Towing a 6000 lb trailer with a Taurus?

Tystevens wrote:

gijoecam wrote:
Andy and his cult of followers (wrongly) assume that the vehicle designers and engineers in Dearbporn who spend years designing, developing, and testing the exact combination of chassis, suspension, and drivetrain are simply overruled by marketing folks pushing those who want to tow into more profitable trucks. And those folks couldn't be more wrong.

Have you been involved in meetings and discussions between the engineers, marketing execs, lawyers, accountants, and everyone else involved in bringing these vehicles to market? If so, I'd love to hear some stories (honestly, I have no idea about your background, but would love to hear stories if you have been involved!). If not, how do you know that one department has no bearing on the other?

Maybe "not recommended" for towing means that Ford hooked a trailer up to the Taurus and it was not up to the task whatsoever. Or, more likely, maybe a marketing or accounting exec determined that, since Taurus buyers aren't likely to see any value in a tow rating, Ford wouldn't pay a team of engineers to spend the time and money to evaluate and assign a tow rating to the Taurus.

I don't think it matters. You hook something up to something that's not supposed to be hooked up to....kiss your warranty good bye! This also brings up willful negligence in the event you have an "at fault" accident when towing where there is injury or worse. I can hear the argument now-"Well judge, this guy Andy who set me up thought he knew more than all the engineers that designed it!". Yea, that will go far.

You will lose and your life will change forever!

gijoecam wrote:
Andy and his cult of followers (wrongly) assume that the vehicle designers and engineers in Dearbporn who spend years designing, developing, and testing the exact combination of chassis, suspension, and drivetrain are simply overruled by marketing folks pushing those who want to tow into more profitable trucks. And those folks couldn't be more wrong.

Have you been involved in meetings and discussions between the engineers, marketing execs, lawyers, accountants, and everyone else involved in bringing these vehicles to market? If so, I'd love to hear some stories (honestly, I have no idea about your background, but would love to hear stories if you have been involved!). If not, how do you know that one department has no bearing on the other?

Maybe "not recommended" for towing means that Ford hooked a trailer up to the Taurus and it was not up to the task whatsoever. Or, more likely, maybe a marketing or accounting exec determined that, since Taurus buyers aren't likely to see any value in a tow rating, Ford wouldn't pay a team of engineers to spend the time and money to evaluate and assign a tow rating to the Taurus.

Andy and his cult of followers (wrongly) assume that the vehicle designers and engineers in Dearbporn who spend years designing, developing, and testing the exact combination of chassis, suspension, and drivetrain are simply overruled by marketing folks pushing those who want to tow into more profitable trucks. And those folks couldn't be more wrong.

Vehicles are designed and tested as systems. Yes, the Taurus and Explorer are built on the same platform, but that in no way implies that they are equally capable. The F250 and F350 are also built on the same platform... Does that make them equally capable? The Focus and Escape are built on the same platform... So what?

So what Andy's implying is that, despite years of development and testing, the engineers got it wrong? Or is it just remotely possible that the engineers got it right and might actually have a reason for not rating a Taurus SHO for towing? Like, oh, I don't know, maybe its cooling capacity is marginal to start with due to the small nose and tiny radiator? Or maybe the transmission simply isn't rated for moving 11,000 lbs up a grade repeatedly without cooking itself? Oh, but it's the same transmission as in the F-150, and that can do it, right? Except it's not the same transmission... But it's the same engine, right? Yeah... But the radiator is nearly twice the size of the one in the Taurus.

Has Andy taken into account the wheel bearing design criteris and projected life? What about the effect of adding the hitch to the structure of the chassis and its long term impact on the chassis due to the tongue load? Distributing the tongue loads over a larger area means nothing if those areas aren't engineered (not reinforced) to handle the added loads.

Oh, but he's got decades of experience.... So? He also assumes no liability for his products (or failures). He's been lucky thus far.

I will admit that his rigs are impressive, and his logic makes sense on some levels, but to acknowledge that his design is 'right' or 'correct' is to imply that the hundreds or thousands of engineers who designed and tested the vehicle got it wrong... And I'm just not willing to go there.

A passenger car given by OEM at tow rating of 1000 or 1500 in one market may be identical to the car that has a 6000 tow rating in another market. Tow ratings are as much about marketing and avoidance of warranty exposures and other legal issues as they are about engineering and capabilities.

So that's a Taurus in Canada, not a Taurus in the U.S.

dodge guy wrote:

mooky stinks wrote:
How do you close your trunk with the 7 way lead going in it? Mines about 1" in diameter! Lol

Why would you put it in the trunk? normally they are all attached at the hitch.

Keeps it out of the weather.

mooky stinks wrote:
How do you close your trunk with the 7 way lead going in it? Mines about 1" in diameter! Lol

Why would you put it in the trunk? normally they are all attached at the hitch.

Hybridhunter wrote:
That is all fine and great. But a lot of those setups will not be legal in many states.
And warranty is out the window if the dealer finds out what a vehicle is being used for. And on an SHO with a class III hitch and a 7 pin wiring setup.

I have been towing our Airstream with a Nissan Mini Van and 7 years now with an Infiniti G35. Nothing has ever gone wrong with the drive train that would require warranty work.

mkirsch wrote:

mooky stinks wrote:
How do you close your trunk with the 7 way lead going in it? Mines about 1" in diameter! Lol

There's plenty of give in the weatherstripping to accommodate the cable very easily.

Correct, it works fine that way on my car.

bikendan wrote:
i've always wondered why Can-Am is the only place i know of, that advocates these kind of setups.

:B

Should we read anything into the fact that despite so many of their Devotees being U.S. Americans, Can-Am doesn't have a legal presence here in the good ol' U.S.of A.?

Pretty good business decision, at least from a vulnerability-to-liability perpective.

jerem0621 wrote:
Say what you want about Can-Am RV and Andy. They don't sit behind keyboards and make empiracle statements. They put things to the test, the do slolam testing, they spend 8 plus hours setting up one TV properly and they pay attention to the details.

Absolutely agree. Many people assume they slap a hitch on a Taurus off the showroom floor and hitch up a TT to it....while that might be the norm here in US, these guys at Cam Am take their towing seriously and put a lot more effort into it.

If you were to take you Taurus into Can Am and have it "outfitted" for towing, you may get a custom receiver, attaching points strategically strengthened, suspension upgraded, etc. Note the lack of sag on the taurus in any of the photos. Can Am likely includes a Hensley hitch with each set up to eliminate sway in the rig.

A lot of folks are quick to dismiss Andy, but I think the guy knows what he is doing. He takes the time to understand the dynamics of a particular vehicle and from experience knows what's needed to make it a safe tow rig. Yes, he has done a few really out there combos to prove a point, but overall if Andy set the rig up, I wouldn't have a problem driving it.