jjarman123

I love Fords. We have had several over the years and they are always reliable. My son had a F150 and it was a great truck. Here is my question. I am a female, looking to get a 5th wheel camper that will weigh around 9000-10,000 fully loaded out (full water tank, full gas tank, food, equipment, etc.) What do I need to look for in buying my truck?


Thank you so much for your help. I've been searching the internet and really can't find what I need. I don't trust the dealership of either the truck or the camper place to help.

SixShooter14

I'd recommend a 3/4 ton diesel.

Edit: a 1 ton would be better

djfllmn

iTrader: (1)

x2

lewisra

A 3/4 or 1 ton with the 6.2L gasser and a 4.30 rear-end will work as well. It's up to your budget.

JLTD

Agreed and good point; what IS your budget jjarman?

acadianbob

I pull a 5er with my F150 but I wouldn't pull one that big. Payload is the issue primarily. Go with the above advice.

smokeywren

A fifth wheel RV trailer that grosses 10,000 pounds will probably have pin weight (hitch weight or weight on the kingpin) of 1,800 to 2,000 pounds. Any F-150 will be overloaded with that much pin weight along with a normal load of people and stuff in the pickup. And my '99 F-250 diesel was overloaded with my 5er that grossed only 8,000 pounds.


So the first thing to look for is at least an F-350 SRW (single rear wheels) that has 1,500 pounds more payload capacity than the F-250.


Next is drivetrain choice. Most folks that settle for a gasoline engine trade it in on a diesel the first chance they get. The diesel costs more up front, but it has a lot of torque to make towing a 10,000-pound trailer a piece of cake. And you get back the up-front extra cost of the diesel when you traded it in down the road.


Then with an F-350 SRW PSD (Powerstroke Diesel), you have a choice of a "shorty" 6.5' or a long 8' bed. Go for the 8' bed. The shorter beds require a heavy sliding hitch for most 5er RVs, and the best of the bunch is the PullRite 20k SuperGlide Fully Automatic Sliding 5th Wheel hitch which is REALLY heavy. However, the advantage of the SuperGlide is you don't have to worry about cab to trailer contact because it's fully automatic. If I had to tow a 5er with a shorty tow vehicle, I would insist on a SuperGlide hitch.


If you order a new F-350 SRW, be sure you order the factory fifth wheel prep kit. It's a bargain compared to adding it aftermarket. Then if you order an 8' bed, install the 5er hitch Ford has as an option, or order it also installed by the factory. It's an excellent non-slider 5er hitch. If you order the shorty bed, you still need the 5er prep kit, but then the SuperGlide you buy is a special one that plugs into the prep kit attachment points.


Manual slider hitches are also available for less money, but you must remember to ALWAYS slide the hitch before you put the tranny in reverse if you have a shorty pickup. You cannot turn sharp enough to have cab to trailer contact when going forward, but in reverse you can back into a jackknife and CRUNCH! in a heartbeat with a manual slider or without a sliding hitch in a shorty tow vehicle.

Norotso

Cant add more then whats been offered, you're past the F150 range

jjarman123

I will most likely try to find a newer used vehicle. I didn't want to spend more than about $35,000 if possible. My husband used to handle all the vehicle purchasing so I am not sure what I need to budget for but I know I don't want to buy a new truck for what my first house cost.

jjarman123

Thanks Smokey. That is a lot of information for me to digest but I am going to.