ford/Lincoln hybrid towing

Thanks for the info, triker33. Learn something new every day. :)

Apparently, the Lincoln MKZ hybrid has a different, more elaborate system for neutral towing than the Fusion hybrid. If it truly shuts off ALL loads from the 12V battery, then that would eliminate the need for a charge line. However, call me 'not convinced', haha.

Given that the owner's manual for both the C-max and Fusion hybrid say NOTHING of the electrical load placed on the battery when towing and need for a charge line....I still don't think I'd trust Lincoln/Ford, and assume that ALL loads, circuits are disconnected from the battery when it is put in neutral towing mode.

'Tis very easy to find out for certain, just do what I did: Put tranny in neutral, go through all the motions to put vehicle in neutral tow mode, like you would when hitching it up to tow. Then, put a clip-on ammeter on one of the wires coming from the 12V battery, and see what amperage it reads when vehicle is in 'neutral tow mode' with everything else turned off (radio, lights, etc).

I found with our Fusion, that even with everything turned off, there was still a 3 amp average draw on the battery all the time. That was enough draw that after just a few hours of towing, the battery was so dead it would not even operate the power locks on the car. Talked to several other Fusion and C-max owners that had a similar experience.

And, remember, these vehicles' power brake system is ALWAYS on, so any time your supplemental braking system engages the brakes, that power brake assist motor on the vehicle may engage, drawing even more from the battery. Maybe thats not the case for the MKZ, but it is on the Cmax, Fusion, and the Energi models.

I think I'd want to do an ammeter check on the MKZ to be sure. As many will tell you, it is definitely NOT fun to get to your destination with a dead toad battery, and have to get a jump from someone to get it going.

Will

We'll there appears to be some differences in the two models ... Does anyone have the setup listings for Energi

The owner's manual has a section about recreational towing. It tells you exactly what to do to set up whatever you own for towing. If you don't have one handy you can search for and download a PDF version easily. Ford support is a good place to go Ford Support.

BTW, based on the info in a previous C-Max towing thread, I did install a charge line. Not tested since I have yet to tow the car any great distance.

We'll there appears to be some differences in the two models ... Does anyone have the setup listings for Energi.

willald wrote:

Yes it does, unless you plan on stopping every hour or two to run the mkz engine, to charge up the battery.

'Tis one of those 'undocumented features' about Ford's hybrids, that they drain the battery when flat towing, if you leave the key in ACC position as they instruct you to. I verified this with an ammeter. Very easy solution, though, like I said - run a charge line.

Owners manual on mine didn't mention this, either, hence why I called it an 'undocumented feature'. :)

Will

You might be right with the Ford Hybrid. But the Lincoln Hybrid has no key on when towing.

MKZ Hybrid Owners Manual: Neutral Tow
If you tow your vehicle with all four wheels on the ground:

Tow only in the forward direction.

Release the parking brake.

Place the vehicle in Neutral Tow mode
by doing the following:

Put the ignition in accessory mode(ignition on, engine off).

Select
Neutral Tow in the information display.

When prompted by the information display, press the brake pedal and
select Neutral on the transmission.
Make sure the parking brake is off.

If done successfully, Neutral Tow Engaged appears in the display.

Shut the ignition off(turns accessory mode off)
Thus no drain on battery. Unless you use a supplemental brake system that uses battery to operate.
And they are systems that doesn't use 12V to work.

If the process is completed successfully, the N on the transmission slowly blinks and "Neutral tow engaged"
appears in the information display.

Do not exceed 70 mph (113 km/h).

Start the engine and allow it to run for one minute at the beginning of each day.

With the engine running and your foot on the brake, shift into position D and then into position R before shifting back into position N
.

Triker33 wrote:

Monkei wrote:

Please tell me more about the charge line please. How is it installed, etc.

A friend of mine told me to also look at the Ford Fusion Energii which is a hybrid plug in. It is listed as flat tow abode and you get the added technology of electric. It may not come into play while on the road, although it could plug in at the campground. Same price as the MKZ hybrid, just with the electric ability along with the gas hybrid.

Download theMKZ owners manual as the set up for towing does not need a charge line unless you are using a power heavy brake system on it.

Yes it does, unless you plan on stopping every hour or two to run the mkz engine, to charge up the battery.

'Tis one of those 'undocumented features' about Ford's hybrids, that they drain the battery when flat towing, if you leave the key in ACC position as they instruct you to. I verified this with an ammeter. Very easy solution, though, like I said - run a charge line.

Owners manual on mine didn't mention this, either, hence why I called it an 'undocumented feature'. :)

Will

Monkei wrote:

Please tell me more about the charge line please. How is it installed, etc.

A friend of mine told me to also look at the Ford Fusion Energii which is a hybrid plug in. It is listed as flat tow abode and you get the added technology of electric. It may not come into play while on the road, although it could plug in at the campground. Same price as the MKZ hybrid, just with the electric ability along with the gas hybrid.

Download theMKZ owners manual as the set up for towing does not need a charge line unless you are using a power heavy brake system on it.

Monkei wrote:
Please tell me more about the charge line please. How is it installed, etc.

Well, there's a couple ways you can do it. You can buy a product that includes everything you need to do it and install it, something like RVi's Towed battery charger. Or, you can just buy the appropriate wiring, connectors, fuse link, etc. and do it yourself. If you do a search or two on here, you'll see several examples, instructions, etc. on how folks have done this.

Basically all you're doing is running a (fused!) wire from the + terminal of your MH, to the + terminal of your towed vehicle. Most MHs will already have a charge wire (+) wired to the back, in the 7 pin trailer wiring connection at the back. You just wire that, through one of the wires in your umbilical cord going to the toad, and wire from there to the + terminal of the battery. Fortunately with the Ford hybrids, even though the battery is in the back, there is a + terminal under the hood you can easily connect to.

You should already have a ground (-) wire going to the towed vehicle for the taillight wiring. If not, you'll need to run that, too.

Thats pretty much it.

A friend of mine told me to also look at the Ford Fusion Energii which is a hybrid plug in. It is listed as flat tow abode and you get the added technology of electric. It may not come into play while on the road, although it could plug in at the campground. Same price as the MKZ hybrid, just with the electric ability along with the gas hybrid.

You actually get the ability to run in electric (EV) mode with both the regular hybrids AND the Energi version. Big difference is, with the Energi version, the batteries are bigger and able to store much more energy, so you can run much longer in EV mode. Also, the energi version gives you the plug-in capability to plug it in and charge up the batteries that way. With the regular hybrid (what we have), electrical power is only generated by regenerative braking, and from running in regular gas mode.

The 'energi' version also comes with a much higher price tag, and isn't quite as easy to find (not many of them made, yet). However, I believe the higher price is offset by a tax break you get, since it (energi version) is considered a true electric vehicle.

Both version are completely flat towable. No doubt, the plug in capability of the energi version would be nice to have at campgrounds since you could charge it up there.

If you don't mind spending the extra $$ and can find an energi version in your area, go for it.

Monkei, to get back to your original question, in your original post: Your V10 will do fine with this load, that should be the least of your worries. It may not climb mountain passes quite as fast and easy as you're used to with a diesel pusher, but it will do fine.

Will

willald wrote:

DouglasC wrote:
...all you need to do is put the key in the ignition, turn it to ACC position, press on brake pedal to allow shift level to be moved out of PARK to NEUTRAL, then turn key back towards OFF (no battery drain in the near OFF position vs. ACC position)....

DouglasC has had success using this approach, but you need to keep this in mind: Turning the key away from ACC toward OFF as he is indicating here, is NOT recommended by Ford.

Owner's manual indicates to leave it in ACC position when towing. I spoke with a Ford representative about this recently, and he did confirm what I have suspected: There are specific reasons Ford recommends it stay in ACC position when flat towing. There are specific things, circuits that Ford wants to stay on when towing (like for instance, a circuit for an electric pump that circulates tranny fluid).

I know Douglas has had success with his approach, but if it were me, I'd be doing it the way Ford recommends. Thats what we've always done with our '13 Fusion hybrid. Repairs (or replacement) on the eCVT transmissions these hybrids use, I'm betting will not be cheap.

Yes, leaving it in ACC position means you are draining the battery. Solution to that is you either run a charge line (what I did and highly, highly recommend), or plan on stopping every few hours to start and run the engine for a few minutes in your toad to re-charge the battery. Like I said, I highly, highly recommend the charge line. Very quick, cheap, and easy to install, and eliminates all worries about ever draining the battery when towing.

Please tell me more about the charge line please. How is it installed, etc.

A friend of mine told me to also look at the Ford Fusion Energii which is a hybrid plug in. It is listed as flat tow abode and you get the added technology of electric. It may not come into play while on the road, although it could plug in at the campground. Same price as the MKZ hybrid, just with the electric ability along with the gas hybrid.

DouglasC wrote:
...all you need to do is put the key in the ignition, turn it to ACC position, press on brake pedal to allow shift level to be moved out of PARK to NEUTRAL, then turn key back towards OFF (no battery drain in the near OFF position vs. ACC position)....

DouglasC has had success using this approach, but you need to keep this in mind: Turning the key away from ACC toward OFF as he is indicating here, is NOT recommended by Ford.

Owner's manual indicates to leave it in ACC position when towing. I spoke with a Ford representative about this recently, and he did confirm what I have suspected: There are specific reasons Ford recommends it stay in ACC position when flat towing. There are specific things, circuits that Ford wants to stay on when towing (like for instance, a circuit for an electric pump that circulates tranny fluid).

I know Douglas has had success with his approach, but if it were me, I'd be doing it the way Ford recommends. Thats what we've always done with our '13 Fusion hybrid. Repairs (or replacement) on the eCVT transmissions these hybrids use, I'm betting will not be cheap.

Yes, leaving it in ACC position means you are draining the battery. Solution to that is you either run a charge line (what I did and highly, highly recommend), or plan on stopping every few hours to start and run the engine for a few minutes in your toad to re-charge the battery. Like I said, I highly, highly recommend the charge line. Very quick, cheap, and easy to install, and eliminates all worries about ever draining the battery when towing.

The MKZ Hybrid doesn't have a key to put in the ignition. :)
The Owners Manual will tell you how to pull it 4 down and the steps to go through.