Just got done with a 700 mile trip towing 5000# with truck in sig.

3000# trailer with a 2000# load (38" tall x 64" wide x 76" long metal box, so fairly low profile). Just me in the seat.

Went from KC area down to Little Rock, AR, so included the Boston mountains and a couple stretches of 7% grade.

Averaged 14mpg hand calculated. Better than I was expecting. For reference, a couple previous long trips with occupants and a little gear for ~1000# total yielded 20.0-20.5mpg. All of this was using regular 87 octane.

Exclusively used tow/haul mode and it worked very well. Didn't expect much from the engine braking on a small displacement gas motor but it was surprisingly good. I was impressed with how the aggressiveness of the downshifting was matched to the amount of pressure applied to the brake pedal. Had no problem keeping the speed in check on those long steep downgrades. Highest rpm I saw while braking was 4400 and about 4000 while climbing the steepest grades at 55mph.
While trivial, I also liked how it increases the number of lane change blinks to 6 while in tow/haul.

 

What is the difference between using the tow/haul mode and not using it? particularly with the 10 speed transmission.

 

Tow haul changes the shift points, holds gears longer, ...

 

I used to use this feature in my 2013 Ram Hemi with a 6 speed transmission and seemed to help. My 2021 3.5 ecoboost 10 speed max tow pulls my approximate 7000lb trailer with ease up mountains in regular drive. Just wanted to make sure I wasn't stressing the transmission.

 

Plus TH mode gives you engine braking which I discovered while towing my wheeling truck, as I pulled off the interstate and slowing down for traffic lights. It changed down a couple of gears....frigging scared me.....until I looked it up.

 

I just towed my 6900# travel trailer for the first time on about 250 miles of some pretty curvy/hilly back roads with the truck in my sig. I have the 3.55 rear end. The Ecoboost, being even smaller displacement, does not do a very good job slowing down that much weight using engine braking. My previous truck was a 2019 Ram 1500 with the Hemi and it did a much better job since it's a much larger displacement. I'll get used to that I guess.

I also use TH mode exclusively when hooked up to the TT and 10-sp does a fantastic job with always being the in the right gear. One thing I'm not used to being able to do is accelerate going uphill without having to downshift 3 gears. The Ram with its 3.21 gears would downshift into 4th and even 3rd sometimes depending on the grade and the engine would screem at almost 5k rpm. I don't think I ever saw it go over 3k rpm in the F150 on the hills.

 

I can really use the engine braking regardless so I'll have to try it next time out. I still haven't adjusted my trailer brakes to my liking yet and I was burning up my truck brakes. The Ram was easy to set up. I had 3.92 gears in my Ram and it used to scream up hills and struggle a little.

 

It will also not skip gears in tow mode, like it does in standard, so less strain on the transmission/clutches.

 

The engine braking is the most important aspect of T/H mode, especially when on a 3 mile 7% downgrade. You can smoke the truck's brakes to the point of failure trying to keep your speed safe.

Towing safely is about so much more than what motor you have and the ease at which it moves the load.

 

Your results pretty much mimic what I get when I tow my boat from Kansas to Table Rock lake in Missouri...similar terrain, very similar results. And it is just a tick under 7,000 pounds...but probably has less wind resistance/drag.