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ajacobs1112's avatar
ajacobs1112
Explorer
Jun 10, 2017

Towing Capacity

I just bought 2000 f350 dually stock. The mcwr for truck and trailer is 20k. My question is, what are some things I can add to the truck to enable it to increase that capacity in order to have options to look for a heavier rig. The guides say that I can tow a fiver with a gross weight of 13k. Some of the things I've been seeing are tuners and upgrade the transcooler. Any suggestions or comments would be appreciated.
  • donn0128 wrote:
    Mcwr? Thats a new one. What is that?
    As for add ons? There is absolutely NOTHING that will alter or increase the manufacturers ratings. If you choose to try stuff, air bags are probably the best. But then you have to be careful not to overload the tires or axles. Modifying them could work, but then you next worries would be wheels followed by frame strength. Where does it all end? Transmission rebuild, then front end build, then drive shaft. By that time you will have thousands invested when probably for less money you could have simply bought a newer truck with more load carrying capacity.


    Are you just the eternal pessimist or any real info to back this up? Considering it's essentially the same chassis as a 2016 F350.......
    Agree there's a difference between the old rig and a newer one, and that is age and wear and tear. With an older rig you gotta be smart, new rig just gotta have money.
    A lot of donnos points above apply, but not for the stated reasons, more so you should look at the overall mileage/health and condtion of the truck. It's could be clapped out and not fit to run to the beer store or it could be the most meticulously maintained capable vehicle you've ever seen. We cannot judge that from a simple post.
  • I wouldn't want to go much heavier than that with a17 year old Powerstroke unless I had to and IMO it would take some tuning, trans cooler etc to make pulling that much any fun with that combo.
    Beef up the trans, chip it, big trans cooler and let er eat.
  • The last truck I had in commercial service was a '00 F350 DRW 7.3 PSD. The truck had a 8250 rawr and 4400 FAWR = 12650 lb gvw. This truck pulled my 16k tri axle GN trailer bunked for hauling steel beams used on my job sites.
    In this type work we have to declare gross max operational combined weight weight (GCW). The truck was registered at 12650 gvw plus the trailers 16000 GVW = 28650 lb gross combined weight (gcw).
    No add ons for more power from the 7.3 as it had to last 150k-175k miles with the least amount of break downs.
    Lots of one ton DRW trucks were operated at those weights...making folks a living.

    Just pulling a 12k-13k RV ?? As suggested the FTE forums and other Ford diesel webs are a great source for "TOWING" mods to your 7.3/tranny/etc.

    There is no GCWR number assigned/stickered/on a placard on any truck.
  • Payload capacity depends on axles and tires. What is the rear axle weight rating on your truck?
  • Might want to invest in an exhaust brake as well since beside towing stopping is important.
  • First thing I would do along with a 6.0 Trans Cooler is to get a set of gauges for the pillar. Trans Temp, Boost and Exhaust Gas Temp (EGT) are the 3 most commonly used. The next 2 mods would be the air cleaner/intake system and a 3" downpipe to 4" exhaust.

    Check these guys out as I have learned a lot here.

    FTE
  • Mcwr? Thats a new one. What is that?
    As for add ons? There is absolutely NOTHING that will alter or increase the manufacturers ratings. If you choose to try stuff, air bags are probably the best. But then you have to be careful not to overload the tires or axles. Modifying them could work, but then you next worries would be wheels followed by frame strength. Where does it all end? Transmission rebuild, then front end build, then drive shaft. By that time you will have thousands invested when probably for less money you could have simply bought a newer truck with more load carrying capacity.