Request advice, Crown Vic and Trailer

[BulldogPI]

Hi everyone, hoping I can get some advice here.

I don't plan on living in a van , car, rv full time.. but I am seriously consider modifying my Crown Vic so it can pull a Cargo Trailer (modified to a semi stealth camper).  


Crown Vic:  8 cylinder , 4.6 liter with 220k miles but the engine runs strong and the frame is in good shape /clean underneath.


Research I've done basically implies that Ford is full of ...brown goo... with their 1500 lb tow rating, especially if you beef up the rear end with better shocks and springs... I already have installed a class 3 curtis hitch, and noticed the car bottoms out too much as it's low to the ground.  So my hope is that having a mechanic raise the back end with better springs will resolve that problem and also enable me to tow a cargo trailer camper.  In terms of which one, I'm thinking like a Haulmark 6x12 or perhaps a little smaller (opened to suggestions?)


The curtis hitch I bought and installed from Autozone is a class 3 and supposedly designed for specifically my car.


I don't plan on ever loading up the trailer with heavy stuff, other then my basic turtle shell/ stealth camping design... a couple beds, sink, cabinets for stuff etc.

Very interested in hearing what the general consensus is.  Am I insane?

 

[user 423]

What year is the CV? The low tow capacity is supposedly due to a change in the rear suspension around '98 (?) or so.

 

[highdesertranger]

"Am I insane?"

No comment, LOL

Sorry don't get offended but IMO if you want to tow get a proper tow vehicle. 1500 pounds is not a proper tow vehicle. A 6x12 is way to much trailer for a 1500 pound rated payload. It doesn't matter what you do to the suspension you can not raise the tow rating.

Highdesertranger

 

[BulldogPI]

It's a 2007, but from the Ford Forums I've been reading, Ford is full of absolute crap with that low tow rating, and I've seen youtube videos that imply the same. Some refer to the Crown Vic as a Ford F150 in car shape.

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/f...hat-do-you-mean-i-cant-tow-that/107856/page1/

 

[highdesertranger]

It really doesn't matter what you tube or forums say. If the tow rating is 1500 then it's 1500 you can't change that. If you get in an accident or a LEO wants to weigh you the max the trailer can weigh is 1500.

I hope you realize that all the major manufacturers Ford included got in trouble for inflating their tow ratings.

Highdesertranger

 

[BulldogPI]

Have you seen the prices on 'proper tow vehicles' lately? I can't afford that level of expensive, even though my salary is approx 50k

 

[JohnnyM]

Hi Bulldog,

I'd say sure, go ahead; I'm always good with the run-what-you-brung school of RVing.

There are several options for beefing up your rear suspension, and your engine has plenty of power for the job. The weak point in your setup may be your transmission. If you have the Ford e4-OD trans and it has 220k miles on it, it may be ready to give up, and pulling a trailer may be just the excuse it needs.

And that doesn't mean you shouldn't go ahead with your project -- just be prepared to make the fix-or-scrap decision somewhere down the road.

Good luck and go for it, sez me.

Johnny

 

[bullfrog]

Your Crown Vic was designed to be a passenger car. Everything in it is based on transporting people seat belted safely between the wheels, brakes, engine, trans and suspension. It was not designed to be used to tow more than 1500lbs. If you want to tow something there are plenty of old Ford Excursions or F250 trucks out there, improve your life instead of trying to reengineer your car and buy or trade for one of those as Ford already did all the work for you. If Ford thought it could sell more Crown Vics to city governments by increasing the tow capacity so police could pull paddy wagon trailers or SWAT equipment they would have in my opinion! LOL!!!

 

[tx2sturgis]

I weigh 230 pounds but I found this really cheap parachute....I can't afford a parachute thats actually rated for my weight, they are just too expensive. 

This old, cheap parachute was all I could afford, it's rated at 175 pounds. I wont eat breakfast the day I jump, and I will even take my boots off. I read on the internet that this can work, parachutes are WAAAY underrated so I will be fine.

Do ya'll think I can do this? I meet the plane first thing in the morning....hurry and tell me it's OK so I will feel better.

 

[ckelly78z]

You will need to stiffen the suspension on the back of your Crown Vic, and possibly change your differential gears in the 8.8" rear end (they are currently 2.73 gears which are good for mileage on the highway, but not towing).

 

[highdesertranger]

No amount of suspension work will change the tow rating.

For those that say go for it, What about the brakes? Stopping safely in all conditions is more important than going.

Highdesertranger

 

[PlethoraOfGuns]

Yea, everyone is talking about having power to get this mess going, but can you stop? HDR brings up the most important factor in this debate.

 

[user 423]

Crown Vics have 4-wheel disk brakes so if the trailer had brakes and wasn't super overloaded, it doesn't seem like that setup would be so bad. 6x12 single-axle trailers only weigh about 1100lbs., so with a light build it wouldn't be terribly overloaded. Big mountains in your travel plans?

The point about the 2.73 gear is a good one. Many years ago I towed an empty (gutted) 14' travel trailer about 200 miles with a 2000 CV. It probably weighed no more than 1300 lbs. or so.

I took it out of OD and set the cruise at 60. With any small incline it would kick down into 2nd. and rev higher than I liked in order to keep up the speed. The route was fairly hilly so it hunted gears a lot and it wasn't an enjoyable trip. So you would definitely want to get a lower diff gear. The police interceptors I believe have a 3.27 or similar.

Much of the problem with towing the TT was the wind resistance as there was a lot of square feet up front. A V-nose cargo would be better.

 

[bullfrog]

tx2sturgis seems there is a line at the airport jump site! LOL!!!

 

[Malamute]

Some good points have been brought up. Trailer brakes would be mandatory.

Some suspension mods could help, like air bag boosters, they help keep the mushy passenger suspension from sagging and bottoming so it steers and handles right. Still, the rated tow capacity has various aspects it encompasses, the transmission, brakes, radiator and trans cooler (add one if it doesnt have one) among other things. Id up the tire grade from wimpy passenger tires to a stiffer stronger, higher load range rated tire.

Various vehicles have been pressed into service in ways that may not be optimal, but if you dont overestimate your abilities and the abilities of the rig, you can likely pull it off OK within limits.

 

[ckelly78z]

My parents used to drag a large popup camper (4 of us and a dog), all over the country every Summer, pulling it with a run of the mill 350 Chevy, mid 70s Impala....no issue in the rocky mountains even !

The Crown Vic gets better mileage, has more power, better brakes,, a better support network, and aftermarket. Not everyone needs a 3/4 ton diesel to tow a 2500# cargo trailer !

 

[tx2sturgis]

The Crown Vic gets better mileage, has more power, better brakes,, a better support network, and aftermarket. Not everyone needs a 3/4 ton diesel to tow a 2500# cargo trailer !

Did you miss the part about the Crown Vic 1500# tow rating?

 

[highdesertranger]

So a car with 220,000 miles + a 1500lbs tow rating + a 6x12 cargo trailer that probably weighs over 1,000 empty and many say go for it.

I can't believe the incredibly bad advice being given out. It seems common sense has flown the coup.

Highdesertranger

 

[PlethoraOfGuns]

If you add 1000 pounds into the trunk of the car, that should cancel out the 1000 pound overweight from the trailer!

 

[user 423]

So a car with 220,000 miles + a 1500lbs tow rating + a 6x12 cargo trailer that probably weighs over 1,000 empty and many say go for it.

Yeah, I didn't consider the 220k on the tranny for my input.  He would want to set aside $3000+ for a rebuild..  

If he traded the regular CV for a police version, it would already have all the heavy-duty equipment (+ an oil cooler) and the lower rearend. That's if you could find an ex-police that wasn't trashed.

As far as the extra weight goes, consider that the CV was the last full-size 6-passenger car built. 5 passengers would weigh about 800 lbs.

Actually, I believe there used to be a forum member who did tow a cargo with a CV. His experiences would be valuable to the OP.