94 F150 with I-6 as tow vehicle?

[ArtW]

I have an opportunity to get a 94 F 150 as a tow vehicle for my Travel Trailer, which weighs in around 4k fully loaded. It's a 300 I-6, automatic, single cab, long bed
My thoughts
The 6 with auto gives a tow rating of 4700, compared to the Ranger's 4000, with the possibility to up the gears to 3.55 for a rating of 5700


While that doesn't seem like much improvement, most folks I know who speak Ford swear the 300 is very under rated by Ford


I've always found inline 6 engines easier to work on than V8s (but again I have very little experience with Fords

If necessary I could gear it down even more, but economy while not towing would suffer

generally I like 2x the needed tow capacity I need, but that's mostly something I came up with listening to others, not through experience

The truck has been sitting for a year, but ran well when parked (this isn't BS, I know the owner, and he quit driving it once he got access to a Prius)
I expect with a decent battery it'll light right off and run no problem (the battery did die)

It does not have a tow package, or receiver hitch, so there's that work to do if nothing else

No pics yet, we just discussed this at my place of employment tonight (even on vaycay, I can't stay out of the place lol)

I welcome thoughts / perspectives from others, and especially if there's anything I need to be wary of on this year model F 150

 

[poncho62]

It wont be a speed demon, but the 300 ci Ford engine is a real workhorse.....Good torque at low RPMs. A V8 would likely get as good or better mileage towing though.

 

[ArtW]

I'm not married to the idea of an I6, this just popped up, and i know I can get it for $1000. With a V8, i'd have that 8000lb tow rating to make 2x what I need, but the 300 has such a good reputation, I thought it might be adequate, where the Ranger I don't think will be, base on when I towed the other travel trailer with it

 

[Gary68]

never met an american i6 i didnt like,the auto is the problem,with a stick it would be great

 

[ArtW]

Pretty much the same I've been told about the Ranger lol

 

[Every Road Leads Home]

I do love inline 6's, nothing seems to kill them. I've got no experience towing with one though so can't offer much advice on that one. I would tend to agree a manual would tow better than the automatic based on my experience with the ranger auto/manual towing experiment I did some years back. I like the double the tow capacity rule of thumb. However, even though it still won't be double I do think the heavier F150 would be an improvement over the lighter ranger.

 

[ArtW]

yeah, I think the Ranger's curb weight stock is 3500 or so, the F 150 4090 or thereabouts
I know the brakes and such will handle it, because the same truck with a 5.8 will tow I think 7600 (sounds low, a 1/2 ton Chevy with 350 will tow 8000. come to think of it, a frigging Astro with a 4.3 will pull 6000 maybe Ford is more conservative with tow ratings) I might want to look at power curves for the 4.9 vs the 3.0. I know the ranger is geared lower (and it's still not fast lol)

 

[ArtW]

Holey crap! ranger 3.0 147hp @ 5000 RPM (1996 - 1997) 162 @ 3250 RPM (1996 - 1997)

F150 4.9 150ho @3400 / 260 lb/ ft @ 2000 94-96

5.8l V8 210hp @3600 330 ft /lb @ 3300

Almost 100 ft lb more than the 3.0, less than 100 ft lb less than the 5.8

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

However, even though it still won't be double I do think the heavier F150 would be an improvement over the lighter ranger.

Agree.  There is a general rule-of-thumb that the longer the wheelbase of the tow vehicle, the better it tows.  It tends to track straighter, and tongue weight has less of a "lifting" effect on the front wheels, thanks to the leverage provided by the longer length.

 

[Txjaybird]

All three of the Ford trucks I've owned that were Inline 6s also had long beds.   The '69 with auto made numerous trips to SD from TX fully loaded and pulling a loaded flatbed.  The '73, 3 on the tree was often loaded with gear for hunting/camping and pulled a bass boat .It also traveled the TX to SD route. The '95 had an ext cab & auto tranny.  The loads on the truck or trailers were never weighed, just loaded with what was needed and away we went!  The '69 was the one that I spun out with on black ice in Ike Tx then it stood on right front wheel and fell over onto the passenger side that = $47 for the tow and only  cracked the west coast side mirror.  They were tuff rigs and except for the roll over after leaving a elevated roadway that totaled the '73 [I wasn't driving that 1]     they survived what ever my family could throw at them.   

They are 3F.......Ford and Friend Family Tuff

Jewellann

 

[jimindenver]

The 300 is damn near bullet proof and while not the fastest, it will get you there. I've seen them pull more but a lot more goes into a tow rating than just the engine. Frame, brakes, axle, suspension, payload and transmission all play a part. A 300 with a modern fuel system and transmission would be a beast.

 

[Tedrow42]

The 300 is the closest thing you will ever get to diesel pulling with gas. The are tough but when they do go they go like a dollar watch.

I dont think a better moter has ever been made. Never towed with one but my 89 and 85 both stick and 2wd could out pull 4wd v8 trucks. Friends laughed when I backed up to bushes and stuck trailers they couldnt get out with there 350 chevys till my little 300 got the job done. The 300 is fords i6 incase it wasnt said earlier

 

[ArtW]

OK, it sounds like this truck could be just right for my purposes, despite the factory tow rating being sorta low, I'll see about getting a look at it, if my friend isn't busy the next few days

 

[ArtW]

All three of the Ford trucks I've owned that were Inline 6s also had long beds.   The '69 with auto made numerous trips to SD from TX fully loaded and pulling a loaded flatbed.  The '73, 3 on the tree was often loaded with gear for hunting/camping and pulled a bass boat .It also traveled the TX to SD route. The '95 had an ext cab & auto tranny.  The loads on the truck or trailers were never weighed, just loaded with what was needed and away we went!  The '69 was the one that I spun out with on black ice in Ike Tx then it stood on right front wheel and fell over onto the passenger side that = $47 for the tow and only  cracked the west coast side mirror.  They were tuff rigs and except for the roll over after leaving a elevated roadway that totaled the '73 [I wasn't driving that 1]     they survived what ever my family could throw at them.   

They are 3F.......Ford and Friend Family Tuff

Jewellann

I used to not worry much about tow rating, either, my Ranger made me wary, it is rated at 4000 but a 3150lb trailer on a mild grade dropped her to 45 mph, the poor thing was struggling.
To be fair, I get pinging on hot days running regular, so I don't think it's really running right
If SD is anywhere near as steep as NC, that sounds like a glowing endorsement for the Effy with I6

The 300 is damn near bullet proof and while not the fastest, it will get you there. I've seen them pull more but a lot more goes into a tow rating than just the engine. Frame, brakes, axle, suspension, payload and transmission all play a part. A 300 with a modern fuel system and transmission would be a beast.

Thanks Jim, in my googling I found that a SD version of this motor has been used in 15000lb dumps
I think 94 is pretty much as modern as the 300 got, they were phased out in 1996 still, should be a solid pulling motor

The 300 is the closest thing you will ever get to diesel pulling with gas. The are tough but when they do go they go like a dollar watch.

I dont think a better moter has ever been made. Never towed with one but my 89 and 85 both stick and 2wd could out pull 4wd v8 trucks. Friends laughed when I backed up to bushes and stuck trailers they couldnt get out with there 350 chevys till my little 300 got the job done. The 300 is fords i6 incase it wasnt said earlier

This
This is what I was hoping to hear, although if your 6 was manual and their 350s were automatic, that makes a difference, still, I am encouraged
Thanks

 

[Tedrow42]

Chevys was 4x4 mine was 2

 

[ArtW]

But was the Chevy an automatic, and was your 300 also an automatic? that's what I was getting at, because as others have said, it makes a difference. Thanks for the quick response

 

[steamjam1]

The Ford 300 is the best engine Ford ever made. If you get a van/truck with one, if its in good shape and you take care of it, chances are it'll outlast the rest of the vehicle. But if your planning on towing with one, that's fine, but get an extra capacity radiator and a huge transmission cooler if automatic.

 

[travlinman and wife]

I had a 74 with manual tran . got good gas mileage but would not pull a greasy string out of a cats butt. my brother had a friend in west Virginia with same set up  and had to go to low gear to get up those wv mt.. he found a old 64 and swaped rearends  then he could top those mt in third gear but gas mileage went down.

 

[akrvbob]

The 300 I6 is a great engine. But doing much towing with that trailer with a F150 and that engine would be a mistake. It'll nickel and dime you to death with repairs in the long run. Don't bring it out west and find some real hills.

 

[ArtW]

Thanks for the input everyone, Bob that's what I needed to hear, though not what I wanted to
Anyway, I looked at it yesterday, and it's not in the shape it'd need to be for $1000, gash in cab corner behind driver's door, both mirrors missing, driver's door doesn't open from inside
I saw a 3/4 ton Chevy w/ 350 and 4spd manual (yep, Granny low) that one I think is too much truck, wound out pretty good at 60mph, I'll keep looking