[quote author=TNcamper link=board=20;threadid=1620;start=msg11434#msg1143 4 date=1074546629]
I just traded a 1998 Mazda B4000 in for a 2001 F150 Super Crew Cab with a 5.4L V8 for my towing vehicle. Does anyone have experience with this to know if a WD hitch is needed for a 2720SL with this type of truck?[/quote]Rudy -
The answer varies greatly, depending on your truck's configuration.
By the time you are ready for the road, your 2720SL will weigh 3300-3400 pounds, and the hitch weight will be about 14% of this, a bit over 450 pounds. To find out what this means to you, you need some info from Ford. You'll find a lot of the information at the Ford web site. Towing questions in particular are addressed at
https://www.fleet.ford.com/truckbbas...1/campercd.pdf.
On page 6, for example, Ford summarizes some of the towing information for the F-150 series as a whole. We find that if you use a weight-CARRYING hitch, the towing ratings for the F-150 series as a whole are 5000 pounds trailer weight and 500 pounds tongue weight. With a weight-DISTRIBUTING hitch, the heftiest F-150 rates 8800 and 880 pounds (but see the details on page 17 - it's less than that for your truck).
So the first thing you conclude is that if you use a weight-CARRYING hitch, the best F-150 is rated 500 pounds hitch weight - and your TM will have about 450 pounds hitch weight. Do you want to operate that close to your vehicle's rated limit? I sure wouldn't, especially considering that car/truck makers are inclined to be a bit overenthusiastic about their ratings - it's a marketing thing.
OK, now go to page 17 of the same document, which breaks out the various configurations of the F-150. The first question that this page raises is, does your vehicle have the factory towing package? If not, your trailer is limited to 4000 pounds max. PERIOD. NO EXCEPTIONS.
IF you have the factory towing package, and
IF you use a weight-DISTRIBUTING hitch, then look in the table and find your vehicle. The configurations with the 5.4 L engine and super cab can tow somewhere between 7000 and 8600 pounds, depending on rear axle ratio. This implies a hitch weight of 700-860 pounds, so if you fall into this class, you have plenty of margin.
This is really a pretty good document. I printed out the same document for my Explorer, and learned a lot from it. But to summarize for your F-150:
1. Your TM will weight about 3300-3400 pounds, and will have a hitch weight in the neighborhood of 450 pounds.
2. If you do NOT have the factory tow package, then your max trailer weight rating is 4000 pounds. You don't have a lot of margin. The weight-CARRYING hitch rating is probably 400 pounds (though not specified), which you will exceed. You need a weight-DISTRIBUTING hitch.
3. If you DO have the factory tow package, but you DON'T use a weight-DISTRIBUTING hitch, then your trailer weight rating is 5000 pounds (you're probably OK), and your hitch weight rating is 500 pounds - you are uncomfortably close.
4. If you DO have the factory tow package, and you DO use a weight-DISTRIBUTING hitch, then you have a ton of margin all around.
Hope this helps.
Bill