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Old 12-24-2013, 12:19 PM   #61
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Originally Posted by MagnoliaTom View Post
We mainly pull ours with a 2wd excursion but recently "upgraded" to a newer 4wd version. What were your issues towing with the 4wd? I know the front has leaf springs, but how does that effect the towing? I have RAS springs on the rear to help with squatting and sway.
The front end will just wander when empty, it is worse loaded. the pull of 39 foot of sail behind the truck does not help.

I had totally rebuilt the front end, and actually converted all springs to the heavier super duty springs. But I still had more wander than I felt comfortable with.

The fundamental problem with leafs up front is they deform slightly under steering torque. This allows for minute changes in steering geometry. Coils do not have this problem because the axle is located not by the springs themselves, but by control arms that allow far less axle wrap.

Axle wrap in the rear is also a big problem. The RAS will help with this (keep a close eye on them, I have seen one explode, it was dramatic to say the least.) There used to be a guy who made rear control arms (ladder bars) called Land Yot I think, they worked well, but no longer in production.

Living in the midwest and often pulling in high winds I wanted better control and went to the 05 F250 because of the coil front end. As a bonus the turning radius is much smaller.
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Old 12-24-2013, 12:29 PM   #62
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Thanks for the info...now I'm second guessing the decision to get a 4x4 Ex. I guess I'll have to tow with it once to get a feel for it. I can always use my F250 but with 3 kids and a dog, the Ex is much more comfortable and better for my sanity.
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Old 12-26-2013, 11:21 AM   #63
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Thanks for the info...now I'm second guessing the decision to get a 4x4 Ex. I guess I'll have to tow with it once to get a feel for it. I can always use my F250 but with 3 kids and a dog, the Ex is much more comfortable and better for my sanity.

We debated for quite a while on keeping the EX. I had decided to convert the front end to the 05 up Super Duty suspension, and had located a rolled 05 for this purpose. I was going to lift the body and do some work on the 6.0 (had 260k on the clock) when my wife caught me with my price sheet. She respectfully suggested I should just look at a truck. But it was still hard as we really loved pulling with the Ex for all the interior room. 2 kids and 3 dogs.

I wish I could justify having both.

Keep in mind I had probably towed the trailer a good 4K miles before I made the decision. It was not that the Ex could not get it done, it was our personal safety margin.
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Old 12-28-2013, 09:45 AM   #64
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We debated for quite a while on keeping the EX. I had decided to convert the front end to the 05 up Super Duty suspension, and had located a rolled 05 for this purpose. I was going to lift the body and do some work on the 6.0 (had 260k on the clock) when my wife caught me with my price sheet. She respectfully suggested I should just look at a truck. But it was still hard as we really loved pulling with the Ex for all the interior room. 2 kids and 3 dogs.

I wish I could justify having both.

Keep in mind I had probably towed the trailer a good 4K miles before I made the decision. It was not that the Ex could not get it done, it was our personal safety margin.
Our maiden voyage with "new" Ex went quite well. Pulled great. Hardly knew we had such a behemoth behind us. Even though campground was only 75 miles away, I got a good sense of the new Ex's capabilities. Our 2000 model had a lot of slop in the steering which made towing with it unnerving at times. The 04 felt solid and no issues from passing big rigs blowing us around. I'm sure I'll learn more on our next trip which is about 180 miles away.

BTW, are you on FTE as well?
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2004 Excursion Limited 4x4 6.0 PS Diesel
2000 Excursion Limited 7.3 PS Diesel Sold:crying

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Old 01-02-2014, 10:15 AM   #65
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Our maiden voyage with "new" Ex went quite well. Pulled great. Hardly knew we had such a behemoth behind us. Even though campground was only 75 miles away, I got a good sense of the new Ex's capabilities. Our 2000 model had a lot of slop in the steering which made towing with it unnerving at times. The 04 felt solid and no issues from passing big rigs blowing us around. I'm sure I'll learn more on our next trip which is about 180 miles away.

BTW, are you on FTE as well?
Good to hear yours is a good puller. Yes, I am on FTE - but don't check it very often. I generally find on most engine related issues the boys on powerstroke.org are little more informative.
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