2012 F150 Reg cab 6 1/2 " Bed, 3.7 engine and standard diff.

What does anyone think about my towing 4800 # TT with this rig.
Would of coarse have Load Leveling and anti sway.
I am not going to be going on real long trips, like I did with my 7.3 and fifth wheel.

Any opinions appreciated.

 

What does ye manual say for towing capacity? Go by that. But, off me old haid, I'd say for that weight, ye should be good. I've towed my 25' travel trailer all over the country with my '93 V6 Dakota, nary problems, it's rated to tow 5,200 pounds. Me trailer is 3,200 empty, but we load the rascal to the gills as they say. Main thing is stopping power. Be safe!

 

When you say standard diff. do you mean it has 3.55 gearing?

 

Ditto....read up on your ratings. There's a fudge factor in those numbers, but be smart about it. Use the tow/haul feature if you have it, and keep stopping in mind. Keep plenty of distance between you and the guy ahead of ya

 

Thanks guys, The towing capacity is 5500# and I keep on top of the electric brakes.
I have had 2 fifth wheels, and have towed a few thousand miles,with my old 7.3.
but never with a gasser, and I just was thinking about a small TT.

 

I really don't think you will have any problems towing a 4800lb. travel trailer with it. It is lacking a bit in torque compared to the other motors...but I don't think you will really feel it until you start heading up steep grades and it will then cause you to be in a lower gear and higher in the RPM range. Even then I don't think it will suffer all that much.

 

At 4,800 lbs empty, ye're gonna be a bit tight time ye load'er up. If short distance, not too many mountains, ye'll probably be okay, but I wouldn't want to take nary cross country trip.

 

Remember, at the end of the day you own an F-150! hook it up and go! I see people around here towing way more than 4,000- 5,000 lbs with Tacoma's and 6-Cyl SUV's

 

Don't know where round here is, but here in the Bluegrass, we have a fair amount of hills.

Thanks for the reply. All opinions appreciated.

 

I'm in Northern California, while we have pleanty of flat-land and valley, we also have some very challenging mountainous highway and back country & canyon roads.

I personally would not hesitate to haul your load requirement with a 3.7 V6. Eventhough it's a V6 that is one stout V6 for what it is. It is both more powerful in hp & tq than some of the top shelf V8 engines GM, Ford & Chrylser were putting out just a decade ago.

Not to mention the F-150 chassis is one of, if not is the best you can buy for towing/ hauling. Like I said, hook er up and take a pic for the thread. I don't think there is anything to worry about.

The only thing that I see would make worthy of further discussion is your rear axle ratio which wasn't mentioned. If I had the 3.7 and wanted to tow 5,000 or more I would want at least a 3.73 or 4.10 rear end if it was possible.

My 5.0L has the 3.55 which is great empty or around town. But with the loads I carry in some hilly areas I wish I had the 3.73 rear axle or 4.10 at times.

I am personally looking into changing out my rear axle set from 3.55 to 3.73 or 4.10? I want a stronger pulling truck from a dead stop with a load and mid-range when pulling a long grade. I love the 5.0 but its a motor that likes to rev, and I think the 3.55 ratio I have is holding me back.

*Edit* plus I think if I change out my axle ratio for a lower ratio it will hold me over for the next 4-5 years or till Ford works the teething years out of the 2015+ models.

 

Now day's with 6 speed transmissions rear axle ratio is not as important as it use to be.

 

Trailer I'm looking at is 6,XXX lbs dry. If I changed out from 3.55 to 3.73 with yhe 5.0 would I not notice any difference getting the load rolling from a stop on an incline, or mid range pull etc...

 

There might be some difference getting rolling but you might need delicate instruments to detect it.

 

I think the standard diff for the 3.7L trucks is a 3.73.

 

Nicely said. The new 3.7l makes more horsepower and torque than my 1998 GMC 350 5.7l vortec did. You will have no problems towing this load. Take your time and you will be fine