Ford Falcon for towing

i have a 05 ba auto sedan i tow a 2000 kg pop top with. i have a 550kg weight distribution hitch. it drives well, plenty of power, but it sits a bit low, probably really needs air bags or heavier springs in the rear. although the auto isnt meant to need a transmission cooler, the transmission overheats on long climbs, so i will be putting one on.
fred

Barry
I have had 5 company Falcons and found them to be fantastic towing vehicles when fitted with the factory fitted 2.2 tonne towing rig, which includes gearbox cooling.
I towed a 25ft 2.5t trailer sailer yacht and admit the rig was a little too large and too heavy, but more recently towed a 2t tandem offroad caravan and felt there was more than ample power, good control when the load levelling rig was fully wound up, and reasonable economy. On a trip Adelaide to Kakadu was achieving 17.9l/100km at 110 km/hr. I had a trip computer and strangely enough i got the sane economy at 100 and also at 80kph - so the motor was really just cruising.
cheers DalbImage Could Not Be Found

We have a auto 96 ef wagon d/f ... overload springs on it ..tow a 1840kg laden dual axle poptop with ease and comfort and plenty of room...wdh on it and the van sits level , do not have to unhitch for over night stops..great car...er wagon..cheers

Get a valiant, heaps of low down grunt, LOL The falcon will do it with ease just add a tranny cooler or if you get the largest tow pack from ford Im sure it includes a cooler ?? Personally Im a holden fan BUT will always admit that ford have it when it comes to towing, more grunt. DONT go LPG for towing, friends have a dedicated LPG by ford (no petrol) and is a pig to tow with, a lot less power and drinks it like theres no tomorrow. You will appreciate the auto for towing to, no jerking between gear changes and take offs on steep hills no probs, plant the foot and let the auto do its job. Regards Steve

Firstly, any BA Falcon owner should have a trans cooler fitted regardless of whether you are towing or not. There is a design flaw in the factory trans cooling pipe in the radiator which needs to be bypassed and what better way to do this than with a trans cooler that will also help prolong the auto's life.

Secondly, if it were me, I would buy a wagon for this purpose because you will get the old-skool heavy duty leaf spring suspension with the wagon (the sedans are IRS and squat in the bum when loaded up) which can give you up to 575kg of load capacity in the wagon load space alone. Better for towing too.

And yes, the factory e-gas system is crap, way down on power compared to the standard version (182kw compared to 156 on e-gas) which will make towing something heavy an absolute pain in the arse. It is also not a dual fuel system so if you're out in the regional areas and no one sells LPG, you're screwed. If you want gas, get a decent aftermarket system fitted. At least then you'll have dual fuel.

Oh, and I would probably lean towards getting a BF over a BA. The BA had too many design flaws - most of which were sorted with the BF.

Just be aware that at max tow mass, Ford says the Falcon is limited to 80kph max but then so is the Commodore and many others.

I tow approx 2000 kg with BF Rtv ute , halfway round aus now ,use about 19-20 litres per 100k also have gas conversion and notice no power loss when on gas. Usually tow in third gear rather than drive on advice of the guy who serviced transmission and to stop the car huntiing for a gear to settle on. Used a commodore ute for around aus trip three years ago and used 14-15 litres per hundred ks but the extra fuel used by the falcon is worth it for a much firmer secure feel on the road. Remember that the bit of fuel extra used for towing will add up to only one or two thousand dollars on a trip right round ,we spend more on cappuchinos, it is the everyday fuel usage at home that might be worth considering over a few years and there is no significant difference between falcon and commodore when not towing. Might consider a v8 next time

Hi Barry, We use a 2005 BA Mk II wagon to tow an 18' tandem poptop. We've been using this vehicle for 3 years now and have never had any issues. This has included 6000k to Rockhampton and back a couple of years ago. We do have the 2300kg tow pack (was on the vehicle when we purchased it) but have added a separate transmission cooler, completely eliminating the issues with the standard cooler running through the radiator core (it's possible that if the core fails the transmission can end up full of water, very expensive repair). This was NOT included with the tow pack but cost only about $250 from memory. Have also added LPG and a Redarc isolator to charge the van battery whilst travelling. Fuel economy for the Rockhampton trip averaged 18.5l/100k, mostly cruising at 95-100k for the whole. I do tow on LPG and even though it's not the new injection system there's still plenty of power. I do tend to use petrol in town and in hilly terrain. Having the LPG gives me extra range and cheap running around town. As has been mentioned the wagon is the best bet due to the leaf springs but I did go for the Futura - just that bit nicer. Ours was ex govt 18 months old and cost less than $20k, with only 30,000k on the clock. It's now over 100,000k and I've only needed to do tyres and a battery, just normal stuff. It does sit a little low in the back and I'm thinking of adding aurbags - approx $500.
In all it's been great and we are even considering going up the centre next year, including the Oodnadatte track.

Hope this helps you out.