I sure hope you guys can help me out. We have a 2003 excursion and have been pulling a 8400 lbs.(dry weight) camper around for a couple of years. We were told when we bought it that it could tow 10,000 lbs. We ignorantly believed him for his word. Now, we find out that it can actually only tow 8900lbs. Adding in all of our stuff, I am sure we are well beyond the 8900 lbs. What options, if any, do we have?
Look forward to your responses.
Thanks,
Kevin

 

You have already towed with this configuration for several years now without problems? If the only thing worrying you is the sticker on the door jamb...all I can say is it wouldn't worry me if the truck is set up properly and you have some good experience with it. I have found people who routinely tow the weights you describe without issue. You can upgrade springs to make it handle weight better, add a rear sway bar, Airbags or RAS systems, better hitch... all very common threads around here. Nothing you do will change what the little sticker says though.

 

What engine and gears do you have?

 

In response to jh818, we have a 6.8 L trition V10... also have the HD towing package.
We are out looking for the gears, where would I find this?
Kevin

 

From a mechanical aspect, you are very likely fine and well within the actual capabilities. But, if you are involved in an accident and found to be exceeding the GVW, your looking at some real potential trouble not just from a liability sake but your insurance carrier would even have the right "to adjust" coverage from damages that occurred as a result.....i would load it up & get it weighed...you might be surprised.

 

I believe all Excursions are rated to tow 10,000 lbs and in some cases 11,000. That 8900 figure is the GVWR(gross vehicle weight rating), that is the total weight of what your vehicle is rated to weigh. CGVWR(combined gross vehicle weight rating) is the weight limit of what your vehicle AND your trailer are allowed. In the case of the Excursion I think, if memory serves, the CGVWR is 20,000 lbs. I hope this makes sense. I know what I want to say but I don't think my thoughts are making it to the keyboard.

 

If you look on your door jam sticker, there should be a section where it shows 'axle' with a code below it. Mine says C3 which is 4.30 limited slip. Other codes like C1, etc. means other ratios. Do a search in this forum for axle codes to determine what you have.

Based on your engine, you should be ok. 4.30 has a slightly higher towing capacity than 3.73.

 

Had a code 31, I searched and found that means 3.73 non limited slip. Does this reduce my towing capabilties?

 

4x4? Or 4x2?

 

Kevin,

What do you mean you found out? Everything I can find says you can tow 10,000 with 3.73 gears.

 

If you've been towing this weight for 2+ years with 3.73 gears and have had no problems I wouldn't lose any sleep over it, especially since this is well within your tow rating. 4.30's would be an improvement and especially so if you are towing into the west coast mountain ranges.

 

Thanks everybody for your responses so for. When I said I "found out", I meant I read it on the sticker in the door jam. Never realy paid attention to that before. Yes, we have been towing that way for a couple of years. BUT, it has never felt like the smoothest tow to me. Any ideas on how I could improve that without breaking the bank?
Thanks for all the wisdom.
P.S. It is a 4x4

 

Did the EX's come with a 4.30 gear option? I thought they all had 3.73 gears.

 

Most economical thing would be a tuner, such as Mikes 5 star. This would help power and shift control. Next would be gears, swithing to 4.10s or 4.30s. This would help during pulling greatly but suffer a bit in empty mileage.

 

Coming in late to this party...sorry.

As already pointed out the 8900# is the Ex's GVWR NOT the "tow" rating.

All V10 Ex's had either 3.73's or 4.30's.

A 4x4 V10 with 3.73's is rated to "Tow" 9600#'s and has a GCWR of 17,000#'s
A 4x4 V10 with 4.30's is rated to "Tow" 11,000#'s and has a GCWR of 20,000#'s

Under EITHER condition above the Ex's GVWR is still 8900#'s

All components within an Excursion independent of gearing are the SAME...so axle, wheels, tires, brakes, trans, you name it they are the SAME between a 4x4 3.73 or 4.30 truck.

The GVWR of the Excursion comes into play when you load up your family, gear and drop the tongue weight on the truck. With all of those loads in and on the truck that is what the truck is rated to "carry" or "weigh" on its axles.

As an interesting point of reference...the PSD versions of the Ex's carry a GVWR of 9200#'s or 300#'s more than a V10 yet the PSD versions also carry the SAME axle, wheels, tires, brakes, frame and in the case of the 7.3L the same trans. The kicker there is that the PSD weighs roughly 600#'s MORE than a V10 yet they only up'd the GVWR by 300#'s?...so the PSD Ex has LESS available payload.

The point is that an Excursion is rated with a PSD at 9200#'s from a "braking" standpoint and we all have the same brakes. The PSD version may have a different spring pack up front to account for the heavier PSD...typically the GVWR is what the vehicle is rated for "stopping" capacity.

I agree with others...if you have been towing this combo for years...and are happy with it...I'm sure you will find when you crunch the numbers you may be "close" on the GVWR but on the "Tow" rating you will be fine.

Good luck and I hope this makes sense to you.

Joe.