Diesel Excursion Towing

[daoelker]

Hello all,

We are in the market for a new TT. Our tow vehicle is a 2004 Ford Excursion 4x4 with a 6.0 liter turbo diesel. I'm afraid I don't know the gear ratio off hand. It has all of the tow package stuff. right now we pull a 27 ft Trail Vision and hardly know it's back there. Any ideas on how much of a TT I can reasonably tow? The truck is supposedly rated at 11,000 lb but what I'm looking for is the "sane" weight rather than the max weight.

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[Honest John]

if you go to Trailer Life towing guides at http://www.trailerlife.com/output.cfm?id=42175 this should help you know the capacity of your vehicle.  The combined weight of the truck (loaded) and trailer GVWR (loaded) should not exceed the CGVWR(combined gross vehicle weight rating) specified.

According to the guide you are correct it appears 11,000 trailer tow rating, that combined with the gross weight for the truck (8,500) is the CGVWR.

How much is the GVWR of your Trail Vision now (should be on a plate attached to the left front of the trailer)?  Trailer weights are not so much about how many feet it is, much more about the weight.  The more slide out rooms one has makes a HUGE difference. 

If it were me I don't think I'd stretch it to 11,000 but leave a little extra for safety.  However, turbo diesels are strong and should be able to handle the weight.

 

[glockholiday]

I tow a 35ft triple axle toyhauler with my Excursion. Loaded the trailer weighs 12,400. I know I know spare me the lectures. It towes great with my 1400/14,000# Equal-i-zer hitch I cruise 65-70 to the dunes and back with minimal sway. That said I wouldn't recommend going with that big of a trailer it's a beast. I come from a family of truck drivers so I've probably got more confidence than brains but oh well. Just watch your tranny temp which is impossible with the factory gauge. I bought a ScangaugeII and the tranny while not towing runs between 150-190, towing it runs between 195 and 230 but on a long hill while giving it no mercy the tranny climbed to 240 it wasn't until then did the dash gauge start to move off the normal reading of right in the middle.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Better yet, go to the official Ford Towing Guide for 2004. which can be downloaded here:

https://www.fleet.ford.com/showroom/rv_trailer_towing/default.asp

 

[lone_star_dsl]

First step, forget and ignore any "tow ratings" that you have ever seen or heard.  They are bogus marketing hype and have no relevance in the real world.

In order to find out how much your actual vehicle can tow safely, you need to know two numbers.  First is the GVWR (gross vehicle weight rating) and the GCWR (gross combined weight rating).  You can find these numbers by taking your truck to a truckstop and weighing it on the scales.  You will want a front axle weight and rear axle weight.

I know the 2003 Excursions have a GVWR of 9,200 lbs.  There is a white tag on the pillar just inside the drivers door that will list your GVWR.

The GCWR of the Excursions is 20,000 lbs.  That means the maximum combined weight of the truck and trailer should not exceed this amount.  You will not automatically kill your truck by exceeding this weight but you will be a rolling road block without some power upgrades.

Based on experience, your Excursion loaded with fuel, a few passengers and luggage will be getting pretty darn close to it's GVWR.  Let's say the truck weighs 8,800 lbs as an example.  That means that you have 400 lbs available for the trailer tongue weight and 11,200 lbs available before you exceed your GCWR. 

I'm not as big a stickler on GVWR as I am on GCWR.  I use my tire capacities and axle ratings to determine how much weight I can put on my truck.  Essentially, you have an F-250 station wagon.  The weakest link with the Excursions is the rear springs.  They are softer than those in pickup trucks.

Grab the wife, kids, dogs, fill up with fuel and head to the nearest scales.  Get the weight of your truck and start from there.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Tow ratings aren't bogus, but they are based on a tow vehicle that is empty except for fuel and a 154 lb driver (are any of you that slim?).  That's part of the reason we recommend discounting the factory tow rating by 10%.

 

[JeramiahT]

I never knew you had to count the load weight inside the SUV in calculating what it can tow. Although a diesel Excursion should be able to tow quite a bit of with no problem. Is that the same diesel that is in the heavy duty Ford trucks like F250 and F350?
Removed spam link.

 

[glockholiday]

Yes, an Excursion is the same truck as it's equivalent years F-250 extended cab shortbed chassis.

 

[zurgprot]

From a practical standpoint, the diesel Excursion will tow any trailer you put behind it.  I'd get any trailer rated up to the Excursion's max.

In my experience, it's not the weight as much as the length of the trailer that will give you problems.  The Excursion has a short wheelbase and if you have a longer trailer you may experience sway.  The first trip I took with the Excursion and my 31 foot trailer was not enjoyable to say the least.  I had absolutely no experience towing and had whatever crappy hitch the dealership gave me.  I don't think I did more than 60mph the whole way and even that was white knuckle.  I went out and bought a Hensley Arrow hitch and my next trip was a dream.  So to sum up: if you have a good hitch, you can drive with the Ex all day with almost any trailer you want (again rated to the Excursion's max).

 

[Carl L]

Hello all,

We are in the market for a new TT. Our tow vehicle is a 2004 Ford Excursion 4x4 with a 6.0 liter turbo diesel. I'm afraid I don't know the gear ratio off hand. It has all of the tow package stuff. right now we pull a 27 ft Trail Vision and hardly know it's back there. Any ideas on how much of a TT I can reasonably tow? The truck is supposedly rated at 11,000 lb but what I'm looking for is the "sane" weight rather than the max weight.

Thanks in advance for the help.

Use that Ford tow rating as your starting point.  Since it is based on a single 154-lb driver and fuel fuel load, you will need to allow for passengers, hitch system weight, and junk in the cab.  Big SUV seem to collect lots of junk in the cab based on my personal experience with Suburbans, Econoline vans, and Broncos.    We usually discount the tow ratings by 10% to allow for all that.  So you should consider 9900 lbs as your tow rating for the purpose of trailer buying.  [Since your rig is a turbo diesel, you can ignore the effect of altitudes in towing out west.]

Now the next number you will need is the weight of the trailer that you will choose.  The best weight to use is the actually scaled weight of the trailer as loaded for travel with all your gear and supplies on board.  However, if you don't own the trailer, it is kinda hard to get it so weighed, so we need a number to serve as a proxy for actual weight.  There are two such numbers.  One is the mfr's unladen vehicle weight (UVW).  This rarely an actual weight but is rather a average weight for a given series and it does not include dealer options like awnings and extra batteries.  Folks do try to use UVW and then estimate the amount of gear that they think they will take with them.  This usually becomes an exercise in wishful thinking.  As most old timers around here will tell you, trailers can collect an amazing amount of junk...err, make that 'essential gear'...like camp chairs, camp tables, barbecues, ground mats, dog pens, cameras, TVs, etc., ad infinitum.

Therefore, we use another number which is found on the trailer's DOT tag, the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR), the maximum that the trailer should ever weigh.  The GVWR is also shown in mfr brochures as UVW + cargo carrying capacity (CCC).  The trailer you want to buy is one that has a GVWR that will not exceed your discounted tow rating.  For you, that GVWR should be 9900 lbs.

Yes, that number is approximate.  Moreover, it is conservative.  Do remember its purpose -- it is designed to narrow your choice of new trailers to those that your truck can haul safely under a wide range of conditions.  Could you exceed it?.  Sure, after all it is your money and your choice.  I am just a guy on the internet.  That said, with an investment of a lot of money on a thing that has safety implications, I am a guy on the internet that wears a belt and suspenders.  8)

By the way, Hensley Arrow hitches have a great reputation.  So do Reese Dual Cam, Equal-i-zer, and ProPride systems.  They are all WD hitches with integral sway control.  I recommend that highly.