Hello all. I have been lurking and tried to read up on the past threads but would love to hear some opinions. We are looking to get a new truck to pull our boat. I know that a 3/4 ton would be my best choice, but since 95% of the time the truck is driven I will not be towing, I can't stop considering the F150 because I love the creature comforts. Would I be disappointed in the F150 in this scenario:

Truck considering - Platinum, 3.5 EB, max tow with 3.55, FX4
Boat - 23 foot on tandem axle trailer with surge brakes, total weight of boat and trailer around 9,500 pounds

Most of our trips to the lake are short (around five miles) but will want to make a few trips a year to area lakes up to 300-400 miles away.

Thanks for the help.

 

Buy the Hellwig rear sway bar right away.

 

You know the answer yourself, a 3/4 Ton truck, that would be necessary for your long trips. Now you can by a 1/2 ton and get it setup to tow. Then you'll be back on the forums asking why my truck does not pull with confidence, stability and control. One member just went through all that, he only had a small utility trailer and load was 2500-3500lbs. Then he went on to spend another $2900.00 buying the helwig sway bar, LT tires, rear shocks, rear air bags. After all that, he sold his new F150 and bought a new F350!

The new aluminum light weight 2015 F150s, according to some forum members, just are not as stable as the last year and prior steel F150s!

But then again, you may be lucky?

 

Yeah u can buy an F350 to tow 2900 lbs. That's what that member did. That makes a lot of sense. There's plenty of folks happy towing. Mines a 5.0 with a 3:31 and it tows my boat n trailer great. About 7000 lbs. the ecoboost would tow even better.

 

A 1/2 ton will pull your boat but obviously a 3/4 ton will be better. IMO, 9500lbs is pushing what I'd do with a 1/2 truck.

If I were in your shoes I would probably opt for the 1/2 ton since you say you aren't towing often. Be prepared to add something like a rear sway bar or LT tires though.


The person you're referring to that switched to an F-350 came to the conclusion that his primary problem was loose/easy steering not really stability. In fact, he noted that not all 2015 F-150's had the steering issue that his had though several did. The loose steering made it difficult to keep it in the lane which is why he thought it was a stability issue at first.

 

Seems awful heavy for a 23' boat. That's more than my 26' inboard/outboard with a big block.

 

It is a big, heavy wakeboard boat.

 

My thoughts too! My dad has a 30' with an in/out big block and it weighs a bit less than that.


EDIT: Scratch that, forgot to add weight of trailer, is probably about the same maybe slightly less than OP. He pulls with his 3.5 ecoboost with no problems.

 

What are you pulling it with now?

 

I have a smaller boat now that I tow with a 2014 Silverado High Country with the 6.2 (2 wheel drive). The new boat is on order and will be here in January. I know that I will need to make a change in tow vehicle because I will need 4 wheel drive at the very least to deal with a few of the launches we will be using.