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10-23-2012, 02:00 AM
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#1
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Junior Member
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Olympia, Washington
Trailer: 2013 Escape 5.0
Posts: 20
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Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
I have never owned a pick-up or a trailer before. Now I am planning to get an Escape 5.0, so I am looking for a suitable tow vehicle.
The F-!50 with the 3.5L V6 ecoboost engine with automatic 6 speed & 2WD in a SuperCrew cab gets better gas mileage (16/18/22) than the similarly equipped Frontier (15/17/20) and nearly the same as the Tacoma (17/19/21). However the F-150 delivers significantly more power and load capacity than either of these mid-sized trucks.
I would appreciate hearing from anyone who has this truck (or a similar F-150) towing a 5.0.
Is the 5.5 foot box sufficient for the king pin?
Is this a good match overall?
Thanks in advance to all who reply.
Rich
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10-23-2012, 05:57 AM
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#2
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: St. Thomas not BVI., Ontario
Trailer: 2014 Escape 5.0TA / 2016 Ram Eco Diesel 4X4
Posts: 8,035
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
Hi: aldertree2... And WELCOME!!! With regards to the Frontier Crew Cab 4ltr. V6 combo ours has the hitch directly over the axle in the 6'1" longbed and I have still managed to touch the belly band of the trailer to the truck cab. I thought I had lots of bypass but forgot the truck was slanted uphill. We do have the HuskyEZ roller hitch but when I want to land in a site for the nite I'm usually in some rush and never pull the roller handle. It gives you 8" more room between the cab and trailer for tight maneuvers. Great combo otherwise!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie
__________________
Quote Bugs Bunny..."Don't take life too seriously, none of us get out of it ALIVE"!!!
'16 Ram Eco D. 4X4 Laramie Longhorn CC & '14 Escape 5.0TA
St.Thomas (Not the Virgin Islands) Ontario
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10-23-2012, 06:06 AM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: St. Thomas not BVI., Ontario
Trailer: 2014 Escape 5.0TA / 2016 Ram Eco Diesel 4X4
Posts: 8,035
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
Hi: aldertree2... Here's a couple more pic's. of the HuskyEZ Roller 16K Hitch!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie
__________________
Quote Bugs Bunny..."Don't take life too seriously, none of us get out of it ALIVE"!!!
'16 Ram Eco D. 4X4 Laramie Longhorn CC & '14 Escape 5.0TA
St.Thomas (Not the Virgin Islands) Ontario
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10-23-2012, 10:12 AM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Oswego, New York
Trailer: 2017 Escape 21C, 2018 Ford F150
Posts: 5,363
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
You might want to check with Reace at Escape to be sure the bed of the F-150 isn't too high for the 5.0...
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10-23-2012, 01:50 PM
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#5
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2009
Posts: 489
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
I've been giving some thought to ordering a "fleet" F-150 4wd with NO bed. I could build a nice stake-bed out easily.
Dave
__________________
There are 10 kinds of people in the world, those who understand binary, and those who don't.
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10-23-2012, 02:01 PM
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#6
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Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: ,, Oklahoma
Trailer: 17
Posts: 840
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
You see the flat utility bed all over the farming and ranch areas. Should be easy enough to order.
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10-23-2012, 02:07 PM
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#7
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Rockwell, North Carolina
Trailer: 2015 Escape 5TA
Posts: 170
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
I like the idea of a heaver truck with more than necessary braking system to pull an escape with. You may be able to find a 5th body around used. Most of the trucks made with pulling bodies are larger truck though. I still like the idea!
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10-23-2012, 02:41 PM
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#8
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: St.Albert, Alberta
Trailer: 21 ft November 17th
Posts: 847
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
I believe that you will find that in order to get "Cab and Chassis " you will have to get a 1 ton truck. If you look around industrial areas you will often find stacks of truck boxs that were taken off of 3/4 ton and 1/2 ton trucks. That being said most truck boxs come off very easy. I have taken off a box in order to change a in tank fuel pump. Is often faster .
__________________
MacRae, 21ft
2016 GMC Yukon SLT
St.Albert Alberta
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10-24-2012, 10:08 AM
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#9
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Member
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: North Bay, Ontario
Trailer: sold it
Posts: 82
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
Hi.
I have a 2004 Chevy Silverado Z71 (1500) and towing with the full-size truck is really nice.
I was worried that the sides of the pickup bed would be too high for the trailer so I asked Escape and they sent me the maximum height. I was well below that, but I have a buddy with a new Ford F150 and it seems a lot higher than my truck. I think Escape could have put some blocks on top of the axle ("lifted" the trailer) if I needed the extra clearance. I bought the hitch from Escape and had them arrange for the install out there and then Escape adjusted the hitch for the trailer.
My truck's bed is 6' 5" so I don't know about shorter beds. I can hook up with the tailgate down, and have never been anywhere near touching the trailer to any part of the truck. I do have to put the tailgate up again before I start towing.
Regards,
John Roberts
North Bay, Ontario
__________________
John - North Bay, Ontario
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10-24-2012, 01:44 PM
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#10
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: O town, British Columbia
Trailer: 2014 Escape 21 "Lightning"
Posts: 1,467
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
If you haven't already, you might want to search "ecoboost" on rv.net forums. There were a few threads on there last time I checked that had some excellent real world info (albeit not Escape 5.0 specific).
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10-25-2012, 09:46 PM
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#11
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Member
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Texas Hill Country,
Trailer: Escape 5.0 (sold)
Posts: 77
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
Hi Rich,
We are towing an Escape 5.0 with a 2011 F150 5.0. It is a great combination.
I considered the Frontier but the top-of-the-line model has a payload capacity of only around 1200 lb (Tacoma is similar).
The pin weight on the Escape can approach 900 lb. Add that to the weight of the hitch and accessories (in my case, almost another 200 lb) and that doesn't leave much room for people and cargo. Still, lots of folks are using Frontiers and they seem to work well.
The F150 is powerful and comfortable. It is well set up for towing with the six-speed with a tow-haul and a trans fluid temperature gauge. On our trip this past summer, we averaged 16+ MPG (US) for 13,000+ miles. We have the 6.5 ft box and no problems maneuvering. Reace did raise the body two inches to give more clearance.
Marv
__________________
2016 Escape 21
2016 Ford F150 EB
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10-26-2012, 01:40 AM
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#12
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Junior Member
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Olympia, Washington
Trailer: 2013 Escape 5.0
Posts: 20
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
Thank you to all who have taken the time to reply so far.
Following Vermilye's advice, I called the Escape factory and learned that the required tow vehicle dimensions are as follows:
From the cab to a point directly over the rear axel:
at least 29”, any length box will do for this requirement
From the box's top-edge to the ground:
54" (or 56" with lift-kit spacers) is max with the ST225 15 inch tires
From the box's top-edge to the box floor is not important.
Thank you Marv for confirming that the 5.0 / F-150 combination will work well. I did not realize that the hitch weight could be as high as 900 lb. I was thinking that it should be under 10% of the GAWR which I think is 440 lb.
Which engine do you have, Marv? I am looking at the 3.5L V6 turbo "ecoboost" engine. It may be more power than I need but they promise 21 mpg US on the highway (not towing). I wonder what the real number is, especially when towing.
Does anyone have a truck that tows with fuel economy near 20 mpg?
Thanks for taking the time to reply.
Rich
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10-26-2012, 05:59 AM
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#13
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: St. Thomas not BVI., Ontario
Trailer: 2014 Escape 5.0TA / 2016 Ram Eco Diesel 4X4
Posts: 8,035
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
Hi: aldertree2... Our 4X4 Nissan Frontier V6 Crew Cab Long Bed(6'1") has done 19.5 mpg's but that's on the fairly flat lands of the Great Lakes Basin. It does suffer a drop in the mountains to around 14mpg. Last time I weighed the combo we came away from the scales at 2860#s axle wt. and 780#s pin wt. for a total of 3640#s. The standard suspension in the 4X4 truck has not needed any add ons and the truck only squats by about 1" with the trailer connected. So far I'm impressed by this truck/5.0 combo. Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie
__________________
Quote Bugs Bunny..."Don't take life too seriously, none of us get out of it ALIVE"!!!
'16 Ram Eco D. 4X4 Laramie Longhorn CC & '14 Escape 5.0TA
St.Thomas (Not the Virgin Islands) Ontario
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10-26-2012, 06:36 AM
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#14
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Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: _, Texas
Trailer: Escape 5.0 SA
Posts: 544
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
Hi Aldertree2, Welcome to the forum.
There has been lots of discussion and strong opinions on the ultimate tow vehicle. I would say it depends on the terrain you plan to travel in, if it is your primary vehicle and how much you plan to travel. These trailers are built to be towed with a smaller vehicle if you keep your load weight in check. I am pulling our 5.0 with a 2005 Dodge Ram Quad 2500 Diesel and averaging 19 to 21. The straight 6 Cummins has all the pulling torq and stopping power I need and want. But it's not my daily driver. I have seen some disappointing fuel milage numbers from Ford Ecoboost in tow. Your going in the right direction by seeking out those who tow with the vehicle you desire. Fuel prices are only going to get higher.
David
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10-26-2012, 09:25 PM
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#15
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 276
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Re: Help a newbie decide: F-150 with 5.0 ???
Here is a tow rig that will get great mileage.
__________________
Tundra Crewmax 2007,2001 Bigfoot 21RB, 73 Boler, 75 ECO,
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11-02-2012, 01:49 PM
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#16
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Junior Member
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Olympia, Washington
Trailer: 2013 Escape 5.0
Posts: 20
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Thanks for the replies.
Thanks to all who contributed their thoughts on this thread.
Based on your collective input, plus information found on the Ford truck owners forum, and considering the F-150's size and expense, I have decided to look more towards the Frontier or Tacoma. I suspect that this comparison has already been made elsewhere on this forum. So, my research continues . . .
This forum and the people who contribute their knowledge and experience to it are an invaluable resource.
Thanks,
Rich
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11-02-2012, 07:32 PM
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#17
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 276
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Tow rig
How about a Tundra for pulling.
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11-13-2012, 07:57 AM
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#18
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Junior Member
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 29
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I bought a F-150 after we had our 5.0 a year. We do have to trailer the front a little high to clear the sides. Our's is a 4x4 with 6 1/2 foot bed. If you haven't ordered yet, they will put in 2 inch blocks under axle to make it fit. Wish we would have known earlier. Modification after is $800.
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11-13-2012, 01:07 PM
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#19
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Kent, Washington
Trailer: 2009 Trillium 1300
Posts: 131
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"Horse" power
Reply to Hippo, #15:
Yeah. but have you checked the price of feed lately? LOL
__________________
"How is that working for you?" - Dr Phil
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11-13-2012, 08:36 PM
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#20
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
Trailer: 2016 21' sold, current class C, Now looking
Posts: 150
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Last I checked you can't pull a 5.0 with a toyota tacoma....they have a plastic bed and there is difficulty mounting the 5th wheel hitch.
I like my Tundra but yes, would have to have the Camper lifted a bit I think. Keep us updated and happy hunting
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