First of all I apologize for my ignorance :o I will be doing a cross country military PCS move from Texas to California towing my wife's Ford Escape with a car dolly. I have never towed with this truck and I am a bit unclear about the max towing capabilities. My truck is a 2010 FX4 Screw 145 WB with almost 18K miles.

I did some research and I read that I should never exceed my trucks GVWR, which in this case is 7200# GVWR. My manual says that I can tow a max of 9600 LBS. I am confused on how much my truck can tow. My wife's car is about 4000 LBS, however I will be loading her car with a bunch of crap. I think when its all said and done the car will weigh close to 5000 LBS including the car dolly.

My truck is equipped with the basic tow package, class 4 receiver and trailer brake controller. My hitch is a class 4 ball as well. Common sense tells me to never tow the maximum weight, unless Ford down plays the capabilities of their trucks. The manual says that my truck can tow 9600 LBS, I am assuming this is with a weight distributing hitch.

My wife's car plus tow dolly will not weigh more than 5000 LBS. I know the truck can easily tow this with the current set up I have. I would just like to know how much total can I safely tow with my truck for future reference. I plan on towing my dad's toy hauler with motorcycles loaded, probably weighs around 6500 - 7000 LBS.

Any advice would greatly be appreciated. Thanks guys

 

Hello fellow military member. You can actually (not legally though) tow way more than what a pickup is rated for, IF you're careful. I would not recommend it if you're a rookie, but if you know what you're doing it wouldn't be a problem. We used to tow 14k lbs (using a gooseneck trailer of course) with an 87 F-150...these things can tow way more than what Ford rates them for. The biggest concern is not the actual towing, but the STOPPING. As long as you have it setup to stop the load, you'll be fine. That is where trailer brakes come in handy. You will easily be able to tow the 6500 - 7000 lbs that you're wanting to. Once again, just be careful.

^^ ~20 years of towing experience.

 

You are going to have to rent a trailer, (click the link) not a dolly. An Escape loaded with crap is over the limits for a dolly - and a dolly is VERY difficult to maneuver - you simply cannot back it up without jackknifing. You will just be within limits for the trailer if the loaded Escape is 5000#, and still will be within limits for the truck as long as you don't load IT down heavy.

 

That U-Haul trailer weighs 2150lbs IIRC, so you will be close to maximum weight, but you'll still be good.

 

Yes, U-Haul trailers are extremely heavy.

Get the tongue weight right and it should be pretty smooth sailing. Remember to use Tow/Haul and DONT use the cruise control.

 

Hmmm good point. I guess I will take less "crap" because the trailer is double the costs from a dolly. I also plan on going to a weight station and getting a dry weight and loaded weight before my trip. I tried finding the max weight for the dolly but couldn't find it on the website. I will call them to make sure. Thanks for pointing that out
What's the issue with using cruise control? It will be a real PITA if I can't use it on a 1800 mile drive.

 

It will make the transmission hunt for gears. If you value the transmission, dont use it. Plus, youll get better gas mileage without if you manage your hills and right foot appropriately.

 

Just an FYI. U-Haul auto trailers have a hydraulic braking system activated by a telescoping plunger mechanism. No electric brakes. Don't know about the dollys.

 

This.

 

Would it be ok to use on flat road? I will make sure I turn it off when going up and down hills.

I found the max load for the car dolly.....3450 LBS. On the Escape there are two seperate weights for front and back labeled GVWR. I would add these two weights together for total weight of the vehicle correct? If I am over the max weight for the dolly by a few hundred pounds will it be an issue you think?

 

Did just fine towing my 69 stang from Aspen CO to Memphis TN on a U-Haul Dolly, Stang was loaded, but remember to stay in the slow lane when climbing those hills, you will drop down on MPH quickly, like I said you should be fine but the backing part was a problem, just park where you don't have to do a lot of backing up.

 

Again - DO NOT use a dolly. You will hate yourself. If you EVER have to back the rig up, you will have to take the car off the dolly, unhitch the dolly, jockey things around, rehitch the dolly, and put the car back on the dolly. NOT FUN. If the Escape is 4wd, you CANNOT dolly it. Dollies do not have brakes.

If the car is heavier than the max dolly load, U-Haul won't let you rent it.

Go ahead and use the cruise, as long as you use tow/haul and/or lock out overdrive you will be fine. Yes, I *KNOW* the owner's manual says don't use it, but that's for safety and liability reasons. Keep your thumb near the cruise-off button.

 

As others have said, use a trailer not a dolly. You will be much safer with the brakes on the trailer, and overall better feel towing the trailer than the dolly. Plus, it sounds like the Escape is too heavy for the dolly.

Also, you'll be fine using cruise control. Use on the flat lands and turn it off when you get to the hills. You'll be fine, and 1800 miles of towing in cruise isn't going to hurt your tranny. You will, however, most likely get worse gas mileage if you use your cruise while towing.

Oh, and thank you for your service!

 

Yeah I can see how backing up can be an issue. I doubled check the vehicle and the front GVWR is just over 2K, the dolly max is 3450K so I should be ok in the weight department. For some reason I was factoring the total weight of the vehicle even though the dolly ony supports the front half.

I think I will deal with the meunuvering issue in order to save almost $300. I do have tons of experience towing, just not with my truck. I am in the Coast Guard and we tow our 9000 LB boats all the time with 3 axle trailers and F350 diesels. I have no experience towing with 1/2 ton vehicles, and since this is my personal vehicle and not good ole uncle sams, I want to make sure things are done right. In the Coast Guard they give us a boat, trailer, and a F350 and they say "tow it", so I do lol.

 

Lots of good info guys, I appreciate it. I am a bit limited on money so upgrading to a flat bed trailer may be out of the question. I know the dolly only supports the front half of the vehicle, so I will be good as far as weight. Now brakes....the dolly has no brakes, I will make sure I drive slow and increase my distance between vehicles in front of me. Cruise control....I did not think that CC would be an issue, thanks for pointing that out and I will keep that in mind.

In my OP I asked about GVWR and what the manual states for max towing. For future towing with my vehicle, should I go by the manual or what the combined GVWR is for my truck? The GVWR is 7200#, manual says I can tow up to 9600 without max tow package.