I've noticed a number of questions related to towing capacities and how to increase them to tow heavier trailers. No matter what add-ons/upgrades you make to your tow vehcle, none increase the vehicle's towing capacity. That is established (validated/certified) the moment it rolls off the assembly line by Ford--not by the aftermarket accessory/hitch manufacturers.

Tow above the factory tow ratings, not matter how many helper springs & airbags, bigger brakes & transcoolers you have installed -- or disregard the "properly-equipped" caveats in the Ford owner's manual -- and you assume all liability in the event of an accident.

I just read a good article on this topic in the new issue of ProPickup magazine (www.propickupmag.com); the article is called "Towing the Line." (http://www.digitalmagazinetechnology.com/a/?KEY=propickup-10-spring#page=53).

 

Being extremely conservative when towing, I never exceed any rating in my owner's manual, however, conservative positions regarding tow weights often draw fire.

You will most often hear these trucks are capable of towing much more than their ratings, and I agree they likely are! It is fortunate, however, that civil suits in these cases are rare as they are virtually indefensible from a legal standpoint. I know this position is extremely unpopular as it would require folks to possibly buy trucks with heavier tow ratings, but the reality is well stated in the attached article.

If the manual says do not do something and you do it, you assume the liability that comes with that action. My owner's manual is explicit in stating what not to do. Call me a wuss, but I don't do it.

Steve

 

Towing and hauling are very different things...

I agree with the OP when talking about hauling, but not towing... Towing has a distinct advantage of added braking power... As long as you don't excede your hauling ratings with tounge weight, and you have a safe percentage of weight on the tounge of the trailer, you can tow more than the numbers that marketing recommends. This will be both safe and legal, as when legally talking GCVWR the courts will add the GVWR of truck and trailer.

 

Good article thanks for the info, as a contractor I see this all the time. Even local municipalities don't use wd hitches when hauling large loads.

 

-emphasis added

You don't assume all liability in the event of an accident. As an example, if you're driving through an intersection with a green light and you're t-boned by a drunk driver that ran a red light. You are not liable because you're overweight. Your liability will only be in regard to an accident in which your being overweight had an impact on whether there was an accident at all. You will be negligent for liability related to being over-weight, but you will not assume all liability in the event of an accident.

 

excellent article. I just went through this with my dealer on my 2011 and described it in another thread. I'm going to be towing 9,000lbs of boat and trailer across Canada this summer and rest assured it will be on a WDH. cheers

Bill