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I'm getting my lisence in a month and im going to be buying 5x10 landscape trailer to tow with the Ford explorer. The explorer has a tow package and the truck has tremendous power for towing. It has the 303 5.0 mustang engine. Anyway the trailer fully loaded will weigh no more than 2800 pounds. The hitch can handle up to 5000 so I should be fine. My question is: is this common or possible to do with this explorer? I never seen landscapers use an explorer for their buisness. The weight of the trailer is nothing for the truck and its basically an f-150 without the bed. I don't want a pickup cuz I wanna b able to fit 5 people in the truck when I do lawns .

i don't see why you couldn't use it i have seen these guys pulling there trailers with cars or even have the lawn equipment in the trunk theres no law saying you have to have a truck i have seen them use vans even so you should be in good shape good luck with your venture

Ok good thanks

boston said:

I'm getting my license in a month and i'm going to be buying 5x10 landscape trailer to tow with the Ford explorer. The explorer has a tow package and the truck has tremendous power for towing. It has the 303 5.0 mustang engine. Anyway the trailer fully loaded will weigh no more than 2800 pounds. The hitch can handle up to 5000 so I should be fine. My question is: is this common or possible to do with this explorer? I never seen landscapers use an explorer for their business. The weight of the trailer is nothing for the truck and its basically an f-150 without the bed. I don't want a pickup cuz I wanna b able to fit 5 people in the truck when I do lawns .

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You should be fine with the explorer power wize:laughing:. I would just load everything on the trailer and pull it a little while and make sure the springs and shocks can handle it:wink:. With everything loaded the trailer and explorer should be level with each other:thumbsup:. Not dipping at the bumper and trailer tongue:ashamed:. Hope this helped some.

Do u think I should get a weight distributing hitch? The underside of the truck is very rusty so I might have to replace the shocks. I know for sure the leaf springs need to be replaced cuz their rusting out

Some lawn care business owners have little cars, so it's not like EVERYONE has trucks, but trucks are good so you can store equipment and grass clippings or mulch in the back. But the people who use cars have trailers (small ones) that don't weigh as much as yours.

I use a mercury mountaineer with air shocks.

And the 5.0 is not a mustang engine it is a truck engine has More hp and more torque.

Yes the mustang has a 5.0 but it is not the same.

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boston said:

I'm getting my lisence in a month and im going to be buying 5x10 landscape trailer to tow with the Ford explorer. The explorer has a tow package and the truck has tremendous power for towing. It has the 303 5.0 mustang engine. Anyway the trailer fully loaded will weigh no more than 2800 pounds. The hitch can handle up to 5000 so I should be fine. My question is: is this common or possible to do with this explorer? I never seen landscapers use an explorer for their buisness. The weight of the trailer is nothing for the truck and its basically an f-150 without the bed. I don't want a pickup cuz I wanna b able to fit 5 people in the truck when I do lawns .

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You should be fine using an explorer. The only problem I can think of is that you wont have anywhere to dump the grass clippings or leaves in the fall. If you needed to transport mulch you could always use the trailer or just have it delivered.

D2hornets58 said:

You should be fine using an explorer. The only problem I can think of is that you wont have anywhere to dump the grass clippings or leaves in the fall. If you needed to transport mulch you could always use the trailer or just have it delivered.

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Yeah, that is the only problem I see. You could purchase a bigger trailer than you actually need so you have extra room for the grass/leaves, or just more room for more equipment later.

A bigger trailer will work fine a pull a 8x15 and have had over 10.000 pounds on it.

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And should I get A tranny cooler? The transmission went bad under 150,000 miles and it was completely rebuilt under a year ago. So it basically has a new tranny. Should I get better shocks?

If it has a tow package the cooler should be on it.

Dang, when I saw the title of this thread I thought you were going to use the Explorer to mow the yard. :laughing:

mullins87 said:

Dang, when I saw the title of this thread I thought you were going to use the Explorer to mow the yard. :laughing:

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I know...at first glance I thought the same thing!! :laughing::laughing:

boston said:

And should I get A tranny cooler? The transmission went bad under 150,000 miles and it was completely rebuilt under a year ago. So it basically has a new tranny. Should I get better shocks?

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It should have came with one. You need to install one. And I use air shocks on the back and heavy duty on the front. And I run Goodyear tires with 40psi

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I had visions of a 72" or 84" belly mower or a 3 point hitch finishing mower. I can see it now.....mowing in 100 degree heat with the A/C on or mulching leaves in the fall with a little heat going.

Oh great, now I have all these ideas running through my head...... A Suzuki Sidekick or Geo Tracker as the base. Drive everything hydraulically, including the rear axle. Use a 6' belly mower and two 5' bat wing decks. I guess it's a good thing my project budget is next to non-existant, and what little I do have is tied up in a golf cart project right now.

But I digress and return this thread to its original topic. :thumbsup:

mullins87 said:

I had visions of a 72" or 84" belly mower or a 3 point hitch finishing mower. I can see it now.....mowing in 100 degree heat with the A/C on or mulching leaves in the fall with a little heat going.

Oh great, now I have all these ideas running through my head...... A Suzuki Sidekick or Geo Tracker as the base. Drive everything hydraulically, including the rear axle. Use a 6' belly mower and two 5' bat wing decks. I guess it's a good thing my project budget is next to non-existant, and what little I do have is tied up in a golf cart project right now.

But I digress and return this thread to its original topic. :thumbsup:

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:laughing::laughing: Oh...what we could do if we had an unlimited amount of money, time, and knowledge! :laughing::laughing:

I wasn't sure if it had the cooler I guess it does. I think ill install a tranny temp gauge so I don't over heat it

boston said:

Do u think I should get a weight distributing hitch? The underside of the truck is very rusty so I might have to replace the shocks. I know for sure the leaf springs need to be replaced cuz their rusting out

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boston said:

And should I get A tranny cooler? The transmission went bad under 150,000 miles and it was completely rebuilt under a year ago. So it basically has a new tranny. Should I get better shocks?

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boston said:

I wasn't sure if it had the cooler I guess it does. I think ill install a tranny temp gauge so I don't over heat it

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No on the hitch. Replace the shocks and springs. If it is a automatic it already has a trans cooler built in to the radiator, and the gauge will help if you watch it.

An explorer is not an f150 w/o the bed... it is a ranger w/o the bed. F150 and expeditions I believe are on the same frame. less than 3000 pounds does not sound like alot to pull until you need to stop! Make sure your brakes and tires are in good shape. Also make sure you practice with the trailer. If you are just now getting your license, everything takes longer with a trailer, from crossing intersections to entering the highway onramp. Take care and good luck.

txzrider said:

An explorer is not an f150 w/o the bed... it is a ranger w/o the bed. F150 and expeditions I believe are on the same frame. less than 3000 pounds does not sound like alot to pull until you need to stop! Make sure your brakes and tires are in good shape. Also make sure you practice with the trailer. If you are just now getting your license, everything takes longer with a trailer, from crossing intersections to entering the highway onramp. Take care and good luck.

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Not sure where you got your info It is a f150 If it was a ranger it would be a lot smaller hello.
All the suspension parts are the same part numbers as the f150 the rear end , engine , and tranny are the same.

You do know that a ranger is a small truck

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Ok thanks. Ford rangers only come in v6 though. Explorers were available in 6 or 8.

txzrider said:

An explorer is not an f150 w/o the bed... it is a ranger w/o the bed. F150 and expeditions I believe are on the same frame. less than 3000 pounds does not sound like alot to pull until you need to stop! Make sure your brakes and tires are in good shape. Also make sure you practice with the trailer. If you are just now getting your license, everything takes longer with a trailer, from crossing intersections to entering the highway onramp. Take care and good luck.

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Carscw said:

Not sure where you got your info It is a f150 If it was a ranger it would be a lot smaller hello.
All the suspension parts are the same part numbers as the f150 the rear end , engine , and tranny are the same.

You do know that a ranger is a small truck

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txzrider is right, An Explorer is not an f150 w/o the bed... it is a Ranger w/o the bed. The F150 and Expeditions have same frame, has been for as long as forever. They use the same Ranger frame for there Mercury Mountaineer.
If the Explorer has a trailer tow package it already has the cooler and larger suspension and will pull anything you will want to pull especially with the 5.0. They also used the 5.0 high output engine in the original mustangs which at the time 1965 were 289 cu.in.

Yea ur right. In 1998 there was an option for the v6 and v8. The v8 automatically came with more heavy duty truck suspension and truck -like frame. It was also ready to tow. The explorers made after 2001 I think, they started putting a smaller v8 which was a 4.6 L in all the explorers but the 6 stayed at 4.0 L. I like the 5.0 302 the best, it has the best sound and performance that was every in an explorer. My explorer only has 150,000 miles and I could definitely put at least another 150,000 on it before major repairs

boston said:

Yea ur right. In 1998 there was an option for the v6 and v8. The v8 automatically came with more heavy duty truck suspension and truck -like frame. It was also ready to tow. The explorers made after 2001 I think, they started putting a smaller v8 which was a 4.6 L in all the explorers but the 6 stayed at 4.0 L. I like the 5.0 302 the best, it has the best sound and performance that was every in an explorer. My explorer only has 150,000 miles and I could definitely put at least another 150,000 on it before major repairs

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The thing that I here most often is all the talk about what's needed to pull a Lawn care package around and for most part it's ridiculous. They told me on some other boards that my F-150 with the 5.4 Triton and trailer tow package wasn't sufficient for my business which is ridiculous.

That Explorer will do everything you want to do and more. Heck there was a guy on here that is using a Mini Cooper to pull his, I think 12ft trailer and equipment for his small business. I used a Ford Escape with a 4 cylinder when I first started and pulled a 10ft trailer and never had a problem with it.

You just have to remember that a lot of the bigger business owners and others will feed you a lot of trash and it's all meant to discourage the new guy or small business owner IMO and is BS.

Yea I heard a lotta the bs people are saying about it. Ur 100% right

All I did is gave him good advice. That applies to anyone pulling a trailer that is.

boston said:

Do u think I should get a weight distributing hitch? The underside of the truck is very rusty so I might have to replace the shocks. I know for sure the leaf springs need to be replaced cuz their rusting out

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Sounds to me like your Ford explorer is a rusted out junk. If the SUV's springs are so rusty that they are no good I would sure be looking at the frame which you said underside was rusty. I don't know the laws in NJ but in NY it sounds like it wouldn't pass inspection in NY.

It's mostly surface rust but the shocks could probably be replaced. It always passes inspection. The small parts that are really rusty can be replaced but I know I can tow cuz I've towed in the past with it. The only thing I'm changing on it is I'm adding the frame mount hitch cuz the bumper hitch can't handle as much.

boston said:

Do u think I should get a weight distributing hitch? The underside of the truck is very rusty so I might have to replace the shocks. I know for sure the leaf springs need to be replaced cuz their rusting out

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Did I read this wrong? underside very rusty and springs rusting out. You know what you have I don't , so just be careful what you are putting a hitch on to pull a trailer.

I been pulling with my bumper hitch for 12 years now. But the mountaineer is a class up from the explorer.
I run air shocks on the back Just don't put the rear end up to much higher than the front or you will wear the ball joints out fast.

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I pick-up and deliver all my repair jobs with a Toyota camry and trailer. The heavy lawn tractors I put most of the weight over the trailer axle and most of the lawn mowers don't weight much. The biggest problem I have with this outfit is loading a heavy lawn tractor that won't run.

It's not as bad as it sounds but I will be replacing shocks and leaf spring shackles and anything else that needs to b replaced

The mountaineer is the same exact truck but it might have more interior features. The engine and transmission are the same

boston said:

The mountaineer is the same exact truck but it might have more interior features. The engine and transmission are the same

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You might want to check your facts a little bit.
The mountaineer has the up graded suspension
Does not have leaf springs.
Has the heavy duty rear end.
Has a larger drive shaft.
Rear disk brakes.
Bigger sway bars front and back.

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Both the Mountaineer and Explorer are mid-size sport utility vehicles (SUV) the mountaineer was sold by the Mercury division of Ford Motors, from 1997 until 2010. Sharing many of its features with the Explorer, the vehicles were virtually identical, in terms of hardware. Externally, they were styled somewhat different, and the Mountaineer was positioned with a more upscale interior, which made the Mountaineer's list price somewhat more expensive than the Explorer. Different packages were available on both (SUV) models. The wife owned the Mountaineer for five years, (white with gray interior with the 302) I questioned a reliable Ford mechanic at the time about the frames and were told they were both on the same frame as the Ford Ranger.

Ric said:

Both the Mountaineer and Explorer are mid-size sport utility vehicles (SUV) the mountaineer was sold by the Mercury division of Ford Motors, from 1997 until 2010. Sharing many of its features with the Explorer, the vehicles were virtually identical, in terms of hardware. Externally, they were styled somewhat different, and the Mountaineer was positioned with a more upscale interior, which made the Mountaineer's list price somewhat more expensive than the Explorer. Different packages were available on both (SUV) models. The wife owned the Mountaineer for five years, (white with gray interior with the 302) I questioned a reliable Ford mechanic at the time about the frames and were told they were both on the same frame as the Ford Ranger.

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I am glad you could clear this up for us.
I knew if anyone would know it would be you.

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I have disc brakes all around and heavy duty gas shocks

And I see more older explorers not many mountaineerS