Towing Capacity?

[wolfpack2]

The biggest limiting factor for towing capacity is cooling. The modern turbo gas engine like the 2.7L EcoBoost produces a lot of heat. Being able to get rid of the excess heat and keep everything (engine, transmissions, rear axle) within the temperature limits is what determines the max trailer. Sure you can get a much heavier load moving at highway speed, but what happens when you pull a big grades in the heat of the summer. Will you make it to the top before you cook something? Each manufacturer determines the temp limits for their hardware and how much warranty cost they are willing to pay. Based on the durability testing and using the SAE J2807 requirements, they then rate the truck as high as they can and keep the bean counters happy.

 

[dodge man]

Your right about the Eco Diesel, it not a great tow vehicle when you look at what all is available. That's the beauty of it, they make trucks with the Cummins that will tow so much more.

 

[wmonroe]

How fast a truck gets up to speed with a load has almost nothing to do with how much it can tow. For example, 18 wheelers on the road are very "slow" but are rated to tow ?80,000 lbs. It's all about the truck being able to handle a load once it's moving, not how fast it gets it moving.

Very true. Most towing tests on the Internet and quite a few people are worried about their 0-60 times with a trailer, but driving through severe cross winds or having to make a panic stop when coming down a grade will make you think of more than how fast you can speed the trailer up. I've had to make two panic stops, one for a deer and one where someone pulled out in front of me. Both times I was glad to have a little extra truck in front of the trailer.

 

[4570Man]

Very true. Most towing tests on the Internet and quite a few people are worried about their 0-60 times with a trailer, but driving through severe cross winds or having to make a panic stop when coming down a grade will make you think of more than how fast you can speed the trailer up. I've had to make two panic stops, one for a deer and one where someone pulled out in front of me. Both times I was glad to have a little extra truck in front of the trailer.

Totally agree with a little extra truck. You shouldn't rely on trailer brakes, they can fail.

 

[Traxxx]

The tow rating has little to do with how fast you can get up to speed with a load but on survivability (heat dissipation ) and being able to stop with the load.

 

[RedNeckRacin]

Totally agree with a little extra truck. You shouldn't rely on trailer brakes, they can fail.

X2 about extra truck. The 4700 international tows like a dream compared to my 1 ton pickup.

 

[mikesee]

Here are some things I consider now that I have learned through experience regarding tow rating and as everyone says it is not getting up to speed but all about stopping and remaing stopped. For example how much weight can the parking brake system maintain while you are loading a trailer on an incline? What happens when while loading the tongue pressure is reversed and the rear wheels of the tow vehicle come off the ground? How much weight will the transmission spline hold while the tow vehicle is in 'Park' and you are loading a trailer?

 

[Copperhead]

I would contend, that it is not a smart idea to rely on the "park" feature of the transmission to hold the vehicle while loading a trailer. It is much better to set the parking brake and use wheel chocks. Semi trucks don't hold the load by shutting the motor off, putting it into gear, letting out the clutch and expecting the drive train to hold things. They set the tractor and trailer brakes while loading, and usually also put wheel chocks in place. And if you are loading stuff that is going to lift wheels off the ground, then you should be using chocks on all wheels, especially the trailer. We would hate to see you in the next volume of Darwin Awards.

I am not sure that torque and hp ratings and the ability of the tow vehicle have anything to do with how well it can hold the vehicle in "park". The park feature of a vehicle is just a pin lock. One can have a very good drivetrain, and snap a park pin under strain. Just the concept of using the drivetrain as a a function of loading or unloading just flies in the face of my experience of over 5 million documented miles and several decades as a commercial driver.

 

[gladehound]

One thing that tow ratings cannot account for is how you drive and how often you tow. If you tow often, race up every hill, try to beat cars off the line at the stop lights, you'll tear up a vehicle with marinal rating for your load faster than you'd like. On the flip side, if you tow infrequently, take it easy, leave lots of space and baby it on starts you can get away with a lot less tow rating and it is acceptaply safe if properly set up (brakes / balance. It's nice to have a big tow vehicle. But there are others set ups that work.

 

[sdef]

Very true. Most towing tests on the Internet and quite a few people are worried about their 0-60 times with a trailer, but driving through severe cross winds or having to make a panic stop when coming down a grade will make you think of more than how fast you can speed the trailer up. I've had to make two panic stops, one for a deer and one where someone pulled out in front of me. Both times I was glad to have a little extra truck in front of the trailer.

My thought also when I finally decided for a 3/4 ton diesel instead of a HD gas half ton that I would have been towing at the top of its rated capacity.