My new Tow Vehicle

[chartle]

Verna Just buy yourself a new ball mount and the appropriate ball . Most all 1 1/4" class 2 hitches are rated at 3500 pound. That's God a plenty for what we are towing. Level your trailer and measure into the ball cup
( most are set at 17" ) then buy the ball mount that will get the top of the ball to that height.
If you can't hit the height exact a tiny bit nose down is better than nose up.

U haul is a great place to get what you need at a good price should be around $35.00 +/- mount and ball

P.S. congratz on the new tow.

Yea but this doesn't help you if you have maybe a 2" cargo shelf, a 2" bike rack or any other 2" accessory.

I just replaced a bike rack and got a 2" knowing that the next vehicle would have a true tow package but I expected a 2" hitch on any of those vehicles.

I guess Ford it thinking if they only give you a 1 1/4" that aren't going to try to hook up a 35' airstream. (I have no idea how much one of those weighs so don't yell at me if its wrong )

[chartle]

Verna Just buy yourself a new ball mount and the appropriate ball . Most all 1 1/4" class 2 hitches are rated at 3500 pound. That's God a plenty for what we are towing. Level your trailer and measure into the ball cup
( most are set at 17" ) then buy the ball mount that will get the top of the ball to that height.
If you can't hit the height exact a tiny bit nose down is better than nose up.

U haul is a great place to get what you need at a good price should be around $35.00 +/- mount and ball

P.S. congratz on the new tow.

Bob, I have other accessories that go into the 2" receiver. A cargo carrier and a bike rack. Yes, the $35 sounds good, but I think I'll call around and price the 2" receiver. Thanks for the advice.

How handy are you? Putting on a new hitch is not that hard they even have a video that shows you exactly whats involved. I've done two an didn't even have the right tools.

http://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Hitch/F ... 2012303097

http://www.etrailer.com/tv-install-trai ... 87585.aspx

[Verna]

How handy are you? Putting on a new hitch is not that hard they even have a video that shows you exactly whats involved. I've done two an didn't even have the right tools.

http://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Hitch/F ... 2012303097

http://www.etrailer.com/tv-install-trai ... 87585.aspx

I'm handy, but not very good with vehicles. After looking at your links, I may have to look closer at doing this myself. If not, I do have a mechanic for a neighbor who helps me with vehicles.

Thanks for making me think about doing this myself. I think it cost over $350 to have the hitch put on the Canyon 8 years ago (it didn't have one from the factory). Saving some $$$ would be worth it!!!!

We'll see...

[wagondude]

You don't want to use an adapter. It will reduce your tongue wieght rating by half. Always use the proper ball mount for the hitch. Adapters are alright for bike racks and such, but not for towing. Sounds like you have made the choice to upgrade the hitch. I saw an Explorer that had a dual hitch setup. The factory 1 1/4 hitch with an athermarket 2" mounted below. Not sure haw all that was mounted up.Congrats on the new TV.

Bill

[chartle]

How handy are you? Putting on a new hitch is not that hard they even have a video that shows you exactly whats involved. I've done two an didn't even have the right tools.

http://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Hitch/F ... 2012303097

http://www.etrailer.com/tv-install-trai ... 87585.aspx

I'm handy, but not very good with vehicles. After looking at your links, I may have to look closer at doing this myself. If not, I do have a mechanic for a neighbor who helps me with vehicles.

Thanks for making me think about doing this myself. I think it cost over $350 to have the hitch put on the Canyon 8 years ago (it didn't have one from the factory). Saving some $$$ would be worth it!!!!

We'll see...

Don't think about "working on a car" its just a bracket that you have to bolt to some metal. Now doing the wiring could be an issue but they actually have plug in kits that require no splicing. But of course thats already taken care of.

[MarineSTC]

May I introduce my new Tow Vehicle. A 2012 Ford Escape Limited, 6 cyl, 4WD, with a towing capacity of 3,500 lbs.



I like it!!! It has the most options that I've ever had on a vehicle, and I'm loving it!!! I had a 45 min lesson today on how to use the Sync system. Yeah, I need a lot of practice on that one. I'm loving the handsfree use of the cell phone. That is great!!!

So, come on some warmer weather!!! I wanna go camping!!!

Oh yeah, for those in the know, the Escape comes with an 1 1/4" receiver. All of my accessories need a 2" receiver. What do I do--just take it to a hitch place and have the 1 1/4" replaced with a 2"? Or use an adapter (if there is such a thing)? Thanks for your help on this question.

The 2004 GMC Canyon 4WD had 166,578 miles when I traded it in yesterday. Part of the transmission was going out, and a lot of things had been going wrong with it lately. I was beginning to feel it was getting undependable, and I need a dependable vehicle. I'll miss the Canyon after keeping her for 8 years, but I'm really liking this Escape!!!!

Nice, Looking at buying the same thing this weekend if everything works out right. The one I am looking at is a 4 banger 2 wheel drive, same color though.

[chartle]

You don't want to use an adapter. It will reduce your tongue wieght rating by half. Always use the proper ball mount for the hitch. Adapters are alright for bike racks and such, but not for towing. Sounds like you have made the choice to upgrade the hitch. I saw an Explorer that had a dual hitch setup. The factory 1 1/4 hitch with an athermarket 2" mounted below. Not sure haw all that was mounted up.Congrats on the new TV.

Bill

Forgot reading that on the warning label for the adapter.

[Verna]

Wagondude and Chartle:

Thanks for the info on the lessened towing capacity for the adapter. I'm glad I had already made up my mind that I was going to have the 2" receiver installed. With the TTT weighing 1,500 lbs unloaded, I can't take the risk of the adapter failing.

MarineSTC:

You'll love this color. It's been raining ever since I got the Escape. From a distance, you can't tell it's dirty. And that metallic just makes that Steel Blue such a beautiful deep color. I think the salesman is still in awe that I picked out the exact color, model and vehicle on the Internet and stuck with it. I doubt that happens very often in their business.

Thanks for the advice, guys.

[chartle]

I'm guessing the 1-1/4 is part of the factory tow package.

Does the tow package on the new Escapes come with the engine oil cooler?

The towing capacity on the older Escapes was significantly lower without it (2000 lbs vs. 3500 lbs).

Well the package price is a MSRP of $390 or so which I'm 99% sure is just the 1 1/4 hitch and the wiring harness.

The Escape towing webpage does say it has trailer sway control, I wonder if its standard as part of any stabilization control that most SUV type vehicles mostly have anyway.

[TJinPgh]

The model we have is a 2004 so it's a different vehicle than yours. But, in those models, the tow package included an engine oil cooler that connected between the oil filter and the engine block with lines running up to a small radiator either in front of or behind the regular radiator. It was required to get the maximum towing capacity so you couldn't simply add a hitch to the regular 6cyl escape and get that 3000+ lb capacity.

Not sure whether the 2012 package includes it or not but, in looking at Ford's web page, the $400 package you purchased does bring the capacity up to 3500 lbs so regardless of what it includes beyond the hitch you're good to go.

Our 04 Escape didn't have the tow package installed so the tow capacity was only about 2000 lbs. Ours is also FWD, not 4WD. I purchased an after market oil cooler and installed it myself. Unfortunately, the seal between it and the engine block failed and spewed oil out all over the interstate and left us stranded for about a day.

It was a failure of the aftermarket cooler, not the Escape. We've had it for a little over a year and have had absolutely no complaints with it. Awesome little crossover that gets decent mpg for it's size.

Out of curiosity, does yours have the autopark feature?

[Verna]

Out of curiosity, does yours have the autopark feature?

I'm chuckling here, because I would have taken the autopark feature if it was on there, but not a deal killer No, it doesn't have the autopark. I would have liked to try it, but I'm not too sure about a "feature" parallel parking for me!!! I actually do a lot of parallel parking in my part-time job, so sometimes it would have come in handy.

My father wouldn't let we four "kids" get our driver's licenses until we could parallel park in his choice of spots, drive a stick shift, stop and shut off a stick shift car on a hill and start it again and take off without killing the engine, check and change the oil and change a tire--yeah, Daddy liked his 3 daughters and one son to be prepared.

I do like the SYNC system on the Escape, although I'm sure not an expert on it yet. Don't ask me too many questions about it, yet, because I need more practice. I like all of the handsfree features, which includes verbal map directions if I need them.

Thanks for the clarification on the towing package. I'm not a mechanic and I wouldn't be able to tell the difference between an oil cooler and an oil reservoir

[MarineSTC]

I bought one today. Got the same color as yours and ended up going with the V6 but got the XLT model. So now I got a new tow vehicle to go pick up my new teardrop when I get home. Just wish march 10th would hurry up and get here.

[Verna]

I bought one today. Got the same color as yours and ended up going with the V6 but got the XLT model. So now I got a new tow vehicle to go pick up my new teardrop when I get home. Just wish march 10th would hurry up and get here.

CONGRATS!!!!! Isn't that Steel Blue Metallic a beautiful color??? There's nothing wrong with the XLT model. It's the same size, same engine, same 1 1/4" receiver, many of the same options. You know you'll have a safe tow vehicle when you get the TD home. Good Luck!!!

Now, out of curiousity.....the "Marine" part of your name....are you a Marine? Just curious....Daddy is one of The Chosin Few. He'll be 82 years old in April.

[MarineSTC]

I bought one today. Got the same color as yours and ended up going with the V6 but got the XLT model. So now I got a new tow vehicle to go pick up my new teardrop when I get home. Just wish march 10th would hurry up and get here.

CONGRATS!!!!! Isn't that Steel Blue Metallic a beautiful color??? There's nothing wrong with the XLT model. It's the same size, same engine, same 1 1/4" receiver, many of the same options. You know you'll have a safe tow vehicle when you get the TD home. Good Luck!!!

Now, out of curiousity.....the "Marine" part of your name....are you a Marine? Just curious....Daddy is one of The Chosin Few. He'll be 82 years old in April.

I served in Marine Corp from May of 98 to 2002. The best part about the Escape for me is I traded in my gas guzzling F250. If you consider the money I am saving in the payment + what I will save in gas a month, I will have around an extra 500 in my account at the end of the month if not more. That F250 was costing me nearly a grand a month between the note and the gas I was feeding it, 35 gallon tank and would make it about 280-290 miles before I was back at the pumps again with it.

I have to take it back to the dealership next week when all my extra's come in to get them installed. I added the hitch, vent visors, moon roof visor, bug shield, all weather floor matts, rubber protective matt for the cargo area, and the remote engine start kit.

Here are a few pictures of mine.









And the new Teardrop that will be behind it.

[chartle]

I have to take it back to the dealership next week when all my extra's come in to get them installed. I added the hitch, vent visors, moon roof visor, bug shield, all weather floor matts, rubber protective matt for the cargo area, and the remote engine start kit.

So is the Tow Package just the hitch and the wiring kit or do they install anything else?

If its just those two I would probably do it myself. Particularly since its only a 1 1/4" hitch.