04-05 Ford Excursion diesel towing?

look for an EX with the V10....no headaches less cost to operate...no noise...no smell and tows just as good. MHO from experiance

Thanks rowemkr. I think I'll stick with my original plan, which is to get an '05 diesel and have it bulletproofed.

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.

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!

That's too bad about not getting the 2005 upgrades. I figured I didn't see many Excursions with front coils since only 16K were built in 2005 and did not realize they were on the old chassis.

Bedlam wrote:
In 2005, Ford went to a stronger frame, bigger brakes and front coil springs. If looking at Excursions, get the 2005 or a Mexican 2006 model.

The Ex did not get any of the '05 pickup upgrades.

In 2005, Ford went to a stronger frame, bigger brakes and front coil springs. If looking at Excursions, get the 2005 or a Mexican 2006 model. They are sprung softer than the trucks, so expect to add some suspension aids if you tow a heavy hitch weight toy hauler.

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!

I had both a 2000 V10 Excursion with the 4.30 gears which I traded in for a 2005 6.0 Diesel Excursion.

Both had plenty of power for hauling 8K enclosed trailers or loaded up 10K dump trailer.

The V10 downshifted every hill but pulled like a son of a gone. The Diesel just pulled it better on the HWY.

For a 8K trailer either one worked just fine.

The V10 with no trailer would get 14mpg at the speed limit. The 6.0 Diesel could knock close to 18/19mpg.

I ended up selling the 2005 Excursion and my 2005 Dodge Ram 3500 to get my current truck and upgrade our Truck Camper.

Still really miss having the Excursions around.

Lately I have been actually looking at craigslist trying to find one I can pay cash for. Likely a V10 model.

I've towed with and owned both V-10 and 7.3 PSD X. THe V-10 was capable of getting the job done in all conditions. However the towing experience and MPG's did not compare to that of the PSD.
If towing in the mountains the V-10 would use 50% more fuel.
Many say the PSD will never pay for itself in fuel savings which I agree however I could easily save $75.00-100.00 on a trip in fuel cost.
If I camp 2-3 weekends a month. The fuel savings is significant.
Lastly I used a Hensley an added air shocks to both X's.
With a back up camera hooking up the Hensley is not a challenge. Check out "Swift Hitch" or I-ball Cam. Both are portable will make hooking up a Hensley a piece of cake

johninedmonton wrote:

Hi Wes,

How do you like your v10 excursion? I've considered it instead of the diesel.

I have an expy el now. It's rated at 8,900 lbs. which is lower than a comparable f-150. I expect the new Eco boost wil be about the same. The issue I have with it is that 60mph with my 7,500 lb trailer destroys my fuel economy. Apart from that, it's a good rig.

Since the OP has once considered a V-10 on another thread, I guess we aren't hi-jacking this too bad.

I like my Excursion enough to have painfully stuck $8k into it for a new V-10. When the motor broke, the chassis was suddenly essentially worthless and I mentally wrote it off. So I was able to start over from nothing again and buy a 2000 Ex for $8k. I hope that makes sense, I had to replace it with something anyway, preferably with a known, reliable good engine this time around.

The V-10 is snappier than the 7.3L diesel (we have an F-250 7.3). The V-10 actually has more total power than the older 7.3L also. However, on the highway, the 7.3L runs right in it's max torque range, so hills don't easily cause it to slow and downshift to 3rd gear from OD, which the V-10 does often.

The result is the diesel gets slightly better fuel economy. The V-10 is much more quiet and pleasant to drive, especially in the winter. The old diesel sounds and smells like a tractor. The new ones sound better, as in less sound.

The Ex has gotten as low as 6.5 mpg, towing a 30' TT at 60-65 mph against the wind. On the way home the same wind existed and I was by myself so I drove 55 and got 9.9 mpg with the wind. I think it averages about 8, which I still consider, "destroyed fuel economy" compared to non-towing. Non-towing has netted as high as 14 highway and as low as 7 in the city, in winter (Note the diesel got 11/city while the Ex was in for repair.) Summer, the Ex will be around 9/city. Average highway will be near, or on, 13 mpg. We almost always drive my wifes thrifty small hybrid if possible. But the EX does allow the 8 passengers, if it works out that way, and also burns less fuel than two very ordinary 4-passenger autos.

All in all, the gas powered Ex won't improve on your Expy towing economy; a diesel Ex might, but it won't pay you back the upfront ownership cost unless you tow everyday. If you want a diesel for other less practical reasons, go for it. I did.

I have a Hensley hitch installed for towing right now, but I plan to take it off. I have also towed with an Eazlift WD (no anti-sway friction bars), the cheapest and oldest brand WD hitch alive, and it worked great, possibly partly because the Ex is so massive. The Hensley is a nuisance to hitch quickly and if I don't direly need it, I'm going to mothball it until I do, maybe a larger TT or smaller truck. I'm tired of being the last one of our group to leave the camp.

Wes
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