Towing with a Mercury Villager
njs...@my-deja.com
pull 3500lbs with a tow package. We own a 1998 Jayco Yosimite and it
weighs 2200 lbs. We have already had a transmission cooler put on and a
class 2 hitch. The camper has brakes on it also. Has anyone had any
experiences with this van? Do you think we should invest in an oil
cooler too?
njshome
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Ljordan016
This was our 1st camper and 1st minivan. Reason for buying it was same - 3500#
towing capcity and better price than the voyager/caravan (the new model just
came out that year). The van has served us well, tho a bit underpowered, and
with front wheel drive, towing has not always been pleasurable.especially with
hills. Our trailer did not come with brakes - dealer said they weren't
necessary (topic of another discussion), so that has had a lot to do with lack
of towing comfort level. Fortunately, we are in midwest and hills are few.
Won't think of going to mountains with this set up. We are planning on either
getting a Chevy Astro or full-sized van as well as a Coleman Nevada (kissed
Jayco loyalty goodbye several years ago - topic of another discussion). As for
trans cooler - DO GET ONE. Relatively inexpensive and good insurance.
Good luck.
Allen
njs...@my-deja.com
cooler. Sorry to hear you had problems with Jayco. This is our 2nd
one but this time we bought new instead of used, alot less hassle. Our
tailer has electric brakes on it and we are hoping it will do ok in the
mountains.
John Wanninger
njs...@my-deja.com wrote:
>
(snippage)
> > trans cooler - DO GET ONE. Relatively inexpensive and good insurance.
> >
> > Good luck.
> >
> > Allen
> >
> We had the transmission put on today and are also thinking of an oil
> cooler. Sorry to hear you had problems with Jayco. This is our 2nd
> one but this time we bought new instead of used, alot less hassle. Our
> tailer has electric brakes on it and we are hoping it will do ok in the
> mountains.
> njshome
>
I have a 93 Villager and would like to add a transmission cooler, but I
don't see much space for one. Where did you find room to mount the cooler
and what size is the unit? I'm awaiting delivery on a 99 Coleman Sun Valley,
and I think a cooler would be prudent,
John
CA Krieps
condenser. Mine is placed on the lower drivers side because it requires a
short run of tubing for the cooler to the transmission. It is right below the
bumper where the lower air ducts are located. I removed the grill in order to
get the unit down there and then worked "blind" to secure it to the condenser
coils. Some bruised knuckles, but nice and hidden. Since it is all soft
plastic in the front end things bend out of the way quite easily.
Good luck.
Chris
njs...@my-deja.com
njs...@my-deja.com wrote:
> We just bought a 1996 Mercury Villager. The owners manual says it can
> pull 3500lbs with a tow package. We own a 1998 Jayco Yosimite and it
> weighs 2200 lbs. We have already had a transmission cooler put on
and a
> class 2 hitch. The camper has brakes on it also. Has anyone had any
> experiences with this van? Do you think we should invest in an oil
> cooler too?
camper out this weekend. The van did an excelent job pulling the
camper. I drove while my husband sat and the van pulled much better
then our nissan truck we have. Plenty of traveling room in the van
too. I would say we got a good deal when we bought this van.
njshome
96 Mercury Villager
98 Jayco Heritage Yosimite
Ca...@isp.com
> >
> Well we finally got the tow package put on and got to take the
> camper out this weekend. The van did an excelent job pulling the
> camper. I drove while my husband sat and the van pulled much better
> then our nissan truck we have. Plenty of traveling room in the van
> too. I would say we got a good deal when we bought this van.
Can you tell me what is included in the Villager towing package?
Carl (with a "new" 97 Villager, no popup yet but we're lookin)
Richard Jones
OK ... to answer this for myself and everybody else, I spent some time today
perusing the documentation Ford provides its dealers regarding towing
capacity, the towing packages, etc. Interesting stuff. I'm going to paste in
quotes directly from the 1997 L-M Product Portfolio:
From Page 2 of the Product Porfolio, Towing Section:
"Mercury Villager (with Trailer Tow Package) can tow Class II (2001-3500
lb.) trailers. A load-equalizing hitch is required for trailers with gross
trailer weight in excess of 1,000 pounds."
Further info from Page 5 of the Towing Section of the Product Porfolio:
"Mercury Villager Trailer Tow Prep Package:
- Adds features for towing trailers up to 3500 pounds GTW (350 pounds max
tongue weight). Requires the use of a load-equalizing hitch
- Mercury Villager Trailer Tow Prep Package includes:
- Heavy-Duty battery
- Full-size Spare tire
- Trailer wiring harness"
OK ... so what accounts for the 3500-lb. rating? On the Towing Q & A page,
it gets MORE interesting:
"Q. Does the Villager require the optional Trailer Tow Prep Package for a
3500-pound towing capacity?
A. No. The rated towing capacity of the standard Villager equipped with a
load-equalizing hitch is 3500 pounds. The Trailer Tow Prep Package (534)
includes the convenience of
a heavy-duty battery, conventional spare tire and a trailer wiring module
and harness. Villager's standard 3500-pound towing capacity is a major
competitive advantage. Many
competing minivans require the addition of optional larger engines, brakes
and radiators.
Q. Can Villager tow a 3500-pound trailer without the heavy-duty battery?
A. Yes. The 75 amp-hour, heavy-duty battery included in the Trailer Tow Prep
Package adds convenience and peace of mind for people who tow camping
trailers containing
electrical accessories."
On Page 5 of the Product Porfolio, Villager section, "Under the Hood", is
the transaxle description. I'm pasting just the last bullet point:
"- A standard auxiliary oil cooler contributes to transaxle
durability and long life when the vehicle is towing or
hauling heavy loads"
So, according to all this, the Villager in its naked form can tow 3500 lbs,
as long as you have the load-equalizing hitch. The trailer prep package
plays no apparent part in towing ability, i.e., no gearing adjustments, no
extra cooling, no extra horsepower or suspension modifications. Since I
bought a full-sized spare, and the Coleman dealer installed the harness,
looks like I'm only one battery shy of the trailer prep package. But I don't
run any DC to my trailer from the car (yet).
This is not the LAST word ... but it's Ford's company line, anyway. This
also explains why the dealer lists no available auxiliary
transmission/transaxle cooler in the parts manual. Last week, I took my
Villager to a couple transmission shops, they said they could add add
additional trans cooler for between $150-$250; they want to stick it on the
driver's side, towards the bottom. There's a space there about the size of a
Pop-Tart at best. I'm not sure whether it IS or is NOT worth the grief. FWIW
all "over the phone" estimates for this job were in the $110-$150 range;
once they got a visual look at the space available between the radiator, A/C
condenser, and front facia, the estimates seemed to nearly double.
I can tell you that if you plan to pull 3500 lbs with a Villager, you'd best
be on a level road, or one that's downhill .. and if it's downhill, it
better be SLIGHT ... or you'd better have GOOD brakes on the trailer! My van
is really pokey with the A/C on and pulling a 2000 lb. Cheyenne.
- Rick Jones