Hi Gene:
We tow an enclosed 24' trailer at approx. 6,500 pounds. Here in the
flatlands, the wind resistance from the trailer seems to make a much
greater difference than the weight of the trailer.
Our first tow vehicle was a 1989 E350 window van with port injected 460 and
C6 3 speed Automatic. This lasted about 100K miles before the air
conditioning went out in 1997. The motor and C6 never gave me any
trouble. Mileage was speed and wind dependant and went from a low of 6.5
to a high of about 8.0. A friend with a later 460 with the 4 speed
overdrive got about 1 MPG better mileage. According to Consumer Report,
the 89 was a bad year!
We traded for a 1997 E350 window van with 415ci V10 and 4 speed
overdrive. With about 75% of the 93K on the odometer towing the trailer, I
have had Zero problems. The four speed overdrive that I place in OD and
never touch has been flawless. Mileage is 7.0 to 9.0 depending on speed
and wind.
I don't know which transmission you have, but the C6 is really tough. At
this point it also seems that the C6 derived OD unit is also pretty good.
Verify that you have a transmission oil cooler. If not, I would add one
immediately. I also believe that the added cost of synthetic oil is money
well spent on a tow vehicle. Mobil 1 and Red Line also makes synthetic
transmission fluid.
Greg Scharnberg
Des Moines, IA
At 08:27 AM 1/5/2003 -0500, DSRGR@aol.com wrote:
>I just traded in my old, tired class A motorhome with the 454 Chev engine for
>a 91 18' Tioga Class C with the Ford 460 engine/trans/chassis. Had to get a
>new enclosed trailer to carry all the stuff I had been loading in the Class
>A. Loaded trailer will be about 4000 lbs.
>
>Anyone have any experiences/advice/comments regarding the tow vehicle since
>this will be my first Ford experience.... TIA... Gene
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