I have an 02 E350 extended body with the 5.4, 2WD. I drive a truck for a living and have had bunches of campers/trailers. I'm not worried about towing a boat, but launching/loading it actually. I just bought a 10 year old ski boat for the family, which we've always wanted. I'm curious for other boat owners if you have any trouble at boat ramps with the 2WD? I guess I'm just a little paranoid about slipping off, and I've got to educate my wife on either driving the boat or the van, or I can do the old 'rope tied to the bumper' one-man method.
My take on 2WD vans is that they spin on wet ground when it's level, I'm worried about how the van will do on angled, possibly wet boat ramps.
Experience? Ideas?

thanks

 

you have a few factors to consider here, including: condition of ramp, weight on drive axle, weight of boat, etc.
if you're on a narrow, torn up, wet ramp, you'll have a lot more trouble than if you find a nice wide new ramp to launch on.
from there, the more weight you have on your drive axle, the better. if you want the best possible traction, you could add a locking diff such as the powertrax no-slip that i have in mine. i NEVER do the one-wheel-peel - i don't slip until both wheels are unable to hold.

 

Vans are no more likely to slip than pickups. In fact, they may be less likely, as they are heavier over the rear axle. Plenty of vans with open rear diffs have dropped boats in water. I've used a jeep cherokee to launch a 24 foot pontoon boat before. You just need to control your throttle, and make sure you have tires that are not sitting at their wear bars.

If it really bothers you, you can put a locker or LSD in.

This pic doesn't seem like too severe of an angle, but my rear bumper is touching the ground.

 

Never had an issue with my previous 22 foot pontoon and my 15 passenger, it has a limited slip, took effort to get it to spin, I had power enough to yank it out in 2nd gear. An important fact for it is boat placement, many don't know about weight adjustment and have the boat either too far forward or back on the trailer, it impacts tongue weight.

 

No problem with 96 E350 passenger van extended with 351W tow 22' penn yan.

Only thing issue is 351W is weak plus on ramp I had no issue not ever spin until you are on Algae ramp you out lucky.

 

Tune up the parking/emergency brake. Just saw video of a white Econoline floating away from a boat ramp & sinking last nite!

After years of launching boats behind Econolines I've only spun tires on slick, slimy, low tide, ramps a few times. Once it got a bit squirrely as the van crab walked toward the side of a narrow walled ramp. Friend w/F-250 had to be towed up a ramp once.

However since virtually all my launching/retrieving is in FL on Gulf of Mexico or Atlantic there's generally plenty of sand around to combat greasy conditions.

Also launched/retrieved solo many times. For extra confidence carry piece of 1X4, cut to right length, to jam between seat pedestal & brake pedal. This hydraulically locks all 4 wheels.

 

Thanks everyone. I guess mostly I just needed some support. It's my first boat, after almost 100 other vehicles/campers. I've watched too many Youtube videos of people sinking their cars, and the guy who sold it to me said "2wd? I've never launched a boat without 4wd!" That didn't make me feel very good.
Thanks Clubwagon for the 2x4 idea, I actually keep a decent sized nightstick in the van which works real well for locking the pedal. I have actually only ever used it for checking brake lights, but it's a dang good idea to use it to lock the brakes also.

Josh or 95E150, how much will a locker/LSD run me? I've always wanted to go this route, but don't know much about them.

thanks

 

I'm willing to bet you have limited slip in your rear end, you'll do fine I have a 99 E-350 ext with the 5.4 and have yet to have a problem at a boat ramp, don't buy crap you don't need.

 

Not sure how most Ford Truck Enthusiasts could own an E350 for long w/o knowing, but it's EZ enough to find out. From what I've seen the odds are heavily against having "limited slip".

Stop where you have one rear tire on good pavement, the other on grass, or loose dirt & kick it in the pants. If tire off pavement spins like mad, no limited slip.

 

OK know it all since I pulled the cover and cleaned it out before putting it back and filling it, tell me again how to check if it has one, since it's stamped on the carrier inside! Move along, I don't need your advice!

 

Not quite. A limited slip will allow the tire with the least amount of traction to spin easiest. It will put some power to the other tire, but not all that noticeable when you need it most. The factory limited slips are nothing more than friction disks stacked between the carrier and the side gears. It just slows down the slippage vs a full open diff. Now if t had a locker both tires would spin. A limited slip is just a tab better than a open diff. Get into a situation where one tire is on slick stuff, I can tell you that tire will spin. Now, yes the other tire will provide a bit of movement, it isn't going to be rotation for rotation with the other tire.

 

My rear tires are wearing out prematurely, because I love to get my 15 passenger sideways, have been doing so for 10 years, something that can't be done with an open axle, last winter I drove the slick streets without one issue, except when it pulled sideways when I gassed it to check the road surface, and when I drive up to the barn it has been known to fishtail where the ruts hold water. Mow tell me how an open axle reacts?

 

So, ignoring whats going on up there^

You can open your door and check the door sticker. It will have an axle code. If it starts with a letter that usually means limited slip, but you can search for the axle code online. If you are unable to find it I can usually find it in my ford service manuals.

The labor involved in such a swap is quite high, around 400 bucks in my area, plus the cost of the diff. A great many open-diff vehicles have launched very large boats with no trouble.

 

scotty, my locker cost me about 500 plus DIY install. the books i read online for my dana 60 said that to remove the carrier required some special jig to spread the housing to get it out, but i found that a little bit of wiggling it around allowed it to drop right out onto my full drain pan. once its off, you have to remove the ring gear from the carrier, then remove the cross shaft, and the gears drop out in your hands. the locker comes with good instructions and is quite easy to assemble.

20,000 miles after the install, i broke a pinion gear, and had my local transmission shop replace the ring and pinion. in the process, i asked the guys at the shop if my install could have caused the failure, and they assured me that it couldn't, as the setup doesn't change unless you're changing shims around, which we have no reason to get into. for a used ring and pinion, new bearings and everything, and labor, i paid $970, half of which was labor.
note that its generally advised to replace bearings any time you have it apart, just because you don't want to do the job again later. but this is optional in many cases, and may depend on budget.

 

Thanks guys, I'll see what I have, but I probably don't want to throw money at it right now. The boat will probably keep me broke!!!