Towing capacity for Base model without factory install towing package?

[kshaw]

If you are trailering, there are lots of settings you can do in FORScan specifically for using a trailer but there seems to be very little documentation on what those settings do.

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[Emerald]

Ford uses fine print to instruct owners to find vehicle towing weight on the drivers side door jam. Regardless, I am prioritizing installing the auxillary atf cooler to save my tranny from the rigors of sf bay area commute driving.

 

[sajohnson]

Ford uses fine print to instruct owners to find vehicle towing weight on the drivers side door jam. Regardless, I am prioritizing installing the auxillary atf cooler to save my tranny from the rigors of sf bay area commute driving.

Ford loves that small font...

An aux ATF cooler certainly can't hurt.

The cooler the ATF is, the better, to a point. This obviously does not apply in SF, but there are coolers that can actually cause harm in cold areas because the ATF never reaches operating temp (or takes a long time to do so).

We haven't considered installing an ATF cooler since most of our driving is about as easy as it gets -- moderate speeds on semi-rural roads and I-70. Towing is minimal.

One thing that might be worth looking into is the rate of trans failures in the BS. If it turns out that they are pretty rare, maybe a cooler isn't necessary.

Also, cooler or not, for anyone concerned about excessive ATF temp, something like the ScanGauge is useful:
https://www.scangauge.com/products/scangauge-ii/
https://www.scangauge.com/products/productsscangauge-iii/

We have the ScanGauge II in our Sprinter-based RV. The newer ScanGauge III is nicer but both are expensive (IMO). When we bought ours (years ago) it was about half the current price. There may be better choices.

Often, people realize they do not have a problem with ATF temp. Ours sits at 167*F all day long unless we're climbing a long steep grade. Then it might briefly peak at ~210*F. So we felt comfortable not installing a cooler.

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