Towing 3124KB with Explorer Sportrac

Just visited Custom RV in Anaheim, CA and really liked the 3124KB. Folks at the RV dealer said pulling the 3124 with my Explorer Sportrac (4-dr pickup version of Ford Explorer) would not be a problem. The manual says it is rated at 5,500 pounds for towing. Since the 3124 is well under that by near 2,000 pounds, I think I'm safe, but I would like to know if anyone out there is pulling the 3124 with a vehicle similar to mine.

I'm hoping a TM owner in Albuquerque contacts me and tells me his 2004 3124KB is still available for sale. Would be worth the trip from Vegas to pick it up.

Thanks in advance.

Rob

[Bill]

Rob -

There is another discussion currently going on regarding the Explorer Sport Trac. Please check it out.

The dry weight of a 3124 is about 3200 pounds. The actual towed weight, once you add factory options (they are heavy), plus your own stuff (food, water, clothing, microwave oven, TV, propane, etc etc etc) is considerably above 3200 pounds. You should do an Advanced Search on "dry weight" for extensive discussions on the topic. You have much less reserve than you think, although you probably do have some.

Custom RV is good folks. I've dealt with them and I like them. But if they didn't ask you WHERE you will tow (as opposed to WHAT you will tow and what you will TOW IT WITH) - and if you haven't thought about it yourself - then you and they are remiss.

Bill

We have been towing a 3214KS with a Mercury Mountaineer and have felt that we are too near the edge of our capacity. My theory is always to plan for the emergency rather than the nice, flat, empty road towing that we all love. We actually let our leased Mountaineer go and will hope to buy a pickup in a year or two. Until then our TM is in storage. Look at the wheelbase statistics. Queeniereads aka Judi

[shunter917]

I would think you would be too close to the weight limits on the Explorer [Sport Trac].

The other thing to keep in mind is the length you are towing. The 3124 may be too long for the Explorer, although length is less of a concern with the TM's.

I currently pull an '05 3023 with an '04 Mountaineer with the 4.6 V8 and factory tow package. No problem pulling through the Smokey Mountains.

Steve

[Bill]

Keep in mind that the Explorer Sport Trac is quite different from the 4-door Explorer.

The 4-door Explorer is the same vehicle as the Mercury Mountaineer (except that U-Haul will let you hook up one of their trailers to a Mountaineer!) Both are rated to tow over 7000 pounds, as opposed to 5500 with the Sport Trac.

Bill

I purchased the used 3124KB from Stuart Warren in Albuquerque. Pulled it from there back to Vegas with my SportTrac (ST). I'm sure the weight distribution hitch helped, but the TM tracked sure and stable behind my ST. The 4.0L V6 was able to pull the TM under cruise control at 70mph, with occasional downshifts up the steeper grades and seldom dropping to 65mph. I think 70 mph is as fast as I would drive any vehicle towing a trailer of any kind. Some may think that 70 mph is too fast. I was really quite pleased with how well both the ST and TM performed.

My wife and I just returned from a 10-Day vacation where we took the TM to Yosemite National Park, Cathedral Gorge State Park (NV), and Zion National Park. All of these locations are above 4,500 feet. We stayed at Tuolomne Meadows campground just 8 miles inside the East Entrance of Yosemite. The ST pulled the 3124KB up to the 9,900 ft park entrance at the posted speed limits. It did have to use lower gearing but never exceeded 4,000 rpm on the climb. The only problem I experienced was braking on the way out. I didn't have the trailer brake controller set high enough and felt like the TM pushed the ST on one occasion when I wanted to stop fairly quickly near a lake on the way out. The ST brakes got a little hot. After I increased the responsiveness of the TM's brakes, I never felt like the ST was being pushed again. Oh, gas mileage was just under 14 mpg. Normally I get between 16 and 18 on the highway. Not bad for the hilly terrain we were traveling.

Understanding the inherent limits of a 4.0L V6, I am really quite pleased with my ST's ability to pull and control the TM. I'll probably trade my 2004 ST for a 2008 in a couple of years and get the 4.6L V8 to increase the pulling power.

After 10 days and nights in the 3124KB, my wife and I are quite pleased with the TM and are looking forward to our next outing.

Thanks to those who posted comments to my original question. I'll post some pictures on the pics forum.

Rob - a happy new TM owner.

Thanks for update. I probably emailed you about how the Sport Trac handled and this post told it all. I am looking at the 2720 so towing mine will be easier on the Sport Trac

Like you, I will tow with my Sport Trac until I get something bigger. Maybe the '08 Sport Trac if the bugs are worked out by then.

Thanks for relating your experience. A month ago I was considering a 3124KS and wanting to pull it with my Jeep Liberty. RockyMtnRay and others convinced me that I should think that through a bit more. Someone on the forum referred me to an excellent web site (http://www.rvtowingtips.com/index.html) that has tons of information on matching safe combinations of tow vehicle and trailer. On that site I found a recommendation that a 24 ft trailer should be towed by a TV with a wheelbase of at least 126". My Liberty has a WB of 104", so I see why that might not be a wise combination. Just before I leased the Jeep I had seen the 2007 SportTrac at an auto show, and was really drawn to it. Unfortunately they did not hit the dealers showrooms until after my previous car's lease expired. The 2007 ST has a wheelbase of 130.5"--far better than the Jeep's. With the V8 engine the ST's HP is 292, torque 300 (as opposed to 210/235 in the Liberty). Towing capacity 6640 or 6800??, depending on the source (I now know all the limitations of that number) compared to the Liberty's 5000. When the Jeep's lease is up I'm going to take another look at the SportTrac.

2007 SportsTrac vs 2007 Avalance vs Ridgeline.

I really thought I wanted a 2007 Ridgeline or SportsTrac. However when I started comparing thse two six cylnder vehicles to the new 2007 Avalance, it was a no-brainer for me. The AV had way more towing poer. It was a V8 5.3L vice V6. MPG was within a 1 nile of the other two and might even end up better than the others in towing situations. Cab is much bigger than both. Onboard technology is much better than both. Chevy just extended the warranty on 2007 to equal the honda and beat the Ford. I have never been a Chevy fan and actually had a 1997 Chevy astro a fews years back that swore me off of GM vehicles for life. The 2007 Avalanche has brought be back. Towing an TM with is should be a dream and I plan on doing with just a hitch (no WDH as i should not need it).