Towing Rating Confusion

Our ford V10 is 6.8 and our MH V8 is an 8.1
The V10 worked very well but the 8.1 has more pep.
What V8 are you talking about?

I guess I have been there, done that before. I have been heavily loaded, and take all those chances to stay well back from frontal collision, don't get mad when they cut me off, and just try to act very defensive when I feel a bit tight.

Do I like it? NO! Do I keep doing it, NO! But it's a decision you have to make by trying it for yourself and learning about your rig and it's ability to stop in an emergency.

It's not the uphill section that will bother you, nor the flat down the road, it's the decision to stop and how well the rig handles that that will determine whether you go for it or don't.

The GM 8.1 or the Ford V-10 both will do the job just fine but make sure the V-10 is 2006 or newer.

K Charles wrote:
Our ford V10 is 6.8 and our MH V8 is an 8.1
The V10 worked very well but the 8.1 has more pep.
What V8 are you talking about?

These are the rigs I am considering:

The 23A
Chassis ManufacturerFord Motor Company
ChassisE350
Engine TypeTriton
Engine Size5.4 Liter V8


The 27G
Chassis ManufacturerFord
ChassisE450
Engine TypeTriton
Engine SizeV10

The 28A
Chassis ManufacturerFord Motor Company
ChassisE450
Engine TypeTriton
Engine Size6.8 Liter V10


I'm thinking the 27A, having the same engine and being a little lighter, may pull more?

timmac wrote:
The GM 8.1 or the Ford V-10 both will do the job just fine but make sure the V-10 is 2006 or newer.

It would be a 2011.

Artum Snowbird wrote:
I guess I have been there, done that before. I have been heavily loaded, and take all those chances to stay well back from frontal collision, don't get mad when they cut me off, and just try to act very defensive when I feel a bit tight.

Do I like it? NO! Do I keep doing it, NO! But it's a decision you have to make by trying it for yourself and learning about your rig and it's ability to stop in an emergency.

It's not the uphill section that will bother you, nor the flat down the road, it's the decision to stop and how well the rig handles that that will determine whether you go for it or don't.

I'm thinking that a 27 or 28 footer should be able to handle towing. The trailer would have brakes. I'd have to install a higher grade tow hitch though, as it comes with a level 3.

At 2011-13 era, the E-series cutaway chassis had ratings from Ford as follows:

E-350 with 5.4 V-8, 13,000 GCWR, 7,700 maximum loaded trailer weight
E-350 with 6.8 V-10, 18,500 GCWR, 10,000 maximum loaded trailer weight
E-450 with 5.4 V-8 (rare), 14,050 GCWR, 8,500 maximum loaded trailer weight
E-450 with 6.8 V-10, 22,000 GCWR, 10,000 maximum loaded trailer weight

Prior model years (they've been making the E-450 at least 13 years, the E-350 cutaway more than 30 years) could have lower ratings.

These are for the cab chassis. You put something on the chassis, that takes away some of the GCWR for carrying the load, reduces what is left for the "tow rating." What you can pull, with a 10,000 pound hitch on the original Ford frame, is GCWR - actual loaded weight. This is where you are at when you rent an E-450 V-10 box truck from U-Haul, Ryder et al.

RVs are different. They are almost always extended 6 to 12 feet beyond the end of the OEM frame, and few RV manufacturers install a 10,000 pound hitch receiver. While the RV manufacturer usually does not lower the GCWR from the OEM specifications, the finished RV will often be given a "tow rating" much lower than Ford's "maximum loaded trailer weight."

The usual numbers are 5000 pounds for a flat tow, 3500 for a load on the hitch, with 350 pounds maximum tongue weight. Since Cruise America doesn't allow towing with rentals, most likely the towing equipment is install by them prior to sale, and only Cruise America knows just what the rating is. It will be not as high as U-Haul's ratings.

GCWRs and tow ratings don't have as much to do with engine sizes and power outputs as they have to do with the ability of the chassis to control the tow, gearing, and cooling capacities for engine and transmission. Distance from rear axle to hitch, length and strength of frame, are factors that change when you build a house beyond the end of the frame, not just put on a box that fits.

One other thing you will have to look at the the MH frame extension tow ratings. Even if you upgrade the hitch, you may still be limited without having the frame beefed up.
Ours has a class 3 receiver (rated at 5000lb towing and 500lb hitch weight) but Winnebago rate the towing for 5000lb BUT only a 350 lb hitch weight, due to the frame extensions.

Ken

That's great info. THANK YOU!

How do I know what I can tow then? It seems the tow rating for the 27 and 28 are more than enough for towing the FJC on a trailer, but is that diminished by the frame length? Would a welder be able to gusset it up or add extra crossmember or something?

I was told that adding a welded on class4 hitch would do it.

You need to get exact specs. I'm pretty sure tow rating on Class C's with Ford chassis were 5,000 lb's until 2015 or so when it bumped to 7,500.

There is already a lot of weight with the RV which reduces your tow capacity.