Ford F150 Towing Capacity of bumper hitch

canon1a

I have a 1996 F150 4X4 LB SC with a 5.8 L. I need to know what the rear bumper hitch is rated at. I need to tow about 3500 lbs. I have no idea what the hitch weight will be. I'd add a CAT III hitch, but I'd have to reroute the exhaust system to do that.

kit1404

Put a receiver hitch on your truck and then use it like a truck. Frankly from what I have seen on my Ford trucks, would not trust the rear bumper for anything close to 3,500 lbs actual tow weight. The bumper is frame-mounted, sort of and probably is rated to maybe haul that much. But, what if it doesn't - liability suits are not worth the cost of a $150 hitch.

wpalkowski

I have a '95 5.0L, SC, LB 4x2, with a dealer installed Cat III hitch on it so I normally don't worry about bumper hitch. I was washing truck over weekend however, and remember casually reading the capacities stamped into the plate that the bumper hitch mounts to. I don't have truck with me today, but if memory serves it said something to effect of: Do Not exceed 250 lbs. tongue weight and 3000 lbs trailer weight. I'll check it tonight and will post back if my memory was wrong.
Think you'd be better off with Cat 3 Hitch. It's easier to change the ball for different diameter hitches. Also with added height of your 4x4 you may need to use a receiver with a drop in it to line things up a little easier.

wpalkowski

Boy was I surprised. Cleaned off the bumper hitch mounting plate a bit better. It states "Do not exceed tongue weight of 600 Lbs, and trailer weight of 8000 lbs. Making sure that you do not exceed GVW*R of combined vehicle and trailer." Not sure I'd feel very comfortable towing 8000 lbs on that bumper hitch. I've pulled a 7200 lb trailer with my class III hitch and the combination sometimes feels a bit twitchy sometimes (especially downhill with cross winds).