Taurus SHO Towing

[cjvawv1982]

Good Afternoon!

I wanted to see if anyone could provide me some assistance or advice. I am getting various answers when it comes to towing my 2010 Taurus SHO AWD. The manual, 2010 Towing Guide and Ford Customer Service all say it is ok to tow the vehicle four wheels down with a tow bar. My local service manager and techs say that they wouldn't recommend doing it. It might mess up the PTU or other parts of the drivetrain.

Does anyone have any experience with this?

If it is possible, the manual says to put the car in accessory mode. This vehicle has the push button start and I can put it into accessory mode by pressing the start button without the brake but it seems like the accessory cuts off after a while to conserve battery power. Is there a way around this?


Thanks so much for your time and help,
CJ

[Coaster1]

Get it writing from Ford and go for it! If the manual states it CS backs it up I would take that as a go. But like what you have heard, it dosen't sound right to me.

[ebksafari]

I do not have a Taurus, but I think that there is but one rule to follow, which is to take the advice in the factory manual and not that of the local mechanics. I do not know a mechanic who does not believe that he knows more than the factory engineers who design and build the cars.

Also, putting the car into accessory mode would seem to be a function of the key position even with a push button starter. I have never heard of a key in the accessory position cutting off as this is a mechanical position and not an electronic one.

[jamesrxx951]

If the manual states that the SHO can be 4 down towed then it is ok. The 6F50/55 transmission that is in this car is the same trans that is in the V6 Taurus, Edge, Explorer (2011 and up). They all can be flat towed without an issue. The all wheel drive system is also similar between all of these drive trains. The PTU is a sealed unit and just has gear lube in it. When flat towing or driving balls to the wall, it makes no difference to the PTU other then load. Under full boost there is way more load (LOL). The rear differential is an electrically actuated coupler that uses a computer to activate when needed. When the engine is off, the coupler is fully released. The only way to damage the all wheel drive system is to tow it on a dolly with the rear wheels down or have tires that are not within 1/2" circumference of each other.

BTW, senior mastered Ford technician speaking (writing) here. Plus I worked at Ford for some time in the drive line group and dealt with the all wheel drive system in these vehicles.

[jamesrxx951]

BTW, you may have to use a charge wire from the motorhome to your battery. Because the shifter is not in park some modules like the instrument cluster panel module does not shut down fully. It is looking for the park switch input before it will fully shut down. Because of this, there may be some battery drain.

[cjvawv1982]

Originally Posted by jamesrxx951

BTW, you may have to use a charge wire from the motorhome to your battery. Because the shifter is not in park some modules like the instrument cluster panel module does not shut down fully. It is looking for the park switch input before it will fully shut down. Because of this, there may be some battery drain.

Thanks so much for your response and information. Does having a keyless ignition in the SHO cause problems? The manual says to put the car in accessory mode but having push button ignition with no keys the accessory power shuts down after a while. Would that cause problems? Does the car have a steering lock I would have to worry about?

Thanks again to everyone for the replies.

CJ

[jamesrxx951]

Originally Posted by cjvawv1982

Thanks so much for your response and information. Does having a keyless ignition in the SHO cause problems? The manual says to put the car in accessory mode but having push button ignition with no keys the accessory power shuts down after a while. Would that cause problems? Does the car have a steering lock I would have to worry about?

Thanks again to everyone for the replies.

CJ

Im pretty certain that there is no steering wheel lock. I believe this is true with most newer Ford models. Accessory mode does keep some modules awake and since there is no park input, the ICP typically remains on and never shuts down fully. Im pretty certain that a charge lead will be needed to prevent battery drain however if you have a volt meter and a shorter trip that is just a few hours you can check before and after voltage to make certain there is no drain. I would rather lead you to the side of caution than to have you get to your destination and have a dead battery.

My 13 Escape cannot have the keys removed unless the shifter is in park. I remove the keys and then manually shift the shifter into neutral but the cluster does remain on. In fact my ABS light was on when I arrived to my destination because im thinking the ABS module never shut down. As soon as I drive over 10 MPH the light went out. This occurs if a wheel sensor fault is detected. Since the rears were moving and the fronts were not, the module detected a fault.

[mikebreeze]

The Motorhome Magazine 2013 Guide to Dinghy Towing lists the 2013 Taurus 3.5 automatic as towable 4 wheels down. Not sure how similar it is to the 2010. BTW, this same pamphlet states that the 2013 Escape with 6 speed auto trans is not towable.

[cjvawv1982]

Originally Posted by jamesrxx951

Im pretty certain that there is no steering wheel lock. I believe this is true with most newer Ford models. Accessory mode does keep some modules awake and since there is no park input, the ICP typically remains on and never shuts down fully. Im pretty certain that a charge lead will be needed to prevent battery drain however if you have a volt meter and a shorter trip that is just a few hours you can check before and after voltage to make certain there is no drain. I would rather lead you to the side of caution than to have you get to your destination and have a dead battery.

My 13 Escape cannot have the keys removed unless the shifter is in park. I remove the keys and then manually shift the shifter into neutral but the cluster does remain on. In fact my ABS light was on when I arrived to my destination because im thinking the ABS module never shut down. As soon as I drive over 10 MPH the light went out. This occurs if a wheel sensor fault is detected. Since the rears were moving and the fronts were not, the module detected a fault.

Thanks again for the information. I will definitely run a charge line. Better to be safe than sorry.

I was just worried about causing problems when the accessory power shuts off after 15 minutes or whatever the time is set at to save battery power since there are no keys to keep it on constantly.

Thanks again to everyone for the information!

CJ

[jamesrxx951]

Originally Posted by mikebreeze

The Motorhome Magazine 2013 Guide to Dinghy Towing lists the 2013 Taurus 3.5 automatic as towable 4 wheels down. Not sure how similar it is to the 2010. BTW, this same pamphlet states that the 2013 Escape with 6 speed auto trans is not towable.

Should have mentioned that I use a tow dolly for my Escape. It is also FWD as all wheel drive is only trailer only. But thanks for making sure as some may make that mistake.

[Us3Here]

Man, that SHO is one sharp, powerful ride!

Originally Posted by cjvawv1982

Good Afternoon!

I wanted to see if anyone could provide me some assistance or advice. I am getting various answers when it comes to towing my 2010 Taurus SHO AWD. The manual, 2010 Towing Guide and Ford Customer Service all say it is ok to tow the vehicle four wheels down with a tow bar. My local service manager and techs say that they wouldn't recommend doing it. It might mess up the PTU or other parts of the drivetrain.

Does anyone have any experience with this?

If it is possible, the manual says to put the car in accessory mode. This vehicle has the push button start and I can put it into accessory mode by pressing the start button without the brake but it seems like the accessory cuts off after a while to conserve battery power. Is there a way around this?


Thanks so much for your time and help,
CJ

[BobGed]

Here are the notes from Remco for towing a 2010 Ford Taurus SHO AWD V6 3.5L cyl 6-Speed Automatic 6F50/6F55 Store : Remco
Notes

• Towable as is with speed and/or distance restrictions. Please see Owner's Manual for confirmation and procedures.
• It is not recommended to tow this vehicle over 65MPH
• When towing for an extended period of time, start the vehicle as often as possible and allow it to run for five minutes to prevent battery drain.

[series60man]

I have been considering a new SHO also. I currently tow a 2001 Mustang GT with a Roadmaster tow bar so all I need is the car mounting bracket. The SHO has some extra cooling capacity like a larger radiator and front body work that does not appear user friendly for mounting the bracket with damage. My GT is almost invisible.

[dennis45]

Originally Posted by cjvawv1982

Good Afternoon!

I wanted to see if anyone could provide me some assistance or advice. I am getting various answers when it comes to towing my 2010 Taurus SHO AWD. The manual, 2010 Towing Guide and Ford Customer Service all say it is ok to tow the vehicle four wheels down with a tow bar. My local service manager and techs say that they wouldn't recommend doing it. It might mess up the PTU or other parts of the drivetrain.

Does anyone have any experience with this?

If it is possible, the manual says to put the car in accessory mode. This vehicle has the push button start and I can put it into accessory mode by pressing the start button without the brake but it seems like the accessory cuts off after a while to conserve battery power. Is there a way around this?

Thanks so much for your time and help,
CJ

I towed my 2010 SHO for over 15K. Set up just as it says in the manual, leaving the Ignition in Accessory Mode. You WILL have to have a Charge Line off the MH to prevent the battery going dead which will happen in less than 2 hours without the Charge Line.
The manual also says do not exceed 65 MPH and, stop every 4hours and run the engine for a few minutes to circulate oil through the transmission.
Follow this and you will have no problems.
Only issue I had was with my Blue Ox Patriot. The seat in the Taurus is so mushy the Patriot would would fail during set up. Sometimes it took me me 3-4 tries to get it into the Ready state. I used a piece of plywood between the seat and the Patriot that helped.

I traded my SHO off on a Honda CRV. The Honda is a "Much Better Tow Car" but It sure is not as much fun to drive as the SHO. Must say I shed a couple of tears seeing it go away.