I am new to this website, but it looks like a great place to find some first hand experiences and knowledge. I am coming to you guys for some much appreciated advice.

I am about to purchase a 2013 F-150 Ecoboost. I will be towing a CC boat, could be upwards of 6,000 lbs. Most likely will be about 4,000 - 5,000 lbs. I do not want 4wd, but am worried about making it up the boat ramp. Will the 3.55 ELD suffice or is the 3.73 limited slip necessary? I would prefer to not have to pay the extra $2,000.

Any help is much appreciated, thanks.

 

The 3.73 will tow better all around, but with the 6spd you'll be fine. My truck has the 3.55 rear and it tows just fine. I like the idea of the ELD, I havn't been on fords site to see how you engage it yet though.

 

i think you should be fine. I have the 3.73 LSD in mine and have yet to have any issues on any boat ramp. I would think your ELD would be even better for the ramp.

Although your boat will weigh a lot more than my jet ski.

 

i don't see any advantage, in your case, to the LS. I think e-locker is the way to go.

you can get the max-tow option without the max-payload if you think you want 3.73's. this would get you the 3.73's and the option for e-lock without the max-payload overburden just to get the LS.

3.55's or 3.73's and elock would make you very happy, IMHO.

FWIW, LS diff is now available on XL and STX for 5.0 v8 and 3.55's.

 

What he said.

 

I have 3.55 Limited Slip and have not towed that much weight, however I have had to reverse out of a wet 9% sloped driveway I parked nosed in. To boot I had almost 1200 lbs in the box and backed right out with no problem.

 

My '09 Crew cab with 3:55 and the 5.4 motor tows the 22' pontoon out of the lake no problem. I had one problem years ago same set up different truck ramp was a sheet of ice, even the 4wds were in trouble. Managed to pull out using very little throttle

 

Hi Wishin..., just trying to determine what you decided to do as far as the LSD.
I am looking a buying a 2014 Ford F150 and am wondering if the LSD, with the V6 and 3.73 Axle Ratio will do the job at a Launch in Pointe ala Hache, Louisiana?
My current truck is 2002 Chevy with 200K plus miles, but I do not know what axle ratio I currently have.
Just trying to be informed buyer.
Any thoughts or suggestions welcomed.

 

I have the 3.55 electronic lock axle on my current truck (2012 F150 SCREW EcoBoost) & had the 3.73 limited slip on my previous truck (2008 SCREW 5.4 liter). We tow our boat all over & never needed 4WD on any ramp. My boat & trailer weigh 4,200 lbs. I'm not sure what all the gear adds.

 

Which V6 are you buying?

The EcoBoost with 3.73s is capable of putting down 20% more torque to the ground than my V10-powered Excursion was with 4.30s. You could happily drag 10,000 lbs up a boat ramp with 3.31s.

 

I thoroughly enjoy watching Moderators suggesting weights above the manufacturer's rated capacities.

The best you'll do with a 3.5L EB with 3.31s is 9,700lbs and that's in stripped down 2wd regular cab long bed config. SCrew 4wd is 9,100lbs. Close but no cigar.

http://www.ford.com/resources/ford/g...F150_Sep11.pdf

I own a 3.31 geared 4wd EB, so please don't come at me about me not knowing.

 

I'm not an employee of FoMoCo, and this site isn't affiliated with them in any way. So I can say whatever I please. The question was whether or not that gearing would be appropriate for pulling a boat up the ramp, and I was attempting to make it clear that rear end gearing certainly isn't the limiting factor.

Not sure why the confrontational post though.

 

Power isn't going to be the issue. The F150 transmission has a huge 1st gear ratio. No matter the rear gear choice you'll still have more crawling torque than any older 1/2 ton Chevy that you use today. I would avoid 3.73 gears if you can for the sake of preserving good fuel economy.

Traction is the issue on a boat ramp. I don't know current pricing, but when I bought my truck in 2012 the electronic locker was a cheap option compared to the posi rear (or whatever terminology is used these days). Both work in your application. I would consider it mandatory with 2wd truck. Talk to locals in your area to know if basic 4wd is fine or not (probably is fine).

 

the e-locker is cheaper than the LSD in most cases because in order to get LSD you have to pony up to the HD payload package.... as that is the only way to get it.


there are a few exceptions, though.


the 3.7 l V6 can get the LSD for only a few hundred dollars more than the open rear. available in XL, STX and XLT


the XL and STX packages offer the LSD in 3.55's when coupled to the 5.0v8 for only a few hundred dollars more than the open.


XLT and higher require the HD payload to get the LSD with v8 or ecoboost.


LSD would be nice on a boat ramp, but with ford's traction control and one-wheel spin control, you could probably do without.


as to ability, any truck with any gear will pull anything short of a yacht out of the water.... going down the road might be a different deal, but crawling out of the water you'll be fine with whatever you get. as stated 1st gear on these is equivalent to the "granny gears" of days gone by.

 

A 4,000 to 5,000 lbs boat is not much to worry about with an F150. I towed my boat with a 1998 4.2L V6 5-speed manual and never had an issue. An automatic would have been nicer on the ramps but the stick was fine. Between the boat and your gear there is enough weight on the rear tires to get good traction on any ramp. Most of the ramp I use are gravel, some are sand and some are concrete.