zx12-iowa

If it were me, I'd tow the tractor without two thoughts....

smokeywren

You are correct that the drivetrain with the EcoBoost engine has more tow rating than the drivetrain in the same truck with the 5.0L engine. But you muddy the water with mention of GVWR. GVWR has absolutely nothing to do with tow rating.


Tow rating is the GCWR of the tow vehicle minus the weight of the tow vehicle. The factory tow ratings of all brands of vehicles are overstated because the manufacturers all use the shipping weight of the the vehicle instead of the actual weight of on a normally-loaded vehicle with passengers and cargo. So Ford's tow ratings are overstated the same as GM's and Ram's. But the GCWR is a valid maximum weight that you should not exceed.


Using a 2013 F-150 SuperCrew 4x4 with 3.55 axle ratio as the example, the Ecoboost drivetrain has GCWR of 15,500 pounds and a tow rating of 9,500 pounds. The same truck but with the 5.0L drivetrain has GCWR of 13,500 and a tow rating of 7,500 pounds. Yep, that's 2 000 pounds difference. And it's a reasonably accurate difference.


Have you done the same tests that Ford uses to verify the GCWR of their pickups? They load the truck and trailer to the GCWR, then tow that trailer up a steep grade to be sure nothing overheats in the drivetrain while maintaining a reasonable speed up that grade. They test to the GCWR, not to a tow rating.


I don't know the "reasonable" speed they use, but my guess is a minimum of 45 MPH on the steeps sections. You can use one of the same steep grades that Ford uses. It's Arizona State Highway 68 from Laughlin, Nevada across the river at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, then up the canyon walls and on up the pass to the summit of Carvajal Pass about 12 miles later. The EcoBoost drivetrain can pass that test when grossing 15,500 pounds. But the 5.0L has to reduce weight to 13,500 to pass the same exact test.

Your opinion that the 5.0L is just as strong a drivetrain as the EcoBoost doesn't hold up based on real-world testing. So accusing Ford of playing marketing games with the tow ratings of their trucks is not supported by facts.

5.0GN tow

Except for the fact Smokey that numerous posts here and in other forums tend to say that the eco overheats when pushed to the max on uphill climbs towing due to insufficient intercoolers. Also the fact that the 2010 and 09 5.4s were rated heavier and less powerful trucks than the 5.0. Also really dive into the numbers. The trucks that most choose to tow heavy the super cab and crews, the GCWR and towing takes a much larger hit than the weight difference of the trucks weight increase in 5.0 than Ecoboost does. For instance the eco 4x4 might loose 200 lbs tow rating for going from 4x2 and the 5.0 loses 1400. There is marketing involved too.

5.0GN tow

Ok specifics related to last post. The 13 5.0sc 145wb 5.0 with 3.55s is rated 14900 gcwr. Same truck 4x4 drops to 13500. In eco form 4x2 it's 15200 and 4x4 15400. In 3.7 it's the same at 11700 for 3.73 axle which is only option for sc. In 6.2 it's 15500 for 4x2 and 15600 for 4 X 4. So as you can see its more than math involved here. It's clear that the 5.0 would not be the only engine that suddenly loses all its power when going to 4x4.

Selling ecos is important to ford and we all know why.

Wannafbody

My 09 Silverado with a 315 hp 5.3 can tow 2000# more than a 14 F150 5.0 with 360 HP. Maybe Ford just doesn't trust that high revving engine to take the stress of high rpm, heavy towing. Or maybe it's a marketing game to sell more Ecoboosts.

To be fair, even though the tow ratings are the same between my Silverado 5.3 and F150 EB, in the real world, the EB will out tow the Silverado 7 days a week.

brulaz

Like a lotta stuff on the internet, this doesn't happen to everyone. I've done my share of heavy pulling 7500# in 3rd gear up the Appalachians with zero problems. Many others have done similar without problems.

Maybe steep grades in the South West when over 120F. Every truck has its limits.

Wannafbody

The only overheating problems I've read of with the EB have been in Arizona at near 100 degree F temps up a 7% grade.

5.0GN tow

That may be true about steep grades and all but still the 5.0 has less issues and I also pull 7500 with my 5.0 with no trouble in the appliachian mts. Your Ecoboost should have no trouble as its rated to tow well over 7500 I am sure. My 5.0 on the other hand is supposedly maxed out at 7500.

brulaz

5.0GN,

The 2015 F150's also have the 3.5L EcoB with a higher tow rating than the 5L. Just looking at HD Payload trucks, it's about a 1000# difference (12K versus 11K).

But in 2015 they are using the SAE method to estimate the F150 tow rating. That's a standard method independent of the manufacturer.

Of course manufacturers can play games with any standard method (like EPA's mileage estimates), but it I do think it does make Ford's towing numbers more believable.

Wannafbody

The 5.0 vs the EB in the same configuration should be able to tow similar weights based on peak HP numbers. Because the 5.0 has to run higher in the rpm range and a lower gear it may be harder on the transmission heat wise.