Increase towing capacity
 

I just purchased a 2010 F150 Platinum with the 5.4 with 3.55 gears the charts says its rated at 9600lbs towing but I also noticed on the chart that with 3.73 gears it jumped to 11000lbs so would that be the case if I swapped out the gears in the truck.


I'll be towing a 33ft TT with a dry weight of 6500lbs and just want more towing capability then Ill actually need


thanks

Your payload cannot handle that...

You can do things to help your truck handle a load better, but you can't legally increase the payload. Your max payload is listed on the door jamb sticker. If you want to increase legal payload, get a different truck.

legally nothing on your own....find a shop that does tow trucks/limo's/ custom haulers....they can re certify the hauling/towing....basically a shop that does frame work...or as stated above----go shopping for another truck...

I understand the payload limits written on the truck, but for all who keep calling them legal limits, that is incorrect. They are all guidelines and recommendations by the manufacturers. For proof of this, you only need to read the label. It clearly says the weight SHOULD never exceed the stated limit. This simply means that is what they test the truck to, while maintaining acceptable life, performance and safety. Legal rules vary by state and mostly for non commercial vehicles it is up to the discretion of the officer stopping you or the appearance of an unsafe condition.

and most are.....here's your fine.. your tags/license say this...

good luck defending that in court or with your insurance.
"well I know my truck says 2,000 lbs max payload, but I feel perfectly safe with 5,000 of hay bails in the bed, so I really don't see what the problem is..."

and well, if you are significantly over payload, it generally won't "look" safe either, so you will probably get pulled over...

I am a commercial enforcement officer for the state of California and have testified on hundreds of cases over my 33 year career. I have also testified as an expert on out of state cases. This above statement could not be further from the truth.

Let me give you a scenario (an extreme one but to prove a point). Several years ago there was an F250 pulling a large 5th wheel toy hauler that was involved in an accident with several other vehicles. This F250 was overloaded however the fact that it was overloaded was not the cause of the accident. The cause of the accident was actually another vehicle who was being driven by a drunk driver. There were two fatalities as a result of this accident.

The drunk driving was listed as the primary collision factor and the overloaded F250 was listed as the secondary (contributing to the severity) collision factor on the collision report. The drunk driver was prosecuted for manslaughter (times 2) and went to prison. The driver of the F250 was actually prosecuted with gross negligence in the operation of a motor vehicle and was sentenced to 60 days in the county jail, lost his drivers license, and will be on probation for 5 years. His auto insurance company also cancelled his policy and exercised their right to refuse to cover him in the accident because he was not following the DOT approved weight limits of his truck. A couple years after this accident the driver of the F250 was being sued by the family who lost their dad and daughter in the accident.

So if you believe the weight numbers are "guidelines and recommendations" then you couldn't be more wrong. I guess being overloaded only matters if you get caught. Keep in mind very little (if anything anymore) is left up to the discretion of the officer, maybe more so back in the good old days.

It is unbelievable what people will type on these forums, and even more unbelievable that people who read it will believe and repeat nonsense like this.

This ^^^^^. This should become a sticky.

WOW I didn't mean to start something here I am new to towing and I am well aware of the laws in the State of NJ I have just heard conflicting stories


if 2 identical trucks came from the factory one with 3.55 and one with 3.73 they have different payload


so Im not sure why you couldn't swap out the 3.55 for the 3.73 and get the same results.