TV upgrade / experienced opinions please...
I'm looking for opinions, want to upgrade TV in a a few months when I retire so if I want to go back to the Rockies I won't have issues with towing . My present TV is a 2003, Ford Lariat 4.6l ,3.55, t...
Forum Discussion
Congratulations on looking to retire in a few months and I can't thing of a better destination than Yellowstone and the other beautiful areas in that country (Glacier, Waterton, Banff, Jasper).
I drove a 4.6L for years and went to the above destinations which include some pretty good grades at elevation, but I was only pulling a small pop-up. With that load the truck did fine, however I was not a big fan of how the 4.6L delivered power to the wheels. Yes, it had to make RPMs to make power (which is okay) but on my '99 for some part of the range I actually felt like there were spots where I would increase RPMs and would lose some torque (the torque curve on that '99 4.6 was not really consistent). That just meant leaning into the pedal harder to get past the 'flat spot' in the power curve. While I do not have experience towing a larger trailer with the 4.6L I think it would be working pretty hard.
The routes I traveled in the Rockies were typically not especially steep, but they were long and at higher elevations. One in particular I recall was on the way to Jasper from Banff. That grade is over 8%.
Jasper Web Site
The EcoBoost has a distinct advantage over most gas engines when operating at elevations due to the turbos. The F150 with the Max Tow package should tow your rig well. I have not made it back to the Rockies with mine, but hope to get out there again in a few years. You may wish to send a private message to SkipnChar who has towed into the Rockies with his EcoBoost several times.
Good luck to you,
Stu
I drove a 4.6L for years and went to the above destinations which include some pretty good grades at elevation, but I was only pulling a small pop-up. With that load the truck did fine, however I was not a big fan of how the 4.6L delivered power to the wheels. Yes, it had to make RPMs to make power (which is okay) but on my '99 for some part of the range I actually felt like there were spots where I would increase RPMs and would lose some torque (the torque curve on that '99 4.6 was not really consistent). That just meant leaning into the pedal harder to get past the 'flat spot' in the power curve. While I do not have experience towing a larger trailer with the 4.6L I think it would be working pretty hard.
The routes I traveled in the Rockies were typically not especially steep, but they were long and at higher elevations. One in particular I recall was on the way to Jasper from Banff. That grade is over 8%.
Jasper Web Site
The EcoBoost has a distinct advantage over most gas engines when operating at elevations due to the turbos. The F150 with the Max Tow package should tow your rig well. I have not made it back to the Rockies with mine, but hope to get out there again in a few years. You may wish to send a private message to SkipnChar who has towed into the Rockies with his EcoBoost several times.
Good luck to you,
Stu
