towing with 2005 F250 4x4 gas

KX5002 wrote:
Update... I picked up my Arctic wolf 315TBH8 Fifth wheel Saturday morning... I won't be winning any races, but it towed it beautifully.
It was just touching the front of the helper sprong, the rear of the helper spring was still an inch away from the bracket.
One thing though... I'll be ordering the extendable towing mirrors this week.

thank you for the update!!

Happy Camping!

Update... I picked up my Arctic wolf 315TBH8 Fifth wheel Saturday morning... I won't be winning any races, but it towed it beautifully.
It was just touching the front of the helper sprong, the rear of the helper spring was still an inch away from the bracket.
One thing though... I'll be ordering the extendable towing mirrors this week.

Oh, when it's needed I let it rev! I know lugging the engine isn't any good. I also use the tow/haul feature. I have had the peddle on the floor before, and I know my truck is doing it's thing. Living in Oklahoma, the Ozarks in SW Missouri are the closest things I have ever come to hills while towing. I don't mind it for once in awhile, but wonder if I wouldn't like a diesel. We are shopping for a 5th wheel in the next 2-3 years, and I would like a new truck sometime in the next few years, so I will have an opportunity to look at a bigger more powerful gas engine, or a diesel.

It's supposed to rev, peak hp is at 5,000 rpm you're not going to get the power at 2,000.
Nothing wrong with RPM.
I really my motorcycle to 11,000 all the time, I run my boat at 4,500 for hours without a second thought... I will driver my truck at 4,500-5,000 RPM just the same

I originally bought my F250 with the 5.4 for the payload capacity while towing a Work and Play 18EC bumper pull toyhauler. I bought the work and play when I owned a 2004 Toyota Tundra with the 4.6 V8. By going to the F250, I got a lot more payload with a substantially heavier duty truck. I also went from 240hp to 300 hp, so I still improved my engine capability.

I now have a lighter camper, delivery sticker of 4193 pounds, that I could pull with an F150, but I have the F250, and like the solid feel it gives me while towing. But even with this lighter camper,I would rate the 5.4 as adequate. In the flatlands its fine. Pulling it up the hills from Springfield, MO to Branson (30 miles at the most), it has to rev. I wouldn't want to have to pull hills like these all day long. Like I say, its adequate, and the F250 chassis is nice to have.

I WILL TAKE YOUR WORD FOR IT. SOMETHING YOU DO NOT SEEM ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH.

When I saw that both the 3V F-150 and the 3V 250 were rated at 300HP at 5,000 RPM back in 2005, I thought they might be similar. SORRY

It is generally understood that CAPS are yelling, but you seem more than willing to make up your own RULES.

TomG2 wrote:

Gdetrailer wrote:
OP IS talking about F250.

I AM talking about F250..

YOU are talking about F150.

I always appreciate it when people think they need to YELL (write in caps) to be heard and when they write endlessly to make a point that gets lost somewhere about three hundred characters in.

Apples to apples. I did have a 3V Ford pickup and it was not much more powerful than the 2V version. Even though they were in different models. "If" you stuck your foot in either one hard enough and long enough, you would get there. I like a little more zip than that. SORRY.

Caps ARE to get a POINT ACROSS which you seem to be missing.

Tom you are wrong.

What you are assuming is the F150 3V 5.4 engine IS the same as the F250 3V 5.4 engine.

THEY ARE NOT.

Not even close.

HP and torque curves ARE different between the the F150 and F250/350 3V 5.4 engines even for the same year.

While they are the same displacement, the HP and torque max at DIFFERENT RPMs. This makes a world of difference.

F150 has different intake runner, different throttle body, different ECU and that is just on the OUTSIDE of the engine from a F250/350.

Many of the parts between the two are different, some may be interchanged but most cannot without a lot of work.

On edit,

I should also point out, that just because YOU were not "satisfied" with the 3V 5.4 performance that it means it is bad or terrible for EVERYONE.

Not everyone has the race day mentality and not everyone will have an issue with how fast a 3V 5.4 will get you to your destination.

Towing is not a race and it is fine to lose some speed, even the most powerful diesel semis lose speed and they have 18 gears to rake through.

Gdetrailer wrote:
OP IS talking about F250.

I AM talking about F250..

YOU are talking about F150.

I always appreciate it when people think they need to YELL (write in caps) to be heard and when they write endlessly to make a point that gets lost somewhere about three hundred characters in.

Apples to apples. I did have a 3V Ford pickup and it was not much more powerful than the 2V version. Even though they were in different models. "If" you stuck your foot in either one hard enough and long enough, you would get there. I like a little more zip than that. SORRY.

TomG2 wrote:

Gdetrailer wrote:

TomG2 wrote:
I tried a 2006 F-150, thinking that three valves were better than two. Not much improvement and the soft suspension had me looking at another truck within two years.

Not sure why you think the F250 had a soft suspension..

It was the 2006 F-150 that I mentioned that was softly sprung. The few extra ponies were hardly noticeable.

I have tried nine different pickups in the thirteen years since I retired. At least that many trailers including a fifth wheel, two truck campers, and a motorhome. Does not make me an expert, just experienced. Before that I ran a construction company with pickups, ten wheelers, and three semis.

Tom,

You keep mixing "apples and oranges".

OP IS talking about F250.

I AM talking about F250..

YOU are talking about F150.

Since late 1990s F150 has been on a LIGHT DUTY FRAME/PLATFORM which has completely DIFFERENT SPRINGS/AXLES/SUSPENSION.

Of course your 2006 F150 WILL have a squishy feel, that is due to being INTENTIONALLY DESIGNED for all those Boulevard queen folks who wish to have the LOOKS of a truck with the ride of a "Caddy".

I too fell for that with my first truck which was a '97 LIGHT DUTY "F250".

That was the year that Ford introduced the "new" body style for F150 and kept the old style 1980's body for the Super Duty F250.

It was also the FIRST year of the "Super Duty" name to the F250 and up trucks.

In that year Ford changed the F150 line up names so there was no "HD" version of F150, instead they called it a LIGHT DUTY F250.

I did not know until I bought a 2003 Super Duty F250, the difference was night and day, the 97 squatted easily and the 2003 almost did not even budge with the same trailer loaded.

There IS a huge difference in empty weight between the F150 and F250/350.. AND ENGINES!

Ford also has DIFFERENT HP/TQ curves for the F150s vs the F250/350 vehicles, typically the F250/350 platform will have a DERATED engine HP/TQ and that is intentional.

F150 for the crowds that wish to show off the SPEED and F250/350 for those who wish to WORK HARD.

Ford also envisioned the F150 for the folks who didn't want to pay as much, often saving $1K in the purchase price of a 150 vs 250/350.

My 97 weighted a mere 4500 lbs empty the 2003 jumped to 5,500 lbs!

Liked my 97 but once I got to 50,000 miles on the clock it was killing me in front end parts.. by the time I got to 140,000 miles I was done with it as it was requiring a third set of ball joints, new bushings, new shocks again and the final straw was the ABS system malfunctioned and the dealer said min of $3,500 to repair!

Our 2003 on the other hand was flawless up unto 197,000 miles with only needing one set of ball joints and one set of brakes.. Now it is being driven by my teen DD.

Our 2006 has had some issues, many were induced by our local dealer misdiagnosing a wrench light and replacing parts that were not needed all the while not fixing the original problem that eventually damaged the cats and oxy sensors.. That started at 80K and it now has 100K on the clock

Our 2013 F250 now has 80K and so far only had to replace the front brake pads at 70K..

IF you would have bought a F250 for 2005-2006 I think you would have been extremely pleased with how the truck handles and even the 3V performance.

All the while, I have TTs with 97 2V 5.4 with 235 HP, a 2003 2V 5.4 with 265 HP, a 2006 with 3V 5.4 at 300 HP and our 2013 with 6.2 385 HP.

our 97 got the job done but often pulled 7% grades with 4500 lb trailer at 45 MPH.

our 2003 handled 4,500 lb trailer on the same 7% grades at 55 MPH.

Our 2006, we moved to a 26Ft TT at 6,500 lbs loaded, same 7% grades had no problem towing 65 MPH in 5th gear..

Our 2013 moving the 26 Ft TT doesn't break a sweat with 7% grades, sometimes might drop from 6 to 5 but not an issue..

I do have a 18ft flatbed open trailer that I have often loaded up to 10K (trailer plus load) and have towed that with our 2003, 2006 and 2013..

Yeah, the 2003 struggled a bit but it did manage that type of load on a 12% grade that has a stop light in the middle.. and was able to top the hill at 40 MPH and that was about 1 mile of hill from the light to the top.

The OP has a 3V 300 HP 5.4 in a F250, the vehicle should be fine with 9K and possibly 10K load, the engine will also be fine although it will take some patience.

Yeah, the OP won't be "racing" but when you have high weight loads behind you, you HAVE NO BUSINESS "RACING" other folks.

Folks make a huge mistake assuming that it is "bad" to have a engine turn some RPM, the 5.4 modular series that is not true at all. They are not like the old pushrod engines where you had to be careful of floating the valves/pushrods at high RPM..

YES, it WILL be turning 4K, 4.5K and possibly 5K RPM at times.

YES, it can be a bit "noisy", but heck, it is for a SHORT TIME.

NO, it will not hurt it to do so..

If you want 2K RPM then spend the money on a Diesel or a TC engine but those engines do have some baggage that you pay UP FRONT in higher purchase price and can be very costly to repair down the road.

I owned a 2005 f250 with the 5.4 gas engine and pulled the fifth wheel in my signature line below. While it might have been fine for the flatland's of Kansas where we came from, it did not do well out her in western NC. It was a struggle to make it some of the hills out here, so I traded it in on the 2015 f250 diesel. Could not be any happier with how the new to me truck pulls.