Is the towing effected with a lift?

[aldo_45030]

Looking at a couple f250's both are lifted 3-4 ". each has 315 tires....what is the lift size?
Will it effect towing and capacities of the truck. the handlign is definately effected the 1st truck practically drove itself from line to line a real hand full. i noticed the 2 truck steered better and had double damp shocks. any help is appreciated.

[mschn99]

a lifted truck obviously is less stable with the higher center of gravity, which is amplified when towing.........the other thing you will notice is a shutter on hard take off due to the driveline angle changing........but as long as everything is controllable its ok to tow, just do it more cautiously........Marc

[aldo_45030]

i notice 3 of 5 i have seen have some sticker on the radiator area stating it has some form of for modification 1 was a 03 the other an 04. They are unable to be read but were done by a dealer whats up with that?

[owtcast]

Remember too: It may tow ok but the heavier the trailer gets the worse it will tow. Lifting a truck definately decreases it's towing capacity, some. It all depends on a lot of variables though. How high of a lift, how correct is the load positioned on the trailer, even the quality/type of the lift affects it. You found that out when you drove those two trucks and one was all over the road. Be careful with buying a used lifted truck because there are a lot of "hack" jobs out there. Make sure the "lift" is a reputable one and was installed correctly. Also, if the truck was not re-geared (rarely is it) when larger tires were put on, then it will be like pulling in too high a gear. It will also take longer to stop the truck with larger tires.
With just 3-4" inches and tires to match it, you should be fine to tow almost as much as stock as long as it's a good lift job.
Note: No matter what lift or how high it is, no truck should be "all over the road" just driving it. Something is wrong with that truck. It was either put on wrong, worn out, or a hack job (poorly engineered "custom").

[aldo_45030]

Thank You that sounds like words of experience . The purchase of this truck has proven to be rather exhaustive. If its not the price of the truck its the incompetance of the sale person. I will have never towed a trailer 30" long let alone having a school bus of a truck to pull it. Its just really making me scrap the whole thing.
We looked at a nice truck at a ford dealer he took on trade lifted but with all the parts minus the tires and wheels. So it can be lowered back to stock.



What are the deal with the stickers on the radiator area??

[owtcast]

Aldo, if I were you, I would do this. It will eliminate a lot of bad possibilities. Find a non lifted truck that has all the factory options that you want. With the price of fuel now-a-days there a lot of them to negotiate with on the used market for a good price. Then do the lift and stuff you want on your own. That way you get to choose the kit, installer, etc. that goes on your truck and you get the peace of mind that it was done right. I know here in Texas there are plenty to choose from since soccer moms all over drive them. A lot of people buy them and find out later that they aren't an SUV like their Tahoe and trade them in because they are TOO MUCH vehicle. Don't be scared to search around. It might be an inconvenience to go far from home but, it's a buyer's market right now. Your ideal truck is out there so don't give up. Once you tow with it one time, you will wonder how you ever got by without it.

As for the stickers, I don't know. I'm sure one of the Ford techs that frequent this site will be able to provide you with what you want to know.

[aldo_45030]

Just an FYI Sky jacker service rep told me a lift definately reduces payload capabilities and recommended no lift when towing 10K LBS or more. He did say if the overloads are installed top and bottom he felt it would be ok.

[Tommy11421]

Aldo,
I learned a few things about towing after I lifted my first truck. It was a Dodge Cummins and I put 4.5" Skyjacker kit on it. Fuel efficiency changed a little but nothing drastic, as long as you drive right you won't really notice. I pulled a cattle trailor with it on a level road and you could notice a difference but it wasn't extremly noticeable until going up hills. I had a friend with a 03 powerstroke and he noticed the same things. My advice would be do it right. Buy the truck, install your lift, make the proper changes. This isn't something to go cheap on. You may also want to outfit your truck with some power upgrades. Also dual steering stablizers and upgrades truck will really eliminate problems with the truck weaving from side to side. Good luck!

[99Smokin73Stroker]

When I bought my 99 it was already lifted with 315's on it. Although I didn't buy it for a tow vehicle, there were a few occasional times when I did tow my uncle's small trailer. The only thing I really noticed was that I really needed a drop hitch, lol. I inspected the truck closely and it appeared that everything had been done properly and I saw no signs of a hack job, and i've seen a few. My 315's measured closer to a true 34 inches which isn't a whole lot larger than stock. If you were going to something like a 36 or larger it'd probably be a lot more noticeable.

[PAredneck]

Tires will make a world of difference. A thin street radial will handle much better that a wide mud tire. The more ruts in the road the worse your handling will be. I ran a 38.5x15x15 on my old truck with no steering stablizers on it and got thrown across 2 lanes when I hit a bad section of road on I-95. A dual stablizer helped a lot, but going to a tire that wasen't so wide helped even more. If you are going to work your truck keep it stock. It will work better and last longer. If you are going for show or play......the sky and your wallet is the limit.