I am in need of a little help. I currently have a 99`F150 with approximately 150,000 miles and a 4.6 liter V-8. According to the operators manual and my rear differential Ihave a towing capacity of 7,000 lbs. My trailer has a GVWR of 6,300 lbs by doing a little research I believe that is the total weight my trailer can weigh with cargo. I have a after market electronic brake controller, newly rebuilt trans with trans coolers, and a performance chip on the IM sensor on the air intake. The performance chip for the exhaust sensor malfunctioned so I took it out of the system and am consulting wiht the manufacturer. Anyway I will be towing from New Jersey to Alabama at the end of this month. My last trip from New Jersey to Pennslyvania was a little slow getting up into the higher elevations. I left it out of overdrive the whole time at did about 65mph. I did notice a couple of time when I tried to accelerate too fast going up a incline above 55mph the rpms would jump up to 4,000 rpms and a battery light would go on. Was I just going too fast out of over drive up an incline or do I have a serious problem? I already know that I have pretty much maxed out my truck. Just do not want to break down on the side of the road,with the family,having to get towed and wind up with a very expensive bill from the mechanic. Any help and expertise would be greatly appreciated.

 

You are at your towing limit. Remember, the towing limit is with an empty truck. once you add people and other items, you have to deduct that from your towing capacity. As far as the battery light, you might want to replace your alternator and maybe your battery depending on how old it is. The light usually shows up at high rpms when the alternator is on it's way out. If you do the alternator, it would be a great time to replace the serpentine belt and ck all you pulleys also.

 

First your alternator issue.
The alternator has worn down brushes and possibly the comutators are out of round.
At high rpm they can't stay in contact so the warning lamp comes on.
Replace to alternator.
Towing weight; many never think about the whole picture.
Your truck weighs a certain amount plus the driver, any passengers and other load.
The trailer weighs whatever you load it to.
What is missed is the total combined weight the truck is rated for.
Your truck has a factory rateing.
Example: If you truck's loaded weight is 6000 lbs and your trailer is loaded to 6500 lbs then your total combined weight is 12,500 lbs the motor/trans/rear has to pull and brakes plus trailer brakes to stop the total load.
The total of the truck, it's load and the trailer is called the Gross Combined Weight or GCWR.
The example I gave puts most 1/2 ton F150s over the total GCWR rateing.
The GCWR is a function of the trucks options in transmission, rear gearing and engine size with other items possible that add or subtract from the factory rateing.
It's up to you the take a look at these parameters and decide if you are over loaded and how safe you might be on the road.
If an accident should happen and the law or insurance should look at it and your over the GCWR then you might have a problem.
Many just try to run with the "my truck can tow 7000" and never really look at the real issues in total.
Just offering you and others a different way to look at the question.
What you do is your responsibility.
I have researched all this some time ago including the law and you would be supprised at all there is involved with towing that could bite.
There is tire size and capacity,tongue weight, trailer tire size and throw state law into the mix yet and you come to a lot of pages of law.
Is the truck registered for extra class towing? class 2 etc
Are the tires a P rated? If yes, it's automatinc 10% weight reduction rateing on them.
Those that tend to dissagree, please don't tell me about it. I gave the examples and the basis for it from knowledge.
This is where trailer dealers snow the buyer because they don't know either, what 'your' truck is fully capable of.
Good luck.

 

Replace the alternator as has been already said.
Check your weights as already said.

For the actual towing.
Towing that much load - yes, you want to be out of overdrive. Otherwise the transmission is going to search all the time for the right gear. Now you could give it a little breather if you get on a long downhill slope and put in overdrive. Let the engine and tranny spin down some and save some gas. But as soon as the truck shifts back to drive or you hear the torque converter unlock (rpms bump up a little) - hit the button to turn overdrive off.
The 4000 rpm jump you are referring to is the truck shifting to 2nd gear to pull the hill. Not a problem from the truck point of view. It just needs the extra power.
However, once it shifts to 2nd - let it stay until you reach the top of the hill. Don't play with the throttle and have it shift in and out of 2nd. That will kill the transmission in no time.

 

Like everyone else has said, the battery light is probably the alternator.

Based on the 2000 model year specs, your truck has up to a 11,500lb GCVWR and up to 7200lbs towing capacity if it's a reg cab 4x2. I'm not sure what the max payload is. But chances are you'll probably tow it even if it's over a little.

One of the most important things is it sounds like you have trailer brakes. Stopping is the most important.

I'm interisted in these performance chips on the intake and exhaust. All the ones I've ever seen are just resistors that fool the computer into thinking something is happening that isn't so that it gets more fuel. I personally wouldn't use them. If you want more performance, buy a tuner like a Superchips or SCT.

Edit: Also on the subject of OD on or off, I've always been under the impression that if it isn't hunting that you can use OD. If you're on flat ground for a long time, I don't see the harm in using OD.

Mike

 

Thanks for all the info I will replace the alternator and serpentine belt this weekend.

 

I would also look at your battery as well just in case if it needs replacing as well due not being properly recharged for X amount of miles.

 

On the subject of overdrive hunting, it is often a miss used stated action.
Why; in normal driving a proper shifting transmission does not hunt.
Under load it should not hunt.
Reason is the shifting is done mostly by throttle position and road speed. Niether of these fuctions are in the transmission.
Under load, you have a lot of throttle on going up a grade.
There should be no down shifting unless the road speed goes down with throttle steady or increased throttle application. It has to or you could not pull the hill without great engine loading, overheating etc.
Reverse this upon speed up with reduced throttle and/or steady throttle.
OD on or off should make no difference.
The motor won't pull any substantial load in OD because as you attempt to throttle up, the trans will be down shifted except those times you are very light on the throttle or/ on the level road, and the load is not heavey and allows speed to be gained.
Not to say you can't make the trans shift by playing throttle games so that's not hunting except by you fooling the PCM.
Remember, the PCM makes all the decisions for the transmission.
The trans does not make any decisions on it's own.
There are people who will argue this but it's the way it works.
I tow 12,000+ GCW and have never saw short term shifting take place in any fashion that would be really called 'hunting'.

 

I think we've went through this before. Constant up and down shifting if you don't lock out OD. That's what we call hunting.

Mike

 

Yes we did and my position is still the same.
There is no actual hunting.