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Here's the scenario: I have two goals that I wish to fulfill with a single vehicle. One is towing a trailer of about 9000 pounds. Maybe we should call it 10,000 to be safe. The other is transporting 8 people, including driver, plus gear, without towing. I am trying to see if both of these roles can be filled with one vehicle.
I know that transporting the people and gear requires a ford e350 15 passenger van. I have already been doing this, we just rent a van every time we go somewhere. I want to buy a van so they can pay me for using it instead of renting a van every time.
The towing is a completely different job, which could be done with any suitable vehicle, but I am hoping that I can kill both birds with one stone. Can an E350 15 passenger van tow over 9000lbs safely and comfortably or is this not a realistic goal? Is there another vehicle that can do both of these things? I have never owned a van or other work vehicle before, until now I have either been renting or driving company vehicles that are meant specifically to do a particular job- not two completely different jobs.
My absolute max budget for this is $10,000 and at that price it MUST be able to do both jobs. I would really like to spend much less than that if possible. What do you think?
i dont think a E 350 van can legally do it if it has 15 people in it to much weight for the van. if it was empty then it could do it fine. the van could pull it but you need to get the v10 or a diesel.
When towing, the van will only have the driver, maybe 1 passenger, and not much gear in it. Two different jobs: carrying 8 people with gear and no towing; and towing 10,000lbs without passengers.
So can the 15 passenger (extended) van tow 10,000 safely?
i would think so if there are not 15 people in it.
just get a good brake controller and you will be good.
see link 2001 e350 van 10,000 lbs. towing capacity Max Trailer Weight 2001 Ford E-350 Super Duty Specifications
Towing capacity depends on a number of factors, and the specifications link above does not account for all of them.
You have to get a hold of an owners manual for the year(s) that fit your price range and see what options the van has, and how they affect towing capacity. An '01 E-350 van with a 5.4L V8 and 3.55 gears may not be up to the task, but one with a more powerful engine and a tow package with lower gears might handle it easily.
In short, yes, but you have to make sure what you're buying. Don't just run out and buy any van. If budget is a big factor then stay away from diesels as they are a pricey option. A V10 with 4.10 gears should be able to pull (and stop - that's the important part) just about anything you can hook up to it.
Any E350 can do it, but you'll have to take your time, and give you alot of braking space!
I towed a car behind my 12,000lbs motorhome, and car full of stuff and luggage. I was just tipping over 17k lbs in total, and sure was slow off the line, (3 speed non turbo Diesel) and took a while to stop, but I felt safe. I have been towing, and driving big, older machines for a long time though, so i'm use to it.
Just make sure your trailer has working brakes, and you'll be fine. I only had the motorhome braking, and the back brakes are drums.
I have 9 kids and a 1998 Econoline 350 with the V10. We tow a 31' RV which is 7010 dry. When fully loaded I have no doubt we were at the 10,000 lbs limit. We have towed the RV with our van at least 30,000 miles over the last 12 years. Two trips from CA to SC, multiple trips from CA to TX, and lots of trips within the state of CA.
#1 A GOOD hitch is a must. We invested in a Husky which transformed the stability of the van/RV. With the long rear axle to hitch ratio, it was pretty unstable before that investment.
#2 It is a little slow up the steep mountain grades, but once I realized that the V10 gets its power from high revolutions, our speed increased.
#3 Our gas mileage over the towing trips is around 8 mpg. When not towing we get 12-14 on the road.
#4 We put extra performance and heavy duty pads for the front brakes, and that has worked fine.
I had a 2002 extended E-350 with a V10. It had seating for 11 with a large open space in the rear. I used it to tow a 9,100 pound trailer all over the US. It did great. I never had any problems stopping it.
Mine had a 3.73:1 axle. If you're going to be over what I towed I recommend a 4.10:1 axle if you can find it. I was right at the max tow weight with the 3.73:1 axle.
Probably resurrecting a dead thread. I just wanted to add to this thread. After do much reading on multiple forums I pulled the trigger on a van. The luck of a draw I ended up with an 2002 E350 explorer conversion van with a 7.3. The van had 190k on the clock. I added a Tru cool tranny cooler with gauge, AFE deep pan, Ambulance front steering stabilized, 4" diamond exhaust all the way back with high flow muffler, installed tow mirrors, Changed all the front pulleys and water pump out with OEM parts, pulled the rear bench seat out and added another row of captain seats found on craigslist. As far as insulating I used PYRO GEL inside the doghouse and under the floor, along with wrapping the exhaust all the way back. I also had to add a class 5 hitch and Reese anti sway weight distribution hitch. Once it was all said and done I was able too hook up to my 35ft KZ MXT 319 toy hauler and set sail from Texas to California. I set the Diablo sport tuner on tow mode. toy hauler loaded is rated at 10,125 lbs, I took the time to roll on a cat scale and weighed in at 18K lbs and some change fully loaded. we averaged about 600 miles per day towing between 58-65 mph. The van could go faster but the sway with the mountains and 18 wheelers wasn't to comfortable. After all said and done on our 2 week trip I am so happy with the van and hope to never sell it. I plan on adding some RV bilstein shocks with Moog Cc880s front springs and possibly air bags on the rear just to help with level.
01-17-2012, 03:33 PM
