Towing with Expedition

[Winetripper]

My faithful 2003 Expedition EB 4x4 has just turned 150,000 miles. It's pulled a lot of things very well, including a 5000 lb boat to Tahoe from the Bay Area numerous times. I just bought an Airstream trailer and am planning a long trip with it this summer. As I didn't want to get stuck out in the boonies with a fried transmission (it's original), I looked for, found and bought a new 2011 XLT 4x4 with all the features I want. I gain about 600 lbs towing, but I find that even though it has the heavy duty tow package, it's the 3.31 and not the 3.73 ratio, which is what I have in my '03. (Yes, I considered an Ecoboost F-150, but the wife put her foot down.)

 

What differences am I going to see? I will be towing about 6500lb plus 2 people, a dog and probably 250 pounds of gear in the truck. I'm taking 2 1/2 months to drive to Upper Michigan and back and will encounter all kinds of terrain. I found a great book that describes the difficulty of every mountain pass in detail, so I'm avoiding the worst of them, but I still have to get over the Sierras and the Rockies.

 

In the 60 miles I've driven it so far, the new Expy doesn't seem as quick as the old one. I'm less concerned about gaining a mile or so in mpg than I am about tackling some long uphill grades. I get around 13.5 mpg combined with the old 2003, and it pulls the Airstream quite well.

 

If you all recommend the 3.73 over the 3.31, how big a deal is it to change, how long does it take and how much will it set me back?

 

Thanks in advance for some useful advice!

[kstwister]

I'm no pro but pulling you want to lock out the od by pushing the botton on the shifter. I wouldn't use cruise pulling anything other than fairly flat terrain. The 6 speed transmissions will keep you in the power band but will be shifting all the time pulling a trailer. The 3.73 to 3.31 is why you don't feel the power like before. We have an '08 with the standard gear set and it's fairly snappy for such a large machine but it won't have the "up out of the whole" pull at lower rpms that you used to have. You could swap to 3.73 but that would take a change to the front and rear axle on your 4wd. Probably not worth the trouble. As far as longevity, you could source a factory transmission cooler off a junker and install it. Heat is what kills transmissions and pulling generates heat. The factory "towing package" is two things: a cooler and lower gear set on the Explorer and Expedition.

I think all the 05 and newer 3valve 5.4's are up on power and torque over the 5.4 2V as far as factory ratings. We went from an 02 Explorer with the 4.6/3.73 to an 08 Expedition with the 5.4/3.31. Power and acceleration seem very proportional and efficiency is actually up. We get 18+ mpg on the highway and the Explorer was 17 or so. Speed makes a big difference too. Cruising at 60 we can pull 21 mpg or better, push it to 70 and we're in that 18 range.

[Cifyacan]

I have a 2010 and I was trying to pull a 7500 lb travel trailer with a weight distribution hitch. I'm very disappointed because we can't use this vehicle because it is all over the road. We are using our truck instead. Plenty of power , everyone has looked at it and can't figure out the issue. We are getting a different vehicle now.

[NLPRacing]

Not sure how towing with the 3.31 gears would be, but mine pulls well with the 3.73's. If I'm not mistaken, I think all EL's come with 3.73's. Maybe you could find a wrecked EL and buy the center section of the rear end and swap it out. Might be easier/cheaper than swapping just the gears. I never turn off the overdrive and I always use cruise control when towing and I never have a problem, even on hills. Between the power, gears & 6 speed tranny, it seems to be a great towing package.

 

I have a 2010 and I was trying to pull a 7500 lb travel trailer with a weight distribution hitch. I'm very disappointed because we can't use this vehicle because it is all over the road. We are using our truck instead. Plenty of power , everyone has looked at it and can't figure out the issue. We are getting a different vehicle now.

What hitch are you using? I have a 2007 Expedition EL and our trailer is over 37' long from hitch to bumper and probably weighs close 9000 when loaded and it pulls very well, but it didn't pull very well when we first got it. I use an Equalizer brand hitch that the dealer threw in when I bought the trailer. When I first picked it up, I was swaying all over the road on the way home. When I got home, I realized the hitch was too high, so I adjusted it down a notch. That made it better, but I still couldn't go over 60 with a ton of sway. I re-read the Equalizer manual and watched the video on the Equalizer web site and realized I didn't have enough tension on the arms. So I moved up the the brackets a notch and that made all the difference in the world. On our last trip, I was able to go 70 mph on cruise control and never had any sway problems. I could of went faster, but I was already only getting 8 mpg (which is still better than he 6 mpg that the motorhome got going 60 mph).

[fordmantpw]

As NLPRacing mentioned, having the hitch set up properly is one of the most important things for a stable, sway-free tow. Something as small as an extra link in the chains on the bars can make a world of difference.

 

Oh, and NLPRacing, trailer tires are only rated for 65 MPH. (I'm sure you know that, just razzing ya)

[NLPRacing]

As NLPRacing mentioned, having the hitch set up properly is one of the most important things for a stable, sway-free tow. Something as small as an extra link in the chains on the bars can make a world of difference.

 

Oh, and NLPRacing, trailer tires are only rated for 65 MPH. (I'm sure you know that, just razzing ya)

I'm probably a bit overloaded too, but who's counting. For the record, if the speed limit was 70, I went 70. But for most of the trip, I went 65.

[theoldwizard]

If you all recommend the 3.73 over the 3.31, how big a deal is it to change, how long does it take and how much will it set me back?

 

Any reputable rear axle shop can install one in less than a day. SWAG $500 ? A lot more at a dealer. Your dealer can reprogram the speedometer, for a fee.