Hi all,

New poster here, long time Ford fan looking to buy my first truck. I'm looking at the pre-97 4.9 F150. It will be used for the following purposes:

-Backup vehicle if/when my car breaks down or needs work
-Driving to work in the winter if the snow is too deep for the car
-Towing a ~4000 lb boat/trailer combo

Here is my dilemma. I'm a big manual transmission fan. I'd love to have a truck with a manual, but I don't know if it would be up to the task of pulling that kind of weight. I hear the M5OD isn't the greatest tranny for towing, and has no granny gear. I don't know how that would do at the boat ramp (our ramps are ribbed concrete, don't seem that steep). I would go for 4X4 and 5-speed to help yank the boat out in 4LO, but they seem inexistent in my area. All I can find in 5-speed are 2WD.

As far as axle ratios, I've heard that 3.55+ is best for what I want to tow. Was there a standard/stock axle ratio that came with the F150? Did the M5OD come with a certain ratio, and the E4OD another? I know M5OD+2.73 would be the worst possible combo. Was the 3.55 common with the M5OD?

Automatic/E4OD is an option, but I'm a little leery of autos (seen a few blow up before), especially in higher mileage older vehicles. I'd hate to kill the trans and have to junk the truck since it cost more than the truck is worth to rebuild.

Any opinions?

 

3.55:1 gears are quite rare for 4.9s, even more so with the 5 speeds. There was an offroad package you could get on the 4x4 5-speeds that came with 3.55:1 gears and a limited slip differential, but it's fairly uncommon from what I understand.

 

I've towed some heavy trailers with my 4.9 but I'm going to install 4.30 gears in it to help me out.

 

3.08 was standard, the 3.55 was optional. The tow rating for the M5OD is 3500 lbs, but hell, I towed twice that with mine on occasion and it had 225K on the original clutch when I sold it. It just depends on if you know how to tow with a standard or not. I would think the 4x4s would be easy to find in RI?

 

Seems like it's a lot easier to find automatics with 4x4. Would a 4x4 and 3.08 rear work for what I want to do (assuming I find one), or am I pushing it?

Hoping I don't have to look for a bigger truck to get the job done. Was hoping to get by with the 4.9 and maybe save a little on gas when I'm not towing.

 

For some reason Ford saddled most I6 trucks with rediculous gear ratios that reduce the legal tow ratings to "nothing usefull"(3.08) and ZERO(2.73), so IMO you should concentrate on finding a manual truck with 3.55 gears minimum(axle code H5... very common with the V8's) and buy the one that's in best shape while completely ignoring what engine is under the hood. All the available motors will do the job you ask and get similar milage doing it so it really shouldn't matter.

 

Are you locked into a regular cab or is a Supercab acceptable? I have a 95 F150 Supercab that has a 300/M5OD/3.55 combo that works well for pulling boats out of the water. Just try to keep your tires dry.

Boat ramps never look steep until you are trying to get a heavy boat out of the water with mud on the ramp.

When towing your two ton boat, use fourth gear. M5OD's really aren't all that strong; if mine ever self destructs, I will swap in a ZF-5.

The six cylinder will do more work than the 302 can even think about doing. I base this on having had multiple trucks that were the same except for the engine.

Robert

 

Did most supercabs come with the 3.55? Or is it just a special order/towing package thing.

 

I don't know, mine is just a plain old XLT that I bought in a hurry off a used car lot after my daughter wrecked the shortbed 4x4 that I had had for three weeks. I wasn't worried about gears, I just needed something to drive since I had sold the Ranger that she didn't want to drive four days before she proved that concrete bridges win every time.

Oh well, as I told her "Things can be replaced, people can't." I also told her she will be hearing about it for the next thirty years, at least.

Robert

 

I'd like to second that, with an emphasis on "IF". I've been pulling 6,000 lb trailers for years with an M5OD (not daily, but sounds like about the frequency you're looking at) and it's totally fine. IF it ever gives up, just put a ZF5 in it and go from there.

 

What years does that H5 cover?

Because in the 1987-1996 trucks-

19 = 3.55
H9 = 3.55 Limited Slip

18 = 3.08
H8 = 3.08 Limited Slip

 

Wrote that in a hurry.. should have been H9.

 

Oh ok, because I knew that some earlier trucks ha slightly different codes. but that's circa 1980

 

I have owned both as well and I do not agree with this statement. They were pretty even in my experience. The 300 does a little better getting a load going from a standstill, but once it's rolling, there's not much diff. The 302 is more pleasant to drive daily - the 300 is a tractor motor. So it's a trade-off.