The 4 cylinder version of the Ford Escape is rated at 1,500 lbs towing capacity. The 6 cylinder version is rated at 3,500 lbs.
Are there any differences between these two versions other than the engine that result in the different towing capacity? Is there any fundamental reason that you can't tow 3,500 lbs with the 4 cylinder version if you are in the Midwest with very flat terrain?
In my '02 manual, the 4-cyl is rated at 1K lbs., the 6-cyl at 2K lbs., and the 6-cyl with towing package is rated at 3.5K lbs. I don't know what year yours is, but for '01 and '02 (at least), the 4 only came with manual and the 6 with auto transmissions. Therein might lie the difference- maybe the manual tranny behind a 4 cyl isn't as "beefy" as the 6 cyl auto. Then there's the difference in torque generated.
Without the towing package, I don't think I'd attempt 3.5K lbs. with my 6 cyl.
SC Tom
Agreed - and even with the towing package I wouldn't go over 1,000 pounds without working electric or surge (preferably electric) trailer brakes - you can always take your time to get it moving with the 4 and a stick, but once it's moving you have to get stopped again, sometimes in a hurry.
Trust me, a small car getting shoved around by a big trailer (or a big car being shoved around by a huge trailer) is not a fun thing At All. Been There, Done That, Have the T-shirt...
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I remember towing a full sized jet ski with my tiny three cylinder 54 horsepower Geo Metro. Felt like I was pulling something massive but the little car did it without any problems. I did need a little more time to stop & always allowed more room with the vehicle in front of me. With the ski having 160 HP everybody stated that my car should have been on the trailer & pulled by the jetski.
Now my Ranger with the 4.0 liter v-six can easily tow a double jetski or snowmobile set with plenty of power to spare but I do miss the 50 mpg the geo dished out.
what you don't think 16mpg is suitable from a 4.0 v6 with half the power and torque of a 4.6L v8 sporting 14mpg?
What ever would be wrong with that...
Anyone with thoughts on towing using an Escape Hybrid? I wouldn't be towing more than a jetski or aluminum fishing boat.
Should I bother with a hitch? You think I will be sunk. :-)
Mike Schumann wrote:
A car is a car, as long as you don't exceed the loading limits of the powertrain and brakes the "hybrid" part really shouldn't make any practical difference in how you do it - if it does, they haven't built a proper car for "normal people" and it'll give you trouble simply with a full passenger and cargo load.
Same towing rules: Make sure the hitch is bomb-proof, because it really sucks to see a trailer passing you and realize it's /yours/...
Brakes on any trailer over 50% of towing capacity, always add an automatic transmission cooler because they toast really easy.
For a hybrid, if there's a hydraulic component to the transmission see if you can (or need to) add a cooler. Torque converters or other fluid clutches/drives still generate heat when heavily loaded.
Might want to drop the engineers a line and see if there's anything in the hybrid system you need to monitor the temperature of (because the computer doesn't) just in case. I can see putting a temperature sender and gauge on the main electric motor transistor bank heat sinks, just in case the cooling fan quits or is overloaded.
The engineers would say what the maximum safe operating temperature is - and even if the computer monitors it, you can see it getting close to the limit and back off the throttle before the ECU notices you have passed the limit and goes into 'blinkenlights' panic mode.
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Thanks.
Very thorough response.
Bruce L. Bergman wrote:
Mike,
In most cases, being able to pull the weight, is of no consequence, relative to being able to stop it, or control it if it begins to fishtail or get a mind of its own.
On flat terrain, slow speeds, safe roads, no winding trails, you could probably pull that much weight, but I think it is required to have brakes on the trailer, no?
Not saying you should, but people often think that just because they can get the tandem underway, that they can tow it safely.
Transmissions take the brunt of the towing, so pay attention there, and brakes are the other more important facet.
I have a class III hitch on my 2005 Ford Escape. I got mine before there were hitches modified specifically for the Hybrid, but I think most now have the notch to clear the battery coolant lines on the left rear frame rail. The Ford hitch is class II, and fits up into the bumper, so it's a little higher off the ground than mine. The Ford Accessory guide says it's not available for the Hybrid, but I think I have read that it does fit.
The Hybrid does very well towing, but none of my trips have been over an hour or so.
The eCVT in the hybrid is much more like a manual transmission than an automatic in terms of overheating. There is no slippage of bands.
I routinely tow an old homebuilt trailer that I would estimate at about
1000 lbs, with no brakes. That tows fine, and stops fine.The Escape Hybrid is not made of glass. You won't break it by towing an aluminum fishing boat. You will be adding stress, but probably no more than putting that same fishing boat upside down on the roof rack.
I don't think I'd set out across country with a camping trailer.
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