Coldedhnds

We are looking into buying a new TT and I recognize my F150 is not a trailer tow beast and lacks the max tow capability. That said I'm hoping to find something realistic for my set up.

I have a 2014 XLT 4x4 SCREW Ecoboost. 7200 GVWR 1400 payload, 3.31 rear with a standard tow pkg. (IBC, hill assist, aux trans.cooler trailer sway control, select shift, w/HD hitch WDH rated10,500/1050 or 5000/500). Will be adding a WDH & family and I are at 500 with nothing else on board leaves 900 to work with.

Looking at these 3 Jayco Jayfeather Ultra-Lites:

X213 TT @ 25', 4330DRY/5500GVWR. 460 dry hitch.

X23F TT @ 24'5", 4170DRY/5995GVWR. 455 dry hitch

x254 TT @ 27', 4450DRY/5995 GVWR. 455 dry hitch.

Not sure why such different dry's result in the above hitch weights but presume layout of interior/ length would be the reason. Seems to me that I should be well within limits with all three of these? Are the last two my high end?

Of course reasoning goes to hell when I'm hooked in rolling down the road with stuff loaded in the camper. Looking for the expert advice here to help reassure me that I'm looking at this right? Thoughts on all this are greatly appreciated!

I realize these questions are asked to death but it is confusing without plopping everything down only to find how wrong your wishful calculations are....

smokeywren

My F-150 has payload of 1,366, and I'm overloaded over the GVWR of the F-150 with my TT that has wet and loaded weight of 4,870 when on the road. My payload includes the tongue weight and WD hitch, spray-in bedliner, Darling Wife, 50 pounds worth of dogs, toolbox, a lightweight camper shell, and a full tank of gas.


So I'll bet you'll be overloaded with any one of those three trailers when wet and loaded on the road if you travel with one adult passenger, empty holding tanks and only enough fresh water to flush the potty while on the road.


You can "get by" with being slightly overloaded, but you should be constantly concerned with how much weight you haul in the pickup and trailer.

Mark090852

Maybe I am not understanding something, but it looks to me that he will be well within his towing and payload capacity. Even if he loads his TT all the way to the GVWR of nearly 6000 lbs, it looks like that will result in a hitch weight of approximately 720 lbs. Add 100 lbs more for a WDH and he is still 80 lbs under his max payload. And all that is with the TT loaded to the max. If he is cautious with loading the TT, he will have even more room to spare. Please correct me if I am looking at this incorrectly. I'm trying to learn as much as I can before we get our first TT.

mvander

Looks like you should be good with any of those tt's.
Biggest factor after the numbers is getting that wdh set up properly. Just cuz the dealer does it dosent mean it will be right.
I would suggest learning how and why a wdh is used and set lt it up your self. No one will care as mu h as you.

Velosprout

Door Sticker Payload 1400
Tongue Weight 712 (12% of trailer weight)
Hitch 50
Family 500
Bedliner and Tonneau 50 (estimated)
Remaining Capacity 88


That means while you can tow any of these campers, when the camper is at the loaded weight, there is only 88 pounds available for cargo in the pickup bed, (antique shop finds, groceries, luggage, bicycles, fishing tackle, grey water tote, cooler, firewood, geocaching supplies, golf clubs, tools, toys, folding chairs, baby supplies, etc). Plus, it's supposed to be vacation, meaning your travel is enjoyable, not white-knuckle or worried about packing and weight.
That's why I have ordered a Heavy Duty Payload truck. I can easily pull my camper with a standard pickup truck, but with the HD Payload, I won't ever have to worry about payload with my current camper, and even have some room for upgrade someday. Also, the stiffer frame, suspension, commercial tires, should make for a better driving experience and longevity. 3.73 gears make for easier start-up and less work on hills, at the cost of some mileage loss.
I went to an expandable (Rockwood Roo) because of the large amount of space provided with a large single slide and the two ends folding out with the sleeping area. The big advantage is you have much bigger living area without towing a longer trailer just for the square feet of sleeping area. The big spring RV shows are a great place to see all the options and see what is just right for you.

smokeywren

Payload = 1400. Average tongue weight of a properly-loaded 5,995 TT is 12.5% or 749 pounds. WD hitch = 100 pounds. Two average adults = 350 pounds.
750
100
350
-----
1,200 pounds before you add children, toolbox, jack(s), jack base, spray-in bedliner, campfire wood, toys, Fido and Tomcat. It adds up in a hurry and the CAT scale tells you that you're overloaded over your payload capacity.

Coldedhnds

I appreciate everyone's thoughts. Let's say I go with the lightest of the three or even lower but load myself just to the maximum allowable for my truck taking the necessary precautions in keeping it at that number. Is it going to pull sufficiently since it is rated for that particular weight? Looking to understand how the Ecoboost handles at a vehicles recommended max ability for the most part, not to overload it in anyway.

brulaz

The Ecoboost will have no pull problems.

You may find the suspension and P rated tires wishy-washy.

smokeywren

Power, torque, and drivetrain strength is not your limiter with an EcoBoost engine. Payload capacity is the limiter.


I recently towed a gooseneck equipment trailer loaded to 27,500 pounds GCW, 19,040 on the trailer axles, about 100 miles thru the hills of the Texas Hill Country plus another 200 miles on the flats. No problem with power and torque to maintain 65 MPH up and down the hills. No problem with tranny temp or engine coolant temp or tire temps (it was misting rain at about 80 F.) Yes, I checked the temps often. And my 2012 F-150 4x2 EcoBoost wasn't equipped with either Max Tow or HD Payload. Stock P-Series tires. Regular tow pkg with auxiliary tranny cooler. 3.15 axle ratio.


But I was severly overloaded over the GVWR and rear GAWR of my F-150. I hope I don't have to make such an overloaded trip again.


My EcoBoost is rated to tow a max trailer weight of 8,400 pounds, but that trailer grossed more than 20,000 pounds. So don't worry about the ability of the EcoBoost drivetrain to tow the weight of any trailer that won't cause you to exceed the GVWR of the F-150.


As I continue to preach: ignore tow rating and GCWR, worry about payload capacity and GVWR.

5.0GN tow

Just a little info here, Smokey is right about the payload being a limiter. Most guys worry a lot about axle rating too. The actual rating of the 9.75 axle is 4500lbs, some 150s have springs to take that much weight, most are around 3850. There is some pretty good cushion in there. I am not advising to use that cushion, but just know you have some.