Realistic weights on the X213 or X254 for towing?

[zipper]

Hi there,

I've done a bunch of searching but I'd love some real life accounts and experienced towing know-how.

We have a 2014 F150. Ecoboost, XTR, super crew cab. 3.73 axle ratio, short wheel base. Payload is 1377lbs. Towing according to the Ford charts is 9600. (website chart is different from PDF chart I found, and both are a bit confusing but I'm about 80% certain on that and will verify)

Obviously payload is going to be the kicker here.

Family of 4. 2 average adults, 2 small kids, and a dog. We're currently towing an 8 foot Flagstaff tent trailer with thoughts of upgrading.

Heavy considerations are the X213 and the X254. Really, we'd love the X254. The 4 bunks in front would give us more room for eventual kids' friends. The X213 is a little bit lighter and is shorter.

Using the website for the 2016, the GVWR for the X254 is 5995lbs. The GVWR for the X213 is 5500lbs.

The supposed dry hitch weight for the X254 is 625lbs. Realistically on a 6000lb gross trailer, I figure we may be up to the 800s, but here's where I am wondering about real life accounts. Am I too close to my payloads with these? I know I need to factor in a WDH, too.

I really want to get away from canvas.

[DocBrown]

Welcome!

You're doing your homework. Good for you! That's real close though. And keep in mind your kids are growing. Check your Ford owners manual for the correct weight information to make sure. Online resources are often inaccurate.

I know you want to get away from canvas, but unless your reason is because of noise, you might want to consider a hybrid. Not at all the same as closing up a pop-up.

[zipper]

Thanks! Will check the manual for towing weights. They payload is straight off the door sticker so I do trust that.

Noise is part of it. Currently my tent trailer is halfway raised in my garage just to dry it out after another wet, cold, noisy weekend.

So... I am very agreeable to other models, but I'm just kind of tired of canvas.

[BigT]

I tow my X254 with my Ram 1500 with no problem if that helps. Definitely get a a WDH and you'll be fine.

[zipper]

Thanks BigT. Any chance you know your hitch weight offhand?

There are so many awesome trailers out there, but they're all right at that borderline of where I know the numbers tell me we should be.

We've even gone so far as talking about upgrading to a 250 to have more options....but I like my truck!

[BCx213]

I pull my X213 with an 04 Ram with about 800 lbs in my truck plus my wife and I. I have a 8600 lb tow capacity. I have a WDH and a prodigy brake controller. It pulls great!

[SilverEscape]

The tongue weight on our X213 is about 770# once loaded. We've got 5 people in the truck (500# but 2 of the kids are still little and growing). Our payload is 1527#. We've got the 3.73 axle and Max Tow option on ours so not sure if our rear axle handles more than yours or not. Our rear axle allows 4050#. Last trip we weighed and the rear axle was at 3958. The truck weighed 7450 when hitched up. GVWR is 7650.

[Country_Mouse]

We tow our X254 with a Ford Expedition 3.73. Our payload is a bit higher at 1700 and our tow rating is lower at 8950. We have 4 kids 16 and down + two dogs. I factored in the 800 lbs tongue weight if we ever did fill to the gvwr and we would be right at the limits of our payload if we did. So far so good but only have had it out on one trip so far. Have not hit the scales yet so I don't have real world numbers for you, sorry. I do know I would like a TV upgrade someday but this works for the time being.

[zipper]

Thanks! Yeah that 770# is my concern .

I do have the towing package, but not max tow, which is likely part of the difference. (Hard to tell exactly, I'd have to pull the sale sheet, but missing the upgraded bumper for sure)

I think the x213 is likely the safer choice. I haven't found anything even in other models/makes that is around that weight.

[BigT]

Originally Posted by zipper

Thanks BigT. Any chance you know your hitch weight offhand?

There are so many awesome trailers out there, but they're all right at that borderline of where I know the numbers tell me we should be.

We've even gone so far as talking about upgrading to a 250 to have more options....but I like my truck!

I don't but my payload is lower than yours and it's not an issue.

[Olivia]

Originally Posted by SilverEscape

The tongue weight on our X213 is about 770# once loaded. We've got 5 people in the truck (500# but 2 of the kids are still little and growing). Our payload is 1527#. We've got the 3.73 axle and Max Tow option on ours so not sure if our rear axle handles more than yours or not. Our rear axle allows 4050#. Last trip we weighed and the rear axle was at 3958. The truck weighed 7450 when hitched up. GVWR is 7650.

5500 lbs is the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating for x213. I am wondering if you can adjust tongue weight to 550 which is 10% of the Max 5500.
I have a Jeep GC diesel and I ma panning to buy x213 next summer however 770 lbs tongue weight is too much for my car since we are 2 teens and 2 adults. Jeep manual recommends 10% of the total trailer weight for the tongue weight.

[SilverEscape]

Originally Posted by Olivia

5500 lbs is the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating for x213. I am wondering if you can adjust tongue weight to 550 which is 10% of the Max 5500.
I have a Jeep GC diesel and I ma panning to buy x213 next summer however 770 lbs tongue weight is too much for my car since we are 2 teens and 2 adults. Jeep manual recommends 10% of the total trailer weight for the tongue weight.

Highly unlikely. When we got it, we had a different vehicle so we tried to get the tongue weight lower. We had the trailer almost empty; bedding on the beds and some pans and plates under the kitchen sink. We pulled off both propane tanks, the spare tire and the battery, and the tongue was still over 500 pounds.

Once you load up, the tongue just gets heavier. It's not an easy trailer to load to the rear since the slide comes in that way. We do put all the beer and drinks under the couch and our camp chairs under the dinette as well as our 5 gallon jug full of water. And clothing for 3 in the cabinet above the king bed. But nothing else we have is heavy on its own. And I like having the kitchen stuff in the kitchen cabinets, clothing in the front wardrobe, bathroom stuff in the bathroom so I don't have to reorganize the entire trailer when we get some place.

Even if I was willing to reorganize, I still don't see how you could get the tongue that low. There just isn't that much storage room at the back to keep everything there and then haul it out and load up all the cabinets when you arrive. Not sure it's all that smart to do so anyway seeing as items can shift in travel. I also don't know well it would tow with the tongue on the lighter side.

[micron]

I have a 2015 X213 and had also considered buying the X254. At the time I was towing with a 2007 Toyota Tacoma crew cab with a Tekonsha brake controller. We're a family of 2 adults and 2 young boys. Because of the weights we went with the X213 and a dealer installed Equalizer WDH. The Toyota towed it w/out any issues but my wife didn't like the smaller interior of the mid size truck. We now have a '13 Ford F150 Super Crew w/Ecoboost and an integrated brake controller and it tows the X213 without issue. We don't pack a lot of stuff but are mindful of the tongue weight and cargo capacity when loading up. Now that we have the F150 my wife has told me that she wouldn't mind upgrading to the X254 in the future. As for me, I'm perfectly happy with the current set up.

[Olivia]

Thank you very much. This summer we went to Utah with our diesel Grand Cherokee. We rented an RV trailer though not Jayco since the renter had only Coachman for the size that we wanted. WE rented a Catalina Coachman 21BH. We tow the trailer to Arches National park. We had a tongue scale. We measure the tongue weight and we were surprised, it was above 750 lbs. The sticker on the RV indicating 420 lbs for dry tongue weight. Only additional load was 2 extra batteries and two propane tanks on the tongue. We tried to reduce the tongue load during towing by moving the generator and most of our stuff to the back of the RV trailer on the bunk beds. We could reduce the tongue weight to 600. We also noticed that black and grey tanks helped to reduce the tongue weigh when they were filled. After a couple of days we pulled the RV trailer to Zion National park. We also found a CAT scale and we figured out that the RV trailer weighed 4800 loaded. Grey water, black water and fresh water tanks were empty.
We really enjoyed our first RV camping experience and we want to buy a RV trailer to pull with our SUV.
Our jeep could handle the RV trailer very well. We also rented a equalizer, electronic break controller and extended mirrors. Equalizer gave enormous stability. Even if the trailer length was 24 feet, we barely noticing when passing a 18 wheels trailer.

Now I have a couple of question:
We are planning to install a heavy duty hitch receiver on the trailer;s frames and add a cargo carrier and put the generator, drinking water, spare tire and gas on that. Our generator weigh almost 100 lbs.
How much is the tongue weigh if you fill fresh water tank and nothing else. Does filling any of the tanks reduces the tongue weight and does increase that?
How much is the dry tongue weight with only spare tire?
We have decided to buy an x213 for the next summer and we are trying to work out a solution to reduce the tongue without sacrificing much convenience of RV camping.

[SilverEscape]

Originally Posted by Olivia

Now I have a couple of question:
We are planning to install a heavy duty hitch receiver on the trailer;s frames and add a cargo carrier and put the generator, drinking water, spare tire and gas on that. Our generator weigh almost 100 lbs.
How much is the tongue weigh if you fill fresh water tank and nothing else. Does filling any of the tanks reduces the tongue weight and does increase that?
How much is the dry tongue weight with only spare tire?
We have decided to buy an x213 for the next summer and we are trying to work out a solution to reduce the tongue without sacrificing much convenience of RV camping.

I think the fresh water is right around the axles but I can't see mine since I have the enclosed underbelly. Also, we can't haul fresh water as our trailer weighed almost 4400# once it arrived from the factory, and once loaded we are at 5500#. So we have no room to carry water. So that is something to consider as well. Especially if you are buying new as the few 2016's I have seen were around 4600# from factory.

You need to have a battery on the tongue as it needs to operate the trailer emergency brakes if the trailer should every come detached from the tow vehicle.

I don't think that hanging weight off the back of the trailer is the way to reduce tongue weight. You're changing the balance of the trailer. It's not the same as redistributing weight inside the trailer which is in the confines of the trailer frame. Adding a heavy duty hitch receiver properly (welded to the frame) is also adding more weight. Also, this is one of the ultra lites, which means the frame is lighter weight than a standard trailer. I'd talk to Jayco before welding anything to it. Not sure they are designed for that. They barely hold the trailer box as it is. Ha ha.

Lastly, I know your Jeep manual recommends 10% of the trailer weight for the tongue, but that really is light for most travel trailers. This one especially lends itself to a heavier tongue and tows better that way. A too light tongue can cause sway and I wouldn't be surprised if this one swayed at 10 seeing as it's natural tendency is to be much heavier.