Towing With A Ranger

I am still looking for an IMCA Sport Compact race car and the most likely place I am going to find an already built one is far away. I am in AZ and most of the IMCA Sport Compacts are in the Midwest-ish area. So I’m looking at a possible 3000 mile round trip. I have no problem with that, but how would my Ranger handle it.

My Ranger is a 1996, 2.3, 5-speed with 210k miles on it. The miles sound like a lot but the truck looks and runs like it has less than half of that. It was babied by the original owner (w/records to prove it).

Given that my primary concern would be whether the 2.3 could pull the car and trailer up any hills I would encounter. I figure the car would weigh roughly 2000 lbs (hopefully less) and add another 2-300 lbs in parts. I’m not sure what I will be doing re a trailer but my Carson California Car Hauler supposedly weights 1600 lbs. So I’ll have about 4k lbs to haul up hills.

My route home would most likely be via I40. There is one long pull I can think of headed west out of Albuquerque. I believe from Alb east to the Mississippi River is fairly flat in most directions.

So my question is, has anyone pulled a similar load with a similar Ranger?

Thank you for your input.

How comfortable are you doing 45 on the highway?

I had a then new 96 6 cyl. 3.0 and pulled a 20' utility 2 axle trailer with mowing stuff occasionally. Locally and didn't like it at all. I do not recommend it. 

Swap it for any V6 and you will be just fine.  Or go full 80's with a turbo 2.3.

Have you tried your proposed set up in AZ?  That will give you an good indicator of it's ability.

I had a 2005 ranger, 5 speed manual with the 2.3L Duratec (more powa  than yours, i think by a significant amount).  I towed ~1400 lbs with it to Glamis for 3-4 years before getting something bigger.  That was  2 400 lb atvs and a 600 lb trailer.  It did OK on the highway, but it was always 3rd or 4th gear at 65-70 mph.   I wouldn't want to tow more than 2000 lbs with mine on any long distance on the highway.  

my vote: not enough truck

Definitely not enough truck.

Beg, borrow, or steal a 1/2 ton and be far more comfortable and safer.

That would be the Pinto engine.  So figure 120 HP.  Figure 3000 lbs for the truck and 4000 for the trailer and car and gear and whatever.  At least.  That's 120 HP moving 7000 pounds.  A very un-aerodynamic 7000 pounds, I might add.  That's 60 pounds per HP.

I mean, a 70's W123 had 68 Horsepower and used it to move about 3200 pounds, which is about 50 lbs per HP.  But that was also more aerodynamic and had a flatter torque curve.  I think on the flats you'd be lucky to max out around 60 mph in 4th and up a 5% grade....who knows.  18 wheeler's might be passing you in the climbing lane.  If you had the automatic transmission it would overheat a few hundred miles into it.  With the manual trans you would probably make it back....slowly....and getting like 8 miles per gallon.  

I did once tow around 10,000 pounds behind a W250 16 valve Cummins, which was rated at 160 HP/ 400 lb ft, so about 16,000lbs total truck+ trailer.  Top end for that combo was about 65 on the flats...

Get a tow dolly instead of a trailer, much less weight to tow when your truck is a lightweight.  Put skinny tires on the back of the racecar.

Hasbro said:

I had a then new 96 6 cyl. 3.0 and pulled a 20' utility 2 axle trailer with mowing stuff occasionally. Locally and didn't like it at all. I do not recommend it. 

Forgot, I also had a new 91 2.3 and once towed a 20' trailer with a tractor on it. That was also local and I never attempted it again.

nimblemotorsports said:

Get a tow dolly instead of a trailer, much less weight to tow when your truck is a lightweight.  Put skinny tires on the back of the racecar.

If a race car looked like it is near street legal maybe - what I get probably won't look streetable. With only 2 wheels on the ground it still has to be street legal even on a dolly at least here in AZ.

Sooo, I'm detecting subtle hints that this is not a good idea. I'll move on to another idea. Thank you

In reply to L5wolvesf :

True, but who is going to cite you for that?  You might get pulled over because they want to check out the racecar if its cool looking.

If the car is small enough to fit into the back of a uhaul moving van, that might be the best option, fly in, rent one-way home.

Currently have a 94 Fordzda Branger. 4.0L 5 speed, 4x4.

The truck itself seems to do very well.  I tow a boat that totals around 3500 lbs on a single axle and its fantastic.... except that in 1994 the 4.0L only made 160hp/245tq.  It's slow and needs a lot of rowing the gears.

I have a 14 x 6 landcscape trailer and I can load it full to it's 3500 lb-gvwr and it seems to be fine.  I also have an 18' 7000-lb gvwr flatbed trailer that it tows sometimes.  I use it for lumber, couches, set pieces I build at the theater, etc.  As long as I keep it under 4000 lbs or so, it is fantastic.

I really want to try towing more with it.  If my truck were equipped differently (not 4x4, not 5-speed) it could be rated for up to 5500 lbs.  I think the truck and suspension would do well with 5500, but the clutch and the 160hp would be hurting.

Keep in mind as well... your 2.3L truck would likely have passenger tires and a much softer suspension.  I wouldn't tow more than 2000-2500 with it if its anything like my buddy's 2.3L Ranger.  Its squishy.

Floating Doc said:

How comfortable are you doing 45 on the highway?

Try 35.  My 4.0L sometimes can't maintain 55 with 3500 lbs behind it.

L5wolvesf said:

nimblemotorsports said:

Get a tow dolly instead of a trailer, much less weight to tow when your truck is a lightweight.  Put skinny tires on the back of the racecar.

If a race car looked like it is near street legal maybe - what I get probably won't look streetable. With only 2 wheels on the ground it still has to be street legal even on a dolly at least here in AZ.

That is true in most states.  If it's on the road, towed or not, it needs a registration.

I towed a 6x12 enclosed behind a 4.0 5sp manual 2wd '94 Ranger for a while when I was racing bikes.  It sucked... not enough truck, even for that load.

I wouldn't even think of trying to tow a car with a 2.3 Ranger across the country.

I ask out of complete ignorance - A lot of people have said towing with a ranger sucks. Some had said power is the problem, is that the only issue?  If memory serves me correctly, I believe later 4.0L rangers were rated to tow up to 5600lbs.

The '94 4.0 was rated at 3500, but I can tell you that's assuming level ground at sea level.  

In reply to Curtis :

Thats interesting, did not know that.  I've towed many dolly pulls that were not plated, driveable, etc. Never caught any heat.

L5wolvesf said:

Sooo, I'm detecting subtle hints that this is not a good idea. I'll move on to another idea. Thank you

I'd try it.  I towed an RX-7 on a steel bed twin axle trailer with inoperative trailer brakes behind a 4wd B4000 (basically the heaviest Ranger ever made) and it towed really well.  If I kept it over 65 it would pull hills without needing to downshift.  Probably the nicest tow rig I'd ever driven.  1/2 ton trucks just feel too floaty to be safe and SUVs are right out.

Really, power is an "option" when towing, power can write a check that the chassis can't cash.  The brakes and general setup are waaaay more important.  IIRC a 2.3 has the same brakes as a V6 so you're good there.  But yeah, with the 2.3, you'd wear out the carpet under the accelerator pedal.  But that's fine as long as your cooling system is okay.

I know someone who towed a Miata all over the country behind a Mazda5.  There's a member here who dragged his Miata across the country with a nonturbo Volvo 740.  And somewhere deep in the internet is a photo from the 70s of someone towing a Peugeot 504 rally car behind a 504 Diesel, with about 20 feet of Flexhaust attached to the tow car so that it didn't cover the rally car with soot as they towed it over the Cascades.

volvoclearinghouse said:

That would be the Pinto engine.  So figure 120 HP. 

Pedant nitpick:  It's the Lima engine.  The Pinto engine is a completely different engine.  Altogether.  It has smaller bore centers, smaller deck height, a different number of cam journals, and they never made them larger than 2000cc.  It was the basis for the YBB engine in the Cossies Sierra and Escort.

The Lima engine is a kind of big block version of the Pinto engine that only ever saw use in America, in various American rear drive Fords and XR4Tis.    And, just to be confusing, they also used it in the Pinto after 1974 or so.  So Pintos got Lima engines while Capris got Pinto engines.

I have towed a CJ2 on a single axle utility trailer with a 97 Nissan pickup, 2.4 liter 4cylinder. Top speed on flat Michigan interstate highways is about 73 mph after 5 minutes at full throttle. The hills on M-33 are taken at 35 to 40 mph in 3rd gear. I think you should do it with the understanding that it will take days of slow travel. You will get the chance to truly study the land that you pass through.

Braden

In reply to pilotbraden :

And develop a keen sense of topography.

In reply to Knurled. :

So, since they used it in the Pinto, would it not be correct to refer to it as, at least, "a Pinto engine", if not, "the Pinto engine"?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Pinto_engine

Ah, pedantry.  What were thee prior to the internet?

Non sequitor:  I saw a really clean Pinto wagon on the road the other day.  License plate:  "DANTE"

nimblemotorsports said:

In reply to L5wolvesf :

If the car is small enough to fit into the back of a uhaul moving van, that might be the best option, fly in, rent one-way home.

This is a very good idea I had not thought of. Per Uhaul's truck dimensions a Mitsu Eclipse should fit. So I checked it out -.Uhaul van from St Louis to Flagstaff (nearest bigger town) $1450 without cost of fuel. That is about half of what the car would cost. That is a budget crusher.

The fly part is always problematic on my end due to distance. Phoenix is 2 - 3 hours away and the 1 road to Phx has a tendency to become blocked, for hours, just when you are on a schedule. However, renting an econo box to drive to St Louis seemed fairly reasonable.