Can a tow a 2006 T-276SR Classic with a 2005 F150 Crew Cab?

[rich2500]

the L55 means you got a limited slip 3:55

[Penguin33]

Figures! Anyone know what the approx cost would be to upgrade to a 3:73 or 4:10?

[264SRinPA]

with 4x4 $1200 - $1500

[rich2500]

penguin if you do a gear swap don't even bother doing the 3:73 do the 4:10,it will be much better for towing,another thing is if you did all the other figures and your truck is fine with the numbers and you have your heart set on a 276 you could give it a try and see how it does,then at that point if your not happy with the performance then switch to the 4:10 gears,everybody has a different feeling as to what performance they are happy with and you just might be happy with the 3:55 gearing

[kanyonkitty]

Penguin,

Just had a thought (dangerous I know ) But, is there any chance of getting a "test tow" with your current truck ? I know the trailer would be dry weight, BUT, it might help you figure out what you want to do. "IF" it pulls like a barge on dry land, how much will the gear swap help ? (some of the guys need to answer that). "IF" it tows like you feel it should, then you'd have the gear swap option if it felt a bit heavy once loaded. I know it's a huge decision, and I'm not a fan of towing over weight, but if you meet the weights and it is just a matter if going up hills a bit slower, well maybe you could deal with that until you could replace the truck. "IF" the test tow works, you know you can't buy a better long lasting trailer than a Sunline. Keep us informed

Kitty

[Penguin33]

Thanks once again for the info. Kitty, that is a great idea, I don't know why I never thought of it! The TT that we were looking at was at a dealer, so I'm not sure what their policy would be on a test tow... but it surely will not hurt to ask! The other thing I was wondering about was would a gear swap change my gas milage much for everyday driving (while not towing)? My truck already likes to drink... A LOT! and I would hate to make that even worse.

[rich2500]

well penguin that depends on the type of driving you do when not towing,for example if you do alot of highway driving yes you are going to loose probably about 2mpg going to 4:10 but if you do alot of backroad and drive up and down alot of hills the deeper gears could actually help your milage.Couple more questions I think that may be important

1-how much do you plan on using the camper
2-how far do you plan on traveling with the camper

Kitty suggestion is great if you can get the dealer to go for it.

[HappyCampers]

I'd like to offer my 2 cents on this topic. I'm sure I'll take a little heat for my stance, but here goes. My last truck was a 2001 Dodge Ram 2500 with the 5.9 Cummins and 3.53 rear gears. From what I was told this wasn't a very common combination, but I had it anyway. The max towing weight from Dodge was listed at 9800 lbs I think. I bought the F-304SR with an empty weight of 10,090 before I found out my gears were 3.55s. I towed that trailer home to PA from Center Conway NH without any trouble. You may not be entirely familiar with this route but I towed up some pretty steep hills in the White Mtns, and the Pocono Mtns. with no issue holding 60 mph at all times. This was in August with temps in the 90 degree range with the AC on. Never once did the trucks coolant temp, nor transmission temp rise above normal levels. And I never felt that I was a danger to anyones welfare, including my own. No braking issues either. I towed the trailer several more months with this truck before I decided to get a one ton. The main reason for the new truck was pin weight from the trailer when she was fully loaded, and my buddy wanted my old truck. If not I definately would still be towing with it.
I'm pretty sure that the auto makers take into account the "safety margin" when they calculate the towing limits for their vehicles. They wouldn't tell you that you could tow 10,000 lbs safely if you couldn't tow 10,000 lbs safely. Even then, they wouldn't tell you 10,000 lbs when 10, 250 lbs. would make your truck blow up, or the frame to crack, or endanger yourself. I'd compare it to the redline on your tachometer. The red line is at say 6,000 rpm, should you only use the engine up to 4,500 rpm? Is it going to detonate at 6,001 RPM?
I want to go ahead and apoligize in advance if my opinion rubs anybody the wrong way. If all else fails, try it and see what you think after you tow the trailer.

[campin'dude]

I am towing a 2007 T-276SR with my 2002 F-150 Supercrew Lariat 4X4 FX4 with the 5.4L engine. My truck also had the 3.55 factory gears and I didn't even try towing with that setup. I had the truck upgraded to 4.10s which cost me $1400 for parts & labor plus another $200 for a Hypertech programmer to recalibrate the speedo for the new gears. It also allowed me to firm up the trans shifts.

I am very happy with the combo... The unloaded gas mileage of the truck has actually increased about 1 mpg since it just locks into O/D and never downshifts for small hills.

I am also very happy with how it tows even through the mountains of PA and NY (I had to get down to 45 mph on the steepest one). It won't win any races but cruises along easily and seems to stop just fine. It gets about 8 mpg towing with OD locked out at 60 mph (I rarely tow any faster than that) at 2700 RPM. Very stable with the 1.2K/12K Reese dual-cam setup. The hitch weight does not seem to be an issue... the back end squats a bit but nothing excessive at all.

We came across a deal on our Sunline early last year and just couldn't pass up that quality of a trailer for the price. A new truck with the new trailer was not in the budget. So, for less than the the cost of the tax on a new truck (here in MD it's 6%), I made our current truck (which meets all of our other needs just fine) get the job done. Sure, I would love to have 3/4 or 1 ton truck and I'm sure my next one will be. But, if you are like me and want to tow a heavier Sunline trailer and there are no other immediate reasons to trade in your truck, just have your gears swapped. Make sure you use good parts and find a reputable shop that has experience in doing that kind of work.

Please LMK if you would like any sources for parts or have any other questions.

[hobbes2]

If your still in the market we are moving to a 5th wheel and selling our 07 276, very fair price.

[hobbes2]

If your still in the market we are moving to a 5th wheel and selling our 07 276, very fair price.