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Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Yahoo Message Number: 96633
I am reading the Ford Service Bulletin regarding towing these two models. It states that the Escape with "an automatic 6F35 transmission and built on or after 2/27/2012, cannot be flat towed" or transmission damage may occur. The "Fusion vehicles equipped with an automatic 6F35 transmission and built on or after 3/30/2012, cannot be flat towed" or transmission damage may occur. My research showed that there were numerous complaints that transmissions did fail and that using this bulletin Ford refused to pay for the repairs. I think I remember reading some comments that reducing the amount of transmission fluid did work for some owners, but I don't know if you can trust this method or not.

I found out that my 2012 Fusion was actually built on 12/212011. If I am interpreting the bulletin correctly, I can safely tow my car. My question is why? What occurred in the manufacturing of the 6F35 transmission in February of 2012 that changed the ability to tow the vehicles?

I hope this will help owners of Ford Escapes and Fusions.

Gene Merryman

2006 Intrigue Ovation II

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #1 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96642
Gene,

We tow a 2012 Ford Explorer 2WD with no problems. We have towed it for almost 20k miles now. Our owners manual states that we CAN tow this vehicle four wheels down. We run the car for about five minutes for every four hours we tow it. This is per the owners manual. I did have to add a charging circuit from my coach to the toad battery as it was discharging the battery during extended tows.
Hope this helps!
RJ

2005 Inspire #51264

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #2 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96644
Nothing happened on that date. IF you read my previous posts I gave the history. After failures on cars towed by rear radiator coached they came out wth w TSB to reduce the trans fluid level, as the exhaust heat was causing the fluid to expand and foam, hence the TSB, That helped but they still had warranty costs, so the no tow TSB. It applies to all of the 6F35 transmissions. That is why I warn folks, since most Owners Manuals never got updated.
However the Fusion Hybrid is towable. I have one and really like it. The 40mpg does not hurt either.

Mikee

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96667
There is no mechanical reason the Escapes can't be towed. I've been towing a 2011 Escape for 3 yrs, about 10k mi, with no problem. But I follow the TSB to the letter, which has 2 parts; the trans fluid level AND not going over 65 mph ever. Ford had to rescind the towing of Escapes cuz they couldn't prove drivers were towing them too fast. It was too expensive to buy tranmissions for people who thought they were smarter than the Ford engineers. Brian, Allure, 30507

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96673
I agree with you Brian. The real problem is the 6F35 transmission and not the date the automobile was built. IF you read my information I was quoting the bulletin to show that Ford was for some reason confusing the issue by putting in the dates, as if that mattered.
Obviously the dates don't matter and all of the vehicles are at risk.
You have to do what you are doing as to having the amount of transmission fluid reduced and staying below 65 mph. The purpose of this discussion is to let CC owners who have the Fusions or Escapes know that if they purchased one of these vehicles with the idea of towing them (as I did), we can tow them but must take the required precautions..

I was afraid I was going to have to trade it for something I could tow. I love the 35+ mph my Fusion gets on the highway and it will be nice to use it to do all the exploring we like to do.

Gene

2006 Intrigue

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #5 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96675
First this applies only to the Non Hybrids.
The reason Ford rescinded their authorization for towing is due to rear radiator coaches. The rear rear radiator coaches push a lot of heat back to the hood area of the Fusion. This causes the transmission fluid to get hot and expand. Their first TSB wanted the transmission fluid level reduced to prevent it from expanding and getting in the gear train flow and foaming the oil, which was causing transmission failures. Then at a later date they rescinded the towing approval totally. The Dates are not relevant to tow or no tow.
Ford also did not update the Salespersons Reference Books. The TSB for no towing was not publicized, the only way a Dealership would know is if they went to look for the towing TSB only to find it replaced with the no tow TSB.

Mikee

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #6 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96679
From personal experience, I would not tow any Ford product with an automatic transmission, regardless of what is said in the cars owners manual.

I had a 2010 Mariner/Escape (great little car) and I went through 2 transmissions. I thoughly researched the car before I bought it and followed all the proceedures in the owners manual. While the owners manual said to lower the transmission fluid, that created other transmission issues when the vehicile wasn't being towed. The transmission failure is a result of a non-metal component in the transmission melting because it gets to hot. Heat is the problem. I was towing it behind a 02 CC Allure and I'm a 60-62 mph 'er.

The second transmission started having problems when I towed the car from the Ford dealer after they replaced the first transmission.

Got rid of the car and got a Jeep. No more towing issues!

Last year went looking for a vehicle with a better highway ride than a Wrangler. I check out manufacturer after manufacturer.

Even went back to Ford and had a extended conversation with a long time Ford salesman (has sold Fords for 20 years in our small town). His statement was "Ford really doesn't make a vehicle suitable for towing 4 wheels down behind a motorhome." We then went on and discussed each and every line of vehicle and he explained why I didn't want to tow it as I specifically wanted a all wheel / 4 wheel drive capability.

I ended up buying 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland. Shift into neutral, push a button, shift into park, push the ignition button to off. Transmission is disengaged, all the electrical in the car is turned off so the battery won't drain, steering is unlocked, and you can even lock the car. Chrysler got it right. Have towed the car about 5000 miles with no issues.

One other nice thing with the Overland model was the easy installation for the tow bar. Remove the tow hooks and the Roadmaster mounts fit right in where the tow hooks came off. No body work modifications.

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #7 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96681
I had a 2006 Ford Explorer Eddy Bower that I towed behind my CC Allure for 7 years with no problems at all. Ford installs a drive shaft disconnect automatically at the factory and all you have to do is order a $120 part from the Ford Dealer and have someone install it. This part just wires up to the drive shaft disconnect and has a light mounted below the dash that flashes for 8 to 10 seconds when you have you foot on the brake and push the all wheel drive button at the same time and you here a click and you are ready to go, no problem. To get the drive shaft back to normal you just start the car and put it into drive and it is done. A piece of cake! I would not hesitate to tow an Explorer again. The Expedition is another story, you CANNOT toe it 4 wheels down.

I have since sold the Ford and bought a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit and had a Blu Ox tow bar installed. This car is a s easy as the Ford to get ready to tow.

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #8 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96682
How do you like the Jeep GC Summit? I just replaced my Hummer 2006. Went with Roadmaster. Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPhone From:

miscj@... [Country-Coach-Owners] ; To:
;

Subject:

Re: [Country-Coach-Owners] Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape Sent:

Tue, Jul 29, 2014 11:02:27 PM

I had a 2006 Ford Explorer Eddy Bower that I towed behind my CC Allure for 7 years with no problems at all. Ford installs a drive shaft disconnect automatically at the factory and all you have to do is order a $120 part from the Ford Dealer and have someone install it. This part just wires up to the drive shaft disconnect and has a light mounted below the dash that flashes for 8 to 10 seconds when you have you foot on the brake and push the all wheel drive button at the same time and you here a click and you are ready to go, no problem. To get the drive shaft back to normal you just start the car and put it into drive and it is done. A piece of cake! I would not hesitate to tow an Explorer again. The Expedition is another story, you CANNOT toe it 4 wheels down.I have since sold the Ford and bought a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit and had a Blu Ox tow bar installed. This car is a s easy as the Ford to get ready to tow.

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #9 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96689
Wow! That is cool. Is this an actual device that disconnects the shaft from the diff like a Remco?

Rich 2002 Magna

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #10 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96690
Yes, at least on my 2006 Explorer Eddy Bauer. I was told by the dealer here that it was standard at that time. Don't know if it has changed.

Jim

2002 Allure 30745

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #13 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96694
I hope Ford eventually comes up with better Toad vehicles. I was a Ford guy exclusively for more than 20 years. I had a 2005 Lincoln Aviator which I really liked but you cannot tow it 4 wheels down so I scouted around for what to get. Obviously Jeep is a prime consideration. But it is tough to find a V8 jeep and we wanted a big V8 for towing our boat as well... and Chevy had the answer. We bought a lightly used 2009 Suburban LTZ with the auto 4WD hi/lo a couple years ago and it makes a great toad. No need to leave the key in the ignition, no problems with batteries... never need to stop and run it or limit the speed, though I try to keep my coach below 60. With AirForce One installed it just takes a few seconds to set the transmission to free wheeling and have it ready to hook up. My wife always does that while I connect the Roadmaster tow bar. The Burb also makes a nice toad because it can carry so much extra gear in that cavernous cargo area. And the ride and driveability of the LTZ is unparalleled. Yeah, I wouldn't trade my Suburban for anything.

Joseph Burkle

2010 Tiffin Allegro Bus 43QRP

43' quad slide tag axle ISL 425 HP pusher formerly:

2008 Country Coach Inspire 360 Founders Edition
www.windseeker.com

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #14 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96695
Hi Walt,

Not sure from what has been said ? But, if you in fact have a Ford Explorer 4WD or Ranger 4WD you can have a Ford Dealer install a Ford Electric Neutral Disconnect Tow Switch in the drivers compartment. You should already have the solenoid in the transmission, they are built in.
It is very simple to install and use. It is listed on the last page of the Ford RV and Towing Literature that you can find in the Showroom. If you need it, I can get the actual Ford P/N for you. Parts are about $40.00 and less that 1 Hour Labor to install. Just let me know. I have used them for years on both Explorer's and Ranger's as well as many others I know andNEVER heard of a problem. IMO forget the Remco stuff, at least on 4WD Ford's

Chris

03 Magna #6962

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #16 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96697
It now depends on the transmission and transfer case. Some Ford 4WD AWD can NO longer be towed. IT all depends on the drive train. Be sure you verify what you are looking at can be towed, including any new TSBs.

Mikee

Re: Towing a Ford Fusion and Escape

Reply #17 –
Yahoo Message Number: 96698
Yes I do agree with that. However if you take it to a Dealer I am sure they will verify that it will be compatible with your Transmission. If it is not compatible, it will not even have the neutral solenoid switch to connect to. But to my best information and my be totally wrong, but any problem that there may be towing applies to AWD and I was addressing 4WD. Never knew there was an AWD Explorer or Ranger.
IMO one should go right to the Service Department and generate a RO and see what they say or have it as a Dealer added option on delivery.

Chris

03 Magna #6269