New Tow Rig - Towing Questions

[Mystic1906]

Sooo I just purchased my new (to me) daily driver/tow rig - 2016 F150 3.5L V6. It's not a 4x4 nor does it have the Ecoboost but it had almost every other option I wanted and even came with the new Trailer Backup Assist (which honestly didn't even matter to me cause I prob won't use it but it was in the truck). Dealer promised me up and down that it could tow up to 7.600 lbs and showed me the paperwork on it. Tried towing the boat for the first time yesterday and it was OK but not as good as my cousin's 9000lb tow rated Expedition that I had been using up to now.

When I bought the boat last June I didn't realize the guy had removed the surge brake lines mostly because I had never had them on a trailer before and never even knew the value of them. So my AR210 and trailer is all truck braking which didn't honestly feel that bad. I am however getting some rear end sag and the truck feels a little sluggish to me. I haven't tried to launch the boat yet so that remains to be seen as to how it will go.

The issue is I have my eye on a newer AR240 that I'm thinking about trading up for and I'm really wondering if the truck can handle the load. Any comments would be welcomed because I don't want to pull the trigger on this deal only to find out my truck can't handle it.

 

[rkluck]

I pulled my 242LS using a RAM 1500 crew cab with 5.7. It was a 4x4 but I didn't engage it except on a wet ramp one time. The truck did fine much better than my 2012 1500 RAM regular cab. The surge brakes all worked and I was careful to drive like I had a big load behind her. I assume the tough capacity on your truck is OK. I pulled ours with my wife's Grand Cherokee with the V6 (3.6) to the ramp a few times and it did fine but I wouldn't want to do that on a longer trip. The smaller engine my be a concern especially if you are pulling over hills. Keep in mind these boats loaded down with gas an gear will gain at least another 500 lbs. Also if you are loaded down with family that will add more overall weight. Just my experience how it helps.

 

[Mainah]

Brakes for any trailered weight over 3k lbs is a very good idea. If a kid runs out in the road in front of me I don't want to go to bed thinking if I had only gotten those surge brakes fixed/installed.

Your truck should handle the ar240
without too much issue with working surge brakes. Just make sure to select tow/haul when pulling the boat. If you tow a lot or long distances you may decide you want more power down the road.

Nice looking boat and truck combo. Hate to brake it to you but someone stole one of your trailer tires and the tire that is there does not look like a trailer tire.

 

[Mystic1906]

Haha @Mainah Yeah I was replacing the drum and tire when I took the pic. My boys from back in the islands had been bugging me just before that for a pic of the boat and truck so I took it before I did the work. The rims and tires that were on the boat are 205/75/D14's but I think the guy I bought it from didn't know how to maintain the trailer at all. Love my boat but the trailer that I got with it not so much. Has been nothing but a headache.

The closest body of water worth boating on is about 15 miles. On a typical boating weekend I am towing anywhere from 15 miles to 135 miles each way. I like to go over to Tampa (clearest water in my area that reminds me of home). I'm hoping my truck stands up to the mileage I'm gonna put on it just to keep enjoying my boat. I've been trying to convince the wife to move to Tampa so we have less of a boating commute but she likes Orlando so no joy for me.

 

[Mainah]

Come to think of it I would not worry too much about towing in FL. Compared to other parts of the US FL is rather flat. Good engine and transmission cooling will be more important in FL. Enjoy your truck and boat.

 

[2nazt]

You could add support Air Bags in the rear to help squat while loaded. I use AirLift 1000 on my truck a Ram 1500 and it's great others have used different models like Firestone I believe. I'll see if I can find the old thread here.

 

[Benny Sibbitt]

I have an F150 2 wheel drive but have the upgraded tow package and tows like a charm.
I installed rear airbags- they are pretty cheap but makes handling feel so much better and better control, you don't have that light front end steering from the backend squat.
Your truck can handle the load with no problems with just a few tweaks.....
if you are getting a new boat then I wouldn't worry about the trailer brakes - if you are keeping the boat then yes trailer brakes are a must. And get manual airbags pretty cheap
Ford 2 wheel drive trucks have what I call a soft suspension to make the ride feel smoother but also cause a lot of squat when towing anything.

Good luck

 

[Mystic1906]

*****UPDATE*****

As you can see from my signature below I upgraded the boat. SOOOOOOOO happy right now I can't even explain it. Anyway on the way back from picking it up (dealer that gave me the best deal is like 122 miles from my house) I noticed that my trans temp never got above 194 so that was a good thing BUT trying to get to and stay at 60-65 on the highway was painful. Truck felt like it was struggling just to get up to that speed and maintain it. All I had was the boat, wife, son, and MIL in the truck with about 26% fuel on the boat. At the lower speeds the truck is not an issue and it drives great. This was my initial fear when I created this thread and my concern still is regarding the amount of distance that we go with our boats I don't know that my truck has the capability. Someone please talk me off this ledge. I REALLY can't afford to spend anymore significant money right now (wife has me on a no toy moratorium) so am I being overly pessimistic about my truck or are there any options that might help me at those higher speeds.

 

[MrMoose]

It'll probably tow better without the MIL on board.
Sorry, couldn't resist.

 

[bronze_10]

I know there are a lot of people who would disagree and maybe I am old school but I leave the v6 for the family run around vehicle.. if I am towing I want a v8... there are people that swear by the ford's eco whatever but there is no replacement for displacement! See... told u I was old school!

 

[bronze_10]

But it really doesn't matter at this point if u have been put on toy lock down! U gotta dance with the one who brought ya!

 

[Zarrella]

Or....Go by the dealership and get you a new dance partner!

 

[Ramblin Wreck]

*****UPDATE*****

As you can see from my signature below I upgraded the boat. SOOOOOOOO happy right now I can't even explain it. Anyway on the way back from picking it up (dealer that gave me the best deal is like 122 miles from my house) I noticed that my trans temp never got above 194 so that was a good thing BUT trying to get to and stay at 60-65 on the highway was painful. Truck felt like it was struggling just to get up to that speed and maintain it. All I had was the boat, wife, son, and MIL in the truck with about 26% fuel on the boat. At the lower speeds the truck is not an issue and it drives great. This was my initial fear when I created this thread and my concern still is regarding the amount of distance that we go with our boats I don't know that my truck has the capability. Someone please talk me off this ledge. I REALLY can't afford to spend anymore significant money right now (wife has me on a no toy moratorium) so am I being overly pessimistic about my truck or are there any options that might help me at those higher speeds.

If you're 3.5 was an ecoboost you've wouldn't feel the same way. The 3.5 ecoboost tows better then their V8. I have a 2.7 ecoboost and have similar tow capacity as your non boosted 3.5. I personally haven't pulled a 24ft boat but would love to hear from someone that does with a 2.7. You're truck can do it, but it's not going to be fun if you're towing a long distance.

Beautiful boat!

 

[Benny Sibbitt]

Well I think you are in a pickle, you just bought that truck
Any 1/2 ton truck should pull these 24 ft boat - they are light
If you upgrade your truck you need to jump to a f250 to see a big difference
When tested your truck with my boat it seemed fine....
I did notice you like to drive fast and brake a little late, when towing the truck is not expected to get up and go
like nothing is back there.
Try using cruise control once up to speed on highway, it will use more gas, turn it off in hilly places
I would throw some airbags back there to get rid of the rear end sag

 

[Mystic1906]

@Benny Sibbitt When I pulled your boat I was trying to put my truck through the paces at the lower speeds to see how it would react especially since I had never had a trailer with brakes. It was a huge difference for real and I thank you again for that. Coming back from Clearwater with my boat I was just taking it easy cause I was in no rush. Like I said the only issue I had was when I got up around 60. I tried it coming back with cruise control and without. Either way it just seemed like the truck was struggling at that speed. Soooooo for heading to Butler COL I'm gonna be good but when we try to go to Silver Glen or anywhere that is going to require me to be on I4 I'm gonna have to leave before you guys just to get there. Don't even want to think about how long its gonna take me if we do this Keys trip we have been talking about.

It's too late now but I wish I had known when I was looking so I could have either gotten the v8 or the 3.5EB like your truck. I doubt this would be an issue with either one of them. My research is not turning up anything that can be done to these 3.5 NA engines that would help or solve my problem. My biggest problem is that I LOVE this truck except for this issue.

 

[Zarrella]

If you changed your hitch to a 2" inch rise that would level the trailer and take some of the tongue weight off the truck. You definitely need to put some air bags on it as well.

 

[MattFX4]

Maybe try a tuner? I have a 2013 f150 with the 5.0 V8 and 35" tires. It pulls my 242 no problem. I tuned it with 5 star tunes and it really jumps off the line now.

 

[Benny Sibbitt]

@Mystic1906 Whats your Axle Ratio and wheel base?

like @MattFX4 said a turner would be a great idea, but first level it out, it will feel much better

 

[bronze_10]

We put air bags under our durango... the difference was night and day... of course it has the hemi!! So plenty of power too!

 

[Mystic1906]

Axle ratio - 3.73
Wheel Base - 145
I am going to put the air bags in for the ride quality but that won't effect my power issue.