Greetings....

Old SuperDuty owner but now have a 2003 X, V10, Eddie Bauer in Mineral Grey with 70K on the clock. California truck now in Arizona so it is in fairly good shape.

Working my way through all the posts and plotting my path forward on this truck. Wife nicknamed it Stevey cause it likes to Wander.

(Stevey Wander... )

Lots of good information here... and we have a complete suspension upgrade coming from Cary at CT Performance. So hopefully we will get this beast tamed a bit.



Kevin

 

Welcome Kevin, indeed, we'll help you get Mr Wander tamed!

 

Stevey Wander, lol!

Had to rep you for that one, lol!

So what are your plans for this truck aside from the spring upgrade?

 

Good name. When you drive it at night, you will also discover Stevey is blind.

 

......

 

Thanks for the welcome....

Stevey is a "replacement" (if it works out) for my 2008 F250 SuperDuty SuperCrew Powerstroke Lariat.

I am essentially "over trucked" at the moment... only towing a tandem axle car trailer a dozen times a year and a small single axle 19' camp trailer once a year or less. However, I am short interior space as my wife and I are "animal people". We've got 8 dogs and 6 cats. So for us to go anywhere the dogs need to come along and it is TIGHT in the SuperDuty.

I don't have any big plans for the X other than the CTPerformance V&B springs upgrade, shocks and adding the Helwig rear sway bar. If Stevey settles down and doesn't wander... I will hitch him up and see how the V10 hauls my trailers. If it all checks out ok then I will be selling a low mileage 6.4L Powerstroke.

Stevey is in good shape but needed little things. I need to straighten the bottom of the front bumper (small bend that is behind the plastic) but enough to affect the fog lights, cracked grille center section (already replaced), slight hazing of the headlights (new lights sitting in the truck awaiting install), CD player doesn't work (replacement on the way), front sway bar and end link bushings, and then would like to try the LED lighting and maybe an HID kit.

Of course... I have been known to Supercharge a car or two as well so that could happen at some later stage.

Oh I also like the power 2008+ tow mirrors. I have the manual tow mirrors but once you've had the 2008 style... well... but they are EXPENSIVE for the X. That will be a frivolous purchase at some point... like maybe for the wife's birthday!

 

I've asked a special guest to stop in and take you Stevey to school...

 

Okay...man I just had an FTE glitch...I had a 15 minute reply typed up and BAM it is gone...

Basically I will try and recap...

Is the V10 Ex a capable tow vehicle...YES...I base that response on the fact I tow and have towed a 9000# TT all over the country. I have yet to meet a hill I can't pull comfortably and strongly...and I've been too and through the Rockies twice and am heading back again this July.

If you perform the three items above (V/B, shocks and Hellwig)...you should eliminate Stevey from the equation.

However...I would suggest a couple of maintenance checks first.

1) Have the ball joints, tie rods, alignment and steering box checked out to eliminate any mechanical isuses
2) Verify you have E rated tires on the truck and I have found 60psi front and 70psi rear MAX is all you need and in my data gathering over the years...it seems those that run high psi tires...can also experience wander

Also...you need to keep in mind the receiver on the Ex is NOT the same as you SD...you are limited to 5000#'s MAX on the receiver withOUT a WD hitch...and you are limited to 9600#'s MAX with V10/3.73 and 11,000#'s MAX with V10/4.30's and a MAX tongue weight on the receiver of 1250#'s with a WD hitch...so make sure you are within the receiver limits too.

There is NO reason anyone with an Ex should not have a good towing experience...but you need to find the handle on the Ex FIRST and then when you hitch up and adjust your WD hitch (at a CAT scale preferably) you will find that the Ex will NOT disappoint your expectations...I know I have never been disappointed in how mine pulls and handles.

Your pets will LOVE the room in the Ex when you fold down the rear two rows of seats and give them that cavernous area back there!...there is no vehicle out there that gives you that much room and that much power than an Excursion!

Good luck and let us know if you have any questions!

Joe.

 

Joe,

Thanks for the good information. I wouldn't have had the slightest idea about the WD hitch. Looked up the Hensley I saw in your signature... Those things are expensive!

I am pretty sure my car hauler with car aboard would break the 5k limit.

The SCT tuner... is that a mail order tune or did you go to the 5-Star facility to get it done? Do you see significant improvement with it?

Kevin

 

Another question... I see reference to the 6.0 tranny cooler. Does that part pertain to the older 7.3L trucks... or is something required/worth doing for the V10s?

 

Congrats! You've completed the first step to graduating from V10 towing University (accredited by FTE) When you're able to show knowledge applied, you will receive your diploma and graduate, till then listen up...

It's something that can be applied to any 2000-2003 Excursion (save the 6.0 equipped trucks) and any 1999-2004 Superduty (again save the 6.0 equipped trucks).

I have one on my truck and even during the intense summer heat, my trans runs cool at 135-150 degrees.

The 6.0 trans cooler is also taller than the stock 7.3 and V10 coolers put together. It keeps things cool with or without a load (heat kills a transmission) and is easy to plumb in. The mod you need to do is get a reducer converter from 1/2 to 3/8 and you're good to go!

It's a mail order tuner you get from Mike at 5 star tuning. He can really wake up with the V10 and make it more of the tow monster that it already is. He's one of FTE's sponsors, check him out, or better yet, give him a call.

5 Star Tuning | Custom Dynomemeter Chassis Tuning Products and Services

 

Thanks for the responses....

Is there a source for the 6.0 coolers? Anyone do a kit complete?

 

Landed a 6.0 Trans cooler today.

Back to our capabilities discussion....

On the towing specs... are the weights based upon the Excursion's stock suspension?

I am going to be essentially upgrading my suspension to an F250+.
Am I still subject to the towing restrictions mentioned earlier?

 

Howdy and welcome!

 

Digging the Challenger.....
Running a 2010 Detonator Yellow R/T myself. Working towards a S/C but won't EVER push the power you have!