Hey guys,
Haven’t seen much in this forum regarding Gen 3 upgrades to improve towing experience. I have a 37pp and don’t want to mess with the suspension much, but typically tow a 8.5’x18’ trailer with Polaris Turbo R and Dirt Bikes. I believe it fits under the towing limits, but it does squat a bit. I’m installing a W/D hitch onto the trailer which should help.
I drive from northern to southern Utah quite a bit and there are some climbs along the way. My truck definitely sucks air and searches for gears. Wondering if I should add any performance upgrades to make sure engine stays cool… ie CAI or Intercooler.
Would love suggestions.
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The short answer is you bought the wrong truck.
You would have been much better off with a platinum or limited F150 or even better a F250/350. The only reason you wouldn't like those options is because they they don't have the "Raptor" look. But they are much much more capable "truck" trucks. Other than the ONE thing the Raptor was built for, they do everything else better than a Raptor.
It is like asking "how do I fit a sheet of plywood in my Lamborghini"
Some things about towing.
People look at the "tow rating" of a vehicle and they totally miss the word "MAX", MAX is actually an abbreviation for "maximum". lets give an example of what that word means .
IF the max you can bench press is 300 lbs, can you bench press 300 lbs 18 times? can you bench press 300 lbs after running 5 miles.
I would hope the answer is no (or 300 lbs isn't actually your max then)
We will use the Raptor, it's MAX towing is 8,200 lbs(Gen 3 since that is what the OP has). That is Max, and any options added such as sunroof take away from payload and towing. So you have to take that into account. Also I can't find where the 37" tires reduce towing in Ford's book but I guarantee it does, as the 37's add weight and reduce the final drive ratio to around 3.90/1
check here and red the fine print in RED
https://www.ford.com/cmslibs/conten...ides/2022_Ford_F-150_Towing_Info_r4_Mar30.pdf
I would say by looking you have a totally loaded Raptor, so MAX towing is going to be reduced, probably in the close to 7800 lbs. Again this is MAX, in ideal conditions AT sea level.
But you are not at sea level, you are near 5,000 ft above and when you go south you do not start dropping in altitude for about 300 miles. It isn't until After Ceder City, UT (which is 5,846 ft above sea level) do you start to go down in elevation, St George is 3,300 ft.
Per the Ford towing guide I linked to, payload and tow rating should be reduced 2% per 1000 ft in elevation. Since you will be towing over many passes that exceed 7,000 ft I will use 6,000 ft average to give a little benefit of the doubt so to speak.
That makes your max towing number 6,864 lbs.
Ford, Chevy, Ram, Toyota, none of them state how well, or how long you can tow at max. They SAE towing test states that speed can't drop below 45 mph on a 6% grade, that the vehicle can't over heat, must stop at a certain distance with trailer brakes working and allowed 20% longer with trailer brake failure. ( believe the spec is 80 ft at 50 mph and 100 ft respectfully). Lastly at 55mph doing and abrupt evasive maneuver from one lane to the next the trailer can't sway outside the lane markers more that 4 degrees I believe. This is the test where a longer wheel base helps and why the SCAB raptor was/is rated significantly less than a SCREW cab even though the SCAB weights a lot less.
I see trucks daily that tow near max their entire life, that is what they were bought to do. Let me tell you 100,000 miles on a truck like that is equal to 300,000 plus on a truck that rarely if ever tows over 1/2 the max.
Again, no manufacture state how long or how well it will do it, just that it will do it.
With that in mind, I would rarely if ever tow over 4000 lbs with a Raptor.
Couple other points, there is NO trailer tire speed rated over 65 mph. The trailer pictured is like a big sail and in a big cross wind (like they get between Tooele and Wendover) that trailer would drag that truck anywhere it wanted. That is an unknown variable ( should be considered though )but is where an almost 2000 lbs heavier F250/350 helps.
The occupants went to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. It's a great outcome for such a terrible-looking crash.
www.motor1.com
safety should take priority over "looking" good. Ego's need to be set aside.
it would seem with the constant "how do I improve towing" threads here that 6 out of 10 Raptor owners made the purchase for most the wrong reasons.
Oh and you own a Gen 3, you are in the wrong sub-forum
it's a Gen 3 even though he posted in Gen 2 section.
