Towing 6700lb Boat w. a 2005 Ford Expedition

[San_Diego_SeaRay]

I have a 1982 Sea Ray Sundancer 270 that I will need to start towing. I'm looking to buy a new daily use vehicle to replace my current vehicle that can't tow this boat. I've settled on a 2005 Ford Expedition, which apparently has a 6K lb rating w. the standard tow package and an 8900lb w. the optional tow package. Question is, when buying a used vehicle, many of them list "tow package" as an option. So how do I know which tow package I'd be getting? I'd rather not take the seller's word for it. Is there a tell tale sign that the original buyer did get the upgraded version?

 

[possum2082]

you'll need to find out what was included in the optional tow package in 05 (tranny cooler, diff, etc.). once you figure that out, you need to get underneath and check the numbers on the rear differential.

 

[smokeonthewater]

6700 sounds REALLY light for a 27' cruiser on the trailer especially if it will be loaded w gas gear and water....

my 28'er is closer to 10,000.... have you actually scaled it... if not I strongly suggest you do before buying anything...

As for the excursion... what engine does it have? I assume auto transmission.... e rated tires would be a must... trans cooler... class IV hitch


what gear ratio in the rear.... You can figure that out from tire size and rpm at 60 mph.... IE if it has 235/85r16 tires and runs 2000 rpm at 60 it has 4.10:1 gears... my bet is that it will have much higher gears/lower rpm's

as far as standard or optional package... the dealer could likely tell you... probably lower gears a trans cooler and a better hitch.

 

[Bondo]

I've settled on a 2005 Ford Expedition,

Ayuh,........ That ain't Nearly enough SUV for pullin' a 27' Sundancer,....

You oughta be into a 3/4 ton truck for that load,....

 

[Tail_Gunner]

https://www.fleet.ford.com/resources...wing_Guide.pdf

You need a 3.73 axle to pull 9000 The axle code is on the drivers door jam...its a sticker about the size of a playing card just google the code and poof you will know. If your from cali be sure to check this lots of 3.31 truck's up there...or down there.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Oh! Oops I was thinking excursion .... Expedition ain't gonna cut it.

 

[San_Diego_SeaRay]

OK guys this is great information; what I need to know. I can tell that the Expedition isn't going to cut it. Just for a little more background information, my plan is to store the boat less than one mile from the launch ramp. So I'm not going to be towing it far. *However*, I also don't want to put excess strain on what will be my daily driving vehicle. In other words, I don't want my daily driver to have a premature death due to moments of excessive stress.

So how about a 10 cylinder 2000 Excursion which is rated to 10k lbs? Obviously it's an improvement but would you be comfortable towing my setup with this vehicle?

 

[smokeonthewater]

Absolutely

 

[H20Rat]

OK guys this is great information; what I need to know. I can tell that the Expedition isn't going to cut it. Just for a little more background information, my plan is to store the boat less than one mile from the launch ramp. So I'm not going to be towing it far. *However*, I also don't want to put excess strain on what will be my daily driving vehicle. In other words, I don't want my daily driver to have a premature death due to moments of excessive stress.

How often are you towing? I'm hoping you are slipping and this will only be a couple of times a season, that sundancer isn't exactly a great trailer boat.

In any case, given less than a mile, I'd personally use the expedition and call it a day... Keep it in low range for the actual loading/unloading, and if you are on gravel, I'd just leave it in low. (I've done the exact same, I used an old bronco for a dedicated tow vehicle for many years. It was towing things WAY past its rating.) And my bronco was one of the larger dedicated tow vehicles at my lake, there is a guy towing a large bayliner I/O with a willies jeep. (which was rated at 1200#!)

This isn't as hard on a vehicle as you would think. Especially in low range, the worst that is going to happen is maybe snap an axle or driveshaft, but even that is rare. It is far, far harder on a vehicle doing extended highway towing at speed.

 

[jkust]

Back to the original question...I'm a used GM guy because they depreciate so fast just a few years old and so on GM's, I look at the RPO sticker in the glove box to verify what the vehicle came with. It is surprising how hard it is to find the appropriate gearing as well as the locking rear differential even when someone says it has the "tow package". I can only presume Ford does the same thing?

 

[San_Diego_SeaRay]

How often are you towing? I'm hoping you are slipping and this will only be a couple of times a season, that sundancer isn't exactly a great trailer boat.

I'm planning on towing it 2-3 times a month probably all year round. What makes towing this boat a mile or two bad?

In any case, given less than a mile, I'd personally use the expedition and call it a day... Keep it in low range for the actual loading/unloading, and if you are on gravel, I'd just leave it in low. (I've done the exact same, I used an old bronco for a dedicated tow vehicle for many years. It was towing things WAY past its rating.) And my bronco was one of the larger dedicated tow vehicles at my lake, there is a guy towing a large bayliner I/O with a willies jeep. (which was rated at 1200#!)

Well that's interesting. Manufacturers always put a "buffer" between what they advise and what it's actually engineered for. I'm not entirely against buying a dedicated sacrificial vehicle.

This isn't as hard on a vehicle as you would think. Especially in low range, the worst that is going to happen is maybe snap an axle or driveshaft, but even that is rare. It is far, far harder on a vehicle doing extended highway towing at speed.

Snapping an axle or driveshaft is bad. But not as bad as killing a transmission. Wouldn't you say that the weak link in towing vehicles is the transmission?

 

[smokeonthewater]

long distance.. yes short distance the weak link is having the weight and suspension to control the load... snapping axles n such and burning up the transmission are non issues here.

I trailer my 28' twin v8 cruiser every time I use it and it's no more hassle than any other boat..

IF you are ONLY going to tow that distance pretty much any 1/2 ton or bigger 4x4 will be fine but is you EVER want to go longer distance like to a mechanic or to another lake you should be looking at 3/4 ton plus

 

[smokeonthewater]

also consider where you will buy gas... if you can buy 100 gal of gas for $1.50 less by towing 10 miles a better tow rig can pay for itself pretty quickly

 

[maproy99]

What matters here, is what the tongue weight is, how steep is the launch ramp, and how bad are the local hills. And before people complain about me saying it is okay, it is legally not okay. However, there is a massive gap between what the manufacture says is safe and what actually is if you take it easy. The worst overload I have hauled was roughly 10,000lbs overloaded for 10 miles....... But a ford expedition is a lot different then the semi I was driving then! With my 2005 silverado rated to just 8000lbs I have towed over over 14000lbs with, for a couple thousand mile round trip. 6000lbs overloaded.

 

[H20Rat]

I'm planning on towing it 2-3 times a month probably all year round. What makes towing this boat a mile or two bad?

Snapping an axle or driveshaft is bad. But not as bad as killing a transmission. Wouldn't you say that the weak link in towing vehicles is the transmission?

Meant that the boat isn't a great trailer boat in general. Lots of people do trailer boats like that, but she is a big boat without much maneuverability. It is certainly more work to load than a 18' fishing boat for example. I have a lot of boating friends, many of which have tried making similar boats (or 2 that I know of, exactly the same boat) into a trailerable boat. 100% are now pontoon owners, or have a slip for their cruiser.

Transmissions die from heat, from extended towing. Towing this boat a very short distance, especially in low range, causes very little stress.

 

[San_Diego_SeaRay]

Meant that the boat isn't a great trailer boat in general. Lots of people do trailer boats like that, but she is a big boat without much maneuverability. It is certainly more work to load than a 18' fishing boat for example. I have a lot of boating friends, many of which have tried making similar boats (or 2 that I know of, exactly the same boat) into a trailerable boat. 100% are now pontoon owners, or have a slip for their cruiser.

Transmissions die from heat, from extended towing. Towing this boat a very short distance, especially in low range, causes very little stress.

Yeah I realize this is about as "bad" a trailer boat as you can get. But this is going to be a boat rigged for scuba diving and having less space on it is almost unthinkable. I imagine even a 24 ft boat w. an 8 ft beam is much easier to trailer. But the real estate lost is just not worth it, IMO. Also, leaving a boat in the water has many downsides unto itself including high slip fees, monthly bottom cleaning, pervasive salt water damage, etc.

After I bought it I drove it down Interstate 5 from Los Angeles in the middle of a weekend day. White knuckle ride all the way. But my plan is to minimize travel distance as much as possible. I'm hoping the whole travel and unload process will end up taking less than 30 minutes. And the haul out, rinse and storage process will take less than 45 min.

 

[smokeonthewater]

With the correct tow vehicle and a bit of experience there is no reason for it to be white knuckle... I have pulled 30' cruisers on 3 1000 mile one way trips and two of those through blizzards.

Once you get your trailer setup right and a system down launching n loading is as easy as any other boat.... 9 times out of 10 I launch or load faster than whoever is on the ramp next to me.

The size of the boat is irrelevant. All of the actions are the same.

Sure it's higher to climb over the nose of a 30' cruiser than a 16' bow rider.

A short ladder built onto the trailer fixes that.

Me tho I back down right next to the courtesy dock so instead of climbing over I walk down the dock n step in.

No more than 5 minutes to launch or load and if I have a helper it's no more than 1 minute.

 

[San_Diego_SeaRay]

Once you get your trailer setup right and a system down launching n loading is as easy as any other boat.... 9 times out of 10 I launch or load faster than whoever is on the ramp next to me.

The size of the boat is irrelevant. All of the actions are the same.

Sure it's higher to climb over the nose of a 30' cruiser than a 16' bow rider.

A short ladder built onto the trailer fixes that.

No more than 5 minutes to launch or load and if I have a helper it's no more than 1 minute.

Nice to hear! Thanks.

 

[jbetzelb]

A 2005 expedition will do fine for what you are planning to do. The 5.4 has a lot of torque and the brakes are decent on that vehicle. I had a 2004 expedition and it pulled that kind of weight a few times without any issue. The trans coolers on those were about 2 inches wide if it was a standard package. If it had factory tow they were about 5 inches wide. That is one way to get an idea if it came with factory tow.

 

[Mi duckdown]

the VIN number really tells what the cap is