Truck problems - recommendation on a tow vehicle?

[tegwilym]

pulling

Yeah, I'm aware of that. My top speed with the boat will be about 25-30mph, first or 2nd gear whenever possible, and if anyone behind me gets upset, they can just be patient and wait. I'm only going down the hill to the lake. A whole two mile trip.I still think I'll be on the lookout for an improvement though.

 

[sand sailor]

bad trans combo

this transmission you have is barely big enough for the truck alone you need a full size truck with a real transmission even if its a beater thats heavy duty enough to take the strainp.s. a new trans for that ranger is about $1000

 

[Chuck R]

My 90 Ranger does not tow my 222 O'Day very well

The problem now days is that transmission have half the fluid they usta have. Notice they want you to change fluids every 30K miles now instead of 50K miles. My ranger also does not have AC either and so that causes a very small radiator. With the gas mileage rear Axel I get 25 to 28 MPG with the V-6 (2.9) and automatic. The truck is rated to tow 2K trailer. So what happens when I tow a 3200 lb boat any distance the tranny fluid builds up heat and because of the age of the truck ( 1990 ), the seals are old and hard and causes fluid to blow past the front seal and smoke as the fluids hit the converters and exhaust.I sold new and used cars and trucks for a living and like everyone else enjoy driving and good gas mileage. So after experiencing this Ranger episode I am also looking at a tow vehicle. F-150's Suvs are my last choice right now because of the poor gas mileages. My first choice and now my last one too is the Crown Vic, Gran Marquise, or the Town Car. I know the gas mileages are up there now 24 to 28 MPG and retirees tell me going to Florida they see 32 Mpg. I think these cars are the best kept secret. They were always rated at 5K trailer tow until 1998, and today the new ones are rated at only 1500 lbs trailer tow. Well while riding a ferry boat to a Bass Island in Lake Erie I met a early buy-out retiree from Ford who work on the Crown Vic Lines and so I asked him whats with the 1500 lb trailer tow now days.( I expected him to say so Ford could sell you the SUV and F-150 ) His answer was simple the cars haven't changed that much and with the full body on frame construction and their low center of gravity they are still a good tow vehicle. Ford has an 11 mile steep up hill mountain out west somewhere, they hook up this trailer and wait for 100 degree day and drive this car as fast as they can up hill. If it makes it without overheating it is good at 5k TT. If not the re-rate the Tow capacity back to what it will tow.He then said if it were I, I'd get the model with the performance and handling package as they have a better tow Axel or better yet get the Town Car because it has everything even the load leveling suspension.. The best I am thinking, if you can find one not too beat up would be a used police package. Should be able to find one just over 100K miles because I understand that municipalities buy new after 100K miles because their insurance increases.These cars have a terrific ride are heavy, get decent mileage and do tow well. You can almost camp out in their trunks and carry as many people as a crew cab.I always got a kick out of trying to sell a station-wagon to the younger generation, Hee He. "Oh I wouldn't drive one of them, my grandfather had one" Well just what do you think an Explorer SUV is? Well now that I am an Ol' foggy now to I can drive an Ol' foggy car. ( Look'n for a puff Town Car )

 

[Ferg]

Boat or not……

…..you need a better truck. Your C22 isn’t all that heavy and you’re not going very far. Make horsepower a secondary consideration, think torque first. Consider looking at a bigger transmission cooler and a right and proper trailer hitch. A class 2 hitch is just enough to tow your boat, but a class 3 is more than enough and is really only a few bucks more. Further, a proper hitch and a balanced trailer make for better tongue weight and much less strain on the truck and a kinder ride for the boat.If your truck isn’t your primary vehicle, absolutely look at older models that are bigger and tougher than you need. Figure, it’ll spend less time being broken that way. Perhaps even consider a manual transmission 4 wheel drive. See, the low range will be great for launching and hauling out and the manual will take a lot more pressure.So, here’s the thing with F-150’s after 1997 they made some serious changes and the truck looked cooler and had better ergonomics and options, but they also ended up a lot wimpier. The 4X4 transfer cases were susceptible to water intrusion, and the motors and transmissions were made more for mileage that toughness. (up here where 4 wheel drive trucks are way more numerous than anything else, we call em’ “poser trucks” or garden tractors) The newer ones are more “trucky” but why spend all that money?Another good option for you might be the Dodge with the 6cyl. diesel turbo and 5 speed manual. Mileage is good, torque is plenty good and the tranny is more or less bullet proof. If you can find one with 4 wheel drive, even better! Oh yeah, and they have big beefy brakes too….Ferg

 

[George]

Towing

In all this discussion there is no mention of how much your boat/trailer weighs. Once you run your rig across a scale the rest is fairly straight forward. The following link may help you sort out your options: Go to: http://kobernus.com/hunter260/travel/travel.html

 

[Rick Webb]

I'll second the Gran Marquis

They have the same engine, transmission and nearly the same wheel base as the truck. If you tow all the time over distances get a truck. I used an 85 then a 97 and now have a Town Car. On the 97 we had the "Sports Handling Package' the difference there between the "Tow Package" was the tow package has a full size spare and a steel drive shaft. Both had the same lower gear ratio, dual exhaust and transmission fluid cooler. A nice addition would be the oil cooler like on the "Police Package". The ultimate rig would be one of the wagons with the 351 vs. the 302.