How many tow a 4000 pound dingy behind a class c with V 10

Check all the ratings (not just GCWR) but if the 14,500 is the fully loaded weight that puts you at around 18,400 GCW pulling the mkz you well under the 22,000 GCWR.

On the surface, I'm not seeing where there should be any issue.

valhalla360 wrote:
Check all the ratings (not just GCWR) but if the 14,500 is the fully loaded weight that puts you at around 18,400 GCW pulling the mkz you well under the 22,000 GCWR.

On the surface, I'm not seeing where there should be any issue.

I don't see an issue either. But needless to say, the lighter the better, whether in what we pack inside or tow behind. We've had four toads in two pairs over the years. First was Toyota Tercel about 2200, Mitsubishi pickup about 2500. Traded for second pair which is Corolla about 2800, Nissan Frontier pickup around 3800. We could feel the weight differences in climbing grades and in stopping. When we got the Frontier, the plan was to use it as toad, didn't set the Corolla up with base plate etc. When we decided to try the Corolla we could tell at once that the 1000 pound savings made enough difference to make the equipping effort worthwhile. Now we don't take the Frontier unless we specifically need to have the truck.

Don't see an issue with what you are planning. Make sure the hitch and tow systems are rated appropriately.
We dingy-tow a '14 Cadillac SRX (~4000lbs) behind our rig with no problems, and we are closer to GCWR than you. It's a class A with the V10, but shouldn't matter.
What chassis is your rig on?

You can't over work your engine or transmission. Worst case, if you're severely overloaded, a larger transmission cooler may be useful, but you won't hurt anything.

Keep in mind the V10 with the 6-speed TorqueShift is used in Medium Duty Trucks up to 37,000 gross combined.

I regularly run at 22,000 combined, sometimes as high as 25,000 combined, and I have over 450,000 miles and engine and transmission are original, except for some PM items (coils, injectors, timing chain, radiator) and my transmission is the old 4R100, which is not near as capable as the 6R140 that you have.

We flat tow a 2017 Ford Explorer behind our 2015 (ie V10 with 5 speed) Class C with no problems. The explorer, loaded to travel is much closer to 5000 pounds than 4000 and it does very well back there.

I was surprised at how little I feel it back there and how little it impacts our travel. We do lose about 1/2 to 3/4 mpg but with the exception of very steep hills, we rarely even feel it.

Good brakes on the towed vehicle are important. We use a Ready Brute elite tow bar with built in surge brakes that does a good job and is very simple to use. But there are many options.

You'll of course get lots of differing opinions. Here's mine. We've flat towed a 2700 lb. Chevy Sonic for years behind a 2003 30 ft. Class C with the Ford V-10. Just traded for a 3000 lb. Ford Focus. This was a big decision. Really wanted to tow a 2600 lb. Honda Fit but for various reasons went with the heavier Ford. Towing just about anything increases braking distance and slows performance. 3000 lb. would be my arbitrary limit because, even with the Sonic, hill climbing and stopping was not a breeze. I think my MH manual suggest not even towing but when I calculated the numbers it seemed I could tow much more than the 3000 lbs. but I know I would not like the performance. I wish it were mores straightforward like the manual in most vehicles that clearly states towing limits but it's not. Definitely you can tow it, but do you want to?

phil-t wrote:
Don't see an issue with what you are planning. Make sure the hitch and tow systems are rated appropriately.
We dingy-tow a '14 Cadillac SRX (~4000lbs) behind our rig with no problems, and we are closer to GCWR than you. It's a class A with the V10, but shouldn't matter.
What chassis is your rig on?

It's the standard Ford cutaway. It seems that once they get 40-50 thousand on them they start pinging and knocking, and the extra weight seems to make it that much worse. We have a lot of mountains here in in western Oregon, and it's a laborious climb even without a toad. Maybe I'll give the MKZ a shot. If I don't like it I'm only out a base plate. I can use the hitch on a lighter vehicle if I decide to go that way. Thanks for all the perspective you guys give me.

I think that would be a Ford factory question for your best answer.

I used to tow a 4,000 pound Cherokee behind my motor home but now I'm towing a 5,000 4Runner; however, my '03 E-450 motor home at 11,500 pounds is 3,000 pounds lighter than yours. These are actual scale weights. I have found a few grades in Colorado that are steep enough and high enough that we unhook the toad and drive both vehicles for a bit. You have a lower first gear than I do so you might not have this problem plus the mountain passes in Oregon aren't very really very high. I've never had to go below second gear for Washington and Oregon mountain highways. After driving several days with the toad in tow, I unhook it and my motor home almost seems sporty. Anyone who says you won't even notice the toad back there doesn't drive in mountains.

T18skyguy wrote:


It's the standard Ford cutaway. It seems that once they get 40-50 thousand on them they start pinging and knocking, and the extra weight seems to make it that much worse.

If you ever get pinging, clean the MAF. If you get knock, you're using the wrong oil.