I have a 1965 250 Camper Special with original 352 engine and a non-original C6 auto trans. It has the 4:10 limit slip rear axle. The bed is empty, no tool boxes, cab or camper on it. I have 2 questions:

First: I plan on towing a small sports car cross country this summer. I figure the car and trailer weight about 5,000 lbs maximum. Am I ok to tow this weight with the truck I have?

Second: a friend of mine has a four post lift (manufacturer is DirectLift--it's an import) The maximum weight lifting capacity is stated on the lift as 7,000 lbs. Is this within the weight of my truck? I believe it is as I think my truck would weight about 4,500 lbs or so. My friend would feel better letting me use it if I could present him with some second opinions. Am I ok to put my truck on this lift?

Thanks for any help,

Gene

 

On first question, Go for it. I/we all have hauled/pulled more than the law allowed. On second go to feed store/elevator or scrap yard or some truck stops have scales and get a weigh slip. Usually costs $5 some places more.

 

I agree, also I have never weighed a 250, but my 100 is about 3800lbs, I suspect the 250 is more than 4500lbs.



John

 

Gene,
I agree with the others, that your F250, when new, was capable of towing 5,000-lbs.
What type of rear hitch is on it now? (Hopefully it's not a bumper mount)
Do you still have the CS-issued tires & wheels on it? If not, what is the load rating of your current tires/wheels combination?

Now tell us about that trailer:
Is it hobby-built or an engineered/commercially-built unit?
If it was hobby-built, I would try to determine what are the trailer axles rated to haul, what is the trailer hitch rated for and what is the ball rated for?
Can we assume your trailer is rated to handle the car weight - at least a tandem axle?
If so, does it have trailer brakes on at least one axle?

Yep, many of these questions may seem trivial, but...... this needs to be a SAFE trip, right?

BarnieTrk

 

I would think you would be OK pulling that small of a trailer. The 352/C6 combo will be more than adequate. Make sure your wiring is up to snuff so the lights work all the time. Probably be a good idea to check over the brakes and make sure everything is good to go as well as that would be my primary concern. If you have any doubts, now is the time to upgrade your fronts to disk brakes if you are up to it, unless you want to stay with drums. The last thing I would check is the cooling system. You will be working the engine harder. No reason to get down the road and then find out your over heating from the extra work.

I second the pull it on a scale to find the weight. You are probably under 5k lbs, but it never hurts to check.

 

If not upgrading to discs, at least consider upgrading the master brake cylinder to a two-reservoir master brake cylinder. The OEM master brake cylinder is a single pot style and if you have any fluid leak develop, you have NO brakes! At least with a two-pot system, you would still have two wheels to stop you & your trailer.

BarnieTrk

 

Excellent point here made by Barnie! This is a pretty simple upgrade, and if you are shooting for a stock looking truck, is something that is easily reverted. Myself, I cant justify "stock" when it really isnt safe.

One thing I didnt hit on was a potential transmission issue. The C6 is a beast of a trans, probably one of the strongest factory automatics ever made by any manufacturer, but heat can be an issue. An easy, unobtrusive upgrade is to add a cooler that simply bolts into the frame rail, and or add a deeper pan on the transmission so it hold more fluid.