I am thinking about getting a newer truck that has good towing capability, at least 7500 or better. I would be towing a trailer with my model A on it or a camper. I would like to know what others have and what to look for. I am open to gas or diesel. I know that Ford used 2 or 3 different diesels but do not know which is best. What is the best option for gas engines? Of course I am looking for the most for the buck, operating expenses, maintenance and known problems especially transmission. I understand that Allison makes the best transmissions but do not know if Ford ever used them behind their diesels. Any suggestions would be helpful.

 

Well let's start with explaining a little better or what you mean by towing 7500 lbs. or better. What would be the weight you will be towing max?

The F150 can tow up to 11,300 lbs. (ecoboost engine) It all depends on if you are looking to tow more than that. If you just have a trailer with a model A or a camper in the 7500lb. range the Ecoboost or the 5.0L would be more than enough.

No Allison transmissions for Ford, the Allison transmissions are partnered with GM for their trucks. It would be great if Ford had them and at one time there was talk about GM losing their hold on the Allison but that has not happened.

It all comes down to how often you will be towing those loads and also if this will be your daily driver. I had the thought for quite a long time that I needed to get the F250/350 with the 6.7 PSD for my towing as I was looking to get a big 5th wheel. After contemplating it for years (the guys on the forum can attest to it...lol) I decided to go with the F150 as it is my daily driver and I could not substantiate the higher cost for diesel/ Urea, and maintenance costs with the diesels.

With the 5.0L Supercrew XLT 4x4 with 5.5' bed, payload 2,330 lbs.. The ecoboost equivalent with the same options and gearing is 11,200 lbs. payload 2310lbs. (although I saw on the Ford website the 5.0 saying it had best in class payload of 3,120 lbs. and maximum 10,000 lbs. but I don't know in what configuration)

I have the 2013 Platinum with 3.73 gearing and the only thing I am lacking is the great payload due to all the bells and whistles added. My payload is only 1,530 lbs. Currently I tow a 22' Tahoe boat (pic in my signature) which is around 4200 lbs. loaded with fuel and it tows it like it isn't even back there. The ecoboost is an impressive towing motor! That is not to say that the 5.0 is not a great towing motor either...it does very well towing. The big difference between the two motors is that the Ecoboost has 420 lbs.-ft. of torque at 2500 RPM where the 5.0 gets it's best torque at around 4,000 rpm.

I hope this helps!

 

I agree completely with Rob. However I'll add that the 6 speed auto in any of the f series trucks are a very stout transmission. Far better then Fords previous offerings for electronic automatic transmission. And lets not forget though that even the Allison transmissions aren't exactly bulletproof either. I personally would recommend that if your budget will allow for it, that you look more to the 09-14 trucks. If you look at an 09-10 f150 steer more toward the 5.4 with max tow. It's rated to tow much more then you think you at this point. But that also means that the truck will or should perform at lower temps when towing. And heat is what really kills everything on a truck. As heat increases friction, which increases wear. Other wise look to make sure the truck has 3.73 gears and external trans cooler. With max tow trucks you are guaranteed to already have those items.

 

A lot will depend on how often you will be towing. If you are towing 4-6 months a year, go with the Powerstroke. If you tow once a twice a month during the warmer seasons the F150 with MaxTow will be adequate for you. Just be sure to get the heaviest ratings on an F150 and the 3.73 gear with 6 spd trans. The 4 spd trans in the 08 and older F150's do not tow as well. If you are going to tow in hilly or mountainous terrain, I would go with the diesel.

 

i think the need for a "max tow" equipped truck is being over-emphasised.

the point about how often you tow is a good one. to me, owning a diesel to tow 7500lbs a few times a year is just downright silly .. but that's me, and the diesel guys disagree wholeheartedly.

IMO, the only thing you really need to make sure your new truck has is a towing package. does not need to be the "max tow" IMO. any new ford equipped with the standard towing package will have the upgraded radiator, external transmission cooler, and full wiring compliment needed to tow a trailer with brakes and auxiliary power.

look for a truck that has the factory towing package with a towing capacity that you expect to be towing, and you can't go wrong. i think the only current f150's that wouldn't have the towing capacity you are looking for would be the ones equipped with the 3.7L v6 (non turbo). i think any of the v8's and ecoboosts are rated to tow at least 7500lbs or more (there may be one that isnt, but i can't remember ever seeing one).

one thing to keep in mind, with towing in the 5,000 lbs or more range, a weight distributing hitch will be required with a 1/2 ton and would still be a great idea with a 3/4 ton.

 

The OP really needs to provide some more information:

The camper is the heaviest thing you're going to tow, it sounds like. How heavy is it, wet and fully loaded? Have you actually weighed it, or are you guessing?
How many miles per year do you intend to tow? How many miles per year will the vehicle be driven overall?
When you do tow, what sort of terrain? Are you planning to run the flats of Florida, or drag that trailer up a serious grade in the mountains?

If you're going to use this truck as a commuter and pull a trailer a few times a year over relatively friendly terrain, you are certainly in F150 territory. However, if you're buying a 100% tow mule, it might be wise to consider stepping up into an SD. Thus the questions...

 

One i thing i saw mentioned was the Ecoboost available with MaxTow and 11,300lbs rating, it was also available with the 6.2 engine on 2013 XLT-up F-150s.

 

I am guessing at the camper weight as we have not bought one yet. It would be large enough for the two of us and occasionally a couple of grand kids. Most of the campers we have looked at could be pulled by my 4Runner but I prefer to have extra capacity just in case

Probably be camping eastern Tenn western NC area, maybe other areas. two or three trips a year.

Other towing would be taking cars to shows etc. Probably less than 15000 miles per year.

 

I've towed heavy with my EcoBoost F150 several times and was always impressed with how it did. But it didn't need 3.73 gears to get the job done; that thing would spin the rear wheels with 15,000 lbs behind it. I would recommend an EcoBoost truck with 3.31 rear gears; such a combination is rated to tow 9,100 lbs in SuperCrew 4x4 trim and will return outstanding fuel economy when you're not towing.

I have to agree with Mike...from a guy who had a Max Tow truck not everyone needs it. Unless I was planning on towing 11,000+ lbs again I would not get this package. At the time I needed it for the upgraded hitch, sounds to me like you'll do fine with the factory towing package.

 

The 2 weak areas on an F150 with only the Tow Package is the P Metric tires and rear springs. The F150 I owned only had the Tow Package and as soon as I dropped the loaded car trailer on the ball of the hitch I knew the rear springs weren't up to the task. Therefore, I would suggest the Max Tow package. It's worth it for the extra leaf in the rear springs and the higher rated tire. The EcoBoost engine is up to the task of pulling in east Tn and West NC, but you can expect 8-9 mpg towing in that terrain on a good day.

 

Just wanted to point out that the max tow package doesn't change the tires. That has to do with the heavy duty payload package. My '13 Max Tow-equipped truck had regular P-metric tires that felt just fine with 10-12,000 lbs behind me.

 

You need to find a truck with the 7700 LB payload rating. This puts you in the middle of an HD F-150 (8200 LB) and a lighter duty truck like mine (7200 LB). I believe this is the configuration that Tom had on his 2013 Ecoboost Screw. The perfect set up in my opinion.

I'm not so sure that the max tow option is a requirement on this payload package but certainly won't hurt to have it. The only down side to a max tow truck is that you'll be locked into a 3.73 gearset, MPG's will suffer slightly when not towing.

 

spot on advice.

another good option would be the 5.0 v8 with 3.55 gears. that configuration in a crew cab will get you a towing capacity of 7700lbs (7500 with the long box) and will return very good mileage when not towing as well. although, the reports on fuel milage with the ecoboost with 3.31 gears are very impressive.

the ecoboost with 3.31's will out do the unloaded mileage of the 5.0 with 3.55's and will out perform the 5.0 while towing 7500lbs +.

towing is towing, and your mileage is going to suck no matter what. that being said, most 5.0 owners are reporting slightly better mileage while towing than the ecoboost owners. not much, but 1 or 2 MPG better by most reports.

personally, i wouldn't worry about the rear springs or tires. some guys are more worried about how much the truck sags under load than others. IMO, with a 7500lbs load you should be using a WDH anyway, which makes rear sag a non-issue because you can adjust your WDH to get as much or as little sag as you can tolerate.

JMO

IIRC, the spring rate on the Max Tow is the same as the standard. AFAIK, the ONLY truck that gets upgraded springs is the Max Payload (HD) trucks.

the max payload will come with additional spring capacity in the rear, a higher GVWR and LRE (10 ply) tires.

one advantage that the max tow trucks DO have is they get upgraded coolers above that which comes with the standard towing package. the max tow gets a larger radiator and larger external transmission cooler. it appears, by all accounts, that those items are not needed until you get over the rated capacity for a standard towing package, though.


the 7700 lbs GVWR comes as part of the max tow package*. they only way to upgrade your GVWR is to go with the max tow (7700 lbs)*, or the HD payload (8300 lbs)*.

*there are some exceptions to this. ford tweaks these numbers based on cab configuration and engine combination, but for super cabs and crew cabs, these numbers are mostly accurate)

 

My bad. Max Payload does indeed give you the extra leaf and E rated tire. But the larger coolers make the Max Tow worth it. My experience is if you need to raise up the trailer and truck while the trailer is connected to hook up you WD bars at the desired link to level things out you need more rear spring. And excessive rear sag while hooked up takes weight off the front of the truck had adversely affects steering and handling.

 

Camper weight is one of those funny things... people say they're going to get some small ultralight, and when they pull the trigger, it's a 10K beast. I would give yourself plenty of headroom.

Based on the mileage, are you planning for this truck to be a tow vehicle only (not a daily driver)? If so, I would be seriously looking at a Super Duty, probably with the 6.2L motor. You aren't going to run enough miles to make up for the diesel's up front cost, and leaving them sitting for long periods doesn't make them happy. If you aren't looking for a Platinum-style interior, you can get into a Super Duty fairly inexpensively. And it will come with heavier suspension, E tires, all the auxiliary cooling, etc.

Now, if you are going to make a daily driver out of it, the other thoughts posted here are spot-on. Look for a 3.31-geared EB with the towing package, or if you want more headroom go for Max Tow or Heavy Payload. If you don't do heavy payload, consider an upgrade at your local tire shop to E-rated tires.

Be careful with some of the numbers listed above. The 7700/8300 discussion isn't tow rating, it's GVWR. Properly equipped, some of the F150s can tow 11.3K.