Towing light duty with a 2.3T?

[Schlodes]

Hey all,

I am contemplating, quite seriously, buying another motorcross bike as I miss riding so bad it hurts... and it would help me get back in shape and feeling better, like I used to be.

Now, I don't own a truck and don't want to off the Turbo Coug for one. So, I was wondering if the Cougar would be capable of towing a small trailer and a dirt bike [or Quad - Conisdering a Banshee]

The good: I did give the Cougar the usual guttings all my cars get and it's lost probably close to 200 LBs over what a stock 87/88 TC would weigh... and, it has an 8.8 with 3.73s, and my T5 happens to be a 4.03 1st T5. You can basically let the clutch out at idle and it'll roll off...... So basically the first 3 gears because of the 4.03 T5, and then the 3.73s out back are pretty steep. One last thing that might help, is that it has an N/A head on so it's it's a tad more responsive than an 8:1 motor off boost...

WSill I hurt anything by slapping a hitch on and and towing anywhere from 600 to 1000 LBs? You can have 5 heavy people in the car that weigh that in total.... Obviously 5th gear is out of the question, & i'm gonna be using 4rth gear on the highway but thats no big deal. Well, actually as long as the revs are up around 2800 or more I bet it would pull it in 5th.

[Mike Croke]

If I remember, a Fox Mustang is actually rated to tow 1000lbs if the hitch is attached correctly. Bob Cosby used to have a trailer for his 88 LX 5.0 drag car that had his jack, tools, and the drag tires/wheels. The only real difference would be the engine. So long as the engine can handle the sustained load, you should be fine.

[martin0660]

So long as the engine can handle the sustained load, you should be fine.

I think that is the issue with the turbo 2.3's, sustained load. The turbo cars are not rated for any towing load, I seem to remeber the manuals saying to never tow with them.

I would also love to be able to pull a very small trailer, for my tools, tires, and such, and suspect I could get away with it (after all, i'm hauling that stuff), but creep would set in ,and I would end up taking more to the track :D

Bob Myers

[ethangsmith]

Note from Ford: "Ford cautions that the 4-140 turbocharged engine should not be used for trailer towing, in order to prevent engine damage. Ford also recommends a minimum 6-cylinder engine and automatic transmission as the powertrain for towing Class 1 trailers of up to 1000 lbs. An external automatic transmission oil cooler is also recommended for any trailer towing other than the temporary, cross-town variety."

Basically, if you think about it, towing with a turbocharged engine isn't the best thing to do. A turbocharger is an on-demand system that is used when the engine is under load. By towing a trailer, your engine will be under almost continuous load, thus it will be under continuous boost- which is not good. If possible, I would consider another vehicle.

[Eyelawdoc]

I don't think light duty tonig would do any harm. A motocross bike and trailer weigh next to nothing. I also don't see any problem towing a jet ski.

Several TC's and SVO's I've run across had trailer hitches mounted on them. As long as you run good oil and don't overheat the motor there isn't going top enough load on the turbo to cause undue strain.

[ashley roachclip]

turbo spools constantly , as long as the engine is running , turbo is spooling .
I know several people that have done a turbo 2.3 into rangers ,and they tow regularly

[loutheplumber]

ive wondered the same thing i would think as long as you kept it easy on the boost i dont think it would hurt the engine or turbo buit hey im kinda new to turbos to;)

[BladeRunner]

I used to roadrace motorcycles back in 95-96. Guess what my tow rig was?? 1988 T-Bird TC. Had a small trailer and 2 Honda 600 F2s hooked up. Drove all over the midwest with this setup.

[futurexdesign]

I would highly recommend against it. It isn't so much the boost factor that is the issue, it is the fact that the engine itself is under constant load. This tosses the EGT's higher than they normally are. This risks pushing the EGT's REALLY high when you do in fact boost while towing. As well as not allowing the turbo as much "cool down" time while at speed. Gas Turbos tend to run on the edge of their thermal envelope as it is, so I wouldn't want to risk it, especially if you have a pricey turbo.

A large majority of manufactures recommend against towing with a gas turbo vehicle, especially with "old" tech turbos like our garrets and IHI's

Its not that its going to blow up or anything, its just a longevity thing.

[svobart]

Turning the boost down some should help with the EGTs, no?

Generally the consensus over at FTE (Ford Truck Enthusiasts) is that the 2.3T isn't well suited for towing or hauling anything but light loads for the reasons stated here. Some have asked about towing small boats and campers with 2.3T Rangers and the general consensus is that it should be avoided, unless you're just talking about hauling it from one side of the yard to the other. However, a 500-600 lb. trailer is probably light enough to avoid overtaxing the engine. You'll probably never use 5th gear on the highway though, as any small grade will start lugging the engine.

[ashley roachclip]

to compare the normally assperated 2.3 to a turb 2.3 , is comparing apples to oranges....the reason they say no to tow anything but light loads , is because they n/a 2.3 is a dog ......the turbo 2.3 is another animal entirely .

[Schlodes]

THanks for the replies, obviously i'd be using 4rth on the hwy and not going over 50 or so MPH to get to the local riding spots.

I wouldn't be worried much about having to get into a few psi boost to go up a slight grade or whatever.... If I sat 3 other 200 LB people in the car, plus me, it's be pulling 600 extra pds plus driver, and I figure a YZ 250 is about 225 lbs, and the tralier can't be more than 400 or so...

Side note: Seeing as how it has the N/A head on it, so 9:1 or so, all I have had is 91 octane locally... I went out of town last night, and I filled it to the rim with Ultra 94 Sunoco and boy what a diff.. even with only 10 psi she pulls better up top and NO ping in 4rth.

[Kyle]

I don't really know anything about turbos but if people are putting 2.3T's into Rangers and they are running just fine a few hundred pounds behind a cougar should be alright, the Ranger weighs quite a bit more then the cougar so the engine is already pulling the extra weight those trucks.

Just my 0.02

[gregpro50]

I'd do it. The trailer he is talking about pulling weighs as much as like a fat girlfriend. But a fat girlfiend plus the trailer could be bad news.

[anthonydalrymple]

...But a fat girlfiend plus the trailer could be bad news.

:shiver: Big fat girl-fiend.... That's like a big fat hairy spider crawling up your leg kinda thing :shiver:

[ashley roachclip]

I don't mind being seen in public with a trailer , but not with a fat girl .....

[Schlodes]

A fat GF is out of the question because I couldn't support the food bill, and buy all my toys too.... LOL.. you guys are too much..

[Purebreed1]

I towed with one of my first 86 GT's a 17.5 foot Sea Ray boat. Granted I had the 302 but I am sure the weight was closer to 1800lbs. I would think that pulling around a small trailer with a bike would not be to bad.

[mfpmax]

There is a guy that is on the Hot Rod Drag week tour with a tralier on what looks to be a mostly stock SVO.

[slow84lx]

There is a guy that is on the Hot Rod Drag week tour with a tralier on what looks to be a mostly stock SVO.

That "mostly stock" SVO was running 9's in the 1/4 if we are thinking about the same car.

[mfpmax]

No, that was a 79 Turbo Hatchback, not an SVO.

[slow84lx]

Yes, you are right. My bad. I've been looking for the video link I watched of it yesterday but can't find it.

[mfpmax]

www.1320video.com Drag Week 2006

[slow84lx]

That isn't the one I was looking for. I can't remember which board I saw it on last night.

[mfpmax]

Well there are a few, some from WFC, and a few...from that guy.

[slow84lx]

It showed the car pulling the trailer, then a huge wheelstand leaving the line. Drove the whole PowerTour w/trailer? I can't remember all the details...I was sleepy then and now.

[mfpmax]

His videos are the only videos that have him with a trailer so its one of his videos, more than one video has him doing wheelies.

[loutheplumber]

so has it been ruled you can tow or not

[ethangsmith]

According to my Ford literature, they say NO. Most everyone on here says yes. So it's up to you. Oh, Lou, did you get that Turbocoupe running?

[93-331-29PSI]

You will be fine pulling 1000lbs on a trailer. I'd do it (well if I didn't have a truck and trailer) without a second thought. If you are concerned with burning things up throw an EGT gauge on it and tow away.

[loutheplumber]

ye the tc is running ethan i was thinking about the egt route its a 1200 lb boat trailer i can stay out of the boos the area is pretty flat where ill be towing it and no highway driving its just from our camp site to the lake i am only considering this so i wont need to take the truck everyweekend if i want to go fishing

[fred414141]

leave the fat girlfriend at home when you tow the trailer,you can ride her when you get back..........................

[Chuck W]

According to my Ford literature, they say NO. Most everyone on here says yes. So it's up to you. Oh, Lou, did you get that Turbocoupe running?

Because if you tell someone they can tow "light duty" with their turboed car, they will over do it and break something...then come back to you for a warranty.
Tell them NO, and if they do it and something happens, then it's their fault.

You have to put in a safety factor to cover your ass as the average consumer is a complete idiot....

[Schlodes]

Yeah, I was wanting something small, to haul a dirt bike or quad, or if I want to buy, say, an engine from someone.... there'd probably never even BE 1000 LBs on it...

I'm thinking with my 3.73s and just using 4rth on hwy it would be fine, and this wouldn't be long distance towing. Hour away tops.

[ethangsmith]

leave the fat girlfriend at home when you tow the trailer,you can ride her when you get back..........................

Lou only dates supermodels so we don't need to worry about that.
Anyway, what was the problem with the coupe? Was it the fuel pump as you had predicted?

[loutheplumber]

it was the rubber hose from the pump to the hard line in the tank

[nthe10s]

Well here's a shot of my 87 with a car trailer. This is before I bought the car so you guys don't have to give me crap for it. lol The T-bird was towed from Lincoln Nebraska to Denver, CO. It's a 5.0 though. I would think a small trailer 1000lbs or less would be fine.
http://www.nloc.net/photopost/data/1053/medium/IMG.jpg

[loutheplumber]

se i would never tow a car with another car way under braked

[nthe10s]

First thing I did when I got the car was replace the front rotors. They were tore up BAD!