04-05 Ford Excursion diesel towing?
Anyone tow with a 04-05 Excursion diesel? Have you had any problems with the 6.0 engine, front end, brakes, electrical, trans, 4x4 system or any other issues? I am looking into buying a low mileage Ex...
Forum Discussion
My TT is similar in weight than yours. My 00 Ex V10 with 4.30 gears and Magnaflow exhaust would avg 8 mpg towing it with family of 5 on board. It could hit 9 mpg on flats with OD on cruising at 63 mph (2000 rpm IIRC) but a low of 6 mpgs on hills or in winds. I would do 70 mph in the hills because that put the rpms in the torque band so it would downshift much less. I could tell after several down and up shifts under load the trans shifts would get softer. Empty it would get 14mpg-16mpg short distances (mainly towed with it). I drove 10k miles towing with it through all conditions. It never let me down on the road but I had to spend $$$ when I bought it to get it up to snuff.
The same trailer with 03 Ex 6.0L on a short trip got 12 mpg. I just towed a loaded auto trailer (6K) and got 17 mpg which is more than the V10 got empty. Empty this can hit 22-23 mpg under idea conditions. For long distances (if you address 6.0L reliability) the diesels will recoup the extra expense in fuel savings. For maintenance/purchase economy the V10 would be fine, it's dead reliable out of the box just be prepared to hear it rev (sing) under load on the inclines. There are tunes (Mikes 5 Star), headers and upgraded y pipes/exhaust that have been shown to increase the hp on the dyno if you needed more power. I would just suggest some trans mods to keep it cool and tighten up the soft shifts.
The same trailer with 03 Ex 6.0L on a short trip got 12 mpg. I just towed a loaded auto trailer (6K) and got 17 mpg which is more than the V10 got empty. Empty this can hit 22-23 mpg under idea conditions. For long distances (if you address 6.0L reliability) the diesels will recoup the extra expense in fuel savings. For maintenance/purchase economy the V10 would be fine, it's dead reliable out of the box just be prepared to hear it rev (sing) under load on the inclines. There are tunes (Mikes 5 Star), headers and upgraded y pipes/exhaust that have been shown to increase the hp on the dyno if you needed more power. I would just suggest some trans mods to keep it cool and tighten up the soft shifts.
johninedmonton wrote:
I'm also looking at a Excursion, because my Expedition just doesn't have the guts for a year long tour of the continent.
I'm looking at e 6.0L PSD which I'll do a full bulletproof on. I don't think I want a 7.3 because of the weak transmission and the noise. But maybe the v10 is something I should look at. My TT will be about 8,500 at the very most. It's 7,250 dry.
With regards to hitches, I strongly suggest you take the new Andersen WD for a drive. I've driven with a Husky and a Hensley; neither came close to the Andersen for a consistent tow. Plus, it's so fast and easy to hook up that my 10 year old daughter can hook us up. It seems gimmicky, but it delivers!
