OK, so I frequent this forum occasionally but I fear maybe not enough.
I will get to my questions shortly but maybe I should let everyone is on what I currently have.
I currently drive an 02' f-250 with the gas V-10 that was purchase used. It came with a K&N air filter and a superchips max micro tuner. It is a 4x4 with a 6" lift and 35" tires. It also has a little over 100,000 miles on it. The previous owners did use it to tow a 5th wheel as the rails where still mounted in the bed when I purchased it.
The truck is my second vehicle and gets about 20 miles put on it weekly as I have a company vehicle. So by no means is this truck an everyday driver.
My issue is this;
I was recently given a 29 foot toyhauler as a bonus from my employer.
this "ship anchor" I feel may be just too much for my truck. I had to drive about 4 hours to the oregon coast to pick it up and on my way back driving down the freeway my tranny was constantly shifting back and forth just to maintain 55 mph. and that is empty. I tried changing the programming to "tow/haul" mode and that didn't really seem to make much of a difference. also, not sure if I should be turning on the "overdrive" or leaving it off when i am in the tow/haul mode.
Now, I am not even close to being in the market for a new truck or a new trailer. I am currently stuck with both vehicles.
What I would like to know is what can I do, in order, to be able to tow this "tugboat" safely without trashing my truck. Money is also a consideration, so putting $5000 worth of upgrades is also not an option.
Is there reasonable options to be able to handle such a load.
I read somewhere on this forum that gearing can "increase" my gvr?
I looked at the tag on the rear diff. and it looks like I currently have the 373 gear ratio. Also, My door tag gives my truck a 8800# GVWR.
the trailer has a GVWR of 12,000# and a GVR of a little over 7000# dry.
I do intend on putting airbags under it due to the tremendous "sag" from the trailer. OH yeh, If it matters, the trailer is a bumper pull.
I am by no means a beginner at towing. I tow mini excavators and the such all day with my company vehicle and it just seems like my personal truck just doesnt have the "nuts" to handle this trailer. Which also seems wierd as the previous owners towed a 5th wheel.
Also, not sure if this matters but we are not full time campers either. We make the 4-5 hour pilgrimage to the oregon coast maybe 5-6 times a year. this is the extent of our towing.
Im sure im leaving something out. Just trying to get some info on what I can do or what I should buy/install to be able to pull such a load without destroying my truck.
Thank you so much for your input....

 

I can feel your pain! I have less of a toyhauler and yes, in the upper gears it doesn't feel like theres much power, more evident on hills.

That said, I'm sure the 35's aren't helping, especially with the 3:73s. I'll go ahead and be the first to recommend better gears. Most say the stock 4:30's with standard tires and 4:56 with the 35's like you have, with the goal of keeping the rpm in the 2.5 range.

 

Lock the O/D out when it starts hunting between O/D and 3rd. Your tranny will thank you. All that shifting really heats up the fluid and is hard on the trans. Like it was mentioned above, your tire/gear combo is killing you, plain and simple. Even with stock tires, thats still a highway cruising gear, not a towing gear. Even with the 7.3 PSD, my truck still struggles more then my dad's truck cause he's got 4.10s and I have 3.73's. Don't be afraid to let it rev up. They're made to run like that. The only part that sucks is how much gas it sucks up at those higher RPM's!

Air bags is a good way to go to take care of the sag and improve the ride quality with a heavy tongue weight. Another option that might be cheaper is to put the rear blocks from a 350 in. They're 4 inches tall vs 2 inches for the 250's so you sit higher to begin with, so the sag appears less. It will still bounce like a caddy though when you go over bumps with a heavy tongue weight.

 

For a "Bumper Pull" trailer I would first recommend a equalizer hitch.
Turn the O/D off.
And put stock size LT tires on the truck.
Is your Superchips tuner the 1715 unit?
Have you checked the settings for the transmission shift points?
You may want to do a return to stock trip and compare the results.

I have the Superchips 1715 tuner myself.
I pull a 9,000# loaded 30' TT with my E-350 6.8L V-10 with a 3:73 rear end and have a great experience.
Check your tongue weight and bring it to with-in 10%-15% of the trailer total weight.
You can change the tongue weight by shifting the load forward or to the rear of the trailer.
WARNING too low a tongue weight will cause sway problems!
NEVER TOW WITH LESS THAN A 10% TONGUE WEIGHT!

 

Your boss gave you a toy hauler as a bonus ? Are their any job openings ?

 

If you don't need the lift, I would take it off and go back to stock height or maybe a leveling kit. But even if you don't want to do that I would suggest gears. I would say at least 4:30 but 4:56 would be best. Make sure you trailer is level when towing and as was mentioned a weight distributing hitch is needed. Since you have over 100k miles a tranny flush might be a good idea.

 

what shorebird said:
then add in extra rear springs off a 1 ton.
you may need to get new 'u' bolts as adding the extra leafs, may require longer 'u' bolts…
the weight distributing hitch should have the 1,000 lb bars, i like the dual cam setup.. and don't forget the anti-sway friction unit..
don't mess with pendulum, or voltage stepping brake controllers..
get a max brake. it ties into the trucks hydraulics, so anti-lock brakes will effect the trailer brakes.. just like the newer factory brake controllers.

if the trailer did not come with LT tires stay under 65 mph.
fill the tires to the max psi noted on the sidewalls.

i pull around 10,000 + lbs, using the dual cam setup..
max brake, etc..
cc

 

+1 on this.

 

I have a 5 speed manual, but I believe towing that big of a trailer you need to keep it out of O/D if it won't maintain it.

The 3.73 gears are not good for the V10 because they keep the RPM below the optimal RPM range for power. The V10 really starts pulling hard at 3,000 and above. Also, my MPG seems to be best at about 2,200 - 2,500 RPM on the highway when empty. I have factory 4.30 gearing and get 14-16 MPG empty on the highway, although I have done some mods to help MPG.

Air bags are a good idea, but if you don't have a W/D hitch you need to start with that.

Keeping it out of O/D and going to a shorter tire will raise the RPM and you will see that the V10 definitely has what it takes. You just won't like the MPG. But, as you say, you only tow to the coast a few times per year.

Rev it.

BTW, I live where you play. PM me and I can give you some details on what I did to improve my MPG.

 

Best thing you could do is ditch the lift and 35" tires and go back to stock, it will more than handle that trailer after just doing that. Then start saving money for all the powertrain issues that are going to be popping up from that setup. A 12K lb trailer is nothing for that truck as long as it isn't all jacked up.

 

Thanks for all the info. As far as the programmer...not sure the model but I did change the
Shift points and pressure as directed by another member who seemed to know his stuff with the superchips programmers. That part seems fine. There are definately some nasty hills around here which brings me to another issue. So am I understanding this right that high RPM's are fine for this motor? There are some nasty hills between where I live and central Oregon. One of which is a 7% grade for about 2 miles. Basically 4K RPM at 25 mph for 15-20 mins.? That's OK????. Also, should I upgrade tranny coolers, torque converters, etc.?? Or by just swapping fears I should be fine?
As far as tongue weight.....
This is a tough situation any way you slice it. There is less than a 3rd of the trailer behind the axles. By the time I put 4 quads in the trailer I am just passing the front axle with all the weight. Basically all my storage is over the tongue with the exception of the quads in the back and that's only about 1500# behind the axle. What I am gettIng at is there is absolutely NO way to get down to 15-20% on the tongue. Unless I were to put all the groceries, bedding, children, etc in the rear...I still think the tongue would be too heavy. IMO....trailer was poorly designed. It's an 05' Thor fury 29' toy hauler. Don't get me wrong....it's awesome for free!
Again, money is definately an issue. Trying to explain to my wife that I need to replace the tires that we just bought this winter to go to a smaller size of new tire....I may as well trade them for a few nights stay at the motel. Same wih
The lift. I'm pretty much stuck with what I have and now is damage control.
Also, not sure if I stored the pot when I said my trailer was a "bumper pull". When I said that, I was referring to the towing reference. I by no means pull the trailer with my bumper. I use the term "bumper pull", "tow behind" vs. 5th wheel.
Thanks again for the input

 

You are correct in referring to the trailer as a "Bumper Pull".



You need to get the weight of the down force on the tongue.
You can weigh your tongue at home with a bathroom scale.
Tongue Weight Scale



You need an equalizer hitch;
Weight Distribution | etrailer.com

Again I say return the truck to stock!
As for the grade pulling 2 miles at 25mph will only take 5 minutes.

Add a cooler and a gauge for ease of mind.
My gauges; Trans temp on the top

 

4K for an extended run is just fine for these motors. I don't think you can go wrong putting in a bigger trans cooler.

Are you using a weight distributing hitch? That will make a huge difference in how the trailer tows.

 

I currently am NOT using a WD hitch. I assume that too will be one of my next purchases along with a pair of ring and pinions, and a new trans cooler. So what will the new gears do to the truck when I'm NOT pulling a load? Will I be stuck at 4k rpm at 65 mph or something along those lines? And when I end up installing all of this what should I be doing with the programmer. Again, I'm currently stuck for now working with what I've got. Should I still be programming the PCM for "tow/haul" with the new gearing? And if so, when it is in fact in tow/haul mode, should I have the O/D off or on?
Thanks again everyone, you guys have been very helpful. The pic of the toyhauler was spot on....you can clearly see how difficult it is to get a lot of the weight off of the tongue.

 

On another note....what would be a good weight distributing hitch to purchase? Same with trans cooler and gears. Is there a better manufacturer than others?