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Need some help with matching my Tow Vehicle to Travel Trailer
Hey Everyone, I'm trying to run some numbers on my rig and a trailer I'm looking at getting. I've tried to get as much detail as I can for everyone so here goes.
NOTE: I'm also looking for a recommendation for a WDH system. Husky Centerline, Equalizer, Blue OX, Andersen, ProPride - My dealer said they usually recommend Husky Centerline first.
My Truck info:
2014 Ford F-150 3.5L V6 EcoBoost - 3.31 rear axle ratio - 157" wheelbase - base payload - heavy duty trailer towing
Maximum GCWR 14,900 lbs
GVWR: 7,100 lbs
Base Curb Weight: 5380 / 5,960 (full tank + family) - verified on a scale
Max Cargo: (payload) 1,489 lb
Max Loaded Trailer Weight 9,300 lbs
Max Tow (hitch) 10,500 lbs
Max Tongue (hitch) 1,050 lbs
Front GAWR: 3,600 lbs
Rear GAWR: 3,850 lbs
Tow Package: Heavy Duty
Payload Package: Base Payload
Maximum Loaded Trailer Weight: 9,300 lbs (according to Ford)
The info you posted about your truck doesn't make sense to me - the curb weight, payload, rear end, hitch rating, and the "heavy duty" designation don't jive.
We need the data off the stickers on your truck's door. One has the GVWR and front/rear GAWRs, and the other has the payload capacity - it will say something like "weight of passengers and cargo can never exceed xxxx lbs", and that weight is the max payload you can load in/on the truck that will bring it up to its GVWR.
The first three most important things that will determine how heavy a trailer you can pull are:
Payload Capacity
Payload Capacity
Payload Capacity
After we know what those weights are we can start to figure things out.
The next thing is, who/what will be in the truck when towing? You say you'll have 310 lbs of people, but you'll most likely carry additional stuff - like 90 lbs of snack cooler and luggage, 125 lbs of firewood, and 125 lbs of a jack and tire changing tools, all that adds up to 650 lbs.
If you have a 1490 lb payload, subtract what you're carrying in the truck and you have 840 lbs remaining that can be attached to your hitch receiver.
Your WDH hitch head will probably weigh at least 50 lbs, so that leaves 790 for the tongue weight of the trailer.
Tongue weight should be 10% to 15% of the wet&loaded trailer weight - with a realistic minimum of 12%.
A trailer with a 12% tongue weight of 790 lbs would be slightly less than 6600 lbs.
So....once we know what the payload capacity on your truck's sticker says, and the total of what will really be in the truck when you're towing it, then we can figure out more precisely what max weight trailer you can tow and remain within the weight rating limits of your truck.
The info you posted about your truck doesn't make sense to me - the curb weight, payload, rear end, hitch rating, and the "heavy duty" designation don't jive.
We need the data off the stickers on your truck's door. One has the GVWR and front/rear GAWRs, and the other has the payload capacity - it will say something like "weight of passengers and cargo can never exceed xxxx lbs", and that weight is the max payload you can load in/on the truck that will bring it up to its GVWR.
Ah, sorry I had it within the spreadsheet, here you go:
The first three most important things that will determine how heavy a trailer you can pull are:
Payload Capacity
Payload Capacity
Payload Capacity
After we know what those weights are we can start to figure things out.
The next thing is, who/what will be in the truck when towing? You say you'll have 310 lbs of people, but you'll most likely carry additional stuff - like 90 lbs of snack cooler and luggage, 125 lbs of firewood, and 125 lbs of a jack and tire changing tools, all that adds up to 650 lbs.
- 500 pounds of people and dog
- a pretty small cooler, maybe 20 pounds
- not much firewood, a few bundles
- some personal items, clothes,
- tools and car jack seems appropriate maybe less weight than that.
I get what you're saying though, figure all these weights out for sure.
If you have a 1490 lb payload, subtract what you're carrying in the truck and you have 840 lbs remaining that can be attached to your hitch receiver.
Your WDH hitch head will probably weigh at least 50 lbs, so that leaves 790 for the tongue weight of the trailer.
Tongue weight should be 10% to 15% of the wet&loaded trailer weight - with a realistic minimum of 12%.
A trailer with a 12% tongue weight of 790 lbs would be slightly less than 6600 lbs.
So....once we know what the payload capacity on your truck's sticker says, and the total of what will really be in the truck when you're towing it, then we can figure out more precisely what max weight trailer you can tow and remain within the weight rating limits of your truck.
Are you sure you have the Maxtow package? You circled it in the specs but your axle ratio, GVWR, and payload seems to imply otherwise.
I've got all of the trailer brake Features, tow haul, select shift, tow mirrors (non telescoping ). But yeah it is an odd build. I bought it used With 9k miles. Now I'm curious if it was sold due to light payload numbers.
I've got all of the trailer brake Features, tow haul, select shift, tow mirrors (non telescoping ). But yeah it is an odd build. I bought it used With 9k miles. Now I'm curious if it was sold due to light payload numbers.
I too doubt you have the Max Tow Package since your GVWR is low and the receiver is good for 1050 and not the 1150# receiver found on the Max Tow. Do you have the "dumbo" elephant ears mirrors found on the Max Tow package up to 2015 model year?
Your payload is respectable for a half ton and as you have found there are plenty of great TT's out there you can tow. The people who have the ultra optioned F150's are in trouble when they find out they can only get a popup camper and stay within the weight limits set by Ford. Enjoy whatever you buy!
Put in your VIN and you will get a window sticker directly from Ford. Helped me immensely when buying my truck as I found it had Max Tow but the dealer didn't have that listed online.
I've got all of the trailer brake Features, tow haul, select shift, tow mirrors (non telescoping ). But yeah it is an odd build. I bought it used With 9k miles. Now I'm curious if it was sold due to light payload numbers.
My 2013 with a sticker payload capacity of 1115 lbs has all that stuff standard except tow mirrors. But, I've added the PowerScope power-telescoping mirrors. I have the 3.55 rear end, and as mentioned, you only got the max tow package with a 3.73 rear.
Also, after adding a bed liner and tonneau my remaining payload is down to 1020 lbs!!! And I pull a 6500 lb trailer with a 720 to 750 lb tongue weight with no problem. And....I'm 220 (at least 230 dressed out for driving in jeans, boots, etc.), and after my wife loads up her snack cooler and heavy luggage in the cab, and I load up a few hundred lbs of chairs, tools, jack, ramps, etc. in the bed, my truck probably weighs around 6800 to 6900 lbs. With my GVWR of 7200, that leaves about 300 lbs for my WDH hitch head (my Equal-i-zer hitch head weighs about 50 lbs), so that would leave me about 250 lbs for tongue weight.
Butt....I pull my trailer with a 750 lb tongue weight with NO PROBLEM!!
I could easily pull an 8000 to 8200 lb trailer with 1200 tongue weight and stay within the weight limits of my truck!!!
I got a Trailer Toad!! I got a used one for $2000. A new one goes for around $3500. Cheaper than upgrading to a SuperDuty!!
The Trailer Toad carries the entire tongue weight of the trailer, and the WDH head mounts on it as well, so there's absolutely no weight on the truck's hitch receiver - the only thing it has to do is be able to pull the load, and my standard tow hitch has a "pull" rating of 10500 lbs.
So....instead of payload capacity or rear GAWR being my weight limit, all I need to do is make sure my rig stays under GCWR, which is 15,500 lbs.
My truck's GVWR is 7200, and even with 700 lbs of people and cargo in the truck when loaded to tow, it might weigh 6900 lbs. Subtract that from my GCWR of 15,500 and you get 8600 lbs - i.e., I can tow 8600 lbs and still be within all weight limits of my truck. Even if I loaded the truck right up to its 7200 lb GVWR, I could still pull 8300 lbs.
The Trailer Toad weighs around 300 lbs, so even if the truck is completely loaded to GVWR before I hook up, I can still pull an 8000 lb trailer.
I've only pulled my enclosed car hauler trailer with the Trailer Toad, and it weighs 6200 to 6500 lbs - depending on what car is in it, and how much other tools, etc., I load into the trailer. The truck is probably in the 6700 lb most of the time when I tow, plus the 300 lb Trailer Toad, plus the 6500 lb trailer - and all that added together makes the total weight of the rig 13,500 lbs. That's 2000 lbs below my GCWR, so no problem at all.
I've got about 3500 miles towing with the Trailer Toad and it works great. It adds about 2'4" to the length of the rig, but my trailer is only about 22' from the coupler to the rear end, so I'm still not real long.
It tows absolutely solid and stable - the Trailer Toad is advertised as adding sway control, and even with my P-metric tires I get no sway at all.
Below you can see the Trailer Toad between the truck and the trailer - no rear end sag at all, because there's no weight on the truck's hitch, all the tongue weight is on the Trailer Toad:
Below is with the trailer hooked up to the Trailer Toad, but I haven't hooked up to the truck yet. You can see the trailer's tongue jack is fully retracted and all the tongue weight is on the Trailer Toad. The Trailer Toad's shank is hanging down, and it weighs just a couple lbs, so all I have to do is lift it up and insert in the truck's hitch receiver and there will be no tongue weight at all on the hitch:
04-12-2015, 09:31 PM
Need some help with matching my Tow Vehicle to Travel Trailer
