Long Tow with F350
#1
08-08-2002, 04:33 PM
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Long Tow with F350
I thought I’d share some of my observations during a recent trip towing my 25 foot Haulmark race car trailer for 1800 miles. My 2002 F350 is equipped as follows: V10, Auto Transmission, Super Cab, short bed, 4 x 4, 3.73 axles. The race car + tools/supplies + trailer weighs about 7500 lbs. We had another 450 lbs of passengers and luggage. I use a Reese dual-cam anti-sway WD hitch for the trailer.
Our route was I10 west out of Phoenix, AZ, north on I215 (before LA) then across CA 138 to Mojave, over the Tehachapi Pass then up I5 over to 101 to the San Francisco area. The return drive took us down I5 into the Fresno Valley via the Grapevine and then out I10 eastward.
- general: the V10 does a great job towing, easily staying in OD on the flats
- hills: it is pretty amazing what 3rd gear can pull. When it gets steeper, 6% grades were an easy 55 MPH in 2nd gear @ 3500 RPM
- 30+ MPH headwinds: wow, like dropping an anchor. Had to pull down out of OD for that, sometimes needed 2nd gear.
- Downgrades, the square face of the trailer is like a billboard, many times with just foot off the throttle in OD resulted in a "terminal speed" of 60 MPH, if any steeper most times 3rd gear was all that was needed. Vary rarely was 2nd gear needed for engine braking. I almost never needed to use the brakes while descending.
The Reese dual cam set-up is very nice. I could barely feel semis as they passed (I stayed around 65 MPH for fuel savings, they often go 75+ MPH). Only when coming out of underpasses with 90 degree side winds did I feel sway and have to correct the steering.
I haven’t tallied the fuel mileage yet. With the strong head winds and many mountain passes I’m sure it won’t be pretty. But all in all I’m very pleased with the V10 engine.
I had a full day at the Buttonwillow racetrack with my Porsche 928 track car. That was great fun. I had another 2 hours drive into north LA after that, I really appreciated the A/T and cruise control!
RichF350V10
Our route was I10 west out of Phoenix, AZ, north on I215 (before LA) then across CA 138 to Mojave, over the Tehachapi Pass then up I5 over to 101 to the San Francisco area. The return drive took us down I5 into the Fresno Valley via the Grapevine and then out I10 eastward.
- general: the V10 does a great job towing, easily staying in OD on the flats
- hills: it is pretty amazing what 3rd gear can pull. When it gets steeper, 6% grades were an easy 55 MPH in 2nd gear @ 3500 RPM
- 30+ MPH headwinds: wow, like dropping an anchor. Had to pull down out of OD for that, sometimes needed 2nd gear.
- Downgrades, the square face of the trailer is like a billboard, many times with just foot off the throttle in OD resulted in a "terminal speed" of 60 MPH, if any steeper most times 3rd gear was all that was needed. Vary rarely was 2nd gear needed for engine braking. I almost never needed to use the brakes while descending.
The Reese dual cam set-up is very nice. I could barely feel semis as they passed (I stayed around 65 MPH for fuel savings, they often go 75+ MPH). Only when coming out of underpasses with 90 degree side winds did I feel sway and have to correct the steering.
I haven’t tallied the fuel mileage yet. With the strong head winds and many mountain passes I’m sure it won’t be pretty. But all in all I’m very pleased with the V10 engine.
I had a full day at the Buttonwillow racetrack with my Porsche 928 track car. That was great fun. I had another 2 hours drive into north LA after that, I really appreciated the A/T and cruise control!
RichF350V10
#3
08-10-2002, 12:51 AM
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Long Tow with F350
Horsepuller,
Our goal was to get to Belmont, CA and Buttonwillow, CA for Porsche events. California has a 55 MPH speedlimit for trucks with trailers, so I spent a lot of time with the big rigs in the right lane. Items of interest along the way were:
- I10 west from Palm Springs: windmill generating farms .... amazing number, size, and different kinds of generators, easily over 1000 of them. Our headwind was strong enough to have all of the mills spinning. It was quite a site.
- Mojave, CA. There is an airstrip where HUNDREDS of parked airliners are stored. From what I've read they've actually rolled 747s off the Boeing production line, flew them to Mojave and parked them. It is quite a site to see.
- Climb from Mojave to the Tehachapi Pass: more windmills. The change from desert to highlands is nice. This is a major train route, it is amazing to see large freight trains making the climb and descent.
- I5 ... BOARING
- Grapevine: one hell of a climb and descent into LA. The V10 did just fine, we even rescued some folks that suffered a broken oil pan and dropped them off in the San Fernando valley, so we had more weight in the cab.
My trip stats are:
Miles traveled: 1468
Avg. MPG: 9.2
Highest MPG: 9.8
Lowest MPG: 7.8 (climb out of LA and side winds to Blythe)
I tried to keep the speed in the 65 - 68 MPH range. Given that my average mileage around town is in the 11 - 12 range, I don't think the penalty of 9.2 MPG avg. for pulling 7500 lbs. is much.
Enjoy,
RichF350V10
Our goal was to get to Belmont, CA and Buttonwillow, CA for Porsche events. California has a 55 MPH speedlimit for trucks with trailers, so I spent a lot of time with the big rigs in the right lane. Items of interest along the way were:
- I10 west from Palm Springs: windmill generating farms .... amazing number, size, and different kinds of generators, easily over 1000 of them. Our headwind was strong enough to have all of the mills spinning. It was quite a site.
- Mojave, CA. There is an airstrip where HUNDREDS of parked airliners are stored. From what I've read they've actually rolled 747s off the Boeing production line, flew them to Mojave and parked them. It is quite a site to see.
- Climb from Mojave to the Tehachapi Pass: more windmills. The change from desert to highlands is nice. This is a major train route, it is amazing to see large freight trains making the climb and descent.
- I5 ... BOARING
- Grapevine: one hell of a climb and descent into LA. The V10 did just fine, we even rescued some folks that suffered a broken oil pan and dropped them off in the San Fernando valley, so we had more weight in the cab.
My trip stats are:
Miles traveled: 1468
Avg. MPG: 9.2
Highest MPG: 9.8
Lowest MPG: 7.8 (climb out of LA and side winds to Blythe)
I tried to keep the speed in the 65 - 68 MPH range. Given that my average mileage around town is in the 11 - 12 range, I don't think the penalty of 9.2 MPG avg. for pulling 7500 lbs. is much.
Enjoy,
RichF350V10
#4
08-10-2002, 07:41 PM
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Long Tow with F350
Rich, thanks for the input. Myself, I'm looking at buying a new truck (a F-350, but not sure which engine yet) with in the next year or so and appreciate the feed back from real users. The Grape Vine is used by a few vehicle/truck editors to test new vehicles. So your input confirms what some of the so called "experts" are telling/selling us. Thanks.
And yes the I-5 is one boarding stretch of road, going north or south. A guy I use to work with had to drive from San Jose to L.A. once a week in the company truck. After about 3 months of doing that stretch of road, he quit his job because he couldn't take it anymore.
And yes the I-5 is one boarding stretch of road, going north or south. A guy I use to work with had to drive from San Jose to L.A. once a week in the company truck. After about 3 months of doing that stretch of road, he quit his job because he couldn't take it anymore.
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