Hitch recommondations for F-250 PSD
 

Factory hitch is rated at 5K with 500 ball weight when using it as a load carrying hitch. I am sure my boat, trailer and carry alongs will exceed this and wondered what others have done to "upgrade" the hitch.

I assume that an aftermarket hitch is still a bolt on type
:confused:


Thanks :)

As always, thanks Bro :)

No word on the PPIII yet, they are not the best at responding :(

I am leaning towards a new SCMT



Jeff

I pulled a Ford class V off my 2002 F350 if you know anyone that's interested - probably the same one oyu have. I replaced it with a Titan.

The Ford factory hitches are NOT class V. They say V something but that's just the model # and I think sneaky marketing.

I just bought an F250 PSD and had the dealer put a Class V on it as part of the deal. It's a Hidden Hitch and it looks fine. It only took about a half an hour for the shop to remove the stock hitch and install the new one. The wiring is not atttached to the stock hitch so it makes it even easier.

You really can't go wrong if you stick with the name brand hitches ... Reese, Hidden Hitch, Drawtite etc... I think Reese and Hidden are the same company .. not sure.

Congrats on the new truck! You'll love it! Get the SCMT... The PPIII is older technology. Make sure you get some gauges too!

Well, that pretty much sucks!
It's diappointing that a truck that is rated for 12,500# max towing capacity and 20,000#CGVWR comes standard with a 5000# hitch that's stamped with a big "V"

:rolleyes:

Man that just pisses me off as well. I looked at it and saw the V and figured I was good to go. They did that on purpose and it could cost some problems!!!!! What the hell. We towed a 13,000 pound boat home the other weekend and I did not give it a second thought. What if we had a problem. That is BS!!!!!

Jon

Audio,

You should have read the # rating on that hitch. It clearly states 5000# on it.

I know what you mean though. The V is VERY mis-leading! Luckily you didin't have any problems!

Baja Daze .. that's what I told the salesman! I had them put a REAL class V on mine.

I use the Titan Class V as well. As I recall it has 2 extra bolts installed through the frame. I had it installed, these may need to be drilled out??

The Reese Titan V is 12000# wt carrying and 14000# wt distribution.

There is a lot of stuff misleading about Ford literature. The worst one (so far as I am concerned) it the towing capacity. Tag-a-long, no problem; but w/ 5th wheel or gooseneck, the 250 does not have the bed carrying capacity to carry the pin weight of the towed capacity. For example, if my towing capacity is 12,500# (20000# GCWR minus 7500# truck wt) and the pin weight of 5th wheel is 25%, it means that I need over 3000# pin wt capacity in bed. The 250 capacity is 8800# minus truck wt and beer so realistically about 1000#. :mad:

I looked at the weight rating and knew it would not hold my boat. My Titan went on with no drilling or welding. The only "modification" was that the receiver had a bracket for a lighting harness that had to be cut off since my truck already had this on it.

Cignificant,
Is that a Heavy Duty Class V from Titan?

Yes, 2.5" receiver..

Cignificant,
How much does one of those cost, if you don't mind me asking?
Thanks! Looks like I'm going to need one!

I paid about $290 installed.

Thanks a million! That's about what I expected. :cool:

Jeff - for what its worth, you're real close to the base numbers. There is more than enough safety factor. Save your money!

My 02.

Cignificant,

what kind of truck is that reese titan on????

F350..

Cool, thanks:)

Kentz, I agree that my current boat is very close in weight however I am thinking ahead and figured before the damn thing is rusted on, I might as well get one that is HD so that it will haul my next boat ;) (wife says wishful thinking, but I am the one that pays the bills) :)


Fever500, guages were my first install on the truck. Bought Autometer Carbon Fiber type, Pyro, Tranny and Boost. I love the look and accuracy of them. SCMT is next along with the hitch, straight through pipe, then some 305's with different wheels, etc, etc (unless I find a bigger boat at a hell of a price :) )

I just checked the hitch on my f-250 and sure as s@#t it says 5000# load bearing. The sticker on the hitch is placed where you can't even see it unless you halfway crawl under the truck. When I orderd the truck I was told I was good for 10,000# on the hitch, I guess not. This pisses me off.:mad:

Yup, and "tow package" costs extra on some of these. 5000 pounds isnt much boat when you figure in trailer, fuel, wifes stuff, etc.

Yep, you buy a truck with a diesel made for towing and they put a piece of crap hitch on it? It does not make any sense to me. Maybe that is why I saw the aftermarket hitches in the showroom when I bought the truck.:mad:

I have bought a couple of Drawtite hitches for my f250s and they are rated at 10K without load levelers and have a 2" receiver.

I use the Reese Titan. It is a true class V hitch. DrawTite has a real nice class IV called an Ultra. I have had both on F350's and no problems. I installed both myself. It takes very little time as there is no drilling or welding for either. The toughest part is raising the hitch to the truck to get the first bolt started. I used a floor jack. Entire job took 30 minuttes.

The V-5 on the hitches identifies that the hitch has passed the industry specified test procedure for the given rating. If a hitch does not have the V-5 on the rating plate the hitch may not have passed the same tests as those that do carry it. Being an engineer I would be leary of a hitch that did not carry the V-5 marking.

This really does not make alot of sense though. You would think that Ford would be opening themselves to whole world of liabilty issues by selling trucks rated to tow more than the factory hitch is capable of handleing. Even my last F150 was rated at 7200 pounds which is more than the hitch. My 250 is rated at 10,500 I believe. I wonder if there isnt a little reverse "CYA" going on...the sticker on the hitch is there in case you have a problem they can blame it on you. I would like to hear from a Ford dealer on this issue. There has to be one around this board. How does GM and Dodge stack up on this issue?

I own a '99 PSD diesel (and I LOVE it!!) and I know from dealing with Ford that not everything is so obvious. I guess like Troutly said, you have to read the fine print. I can tell you that this hitch has held up to 17,000#'s before:cool: By the way, TROUTLY, you are just a plethera of info, I enjoy all your posts,l ater
Gerard

Troutly I want to see the picture of you with 6 200 pound guys in your car!!!!! :D:D

So, I guess this thread has pretty much killed my chances of selling this Ford hitch, huh?:rolleyes:

Not just Fords. Friends 98 Dodge 2500 v-10. He did not believe me until he crawled underneath to look - 500/5000. O'yeah, this is after two years of hauling his 10,000# boat all over the midwest. Now why can you purchase a 2-5/16" ball (rated @ 7500#) with a 1" shank that fits all 2" receivers???

This has more to do with liability and lawyers than engineering and metalurgy.

Troutly,
I'm doing well. Had fun down in Miami, even though it was short. I have to laugh at the credit card incident , falling in the water! I did get alot of rides on some boats. The best was the 42' Cig! Going to make another Florida run at the end of the month. Thanks for the info on the Ford hitch. I am putting the Titan 5 on my truck this week. I hope you are doing well. Maybe you and the wife can make it out to Havasu this year?
Gerard

This thread got me curious, so I looked! :rolleyes:
My 01 F250 CC 4x4 PSD has a FORD Class V hitch, rated, 10000 lbs trailer wt 1000 tongue. I tow about 8000 pounds GVWR no sweat, ya gotta love a diesel.
Bryan

Bryan, you sure that isnt the towing capacity using a weight distributing hitch? Mine says the same thing however it is rated at 5000 and 500 as a tag along WITHOUT weight distributing.

Better double check ;)

Reese Titan 5:D

I put a Reese V-5 hitch receiver on our 250 PSD. It has a distributed rating of 1200 / 12000 and carrying 700/ 7000.