Originally Posted by smokeywren

I'm a firm believer is having "enuff truck" for your max load. So to tow a 29' TT with an F-150 EcoBoost, you need the HD Payload pkg so you don't exceed the GVWR of your truck when towing.

The HD Payload pkg includes 8,200 pounds GVWR, the 3.73 limited slip rear axle and the max tow pkg (towing mirrors and intregrated trailer brake controller (ITBC)). That's about 500 pounds more GVWR than with the max tow pkg, and 1,000 pounds more GVWR than the standard F-150. No, you cannot have the electronic locking rear axle, and no you cannot have a 5.5' shorty bed with the HD payload pkg. So a SuperCrew will have "Posi-Traction" and the 6.5' bed. That's a shorty in the SuperDuty world, but it's the long bed in an F-150 SuperCrew where the tiny little 5.5' shorty bed is available without the HD Payload pkg.

Dealers don't keep the F-150s with the HD Payload pkg in stock, so you'll probably have to order it and wait 6 to 8 weeks for it to arrive at your dealer's store. So plan ahead.

With the EcoBoost engine, there are no significant disadvantages to the 3.73 axle ratio. Owners report about the same MPG I get with my 3.15 axle ratio, whether towing or unloaded. The limited-slip rear axle works fine after you learn how to use it. I prefer my e-locker rear end, but I've made do with a posi-traction axle for dozens of years.

Originally Posted by zx12-iowa

So a 3.73 is always the best towing gear it's often not Needed with the Eco due to the awesome diesel like torque curve

Originally Posted by acadianbob

You might tow OK in 6th gear with 3.55's but I'd bet that you won't with 3.31's or 3.15's . . . . . You'll be towing in 5th and sometimes 4th.

Originally Posted by scoopy

A 3:73 rear end does the trick. I have a 2014 Fx4 that has the max tow package and the heavy duty payload package. I have a 32 foot 5 th wheel that weighs roughly 9000 pounds depending on the load and whether all the kids come, and don't notice the trailer behind us at all. Used to pull the trailer with a dodge

Originally Posted by Cover Dog

Has Ford made some changes in 2014 when ordering the HD Payload Pkg. I thought it is only available on the XL, XLT & Lariat.

Originally Posted by smokeywren

Note that scoopy is in Canada. Canadian Ford order guides are different that the U.S. order guides. Back when I ordered by '99.5 F-250, the Canadians could order Lariat trim with cloth seats, but we couldn't order that combo here.

Originally Posted by smokeywren

Only in hills or with a strong headwind. When towing my 5,000-pound TT, my EcoBoost with 3.15 axle ratio usually cruises in 6th gear on the flats without a headwind. But it does downshift to 5th for any little bump in the road, then right back to 6th when I get over the overpass or whatever was the bump in the road. And in April I towed my cargo trailer that grossed about 6,000 pounds from Midland to Ontario, Oregon, and it was frequently cruising in 6th gear.

That's running in drive without tow/haul. With tow/haul, it takes a lot longer to upshift back into 6th once it downshifts. So normally I don't use tow/haul unless in hill country or climbing mountain passes. Understand that in our Select-Shift trannies, 5th gear is overdrive and 6th gear is double overdrive. 4th gear is direct drive. So any gear of 4th, 5th, or 6th is fine for cruising while towing.

Different story if overloaded when towing near the GCWR. I towed my 8,000-pound 5er from Austin thru the hill County back to Midland, using tow/haul all the way, and it rarely upshifted to 6th other than for long downgrades. But no harm done because of cruising in 5th gear. My MPG was only a little less than when towing my TT that grosses less than 5,000 pounds over those same highways between Midland and Austin.