Hello,

I own a 2014 F150 Lariat Super Cab w/ the ecoboost engine. I have a built in ramp on the tailgate and regularly roll a Harley Davidson Fatboy into the bed and haul it around. In addition to this I want to tow a Uhaul Car carrier with a 2013 VW Jetta TDI. I think my truck can handle this, though I am having some difficulty deciphering the charts to determine whether this is a safe hauling / towing configuration.

Can anyone advise on whether this configuration is safe according to specifications of hauling and towing capacities of my truck?

Best Regards and Thanks in Advance.

SKAL7713

 

the biggest thing you need to watch out for is the payload capacity. add up the tongue weight of the loaded trailer, the weight of the harley, the weight of you, passengers and whatever cargo you have and it all should not be over the payload capacity if your truck which is listed in on the sticker on the door jamb.

next is the towing capacity. im no expert about this, but heres how i understand it:

find the GVWR (Gross Vehilce Weight Rating- On the door jamb) and subtract it from the GCVW (Gross Combined Vehicle Weight- you may have to do some research on this since it depends on a number of factors such as engine, gearing, drive, etc..) the remaining number should tell you the max weight the trailer you're towing can be.

for example my GVWR is 7350lbs and my truck (2013 F150 5.0L 4x4 3.73 gears) has a GCVW of 15100 lbs, therefore the trailer fully loaded can only be 7750 lbs.

there are some guys that will tell you to load everything up and head to a truck scale to see exactly where your numbers are at front and rear. the closest one is pretty far from me so i have not been able to do that, but it is a very good idea to make sure you're not over weight.

like i said before the most important thing is the payload cap since you really don't want to put too much weight on your suspension. that can cause unstable driving and cause you to lose control easily. i recently bought a toyhauler and with help from guys on this forum i was able to find one with a weight that suited me perfectly.

Hope this helps!


also heres the chart where you can get some info on weights and stuff.

http://www.ford.com/resources/ford/g...rv&tt_f150.pdf

 

The charts will tell you the maximum trailer weight of a wagon-style trailer with no hitch weight you can pull with an empty truck, or it can provide enough info for you to compute the maximum weight, including hitch weight, you can haul in the truck. But the charts do not address the combination of towing and hauling at the same time. And you want to tow around 5,000 pounds while hauling at least another 1,000 pounds.


Since there are no charts available to tell you what you want to know, you have to do some work and then do the math.


Rule 1: most trucks can pull a lot more trailer than they can haul the hitch weight of that wet and loaded trailer without being overloaded. So ignore the pulling (towing) capability of the truck and concentrate on the payload capacity of the truck.

Load the Hawg in the truck, then load everybody and everything that will be in the truck when towing. Include people, pets, tools, jacks, luggage, container of extra gasoline for the Hawg, everything. Drive to a truck stop that has a certified automated truck (CAT) scale and fill up with gas. Then weigh the wet and loaded truck (including driver).


Subtract the weight of the wet and loaded truck from the GVWR of the truck, and the answer is the maximum hitch weight you can have without being overloaded.


Next step is to determine the maximum weight of your trailer when wet and loaded for the road. To do that, divide the maximum hitch weight you can have by 0.13. The answer will be the maximum weight of any tandem-axle car-hauler trailer you want to try to tow. For example, if your maximum hitch weight is 700 pounds, then you should look at trailers with GVWR of not more than 5,384.


Finally, you must be concerned with weight distribution on the trailer. You want tongue weight of at least 10% of gross trailer weight, but not more than your maximum hitch weight. Position the car on the trailer to achieve as close as possible to 13% hitch weight.


To do that, you need a tongue weight scale. You can make a shade-tree mechanic's tongue weight scale using a bathroom scale and some lumber. Do a search on how to do that. But much more practical is to buy a tongue weight scale, like this one:
http://www.etrailer.com/Tools/Sherline/5780.html


If your tongue weight is more than 500 pounds, then your hitch receiver will be overloaded unless your trailer includes a weight-distributing (WD) hitch. A simple ball mount is called a weight-carrying (WC) hitch. Crawl under the back of your truck and look up at the sticker on the frame of your hitch. That sticker probably says your weight limits are 500 pounds hitch weight with a WC hitch, or a lot more (1,000 pounds?) with a WD hitch. You don't want to tow with an overloaded hitch. Ignore the max trailer weights on that sticker. It assumes only 10% tongue weight, and most properly loaded trailers have more than 10% tongue weight.

 

Smokey, I disagree that it assumes no hitch weight. Hitch weight adds nothing to the equation, that weight is already included in the weight of the trailer.

That said, I do agree that it is a nearly impossible equation.

For example, a truck like mine but base XL, no options, 5.0 has a GVWR of 7,000#, GCVWR of 14,400# and tow rating of 9,300#. The highest payload available for this truck is 2100# meaning the factory weight is 4,900#. 14,400#-4,900# leaves 200# for driver and hitch. So, if you're a small, skinny dude or a small woman, you could theoretically pull that 9,300# trailer.

In my case, when I drove my truck off the lot I would have been limited to a 9,000# trailer (a little less because of the WDH) rather than the listed 9,300# max.

 

I agree with Smokey, as trucks are used to pull anhydrous ammonia tank trailers, farm implement trailers, hay wagons, and grain wagons that have four wheels and the hitch itself weighs only 30 pounds or so. All of the weight of the trailer is on the four wheels of the wagon. Max tow weight is then truly the max tow capacity without bother for payload figures, and the truck bed can still be utilized. Boat trailers, campers, and fifth wheel/gooseneck trailers limit trailers because part of the trailer is borne by the truck or SUV towing it

 

Yeah, ok, that makes sense. that type of trailer wasn't what came to mind when he said wagon style trailer but I can see it now.

 

If you can't load the truck and go to the scales, start with the payload sticker on the driver's side door. Estimate the weight of everything to be loaded on the truck, add 12% of the weight of the loaded trailer, and see if all that exceeds the payload.