Gearing on new tow vehicle...

[Tod Osier]

Looking at a couple new tow vehicles. F-150s with the 5L (360hp at 5500). They come with 3.73 and a 3.55 gear ratio. Towing capacity is in the 10K range and our T-1950 has a 5500 GWVR. Coach is the heavest thing we will tow. Truck will be used for a lot of road trips with and without coach and most of our trips are fairly long.

How important is the 3.55 gear in towing what amounts to 1/2 the truck's capacity? Best fuel economy when not towing would be nice.

Thanks,

Tod

[mainah]

I don't think you'll have any problem with the 3.55 gears that's plenty of power with the 5L so you won't need lower gearing. The gearing in my Tacoma is 3.56 and I'm pulling around 3200 with 239HP. There isn't a big difference between 3.55 and 3.73 and the 3.55 will give you a little better mileage.

[MOKID]

We have a 2006 F 150 4x2 Heavy Duty Half Ton with the 5.4 L engine and 3:73 rear end. I normally drive 65 and get 20-22 MPG not towing and when towing our T-1950 I get 10-12 MPG

[Tod Osier]

Thanks guys, the option of the 3.73 would give me some more options.

[OhhWell]

Man those new Ford engines sure do seem nice. It's crazy what half ton trucks are rated for these days. I haven't kept up with the advancements but are they also beefing up the rear suspensions of Half Tons now to accomodate the higher Tongue Weights that will accompany these heavy loads they are rated for?

I agree that the 3.73 would give you a better towing experience and probably not affect the gas millage that much when empty.

[henryj]

Read through this F150 thread real world example to see how meaningless those high tow ratings are. If you can separate the wheat from the chaff you'll know which side of the fence you're on. Some people care, some don't weigh because they don't want to know and some don't give a rip.

Unfortunately there is a huge variation in the numbers for otherwise superficially identical trucks. The HD behind my 1500 puts the rear axle at 6000 lb. rather than 3800 lb. The axle numbers are readily available only on the door sticker of each particular truck and most people don't even think of looking at them

Henry

[OhhWell]

Originally Posted by henryj

Read through this F150 thread real world example to see how meaningless those high tow ratings are. If you can separate the wheat from the chaff you'll know which side of the fence you're on. Some people care, some don't weigh because they don't want to know and some don't give a rip.

Unfortunately there is a huge variation in the numbers for otherwise superficially identical trucks. The HD behind my 1500 puts the rear axle at 6000 lb. rather than 3800 lb. The axle numbers are readily available only on the door sticker of each particular truck and most people don't even think of looking at them

Henry

Originally Posted by henryj

Read through this F150 thread real world example to see how meaningless those high tow ratings are. If you can separate the wheat from the chaff you'll know which side of the fence you're on. Some people care, some don't weigh because they don't want to know and some don't give a rip.

Unfortunately there is a huge variation in the numbers for otherwise superficially identical trucks. The HD behind my 1500 puts the rear axle at 6000 lb. rather than 3800 lb. The axle numbers are readily available only on the door sticker of each particular truck and most people don't even think of looking at them

Henry

Exactely what I was thinking. I wonder what kind of 9800lbs load you can tow with a F150... Maybe another truck with a bed full of dirt hooked up with a big rope?

I did notice there is a "Heavy Paylod Option" for the new F150s. That may be similar to the HD designation on GM models. If so, then that would account for the REALLY large numbers like 11,000 lbs.

However, that 9800 lbs I mentioned came without the heavy payload requirement.

I don't like it. Unless you are just moving heavy stuff around your yard or Farm, you should have a 3/4 or 1 ton truck to pull numbers that high. No matter what the fine print and asterics say, they are just that. There are plenty of people that will see 11,000 lbs tow rating and will hitch up some tripple slide monster right on a standard shank.

Interesting side story... The fire Department here has a huge travel trailer that they turned into a mobile Smoke house fire simulator. When I say huge, I'm not kidding. They added about 2 feet of height and it is at least a 30' trailer. Add to that the smoke equipment and PA system etc. Well, they pull it all over with a 99 2500 suburban with no WD hitch or sway control of any kind. And that's the fire department....

[Diane]

We're towing our Heartland TT (GVWR 6900; tongue weight 350) with a 2010 Ford F-150 with 3.55 gears and a 9600 tow rating. The truck is a supercrew King Ranch that we bought used with 7,000 miles on it. There is no problem towing the current TT and this truck would not even have noticed our previous T-1950. The Honda 3000is generator lives in the truck bed under the tonneau cover and we do put some items in the bed when towing.

That said, it is NOT the truck to tow a heavier TT. It works for us because we are not in the market for a heavier or longer TT or 5er.

[Hematite]

Originally Posted by Tod Osier

Looking at a couple new tow vehicles. F-150s with the 5L (360hp at 5500). They come with 3.73 and a 3.55 gear ratio. Towing capacity is in the 10K range and our T-1950 has a 5500 GWVR. Coach is the heavest thing we will tow. Truck will be used for a lot of road trips with and without coach and most of our trips are fairly long.

How important is the 3.55 gear in towing what amounts to 1/2 the truck's capacity? Best fuel economy when not towing would be nice.

Thanks,

Tod

If you're absolutely positive that you will never tow a heavier trailer and you're not going to tow a lot, then a 3.55 rear gear will give slightly more fuel economy when NOT towing.

If you are regularly going to do mountains, or tow a lot, or there is a slight possibility of a heavier tow, then definitely go with the 3.73 gears. There IS a significant difference in towing ability in favor of the 3.73's. That difference is clearly shown in the Ford F150 tow ratings guide.

[Tod Osier]

Originally Posted by Hematite

If you're absolutely positive that you will never tow a heavier trailer and you're not going to tow a lot, then a 3.55 rear gear will give slightly more fuel economy when NOT towing.

If you are regularly going to do mountains, or tow a lot, or there is a slight possibility of a heavier tow, then definitely go with the 3.73 gears. There IS a significant difference in towing ability in favor of the 3.73's. That difference is clearly shown in the Ford F150 tow ratings guide.

Thanks again guys. I've went through the specs much more carefully now that I've settled on the models and yes, the 3.55 does limit the tow capacity quite a bit and much more than I was thinking. While I'm 100% sure that I wouldn't ever tow larger than 5500, oddly in the past I've been 100% sure I'd never tow 5500 . Funny how that works. In the Ford, I'd like the 3.73 with the e-locker, so that would be a win-win.

I'll let you know how this turns out. I started running actual numbers and you can get a lot of Tundra for the price of a pretty basic F-150 and I like the Tundra better.

[Hematite]

As with everything else in life you will get exactly what you pay for, no more, no less.

[Tod Osier]

Originally Posted by Hematite

As with everything else in life you will get exactly what you pay for, no more, no less.

I'm not sure exactly what that means (or if it is grounded in sound economic theory or practice), but I'm pretty sure it doesn't mean the same thing as... you can't go wrong either way, both the F-150s and Tundras are fine trucks.

Tod

[Tod Osier]

Got the new tow vehicle home today. 2011 Toyota Tundra 4x4, TRD Off-road package, 5.7L with 381 HP and 4.3 gears. Should pull the T-1950 pretty well.

T

[JohnB]

Congrats Tod.

Some day when you get the truck and camper hooked up a pic would be cool

John