Coffinmaker

Hey all, I'm looking at buying a 6200lb loaded travel trailer. It's a bit older, and it's 26'. With the specs in my sig, would I be ok with pulling it? Most of the stuff would be in the trailer. My wife and I combined are probably 290lbs with about 60 lbs worth of children.


Thanks.

77Ranger460

You should be fine as long as you have a good WDH with sway control. You may want to consider a transmission cooler.

I pull a 6k pound travel trailer with a 1/2 ton. It's little 460 doesn't even breath hard.

Velosprout

I would say yes, if you mean that the maximum weight wet of the trailer is 6200 lbs. If that is the case, you will likely be pulling less than the maximum weight of the trailer if you pack judiciously, (don't take more stuff than you need, no water fill until arriving at destination if possible, buy firewood at your destination, etc.), you should manage to stay under your payload max, max combined vehicle weight (GCVW), and your rear axle weight.

The above mentioned transmission cooler might be needed, depending on when and where you tow and your driving style. If your 2014 has the on-dash digital transmission temperature gauge like mine does, just watch it to see if you might need to add it in the future.
Demand a quality (Equalizer, Fastaway E3, etc). weight distributing hitch and adjust it properly as per the manufacturer's instructions or videos.
Children grow, and the stuff they take along and friends they want to bring along increases, so allow a cushion for growth. Perhaps a lighter but more spacious hybrid camper that provides more floor space and sleeping area without the length and weight.
I prefer to buy new instead of used; you get exactly what you want up front, don't buy someone else's hidden problems, and can maintain it to your standards to prevent any future problems. Even more than buying a used truck, there are more potential hidden problems that can be wrong with a used camper. Read the forums on the camper brand you are considering used so you know what problems others have had to look for.

With new purchase, you can make assure that you are buying a camper well within your truck's limits with room for cargo as well.

77Ranger460

Ain't nothing wrong with a used camper, provided you buy the right one...inspect, inspect, and inspect....I would never buy a new camper. I prefer to let someone else eat the massive depreciation and work the bugs out. Of course used doesn't necessarily mean it was cheap. I paid about the same for my 20 year old Airstream as some people pay for new square trailers.

Coffinmaker

Thanks for the replies. Any other upgrades other than the transmission cooler? Would a better alternator and upgraded rad be overkill?

77Ranger460

No need for either, IMO.

smokeywren

Without the tow package, then you definitely need to add the oil-to-air (OTA) tranny cooler that was part of the tow package. But even with the auxiliary tranny cooler, you have to constantly monitor the tranny temp.


If you have the digital tranny temp gauge as part of your "gauges" display, then watch it closely and don't allow more than 225°. If you don't have the digital tranny temp gauge, then realize that the tranny temp gauge on the dash is not analog - it's an idiot gauge. And it's weird in that the instant it jumps from the white zone to the tiny yellow zone your tranny is overheated and you need to stop and cool off immediately. So when working the drivetrain hard, keep a constant eye on that gauge so you can react the instant it jumps into the yellow. Else you'll be replacing the tranny real soon now.

acdii

If my 14 EB with 3:19 can pull a 6300# TT up the grades in Colorado, yours can do it too. Like smokey said though, trans temps can skyrocket fast, mine hit 235* at one point, went from 208* to 235* in a blink. It went down just as fast too. Would be interesting to know where Ford put the sending unit, because it appears it is very close to the cooler lines with how quickly the temps went up and down.