For what it's worth,
We have a 1999 E350 Extended 1 ton van with V10 towing a 24' Interstate
trailer with a Formula Vee & Sprite or Lotus 7 plus tool rollaway, tents,
racks of spares, etc, etc. I've never weighed the rig, but have guestimated
the trailer at 9000-9500# rolling. This Fall we towed Seattle to
Thunderhill with 2 spare motors in the van, our first "long" tow with the
two cars. The route has a few low 2000 - 3600' passes to cross. They're
not that steep, but are more challenging than your average rolling hills.
In any case, we were quite happy with the towing capability relative to our
previous 1985 Ford E300 3/4 ton 460 V8. The V10 pulls at least as well,
gets 50% better gas mileage (still bad, but better) and the 1 ton long wheel
base chassis makes towing in a straight line a breeze.
I am told that the diesel is torquier for hills, but if we wanted to floor
the V10, we could hold at least 50 on the steepest grades of I-5.
Myles Winbigler
Mad Mollusk Racing
-----Original Message-----
From: Henry Frye <thefryes@iconn.net>
To: vintage-race@autox.team.net <vintage-race@autox.team.net>
Date: Monday, January 15, 2001 3:04 PM
Subject: Tow vehicles again
>Oh no, not the dreaded semi annual tow vehicle thread! What's worse, I
>can't believe it is me starting it!
>
>I'm seriously considering replacing my barely adequate tow vehicle with
>something with some real pulling and carrying power. Feeling
>disenfranchised (new buzzword thanks to Floridian voters) with Dodge due to
>my local dealer being a bunch of boneheads, I took a look at the Fords. I
>am ready to buy a 2000 leftover F-350 Super Duty with the V-10. I'm going
>with the F-350 because I am playing with the idea of putting a slide-in
>truck camper in the bed, and towing my race car and gear in the trailer.
>According to my calculations I'll be about 1000 lbs. under GVW with the
>camper, and about 2500 lbs. shy of GCVW with the loaded enclosed trailer.
>
>I test drove the Power Stroke diesel, and I am amazed anyone has any
>hearing left after a 15 minute trip. The noise was unacceptable, as I need
>to drive this vehicle all winter, and on lousy days in the non-salt months.
>
>So today I am talking to a guy from the flat part of the country and about
>my pending purchase, and he warns me that I am going to be disappointed
>with the towing capability of the Ford V-10. No torque. He claims to know a
>few disappointed Ford V-10 owners. Whats up with that??? The engine is
>rated at 310 HP and 425 ft lbs of torque. I'm thinking these folks thought
>their V-10 should get them up every mountain without breaking a sweat. We
>all know that is never going to happen. I'm thinking exceeded expectations.
>
>Any Ford V-10 owners pulling/carrying some serious weight with this engine
>have any comments one way or another? For the record I've chosen the short
>bed Supercab 4X4 with an 4 speed automatic and the 3.73 limited slip rear.
>
>Thanks.
>Henry Frye - thefryes@iconn.net - TR4 #05
>http://members.iconn.net/~thefryes/race/raceintro.html
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