# 2004 F-150 5.4l, 3.73, Tow Package And 26rls



## monteolsen1

Hi,

We were assured by the dealer that our 2004 Ford F150 FX4 with tow package and 5.4L engine and 3.7 ratio would be enough to comfortably tow an Outback 26RLS.

How do all of you feel? Do you think this truck is up to the task?

Would you suggest sway bars in addition to the WD Hitch we already have? Our hitch takes 800 to 1000 pounds.

Sure would appreciate any info as we've put money down on the 2006 new trailer (paying $19000 for it).

Thanks for any wisdom you all can share. We think this is a great web site and forum, by the way. Sure looks like there are a lot of great people here, who love their Outback travel trailers and 5th wheels!

MBO


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## wolfwood

Hi there!

There are wonderful people here and several of them will soon speak up to give you all the info you need about your tow vehicle.

I just want to welcome you to the BEST space in cyberspace! But, ya know - this is not just a website, its a family!

WELCOME to the family!!!!


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## Scooter

There have been numerous posts regarding towing with f-150's . You will not get a consensus pro or con regarding. I have owned 2 separate f-150's and was disappointed with their real world tow capacity towing my 21rs. I finally purchased an f250 and never looked back. In my opinion the f150's motor was there but tranny wasn't . Additionally after working the numbers using the tow calculator for the 150 I had very very little room for camping gear and always had to tow dry and had to constantly play the weight distribution game. Off-hand since I don't know the weight of a 26rls My suggestion is don't trust the dealer he's there to sell RV's . if you are indeed within tow limits and feel comfortable with the weights you have left to haul gear after accounting for passengers , gas , batteries , LP's and such I would ask to take it on a long test tow over varying terrain before purchase.

As for my own personal experience with the f-150's I owned (others will disagree and that's ok ) they just don't cut the mustard.


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## SoCalOutback

I pulled my 26RS with an F150 for year and a half. I had to have the transmission rebuilt twice(the second time under warranty). Then the rear end went out. I was also near or at my maximum weight all of the time. The mechanical problems may have been specific to my F150 but having to deal with being at max weight made me nervous when towing.

I replaced it with an F250 and am much happier now.


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## Scrib

I towed a 26RS with an '03 Expedition 5.4L, 3.73 gear for a little over a year - and about 6,000 miles. No problems at all - I always towed with OD off.


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## Mark C and Family

I have a 2005 F150 Screw with the 5.4 and 3.73 gears. My TT is a 26KBRS - 5200 dry and 7000 all wet and loaded. I would honestly say that I am right at my level of comfort. Any more trailer and I would definatley be looking to get a F250. I do have an Edge and am planning to put in a K&N cold air intake to free up some oxygen.

So...will it do it...yes. Great for local trips here and there. If you are full time or are looking to make cross country trips, you may want to think twice.

Good luck


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## chbcso

I had a 2005 Ford Expedition with the 5.4L, tow package and 3.73 gears, I pulled a 27RSDS with it for a while. It pulled the TT with little problems but I wasn't pulling it up any steep grades either. I would say it would have problems in that area, but to pull it on level surfaces it should be alright. I always pulled with the O/D off and I got about 11 MPG. I also had to buy a sway bar to keep from getting blown off the road by heavy winds or rigs. I recently purchased a Dodge 1500 with a 5.7L Hemi and 3.92 gears with a towing package and I have no problems now. I will say the best TV for the job would be a diesel with no question. The hitch that you have now is good and I would use it without worries.


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## skippershe

Hi monteolsen1
















to Outbackers! 

Congrats on your decision to buy an Outback








We pull our 28krs with a Suburban 3/4 ton, so I wouldn't be any help with your tow question. I would venture to say however, that if you are concerned about towing with your F-150, that you might want to consider adding anti sway to your setup.

What type of system are you using now? Did it come with the Outback or is it something that you already had? If it's coming with the TT, you might want to talk to your dealer about swapping it out for either the 
Equal-i-zer Hitch or the Reese Dual Cam, both have W/D and Anti Sway all built into one. We use the Equalizer and are very happy with it.

Please post often and do not hesitate to ask lots of questions,


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## monteolsen1

Hi Dawn and all,

Thanks for the information. Right now, we do have a weight distributing hitch that I think is good up to 800 or 1000 pounds tongue weight. It worked great for our Pioneer 180CK, which weighs about 4400 pounds, per factory specs. We were able to tow that over the Grapevine going into LA without any problems that I could determine.

This new trailer, on which we've put a deposit, but of which we haven't taken delivery (put deposit down today), has me a bit concerned. We love the layout. My wife liked it right away. The problem is we can't afford to get a new truck. This is a 2004, and we still owe over $20,000 on it.

I got some information from several web sites and spreadsheets that I have been working with since posting the question here, but most of this is Greek to me.

The GCWR is 15000 for our F150 (5.4L, 145-inch wheelbase, 4x4, heavy two package, 3.73 rear,). Towing capacity is 9,300 pounds. The truck, unloaded is 5420 pounds. The GVWR on the truck is 7,200 pounds. We usually go with a dog (50 pounds), my wife, myself and my son and possibly a fourth passenger. We don't usually haul any water with us, and we always empty out the grey and black water tanks before we move.

I think the idea of taking around 10 gallons of water for use in the bathroom is a great one, though.

Ford says that with a weight distributing hitch, the truck can take 9,900 pounds of trailer capacity with a tongue load of 990 pounds, which is about 230 pounds more than the 26 RLS hitch weighs.

We usually don't haul a lot of stuff, to be honest. We buy when we get somewhere, except for stuff we put in the refrigerator, silverware, paper plates, sleeping bags and clothes and duffle bags. I can't imagine that the clothes and duffle bags would weigh more than a few hundred pounds.

There are so many darned numbers to plug in. According to the spreadsheet, I "think" we would be about 2,500 pounds under the max towing capacity of the truck, but I am not sure. I don't want us to wind up buying a trailer that will be too heavy for our truck, that's for sure.

MBO



skippershe said:


> Hi monteolsen1
> 
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> to Outbackers!
> 
> Congrats on your decision to buy an Outback
> 
> 
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> 
> We pull our 28krs with a Suburban 3/4 ton, so I wouldn't be any help with your tow question. I would venture to say however, that if you are concerned about towing with your F-150, that you might want to consider adding anti sway to your setup.
> 
> What type of system are you using now? Did it come with the Outback or is it something that you already had? If it's coming with the TT, you might want to talk to your dealer about swapping it out for either the
> Equal-i-zer Hitch or the Reese Dual Cam, both have W/D and Anti Sway all built into one. We use the Equalizer and are very happy with it.
> 
> Please post often and do not hesitate to ask lots of questions,


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## skippershe

Hi MBO,

It sounds like you are located someplace in California, is that right?








Curious as to which dealer are you purchasing from?


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## Doxie-Doglover-Too

many of the half ton owners with bigger than the smallest trailers typically do "alright" but yearn for more truck so as not to be pushing the limits. In areas that don't have much in the way of hill, mountains, etc they seem to be more satisfied with half tons. Here in the PNW we have the mountain passes that seem to get in the way and after a year of knowing that we were so close to our limit, we "bit the bullet" as they seem to say here on the forum and bought a diesel. I really think if we didn't live where we have to climb something, we'd still have our half ton.


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## camping canuks

monteolsen1 said:


> Hi,
> 
> We were assured by the dealer that our 2004 Ford F150 FX4 with tow package and 5.4L engine and 3.7 ratio would be enough to comfortably tow an Outback 26RLS.
> 
> How do all of you feel? Do you think this truck is up to the task?
> 
> Would you suggest sway bars in addition to the WD Hitch we already have? Our hitch takes 800 to 1000 pounds.
> 
> Sure would appreciate any info as we've put money down on the 2006 new trailer (paying $19000 for it).
> 
> Thanks for any wisdom you all can share. We think this is a great web site and forum, by the way. Sure looks like there are a lot of great people here, who love their Outback travel trailers and 5th wheels!
> 
> MBO


You will be fine, no matter what people's preferences are to make of vehicle.... people always like to have more power







. I know Sarg pulls his 26' with a 4.6 L Supercrew as do I, no issues thus far. I strongly recommend eqaulizer and sway bar package of course.







. Obviously your 5.4 L will perform better in the hills than my 4.6 but as I said everyone would like more power. Certainly, the very first thing you have done correctly is to buy an OB


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## merlotman

I have been towing our 2005 23RS for two seasons now with my '04 Ford F150 Extended Cab with 5.4L and 373 gears. I use an Equalizer Brand hitch which has built in sway control and the setup tows very well. It took a few adjustments to get things just right though. We are mostly in the flatlands and I tow at speeds around 60mph without overdrive on. Could I go faster? Easily, but when I'm going camping I intentionally slow everything down so I can relax and unwind. Only once have I felt the F150 was not quite up to the task.
On a return trip of 150 miles through somewhat hilly country on a day when the air temp was 103 degrees, the tranny on the truck was slipping almost imperceptibly. Flat land, part-time towing is ok for the F150s but full timing, or in mountainous terrain a 3/4 ton truck is best.


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## fredr

We have been towing our 26rs with our expedition with no problem. This year we did a 600 mile (each way) trip to the Smokey's and it did fine. Got 7 mpg on the way there and 9 mpg on the way back. You won't break any speed records going up hill but it will do the job. While in Smokey's I installed my dual cam sway control and the return home was much more pleasant and I managed to pass a lot of big rigs without getting sucked in and out.

I just bought a hypertech supership off of eBay (not here yet) and I'm hoping it will give me some more torque and increased mpg.

Fred


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## monteolsen1

Hi Dawn,

We live in Eugene, just up the road from you a bit, in Oregon. I think almost all of our camping will be in Oregon, to be honest, with such a high cost of gas. We probably won't be going very far.

The trailer is offered by a local dealer that took over from Ingram RV, which went out of business due to some questionable business practices. This new dealer, Willamette Valley RV Center, seems to want to do things the right way. I'm just worried about the truck, to be honest.

All of the comments here are very helpful.

As most folks living around here know, there aren't too many places you can go - if you want to go to the Coast or up into the mountains - without crossing some mountains or hills. That's the biggest concern.

As with most folks here, I don't intend to two at speeds anywhere but about 55 or 60 mph. Most of that is to preserve gas. I learned my lesson hauling our Pioneer 180CK to LA and back (Disneyland trip). That was painful to say the least to pay $3.50 per gallon at 10 MPG.

Thanks again for your terrific information! I have seen posts by Sarg here. I didn't realize he had the same trailer.

We absolutely intend to keep our WD hitch and get some equalizer bars. Either that, or we will see if we can trade in our current WD hitch for a new hitch with built-in equalizer bars.

I'm going to see if these folks at Willamette Valley RV Center would be willing to let us pull the trailer for a test. (I'm doubting they will, but you never know. They've been pretty straight shooters so far.)

Hi Fred,

It would be very interesting to see how the superchip performs! I've read a little about those on the Blue Oval forums.

Thanks for your advice.

Monte

Hi Doxie-Dog-Lover,

My brother-in-law and sister live in Richland, not too far from you. Thanks for your information. It is greatly appreciated. I know that you guys have to go over some pretty steep passes when you head west (unless it's through the Gorge). Going east could be brutal, too, when you move beyond Spokane.

Thanks for your information.

Monte



Doxie-Doglover-Too said:


> many of the half ton owners with bigger than the smallest trailers typically do "alright" but yearn for more truck so as not to be pushing the limits. In areas that don't have much in the way of hill, mountains, etc they seem to be more satisfied with half tons. Here in the PNW we have the mountain passes that seem to get in the way and after a year of knowing that we were so close to our limit, we "bit the bullet" as they seem to say here on the forum and bought a diesel. I really think if we didn't live where we have to climb something, we'd still have our half ton.


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## regsue814

I tow with a 06 F-150 SuperCrew FX4 my 21RS but make sure that I'm not in O/D and it tows fine throughout Alaska. Check with Ford and they will tell you exactly what your limitations are for your TV. Congrats and good luck!


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## monteolsen1

Thanks for the information, Reqsue. I bet it's beautiful up in Alaska. Lived in Oregon my whole life (almost) and never got up that way.

MBO



regsue814 said:


> I tow with a 06 F-150 SuperCrew FX4 my 21RS but make sure that I'm not in O/D and it tows fine throughout Alaska. Check with Ford and they will tell you exactly what your limitations are for your TV. Congrats and good luck!


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## Nathan

Sure hope it tows a 26rls since I'm towing a 28RSDS!









Seriously though: 
Can it do it? Certainly!!!
Will you want more power? Probably.
Will I keep using 1/2 ton trucks over the added expense of a 3/4? Probably


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## OregonCampin

Hey there Monte from another Eugenite! Welcome to Outbackers!

We tow our 23KRS (that we purchased from Willamette Valley RV) with our F150 Supercrew. We also put two dirtbikes in it - when we weighed it fully loaded (2 bikes, full of water, generator, gear, etc.) and the trailer weighed in at 5880, well within our towing 7800 lb capacity. Going over the Badger Mountian is slow and steady, but besides that, it pulls fine. I am not sure of the weight difference between our model and yours, but this gives you an idea of where we are.

I honestly would feel better if we had something a little bigger to pull with, but like you, we just can't right now so we make due.

Hope to chat with you soon!

Shannon (aka OCjr)


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## monteolsen1

Hi Shannon and Nathan,

Thanks for the information. The folks at Willamette Valley RV Center have been very patient waiting for us to make up our mind - even after we tried to get out of the deal. After reading your comments and talking to another person about this, we have decided to go ahead and get either the 26RLS or 26RKS. I feel bad that we didn't trust the folks at WVRV Center a little more, but the world of sales can be a bit shady, and I had to confirm it independently. All of you have helped a great deal in helping us make our decision. My concern is just that we do something safe and not get in over our heads.

I think we're leaning toward the 26rks, right now, and will be letting the folks at WVRV Center know tomorrow. It seems that every 30 minutes we are changing our minds.

I look forward to meeting you in person some day! This is a terrific group - very unlike any other trailer owner group that I've seen. It's heartening to see all of the terrific support here.

Monte



OREGONCAMPIN said:


> Hey there Monte from another Eugenite! Welcome to Outbackers!
> 
> We tow our 23KRS (that we purchased from Willamette Valley RV) with our F150 Supercrew. We also put two dirtbikes in it - when we weighed it fully loaded (2 bikes, full of water, generator, gear, etc.) and the trailer weighed in at 5880, well within our towing 7800 lb capacity. Going over the Badger Mountian is slow and steady, but besides that, it pulls fine. I am not sure of the weight difference between our model and yours, but this gives you an idea of where we are.
> 
> I honestly would feel better if we had something a little bigger to pull with, but like you, we just can't right now so we make due.
> 
> Hope to chat with you soon!
> 
> Shannon (aka OCjr)


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## skippershe

monteolsen1 said:


> I look forward to meeting you in person some day! This is a terrific group - very unlike any other trailer owner group that I've seen. It's heartening to see all of the terrific support here.
> 
> Monte


Join the group of PNW Outbackers that will be headed to our Zion, Utah rally in June

You'll get to meet 150 of us!









Click here for info: PNW Outbackers Rolling Rally


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## OregonCampin

monteolsen1 said:


> Hi Shannon and Nathan,
> 
> Thanks for the information. The folks at Willamette Valley RV Center have been very patient waiting for us to make up our mind - even after we tried to get out of the deal. After reading your comments and talking to another person about this, we have decided to go ahead and get either the 26RLS or 26RKS. I feel bad that we didn't trust the folks at WVRV Center a little more, but the world of sales can be a bit shady, and I had to confirm it independently. All of you have helped a great deal in helping us make our decision. My concern is just that we do something safe and not get in over our heads.
> 
> I think we're leaning toward the 26rks, right now, and will be letting the folks at WVRV Center know tomorrow. It seems that every 30 minutes we are changing our minds.
> 
> I look forward to meeting you in person some day! This is a terrific group - very unlike any other trailer owner group that I've seen. It's heartening to see all of the terrific support here.
> 
> Monte


Monte -

I am not sure who you are dealing with over there, but Leonard was great (our sales guy) - we shopped for a toyhauler for 3 months before we ended up at Willamette Valley RV and the difference between the sales and service there and every place else we went was incredible - we were not pressured, Leonard actually drove the Outback over to our house and let us put the bikes inside to make sure they would work and the service manager is awesome (we are newbies and he is very patient with us - we call him a lot!). Good luck with your choice - it's a huge investment, so take your time. The first trailer we bought (a pop-up) was a spur of the moment thing and ended up not working for us - needless to say, when we bought the OB, we wanted to make sure it was exactly what we needed before we spent the money and so far it has exceeded our expectations!

Not sure if you have room at home to store your trailer (or what side of town you live on), but there is a great storage place off of River Ave that is less that $60 a month. We were lucky, after looking around, we found a way to store it at our house.

Good luck to you! Talk at you soon!

Shannon


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## Nathan

monteolsen1 said:


> Hi Shannon and Nathan,
> 
> Thanks for the information. The folks at Willamette Valley RV Center have been very patient waiting for us to make up our mind - even after we tried to get out of the deal. After reading your comments and talking to another person about this, we have decided to go ahead and get either the 26RLS or 26RKS. I feel bad that we didn't trust the folks at WVRV Center a little more, but the world of sales can be a bit shady, and I had to confirm it independently. All of you have helped a great deal in helping us make our decision. My concern is just that we do something safe and not get in over our heads.
> 
> I think we're leaning toward the 26rks, right now, and will be letting the folks at WVRV Center know tomorrow. It seems that every 30 minutes we are changing our minds.


No problem. Make sure you get a good WDH/Sway control system. Don't let them sell you a basic friction sway control. Although I have not towed very far yet (just flat lands), I've never had the need for more power in the truck. I'm sure that will change when I get it out to the mountains, but that is when you ride up the hill in the right lane with the trucks!


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## GoVols

Many folks, and the reason escapes me, only look at the horizontal towing capacity and totally ignore the truck's payload (vertical) capacity. If you wish to stay within the limits, you must consider both. Half ton trucks are certainly capable to pull many trailers from a towing perspective, but once you load up the truck with passengers, gear, fuel and then hook up the trailer, the payload rating is usually the first one to get out of bounds. Too much weight on the rear means too light in the front and can lead to serious control problems.

If your F-150 can pull it, great. But look at payload capacity before making your final decision.

I bought my truck before finding/buying the right trailer to fit my needs. I am right at or slightly over my payload capacity of my 1/2 ton when loaded for a big trip, and now I'm second-guessing my purchase decision.


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## monteolsen1

Hi Shannon,

You are absolutely right about the people there at Willamette Valley RV Center. Rick and Gary have been very patient with us, too. We've waffled so many times, it's probably been driving them nuts. We finally did make up our mind and decided to order a 2007 RLS with Havana scheme at the same price as the 2007 26 RKS. Theresa is pretty happy with that choice, and so am I. We're not sure how long it will take to come from the factory. We're putting our other trailer and a bit of cash in as a downpayment. I think we're getting a decent deal, too. Not the best in the U.S., but pretty decent, I think for here in Oregon, that's for sure!

They have taken over from where the previous Ingram RV was (the WVRVC is totally new business) and are doing things the right way as opposed to what I heard about the predecessors.

I'm hoping that we can find a place that will be less than $60. Yikes! Right now, our shorter trailer is costing us about $30 a month at a place off Beltline, near 11th. I believe there is a much cheaper place off of Prairie Road that charges by the foot. Hopefully, that hasn't changed since last year!

We look forward to joining the cult - uh - group. I'm not sure we can afford to join the rolling rally, but I hope we can travel to some of the get-togethers. They look like a lot of fun, and our son, Joseph (12 years old) will surely find someone he can hook up with, too.









Thanks for answering so many of my dumb questions.

Monte



OREGONCAMPIN said:


> Many folks, and the reason escapes me, only look at the horizontal towing capacity and totally ignore the truck's payload (vertical) capacity. If you wish to stay within the limits, you must consider both. Half ton trucks are certainly capable to pull many trailers from a towing perspective, but once you load up the truck with passengers, gear, fuel and then hook up the trailer, the payload rating is usually the first one to get out of bounds. Too much weight on the rear means too light in the front and can lead to serious control problems.
> 
> If your F-150 can pull it, great. But look at payload capacity before making your final decision.
> 
> I bought my truck before finding/buying the right trailer to fit my needs. I am right at or slightly over my payload capacity of my 1/2 ton when loaded for a big trip, and now I'm second-guessing my purchase decision.


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## Collinsfam_WY

We have an '02 F-150 5.4 Screw with 3.55's. The '02 year model has the older 2v mod motor which is quite a bit weaker than your 3v version. A 23RS is all I would go for when we were looking at Outbacks. We go to pick up ours from Lakeshore at the end of this month!

-Curtis


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## monteolsen1

Hi Curtis,

I hope you're enjoying your new Outback. We got ours out several times this summer and had a great time.

I noticed one for sale off of Hwy 99 in Eugene and am wondering if someone who posts here put it on the lot for consignment.

Thanks again,

Monte Olsen



collinsfam_tx said:


> We have an '02 F-150 5.4 Screw with 3.55's. The '02 year model has the older 2v mod motor which is quite a bit weaker than your 3v version. A 23RS is all I would go for when we were looking at Outbacks. We go to pick up ours from Lakeshore at the end of this month!
> 
> -Curtis


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## wicandthing

I towed our 23RS with a 1500 GMC Z71 (5.3 V8, Tow package, etc.) when we first got it (Equalizer/Prodigy). It did OK on the flats but really struggled in the hills/mountains. The day I felt the camper pushing the rear end of the truck around a downhill corner in the mountains was the day I decided more truck was needed..... my family comes before anything else. I upgraded to a 3/4 ton and will never go back. The difference in towing due to the suspension, etc. is amazing.

I realize its not the same brand, but 1/2 ton trucks are about the same across the board.

Wic


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