Robbie Bartlett

Hi and thank you in advance for helping me with this.

I want to buy my first RV for the family (Bullet 311bhs). It is around 6,300lbs shipping weight / dry weight. The carrying capacity is 1,300lbs so assuming I max that out, it makes a weight of 7,600lbs.

The truck I am looking at has a towing capacity of 9,600lb (F150 3.5 ecoboost crewcab).

That seems to work right?

What if now I add in 6 people to the tow vehicle (me, wife and 4 kids) and a dog. That's another 850/900lbs

Does that get subtracted from the towing capacity too? I've had different people tell me different things. Thanks.

fleming23

You need to know what the payload capacity is of your particular truck. That will be found on a sticker inside the driver's door jam. You deduct everything in the truck (people, cargo, luggage, aftermarket accessories) to arrive at what you can haul. This is not the same as what you can tow. You must also factor in your tongue weight by reducing that amount from your total available payload. The more options on the truck, the less your payload capacity.

acadianbob

The main thing that you need to watch is your payload capacity. It is on a yellow sticker in the door jam of your truck. It is probably in the range of 1,100 to 1,800 pounds. Out of this comes 1) your family 2) anything else in or on the truck including options you've possibly added like bed cover, side steps, weight distribution hitch. Subtracting all of this from your payload capacity tells you the remaining capacity that you have for the tongue weight of the trailer. Your trailer spec may give you DRY weight. This weight does not include increases in tongue weight due to what's loaded in the trailer and trailer options/additions (battery, LP tanks, etc.)

A typical bumper pull trailer may have about 10 to 15% of its total weight on the tongue. So, 7600 x .10 = 760 (or more). 900 for family and 800 for trailer tongue would require a payload of 1,700 or more. If your payload is less than that, you would be overloaded. And that doesn't include any other weight in the truck or the WD hitch.

So, I'm thinking that you should be looking at a smaller trailer.

L2R

can you tow this- yes.
will it haul all your people and stuff up a hill at highway speed? Maybe.
Will you arrive at your destination relaxed and ready for vacation? doubtful.
Does it bother you to wear out the vehicle parts faster than normal?
IT is all totally up to you.

The 'capacity' is what your truck is capable of pulling.
on flat ground
at 'some' speed but probably not 65 mph either.

Another factor is that your trailer is heavier than the vehicle, going downhill, it can control the vehicle not the other way around.

Don't listen to the maker of the vehicle, they are in a contest to out perform the competition. They are not adding a buffer for comsumers to go over without worry, they want and need a commercial that says they can pull more than the others.
Don't listen to the salesman, he is trying to use the manufacturers numbers to sell you a trailer.

My rule of thumb and my friends who pull equipment, horse trailers and such is to start with a trailer that weighs about 1/2 of what the manufacturer says it can do. (this is why they call it a light truck)
Then you don't have to worry as much about how much propane, chairs, water, beer, gray water, fresh water and people come along. You still need to watch the weight and stay within reason but that gives you some room for what you are carrying in the trailer and the truck. Especially make sure you know how much is on the hitch and stay within those limits.

Everyone I know who is pulling more than 2/3s what is the limit all say the same thing, "I need a bigger vehicle" and seem shocked by it because, well- Ford, chevy and Ram said so.

Their numbers do not account for climbing hills, going down hills, side winds or the 18 wheelers who blast by you buffeting the side of your trailer when they come up beside you and create a vacuum as they leave.

Will you enjoy the ride and feel safe doing it, kinda doubt it.

It is your decision, do as you like and follow the limits. IF you do it, go in knowing you have limitations.
If you live in hilly country, you will wish for more and probably a 1 ton.

Robbie Bartlett

Thanks so much. I don't have a a truck yet but was hoping to keep it light as it will be my daily driver as well. I looked up the numbers and the payload of what I was thinking about is around 1500. That might be just alright for now as my kids are 7,4, 2 and 1 but they keep growing fast. I'm trying to get a truck that will last. Perhaps a 250 or 350 would be better.

I can't believe that the two different RV dealers and the two different car dealerships didn't mention payload. They all told me I would be fine with a 1/4 ton truck

SixShooter14

Robbie, don't believe anything the RV or car dealers tell you. ALWAYS check the numbers before you sign anything.

And before you really start shopping, read all the threads in this section of the site. Just kidding, but do a lot of research. Just about any question you could have has probably been covered here in another thread. There's a lot to choosing the right truck to be a DD and still be a capable tower. If you are still stuck on a particular rating or option, then ask.

If you're going to be camping a lot then I'd suggest looking at the possibility of getting a used 1-ton along with an F150 DD if that's what you want. But the same rules apply to the bigger trucks as the "light" ones, so shop smart.

5.0GN tow

My advice and I tow heavy every weekend with a 150(see pic above, within GAWR and GVWR little over GCWR), is to look at something like an XL sport package. It will be as light as a decently equipped truck can be. Keeping your option load down will keep payload up. Order either 5.0 or EB with tow package, and as low geared rear end they will let you. Try to get either the 9.75 or 8.8 HD axle.

That will be as close to an STX from the 09 to 14 generation as you can get in the 15 and up trucks. The STX usually had a very high payload but limited options, just enough to make it comfortable.

SixShooter14

that's not bad thinking.

You can look at the "Post your Payload" thread and see a pretty good breakdown of what it takes to get a high payload.

You'll need a SuperCrew cab with the front bench seat to haul 5 passengers plus yourself. that'll lower your payload some. So the HDPP is probably a necessity. With either the 3.5TT or 5.0L whichever tickles your fancy. And I'd suggest 3.55 or better yet 3.73 gears.

Ricktwuhk

Some great advice already given.

1,500 - 900 pounds - everything you add to the truck - cargo you put in the truck - 100 pounds for weight distribution, then divide the remainder by .13 and that's the max WET/LOADED trailer.

Assuming no additions to the truck and no cargo in the truck, you would be at 500 pounds in your example. That is a 3,846 pound loaded/wet trailer.

Car dealers, and trailer dealers, are trying to sell you something. They don't care if you break your truck. They don't care if you endanger your family and others. Many are ill-informed or simply deceitful.

Read, read, and read some more of the Towing section. You will learn how to be SAFE.

marshallr

If the trailer weighs 7600 lbs you'll have 900-1000 lbs of tongue weight (about 13%) to deduct from your carrying capacity. If it is 1300 lbs that only leaves 300-400 lbs for passengers and cargo inside the vehicle. A smaller 5000 lb trailer would have a tongue weight of around 600-700 lbs leaving you 700-800 lbs for passengers and cargo.

You should be able to find a crew cab with more than 1300 lbs of carrying capacity, that seems awfully low. I'd expect 1600-2000 lbs on most trucks depending on options. The engine will pull the weight.

A 3/4 ton truck would be a better option for pulling that much weight if you do it on a regular basis. But properly equipped you should be able to find a 1/2 ton with much more carrying capacity that will pull it. Or find a lighter trailer. If you only pull that much a few times a year I'd stay with an F-150. It'll cost less, be more comfortable, and cost less for fuel when not towing. The bigger trucks will use less fuel when towing. Which is a big part of why I recommend them if you tow a lot. But most people who own 3/4 ton trucks rarely use the capability and are paying for it all the time.