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Thread: Towing with Bronco II

  1. #1
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    Default Towing with Bronco II



    I am looking at doing some towing in the near future. Specifically, a small trailer (4x8) filled with stuff from an apartment, minus any furniture. I wouldn't be towing often, just the once, really. Aside from wheelbase and center of gravity, the big problem would be the distance: Colorado to Washington state. And I don't think I can avoid the Rockies, so lots of hills.

    The Bronco II has the 2.9 V6, and has what I believe to be 3.73 gearing (I can double check just to make sure). My worries are that the 2.9 is going to be underpowered for any long distance towing. It's already underpowered just for moving itself. The other thing I'd be worried about would the clutch and transmission. The clutch for burning out, and the transmission for getting too hot. Even without a load, the truck doesn't take kindly to hills on the interstates, so I'd be in 2nd or 3rd for a lot of my trip.

    I've looked over The Ranger Station, and the only recommendation I could find beyond 'do it' or 'don't do it' is maybe a transmission cooler. So I was hoping some of the Ford guys on here familiar with the 2.9 (or some of the people familiar with towing with smaller trucks) might be able to chime in.

    Could an RBV make it that far with a smallish trailer load? Would a transmission cooler be a smart idea? Are there any other considerations to take into account? Any recommendations?

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    Default Re: Towing with Bronco II



    So Im reading clutch & trans temp.
    You only realy need to worry about trans temp with an automatic..
    You have a clutch with a standard trans that does not have heat issues..
    ___________
    In a never ending search for the proper mix of dirt & rock !

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    Default Re: Towing with Bronco II



    I thought I read somewhere that Rangers have the same wiring harness, regardless of submodel. Do you know if that's the case with all RBVs? Should the wiring for a tow package be present, even if the tow package wasn't installed at the factory?

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    Default Re: Towing with Bronco II



    Since you have a manual transmission, it won't be a problem. Just make sure it has enough fluid in it of course.

    Obviously the trailer isn't going to make the B-II any faster or get any better mpg. That is probably the biggest concern. Going slower is really just a nuisance more than anything.

    If you go during the Summer, make sure your cooling system is up to par.

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    Default Re: Towing with Bronco II



    If your going to Washington state, you most likely going to be taking I80 which is pretty much flat. Not much for hills really in Wyo going down I80 besides Elk Mountain, and a few hills outside of Evanston. Utah and Nevada are also relatively flat.

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    Default Re: Towing with Bronco II



    Like has been said the standard wont give you the issues that the A4Ld has. the auto (A4LD) is a crap transmission at best and when a load is added to it, make them shell fast. Im not saying all of them are junk (my Explorer has the A4LD, but it has a external cooler on it and I never tow with it), but most people swap them out for the FM145 (I think thats right. The standard that came in the rangers).
    There is enough differences in the Ranger and BII, that Im not sure if they used the same harness or not (engine harness maybe).
    What size load? I wouldn't go much over 600-800lbs.(at most) towing with a BII, but thats me. The most I have ever towed with my Ranger was my boat (15' fiberglass) and that was only like 10 miles to and back from the lake (Gunnison). my Ranger is the short wheelbase (close to what you have) and it handled it O.K.

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    Default Re: Towing with Bronco II



    BLOODBANE previously posted:
    "What size load?"

    Not very big at all. I'd try to use one of the UHaul's smallest trailers, the 4x8. That itself is only about 3.5' tall, not including the distance between the bottom of the box to the ground. So small load and small trailer. Just hoping to minimize weight that's being pulled.

    As for wiring, I might try to find some time to look under the truck and see what's going on. I don't if I'll find what I'm looking for, but it's worth a look.

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    Default Re: Towing with Bronco II



    The tow package is an auxiliary wiring loom added into the standard harness. It is not included in the standard harness inside of the RBVS. It essentially just splices into your factory Brake/Turn Signal harness at the rear of the rig. At least the standard 4 pin does that was offered on these trucks.

    Its very easy to ad, and fairly cheap. A wiring harness is only $10, and if you do it yourself you can pick up hitches for around $100

    I used my B2 to haul a exploder on a car dolly a few hundred miles without an issue. That was with the 5spd and 2.9 before I swapped in the 4.0L. It sucked going up grades, but she still did the trick.

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