F150 EcoBoost with Max payload package Super Crew

Well, no poop - one with a 3k payload will be beefier underneath than one with a 1.8k payload. But for pulling within their designed specs all will do the job just fine.

So, tell me what am I missing? Ours pulls well, doesn't wander all over the road, accelerates decent, and will stop when I need it to. Yes, you know it's back there. It's a good reminder to take the extra care that towing such a behemoth requires.

I suggest that those who think that all pickups are created equal get out of their leather seats and crawl under one some time. The differences between the various models is more than one might think. By now, we all have heard how the ecoboost can pull 10,000-12,000 with the proper hitch, but towing it well might be another matter.

LarryJM wrote:

While there might be some of that there are enough anecdotal evidence of folks having gone from a 1/2T to a 3/4 and up say the difference between towing the same trailer is night and day to strongly support the larger is better idea. IMO instinctively, towing something that weighs like 1 & 1/2 as much as what you are towing it with just sounds largely fool hearty to me. Unfortunately, now days technology such as the EcoBoost and numerically crazy transmissions has made power for the most part a non issue. However, the tail wagging the dog problem can only be truly solved with a bigger dog. Even the ultra premium hitches such as the HA or PP can only go so far in solving that dilemma.

IMHO a lot of those posts are "Ive towed with my 2000 1/2 ton using the Harbor Freight hitch and it was a disaster". I since upgraded to a 2010 3/4 Diesel and it's night and day. You don't say? 10 years of improvements, and maybe even a better hitch. If you properly equip the vehicle and use the proper equipment you should have no issues towing near the max, no matter what the vehicle.

Look at the specs between say a 1/2 ton and a 3/4 ton. Last I looked the F250 was about 1500 lbs heavier than my F150, about the same wheelbase, about as wide, etc. You certainly can get a shorter wheelbase in an F250 (reg cab short bed) than an F150 (Supercrew). Check the Diesel box and you may end up with less payload than a 1/2 ton!

The Ecoboost has the power of the V10 in the Class A's and C's. Yes, the turbos make it that way. The same is true for every Turbo Diesel on the road today.

If you equip a 1/2 ton properly there is no reason it can't tow well. Our dealer was part of the equation. Once we picked the trailer and verified we could tow, he immediately sold us the Equalizer 12k lb hitch. Now this is for a Max Tow F150 towing an Open Range LT272RLS (8k dry, 35' hitch to tail). It tows wonderfully. Yes, sometimes we get blown around. But looking ahead at the 18 wheeler they are getting blown around too! Maybe if we were out West it would be different but for here in the NE this combo works fine.

For me I want more TV than necessary for that "THE WORST DAY" and not for that 95% of the time scenario because you might only get one chance with no "do overs" when Mr. Murphy wakes up on the wrong side of the bed and is extra "CRANKY". My life and those of my loved ones are just too important to go to the roulette wheel with their lives. I've towed quite a bit out west and experienced more than once what those sudden wind shears out of no where on bridges across mtn gorges and the "high desserts/plains cross winds" can do to a normally comfortable towing experience and have never regretted not being over TV capable equipped.

I agree we all need to do what makes us and our families feel safe. Just don't have a false sense of security with that "big rig". Plenty of YouTube videos of 3/4 and 1 tons in the ditch while towing. I've seen the aftermath of one with my own two eyes. It happens to all tow vehicles.

So Larry, you're driving a freightliner? So how much truck do you need, 150% more, 200% more, 400%? Fact is, There is no problem towing at 100% of the tv's ratings.

So Larry, you're driving a freightliner?

itguy08 wrote:

rbpru wrote:

My biggest concern on the OPs question is that they are designing a half ton to do what 3/4 tons was meant to do. This does not seem like a good idea to me.

How so? The 1/2 ton of today is the same as the 3/4 ton of 15 or so years ago. They have more power, just as good frames, brakes, etc.

If something is designed to do a job it better do that job. In the case of a 1/2 ton if it's designed to tow or haul xxx amount of weight it will do that. Same with a 3/4 or 1 ton.

Most of the reasonings for 3/4+ tons towing these trailers are more excuses or justifications for a bigger truck.

X2!!!

Your grandpa's one ton couldn't even come close to what a 1/2 ton of today can do. Engineers have designed them better using better and stronger materials, stronger motors and transmissions, better brakes, and so forth.

itguy08 wrote:
Most of the reasonings for 3/4+ tons towing these trailers are more excuses or justifications for a bigger truck.

While there might be some of that there are enough anecdotal evidence of folks having gone from a 1/2T to a 3/4 and up say the difference between towing the same trailer is night and day to strongly support the larger is better idea. IMO instinctively, towing something that weighs like 1 & 1/2 as much as what you are towing it with just sounds largely fool hearty to me. Unfortunately, now days technology such as the EcoBoost and numerically crazy transmissions has made power for the most part a non issue. However, the tail wagging the dog problem can only be truly solved with a bigger dog. Even the ultra premium hitches such as the HA or PP can only go so far in solving that dilemma.

For me I want more TV than necessary for that "THE WORST DAY" and not for that 95% of the time scenario because you might only get one chance with no "do overs" when Mr. Murphy wakes up on the wrong side of the bed and is extra "CRANKY". My life and those of my loved ones are just too important to go to the roulette wheel with their lives. I've towed quite a bit out west and experienced more than once what those sudden wind shears out of no where on bridges across mtn gorges and the "high desserts/plains cross winds" can do to a normally comfortable towing experience and have never regretted not being over TV capable equipped.

Larry

rbpru wrote:

My biggest concern on the OPs question is that they are designing a half ton to do what 3/4 tons was meant to do. This does not seem like a good idea to me.

How so? The 1/2 ton of today is the same as the 3/4 ton of 15 or so years ago. They have more power, just as good frames, brakes, etc.

If something is designed to do a job it better do that job. In the case of a 1/2 ton if it's designed to tow or haul xxx amount of weight it will do that. Same with a 3/4 or 1 ton.

Most of the reasonings for 3/4+ tons towing these trailers are more excuses or justifications for a bigger truck.

tinstartrvlr wrote:

One had drivetrain issues and he (and some mechanic apparently) attributed it to the amount of torque put out by the ecoboost being driven into an f150 drivetrain when it really needs the 250 drivetrain. Over time the f150 drivetrain couldn't take the stress he said. Seemed like a valid argument.

I have to LOL at that one. The 6R80 is proven and a reliable transmission. The rear ends are the same Ford rear ends used in other high stress applications so what's left? The frame is stout, etc.

Other fella had his turbo fail while towing. That left him with a small 6 cyl unboosted motor to tow with. He told me it put quite a strain on the motor.

Lose any turbo and you are in for a world of hurt. The only thing that makes the Diesels so good is the turbo. Go drive an older un-boosted Diesel and see how bad they were. The EB was designed well.

Well we can all talk about gas mileage; my 2011 E-Boost F-150 4x4 gets 10 mpg. Now my last trip I got 11.4 mpg on the first tank and 11.7 on the second. Who knows why?

Tail winds, reduced speed, gasoline blends, it really does not matter. With gas at $2.70/gal. at 10 mpg it costs 27 cents per mile. At 12 mpg. it costs 22.5 cents per mile. A savings of 4.5 cents per mile or a whopping 17 gallons if you drive 1000 miles and maintain the 12 mpg.

With gas currently below $2.50 in most parts of the country the savings are even less.

My biggest concern on the OPs question is that they are designing a half ton to do what 3/4 tons was meant to do. This does not seem like a good idea to me.

That said it may be Detroit’s way of meeting the ever increasing mileage standards imposed by the government and a trend for TVs of the future. Who would have thought today's F-150 4x4 could get 20 mpg cruising at near 70 mph on the Interstate between tows.