter as to how heavy a trailer you can tow without being overloaded. And for really big tandem-axle trailers, the max trailer weight you can tow without exceeding the reciver hitch tongue weight (TW) capacity with a weight-distributing hitch is about 8,000 pounds.

Velosprout

Don't forget to include the 345 International in that list. That was a high-torque but low revving beast used in pickups and tandem dump trucks. With their low gearing you could pull stumps. But, it got about 5 mpg downhill with a tailwind.


Your answer is correct, but I wouldn't classify the 3.73 gears as overkill. It makes the truck work less hard, makes acceleration while towing effortless, and I am still getting 18.5 mpg with a long-bed supercrew. I would classify it as the ideal F150 towing gearing, and would like to see it offered in other builds instead of just the HDPP for the 2016's.

Atlee

Nor do they include the "mandatory" options. Many trailer manufacturers will put a "dry" weight in their brochure. But they then require certain packages be included.

And these packages include many items that no one would order a trailer without, including AC and awning.

acdii

Again, why would anyone recommend a lessor vehicle to tow with? The 3.5 EB produces 365 HP and 450 lbft of torque and can tow up to 17,000 pounds. That ranger you talk about is limited to 7700 pounds max. It would be fine for a popup camper, but thats about it.

jk70

Thanks for the replies. I have found a truck I am looking at tomorrow. It's a 2012 F150 Supercrew 4x4 3.5L V6 ecoboost. Has Max tow so has 11,100 tow capacity and a 3.73 axle ratio. 1900lb payload capacity if I'm reading everything correctly.

Price is $31,875 and has 80k miles. I never pay sticker but this price seems to be normal. Any thoughts. And I think now I have many options of what to tow if I do get this vehicle. Does come with a cigarette lighter??? thought that stopped back in ~2002. Maybe it adds value

SixShooter14

$32K seems high to me, but I haven't researched it any.

I got my '16 Supercab 4x4 for $38k with no miles. Granted it doesn't have Max tow or payload or MFT/nav. and has the 5.0L. I still have a payload over 2100#.

Floridaguy80

Some of you guys really need to look when the manufacturer is offering rebates. just a few weeks ago I picked up a 2016 F250 gasser fully loaded for $38k after rebates and dealer discount.
MSRP on the truck was $49,900

I'm just completely shocked I see a lot of these F150s being sold for the same price as I paid for my truck