Tow Vehicle Size Question

[Jerry713]

Originally Posted by bucko

My suggestion would be to view the tow posting (pamphlet) of the truck and engine size prior to purchase. I would not necessarily trust what the salesperson says, but get it in the writing.

If you do a Google search on F0rd F-150 tow specs, you will find the Ford official specs. Then do the same for any other truck manufacturer you are considering, then go shopping for best price/deal.

Bucko I’m going to respectfully disagree. The F-150 towing numbers are based on low profile towing such as a car hauler with a car or lowboy trailer with dirt. Towing an RV the same weight as a lowboy trailer with dirt isn’t the same. To my knowledge there’s no specific numbers to go by but I’ve heard a RV can equate to as much as 30-40% more weight compared to that lowboy trailer due to the height (wind drag), length and tongue weight.

The F-150 I had with the 3.5 ecoboost had a max tow rating of 10,800 lbs. I pulled a 28’ travel trailer with it that weighed just under it right at 7k lbs and that trailer was too much for that truck. Plenty of power but the trailer would literally push the truck around while traveling in the highway. If there was a 12-15 mph wind I had to stay well below 60 mph (closer to 50) not because of the sway but because the truck felt like it was floating around in the lane.

I would definitely not go by the factory towing specs on the truck for towing a travel trailer.

[billcf7]

I wish manufactures would stop listing their rv's empty. No one uses their rv empty and only confuses people. Always use the GVWR when comparing tow rating for your tow vehicle and remember the manufacture always list tongue/pin weight empty as well

[Cincinnati Kid]

[QUOTE=Jerry713;1107295]” To my knowledge there’s no specific numbers to go by”……..

There are specific numbers to go by for every type of truck and trailer.
Here is the Ford 2023 towing guide, for example.


https://www.fleet.ford.com/content/dam/aem_fleet/en_us/fleet/towing-guides/2023_Ford_RVandTrailerTowingGuide_r4_Mar1.pdf

[craigav]

Originally Posted by Jerry713

Bucko I’m going to respectfully disagree. The F-150 towing numbers are based on low profile towing such as a car hauler with a car or lowboy trailer with dirt. Towing an RV the same weight as a lowboy trailer with dirt isn’t the same. To my knowledge there’s no specific numbers to go by but I’ve heard a RV can equate to as much as 30-40% more weight compared to that lowboy trailer due to the height (wind drag), length and tongue weight.

The F-150 I had with the 3.5 ecoboost had a max tow rating of 10,800 lbs. I pulled a 28’ travel trailer with it that weighed just under it right at 7k lbs and that trailer was too much for that truck. Plenty of power but the trailer would literally push the truck around while traveling in the highway. If there was a 12-15 mph wind I had to stay well below 60 mph (closer to 50) not because of the sway but because the truck felt like it was floating around in the lane.

I would definitely not go by the factory towing specs on the truck for towing a travel trailer.

I had read that all new truck's tow ratings are now tested the same way (SAE J2807) and have been for 5~10 years. So for comparison purposes, the F150 and it's competitors all use the same test standards which should allow for a fair comparison between manufactures, keeping in mind that the standard test trailer setup is the same for the test from all mfgr's... but not the same trailer as anyone's RV trailer so it would be good regardless of which truck is purchased to have more towing capacity available than what should be needed for any particular RV.

Just in case I am not up to date with how the current tow ratings are determined (perhaps some mfgr's don't use the J2807 standard), I would check with each truck manufacture ratings that I was interested in possibly purchasing and determine if their tow ratings are SAE J2807 compliant or not, as otherwise the tow rating comparisons would not be from a standard testing protocol and would be of less value (imo). ~CA

[extrachrispy]

Originally Posted by Jerry713

Bucko I’m going to respectfully disagree. [...snip...]

The F-150 I had with the 3.5 ecoboost had a max tow rating of 10,800 lbs. I pulled a 28’ travel trailer with it that weighed just under it right at 7k lbs and that trailer was too much for that truck. Plenty of power but the trailer would literally push the truck around while traveling in the highway. If there was a 12-15 mph wind I had to stay well below 60 mph (closer to 50) not because of the sway but because the truck felt like it was floating around in the lane.

I would definitely not go by the factory towing specs on the truck for towing a travel trailer.

This. I'm towing a 39' 5'er with a height of 13'1" and a GVWR of nearly 16,000 pounds, and I'm towing it with an F450 that itself weighs 8600 pounds. Even with that, I was getting pushed around a bit by strong crosswinds. I don't think I would have wanted to attempt that with a 5000-pound F150.

[wordsmyth]

Originally Posted by billcf7

I wish manufactures would stop listing their rv's empty. No one uses their rv empty and only confuses people. Always use the GVWR when comparing tow rating for your tow vehicle and remember the manufacture always list tongue/pin weight empty as well

Gotta disagree here. The difference between unloaded weight and GVWR is the cargo capacity.

It is helpful to know how much one can load into the travel trailer, and if weighed for actual weight and distributed within the cargo holds and trailer proper, should help with towing stability.

[SUP]

Not worth getting rid of your f250. I had a 25ft Jayco that I pulled with an f150 and eventually upgraded to the f250 diesel. Was like night and day. Better fuel mileage. Better in mountainous terrain. Better on the highway with semi's. Keep your f250. Plus trucks are expensive more than ever.

[Roll On]

Do you really need a truck?
Have you considered looking at a GMC Yukon, they come with a diesel or the 6.2L, which can tow up to 8,200 lbs.
Just an FYI.