Towing limits for EcoBoost
 

I've got a 3-horse trailer that fully loaded will come to around 7500-8000 pounds. I'm trying to upgrade my 2011 Ram 1500 5.7L Hemi to something that will handle that. I know that the Ford-250 series will handle it no problem, but I really would prefer to stick with the 1/2 ton models from Ford. What do people think about occasional (1x per month) towing with an Ecoboost model which has towing capacity of 11,100. Will it pull 8000 pounds comfortably, or am I going to regret it?

Your limit will be the carry capacity of the truck. What is the tongue weight of the loaded trailer? That trailer weight is within reason, what hitch does it have? Just surge brake
and ball or do you have a weight distributed hitch?

The HPP truck would be great, but with the numbers above you might be able to tow it with a higher trim truck.

For the trailer it is a bumper pull and has two 5200lb rated axles, so tongue weight is probably well under 1000 lbs depending on how I load it. (Tack/water storage up front in trailer, so I can shift some to the truck bed too)
I could also look at adding a weight distributed hitch? Any other options that I should look for on the truck other than the Ecoboost? I would be much more willing to put a few $1000 in beefing up the truck than have to go to the 3/4 ton since most of my regular driving is just local streets.

Also, is HPP a specific package? Which high trim packages are you talking about? I would like some comfort so was thinking Lariat, but didn't think that would affect towing capability.

Make looking at the available Payload of the truck (the yellow white and red sticker in the driver's door) a priority.
The less bling (lower trim level) the more payload you will have.
For Max towing the 3.5 ecoBoost is the engine you want.
HDPP is the Heavy Duty Payload Package typically you need to order this as dealer's rarely spec them out or have them on the lot. HDPP equipped trucks in the wild are rare. For example My truck came with 2330 lbs payload from the factory and could easily tow the trailer you mention.

I don't tow Horse trailers but I do know they behave differently than RVs and utility trailers. One of the horse trailer guys should be along to give more definitive answers regarding the horse trailer specifics.

You'll have no issues pulling that much weight. The only real issue will be your payload. Shifting stuff from the trailer to the bed won't change much as they are fairly equidistant to the pivot point at the tongue of the trailer.

My understanding with horse trailers is they are tongue heavy, but the tongue doesn't change much because the weight of the front half of the horse goes where the front legs are, and their long-ass necks keep those legs 4-5ft from the front of the trailer. You need to find out what your tongue weight actually is, though, as you need to know how much of the trucks payload is going to be consumed by the trailer. Most of the trailers being pulled that exceed capacity are exceeding payload.

On an 8000lb trailer you are going to be over the weight carrying max of 500lb with anything but a boat, so you're going to need to use a WDH.

The 3.5EB has a nicer feel to it while towing than any non-turbodiesel I've driven. That includes the Ram 5.7 and 6.4 and Ford's 6.2. I have not pulled with the new 7.3, that might be a different story. So the engine isn't an issue. It always feels comfortable, quiet and holds relatively low RPMs under load compared to naturally aspirated V8 in competitive trucks.

However, what everyone above said about payload is true depending on which F150 you buy and what else you plan to have in it. You're horse trailer could easily have a 1,200 pound tongue. This will be right at the rated limits for the receiver on the F150 and WDH is recommended above a 500 pound tongue weight. Also, high trim level crew cabs have <1500 pound payloads. So with a 1,200 pound tongue, Net zero for a WDH after adjusting tension, you have <300 pounds for you, any passengers and stuff in the truck. On the other hand, a stripped down HDPP crew will leave you with 1,200 pounds for you, any passengers and stuff in the bed with the same tongue weight assumptions. Unfortunately, HDPP is only available with XL and XLT trim. However, I believe you can get Lariat crews with ~1800 pounds of payload if you forgo additional options.

The higher the trim level, the less you can tow if you expect to be putting more than just a driver in the truck. This is because the higher the trim level, the more the truck weighs AND the heavy duty payload package is not available on higher trim levels.

Based on the configuration / trim / options you choose on your truck, capacity for people + cargo + tongue weight could range anywhere from ~1,300 pounds to ~3,000 pounds. At the lower end, tongue weight alone could use all the capacity, at the higher end, you have more capacity than a diesel 3/4 ton.

WDH and Max Tow, then laugh at that horse trailer. My other tow vehicle is a 2005 Hemi Durango with the five speed and although it tows fine (once had it loaded and pulled about 6000lbs of open car hauler 400 miles and got 12mpg), the 10 speed and 3.5L EcoBoost are a much more relaxing tow.

BTW, I think the manual or tow guide states to use a WDH for anything over 5000lbs so if you don't and have some sort of accident, that can come back on you for liability.

Payload is everything. what you look for is two things, Tow package, and payload. The great thing about a horse trailer is unlike a travel trailer, they aren't tongue heavy, and easily tow @ 10%, so at 8000 pounds you are looking at around 800 pounds tongue weight. The 3.5EB can easily handle the weight and be able to stop with the trailer brakes. I used to two a 2 horse walkin with a tack room with a 97 Explorer, all the real weight was over the axles and handled great, with the F150 its even better. So look for something with 1800 pounds payload and has at the least the HD tow package.