Anyone towing with a 2013 Ford Escape?

[Rick Mooyman]

Yup got the 2013 SE in Tuxedo Black 2.0 turbo with tow package. And now I find out the 2014 have the backup camera as a standard feature.

Originally Posted by frank_a

Rick, did you get the 2 liter ecoboost with the tow package? I bet you'll love towing with it!

Frank

[frank_a]

No big deal Rick. I don't know about you, but I been backing up to trailers most my adult life, and will just keep on doing it the old fashioned way. Plus we got a great deal on a 2013. I think ours was an SEL, but not sure, coulda been the same as yours, but Ruby Red!

Frank

[Thomas G.]

Originally Posted by MC1

Well it appears that many vehicle have some respectable towing capabilities but are limited to a few accessories like alternator or cooling fan size.

Is that what you are seeing as well Thomas??

It tells me that there is little effort to maximize towing capacity on small suvs and cars.

[MC1]

I tend to agree. There just doesn't seem to be the interest here on this side of the pond.

My view is that the general population has been conditioned to think they need the big heavy vehicle to tow much of anything.

[honda03842]

Possibly what they're rated to tow and what they can tow are not the same.

[MC1]

Yes Norm, the TV parked in our driveway is proof of that.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by honda03842

Possibly what they're rated to tow and what they can tow are not the same.

Sure, anything can tow anything... poorly. What they are rated to tow and what is stupid to do are often quite different. The challenge: what needs to be done to intelligently tow more than the rating?

This is supposed to be a 2013 Ford Escape discussion. In this case, Ford has provided very different ratings for different equipment levels - they can all tow a few tons, but why would anyone think that Ford assigned a lower limit for what they should tow to some configurations without a reason?

Originally Posted by Thomas G.

It tells me that there is little effort to maximize towing capacity on small suvs...

True... but difference made by what seem like small changes in equipment don't indicate to me a lack of effort, only a recognition that it makes no sense to equip all vehicles with equipment that only a few will use, and testing (or at least educated guessing) to establish what equipment makes a difference to reliable towing.

If changing cooling fans (not likely fan couplings... nothing has a mechanically driven fan in this century) makes a big difference, that means that the manufacturer has established a significant risk of damage due to overheating under sustained heavy load without that fan change. A vehicle without a trailer/anchor behind it will never experience that sustained heavy load, so it has optimal cooling for normal use; if you pull a trailer, the manufacturer has identified the limiting component which needs to be upgraded.

[MC1]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

True... but difference made by what seem like small changes in equipment don't indicate to me a lack of effort, only a recognition that it makes no sense to equip all vehicles with equipment that only a few will use, and testing (or at least educated guessing) to establish what equipment makes a difference to reliable towing.

It is interesting that Toyota did a lot of testing of the 2005 Sienna in the variable climates of North America. They decided to equip all Sienna's with the tow pkg, and rated them for 3,500lbs. They did that for a year or two. Not sure when or if they backed away from the idea.

Our family mid size sedan has no tow pkg but has a tranny cooler and custom hd hitch. It has had no problems towing our TT. It now has 225,000klm's on it and is 11 years old. Still runs like a new car.

[Thomas G.]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

Sure, anything can tow anything... poorly. What they are rated to tow and what is stupid to do are often quite different. The challenge: what needs to be done to intelligently tow more than the rating?

This is supposed to be a 2013 Ford Escape discussion. In this case, Ford has provided very different ratings for different equipment levels - they can all tow a few tons, but why would anyone think that Ford assigned a lower limit for what they should tow to some configurations without a reason?

True... but difference made by what seem like small changes in equipment don't indicate to me a lack of effort, only a recognition that it makes no sense to equip all vehicles with equipment that only a few will use, and testing (or at least educated guessing) to establish what equipment makes a difference to reliable towing.

If changing cooling fans (not likely fan couplings... nothing has a mechanically driven fan in this century) makes a big difference, that means that the manufacturer has established a significant risk of damage due to overheating under sustained heavy load without that fan change. A vehicle without a trailer/anchor behind it will never experience that sustained heavy load, so it has optimal cooling for normal use; if you pull a trailer, the manufacturer has identified the limiting component which needs to be upgraded.

My point is that there is little effort to put together a robust towing package for small SUVs , the Escape being an exception. If one can increase the towing capacity from,say,2000#, to 3500# for several hundred dollars, that is real added value. For an individual to attempt this requires determining the limiting factors, which would probably have to be done by trial and error. The manufacturer would already know these factors based on standard tests that are run as part of vehicle development. I am not suggesting every vehicle come equipped ready to tow, only that a tow package that fully uses the vehicle's towing potential be available.

[LeonardS]

Originally Posted by Thomas G.

My point is that there is little effort to put together a robust towing package for small SUVs , the Escape being an exception. If one can increase the towing capacity from,say,2000#, to 3500# for several hundred dollars, that is real added value. For an individual to attempt this requires determining the limiting factors, which would probably have to be done by trial and error. The manufacturer would already know these factors based on standard tests that are run as part of vehicle development. I am not suggesting every vehicle come equipped ready to tow, only that a tow package that fully uses the vehicle's towing potential be available.

And the other question is: why does Ford bury the couple hundred $ of equipment necessary to tow at a higher rating under the weight of a bloated $$$$ package? Part of the reason I went with a Nissan pickup was I could get just the towing package without springing for a bunch of stuff that I didn't need. I was looking at the Ford Escape, but calculated that the 10,000 that I saved would buy a lot of gas.

I'm sure Ford will survive quite nicely without my purchase of their product.

[Jared J]

Originally Posted by LeonardS

And the other question is: why does Ford bury the couple hundred $ of equipment necessary to tow at a higher rating under the weight of a bloated $$$$ package? Part of the reason I went with a Nissan pickup was I could get just the towing package without springing for a bunch of stuff that I didn't need.

Odd, it would have cost me $4400 to get the tow package in the titan.

[frank_a]

The tow package on our Escape was maybe $400, but it did require the 2 liter ecoboost motor, which I know adds cost. That added cost for the motor also gives you around 240 hp, and that is the primary tow "stuff." And when you're not towing, the Escape will get close to 30 mpg. We've only had ours a few days, and sure do like it!

Frank

[MC1]

Originally Posted by Jared J

Odd, it would have cost me $4400 to get the tow package in the titan.

Wow, that is a pile of money Jared. Do you know what the tow pkg consisted of?

[Thomas G.]

Originally Posted by LeonardS

And the other question is: why does Ford bury the couple hundred $ of equipment necessary to tow at a higher rating under the weight of a bloated $$$$ package? Part of the reason I went with a Nissan pickup was I could get just the towing package without springing for a bunch of stuff that I didn't need. I was looking at the Ford Escape, but calculated that the 10,000 that I saved would buy a lot of gas.

I'm sure Ford will survive quite nicely without my purchase of their product.

I agree, getting the tow package shouldn't break the bank and additional options actually reduces the maximum towing potential.

[Jared J]

Originally Posted by MC1

Wow, that is a pile of money Jared. Do you know what the tow pkg consisted of?

$600 tow package, but it only came with electric mirrors, requiring he power seat/mirror/window/lock package, but that doesn't come in the base model, requiring upgrading from the xe to the se. Just another way to screw you.

[Mike Magee]

I am curious. Would you new Escape owners mind looking in your owner's manual and seeing if they state any maximum trailer frontal area? I think my old Mountaineer manual specifies something like a 50 square foot limit, if memory serves. So I was wondering if they're saying anything about the Escapes in the manual.

[frank_a]

30 square feet for ours. Easy to find, just "googled" it.

Go here: http://www.ford.com/resources/ford/g...scape_oct1.pdf

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Mike Magee

I am curious. Would you new Escape owners mind looking in your owner's manual...

You can also look for yourself - Ford publishes their owners manuals online, at Personalized Vehicle Owner Information. You don't need to own any Ford to use this site.

In the 2013 manual the towing section starts on page 190, and on the next page a table of weight limits are shown, plus a note in the text saying not to exceed 20 sq ft (1.86 m2) without the towing package, or 30 sq ft (2.79 m2) with the towing package.

[Mike Magee]

Thanks. Hmm, good online resource from Ford, I never knew about the manuals there. 30 square feet.... let's see, for a 6.5' wide trailer, that gives a max height according to their ratings of about 4.6'. Shoot, they must not be putting much of a tranny in there or something. The engine sure has plenty of gumption.

I like the Escape, and it's way way less $$ than an Explorer with 3.5L Eco, but that frontal area rating discourages me. (I tow about 25,000 miles per year.)

[Jared J]

If you were worried about it, I would contact ford directly. There's a big difference between a flat 30' square piece, and a pretty curved 50' square piece.