Finally hit the scales
Have had various truck / trailer combinations, for 15 years, and finally weighed one. Trailer numbers from manufacturers sticker UVW 7021 lbs hitch weight 841 lbs (12%) It's a front kitchen...
Forum Discussion
handye9 wrote:According to the online F-250/350/450/550 Owners Manuals, Ford did not adopt the specification for approximately 50% elimination of front-end rise until the 2011 model year.
Trailer without WD takes 440 lbs from steering wheels, WD puts 200 lbs back. Front axle load restoration about 49%. From what I understand, Ford recommends 50% FALR.
For 2008, the online manual reads:
3. Attach the trailer to the vehicle and adjust the hitch equalizers so that
the front bumper height is within 1?2” (13 mm) of the reference point.
After proper adjustment, the rear bumper should be no higher than in
Step 2.
This reasonably could be interpreted as an acceptable range of:
minus 1/2" to plus 1/2" with a midrange of 0"
or
0" to plus 1/2" with a midrange of 1/4".
In either case, a measured height increase of 1/2" would be at the extreme end of the range.
Since I've seen no indication that Ford considers their 2011 specification to be retroactive to 2008, I would shoot for a front-end rise of not more than 1/4".
Better yet, you might want to contact Ford's technical department to see what they have to say. It's always good to get an "official" opinion.
Ron
