Trailering 1,000 miles advice needed.

[Alfetta159]

The loft and trailer weigh 1040 lbs. (Commercial scale).

Being that this is half the capacity of a normal Mav, you might not need towing mode. Is it real hilly where you're going?

1. If I tow this loft in the trailer mode, I get about 16 mpg. (It seems that the electric motor never kicks in). If I tow in the regular normal mode, I get about 23 mpg. (Electric kicks in occasionally)

As I understand it, the Mav hybrid can be (regeneratively) charging, pure electric, or BOTH ICE and electric (hybrid). When you say that the electric motor never kicks in, I'm sure it kicks in all the time to supplement the ICE. What you might never see is the truck running on pure electric in Towing mode.

4. What would be your advice??? My thoughts are to tow with the Maverick in Normal mode. What I'm I forgetting? Is this a "no brainer".

With that light of a trailer, I would even consider Eco mode, but that might not help if it's all highway.

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[Pigeonman]

My thoughts are to follow Ford's manual and tow in tow mode. A couple of considerations how much money are you going to save and is it worth screwing up either the engine or transmission. If I were making that to it would be in "Tow Mode" . Have a safe trip. Paul

Good point, also.

 

[Pigeonman]

Being that this is half the capacity of a normal Mav, you might not need towing mode. Is it real hilly where you're going?



As I understand it, the Mav hybrid can be (regeneratively) charging, pure electric, or BOTH ICE and electric (hybrid). When you say that the electric motor never kicks in, I'm sure it kicks in all the time to supplement the ICE. What you might never see is the truck running on pure electric in Towing mode.



With that light of a trailer, I would even consider Eco mode, but that might not help if it's all highway.

The first hundred miles in Michigan is quite hilly. I'm going to consider trailer mode then. The rest is relatively flat so perhaps trailer mode may not be necessary. Thanks for your reply.

 

[Pigeonman]

My thoughts are to follow Ford's manual and tow in tow mode. A couple of considerations how much money are you going to save and is it worth screwing up either the engine or transmission. If I were making that to it would be in "Tow Mode" . Have a safe trip. Paul

Thanks.

 

[Escapologist]

In this specific situation of the towed load and total load on Maverick being inside a non-tow Maverick's payload, plus the assurance it will go no faster than 65mph, keeping aero load from being extreme, I would say it will be fine in any drive mode.

However, go a bit over what a "normal" non-tow maverick handles and you want to be in tow mode for downhill as much as uphill, as otherwise it will be trying to dump too much momentum through the genny and into batt and may overheat from that side. There are references on this forum though to what transmission temperature and load percentages to stay within with an external OBDII monitoring app, such that you can be sure in the situation you are in at any given second whether you are overstraining the Mav and whether to slow down or take a break. (ETA: or put it into a better available mode)

 

[Cherokee]

Use ‘Tow Haul’
Why ?
Because you’re towing. Wind resistance is a factor.
Holding the engine in lower gears/ higher RPM’s takes the strain off the crank bearings.

The gas mileage, pfft you can afford to spend a little more in fuel to not work your truck unnecessarily hard.

Better yet,
2. I also have a 2015 F150 which I get about 14 mpg with this tow.
Use the 150 and Fagetaboutit!

 

[Pigeonman]

Use ‘Tow Haul’
Why ?
Because you’re towing. Wind resistance is a factor.
Holding the engine in lower gears/ higher RPM’s takes the strain off the crank bearings.

The gas mileage, pfft you can afford to spend a little more in fuel to not work your truck unnecessarily hard.

Better yet,
2. I also have a 2015 F150 which I get about 14 mpg with this tow.
Use the 150 and Fagetaboutit!

Love the Fagetaboutit! Originally from the East Coast?

 

[DadofTim]

Hey All, I'll be pulling our 4-H's traveling pigeon loft from Northern Michigan to a Western suburb in Chicago. There is an AU (American Racing Pigeon Union) national convention there. The loft and trailer weigh 1040 lbs. (Commercial scale). I do not plan on any passengers or extra weight in my vehicles. My Maverick is a 2025 hybrid with the towing package. I plan on driving 55-65 mph. Here are some other facts to consider:

1. If I tow this loft in the trailer mode, I get about 16 mpg. (It seems that the electric motor never kicks in). If I tow in the regular normal mode, I get about 23 mpg. (Electric kicks in occasionally)

2. I also have a 2015 F150 which I get about 14 mpg with this tow.

3. No pigeons will be traveling in the vehicle or trailer.

4. What would be your advice??? My thoughts are to tow with the Maverick in Normal mode. What I'm I forgetting? Is this a "no brainer".

Thanks, Mike

Hey All, I'll be pulling our 4-H's traveling pigeon loft from Northern Michigan to a Western suburb in Chicago. There is an AU (American Racing Pigeon Union) national convention there. The loft and trailer weigh 1040 lbs. (Commercial scale). I do not plan on any passengers or extra weight in my vehicles. My Maverick is a 2025 hybrid with the towing package. I plan on driving 55-65 mph. Here are some other facts to consider:

1. If I tow this loft in the trailer mode, I get about 16 mpg. (It seems that the electric motor never kicks in). If I tow in the regular normal mode, I get about 23 mpg. (Electric kicks in occasionally)

2. I also have a 2015 F150 which I get about 14 mpg with this tow.

3. No pigeons will be traveling in the vehicle or trailer.

4. What would be your advice??? My thoughts are to tow with the Maverick in Normal mode. What I'm I forgetting? Is this a "no brainer".

Thanks, Mike

I would seriously upgrade your straps and their attachment points. Plan for the worst, hope for the best. Passing semi trucks can create a wind/vacuum effect. An unexpected road hazard to swerve to avoid will strain the marginal straps and anchor points. Imagine the coop coming off the trailer in front of tailgating traffic at highway speeds. Better safe than sorry (and sued for negligence)

 

[Pigeonman]

Love the Fagetaboutit! Originally from the East Coast?

I would seriously upgrade your straps and their attachment points. Plan for the worst, hope for the best. Passing semi trucks can create a wind/vacuum effect. An unexpected road hazard to swerve to avoid will strain the marginal straps and anchor points. Imagine the coop coming off the trailer in front of tailgating traffic at highway speeds. Better safe than sorry (and sued for negligence)

Your totally right. I will definitely add additional straps and attachment points. Thank You.

 

[scharris99]

Your totally right. I will definitely add additional straps and attachment points. Thank You.

Not additional straps, only use proper load rated straps. I'd also be concerned about the hold downs on the trailer. Are they lag bolts or through bolts passing through both pieces of lumber and do they have proper washers?
Also add me to the vote to use the F150. Too many chances to have the tail wagging the dog to leave the better option sitting at home for a couple MPG difference giving up the safety factor.

 

[Maverick2022XL]

Hey All, I'll be pulling our 4-H's traveling pigeon loft from Northern Michigan to a Western suburb in Chicago. There is an AU (American Racing Pigeon Union) national convention there. The loft and trailer weigh 1040 lbs. (Commercial scale). I do not plan on any passengers or extra weight in my vehicles. My Maverick is a 2025 hybrid with the towing package. I plan on driving 55-65 mph. Here are some other facts to consider:

1. If I tow this loft in the trailer mode, I get about 16 mpg. (It seems that the electric motor never kicks in). If I tow in the regular normal mode, I get about 23 mpg. (Electric kicks in occasionally)

2. I also have a 2015 F150 which I get about 14 mpg with this tow.

3. No pigeons will be traveling in the vehicle or trailer.

4. What would be your advice??? My thoughts are to tow with the Maverick in Normal mode. What I'm I forgetting? Is this a "no brainer".

Thanks, Mike

Readers Digest version of tow/haul mode in Fords.
A. It lowers the engine gearing for more torque
B. It engages engine braking and slows down your truck to prevent potentially overheating the brakes

Example, going up a hill the tranny will be constantly seeking gears without it engaged, with it engaged it won't. Going down a hill it will rely on the engine to slow down the vehicle instead of constantly engaging the brakes.

It is designed for heavy loads being towed over hilly roads, flats roads it doesn't provide any real advantages but with that said it doesn't provide any disadvantages either except for the increased torque which does affect MPG. At least in a hybrid the MPG drop that you reported is more noticeable. I have an ecoboost and with it engaged I get closer to 18mpg on the mountain roads when towing and closer to 22 mpg on flat roads.

You load is either light/medium if your tow capacity is 2500lbs or light if you have a 4k tow package. Me personally I'd just leave it in tow/haul mode unless the MPG is more important then don't except on hilly portions of your drive.

 

[Maverick2022XL]

Not additional straps, only use proper load rated straps. I'd also be concerned about the hold downs on the trailer. Are they lag bolts or through bolts passing through both pieces of lumber and do they have proper washers?
Also add me to the vote to use the F150. Too many chances to have the tail wagging the dog to leave the better option sitting at home for a couple MPG difference giving up the safety factor.

Have you ever actually towed anything with your Maverick truck? An F150 is overkill here, if it is all you have then that is what you use type of tool in this case. I can't say I've driven newer F150s to tow with but a Maverick is by far the easiest vehicle I've ever driven to tow things with. I can tow 4k on mine and drive it with one hand something I can't say I've been able to on older large size trucks.

 

[scharris99]

Have you ever actually towed anything with your Maverick truck? An F150 is overkill here, if it is all you have then that is what you use type of tool in this case. I can't say I've driven newer F150s to tow with but a Maverick is by far the easiest vehicle I've ever driven to tow things with. I can tow 4k on mine and drive it with one hand something I can't say I've been able to on older large size trucks.

I didn't say it wouldn't tow, but I'd be pulling anything with an F150 if it was sitting next to my maverick. The towing part isn't the concern, however towing while performing an emergency maneuver is THE concern! A quick turn to avoid an object on the road, stopping or accelerating as quickly as possible are real life situations that I've been in with both small & large tow vehicles. The larger, more powerful vehicle wins every time.

 

[Maverick2022XL]

I didn't say it wouldn't tow, but I'd be pulling anything with an F150 if it was sitting next to my maverick. The towing part isn't the concern, however towing while performing an emergency maneuver is THE concern! A quick turn to avoid an object on the road, stopping or accelerating as quickly as possible are real life situations that I've been in with both small & large tow vehicles. The larger, more powerful vehicle wins every time.

Survey says WRONG!
Basic physics, the relationship between weight and braking distance is the braking distance approximately increases with the square of the vehicle's weight (and the square of its speed). In the most simple example, if you double the weight of a vehicle, you'll need approximately four times the braking distance to stop from the same speed, all other factors being equal. Bottom line the heaver the vehicle the longer distance it needs to come to a complete stop. With all other factors being equal acceleration is proportional to weight, more weight the slower the acceleration will be. If you take into account things like wind resistance then yeah bigger vehicle can possibly accelerate as fast as a smaller vehicle but now all things are not equal.

edit to restate acceleration in terms of mass since weight and mass are not the same and to correct mental laziness on my part.

F=M*A aka Force = Mass * Acceleration

Weight is just a type of representation of a force
W=M*A aka Weight = Mass * Gravity

So if
A = F/M then simply the value of Acceleration gets smaller for larger values of Mass with Force being equal and also larger Masses = larger Weights.

 

[Cancunbadlands]

Use tow/haul in hilly and mountainous terrain

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