Hey all, I have got an 88 f150, with the 4.9l, m5od. I have been looking for a camper and have come across a decently priced 23ft-er. I am wondering if my ol truck can handle that or if I should look for a smaller one. It is a 23ft, older prowler trailer, tandem axle. My truck is stock, 5spd. I do have the 3.08 gears and 30in tires. It loves the higher ratio, but I'm not sure how it will be going down the road. I recently towed an empty 16ft wells cargo enclosed trailer, and it would do 70, but didn't like it. It did like to go 55-60 mph. Starting rolling around town and driving around town with the trailer was absolutely fine, honestly it wasn't even that noticeable... low end torque rocks.. but it was the highway speed that concerned me. The trailer weighed about 2000 lbs empty (so I read on the internet)-
what will it be like pulling a 23 ft camp trailer with it? I'm sure around town it will be fine, but will it be dangerously slow on the freeway? I'm considering putting 235/75's back on it to help it out.
What do you all think- am I crazy for wanting to do that?

Truck- 125k miles, 5spd, 3.08 gears, 30" tires.

 

I would think you would need lower gearing (Like 3.55's) for towing like that. Thats really the only problem I see. The F150 can handle a 23' camper, and the 4.9 is a good engine for towing.

I would also recommend a weight distributing hitch/sway control, for any vehicle towing a camper. It will handle better, esp in windy situations.

 

A 23ft tandem camper weighs in at about 5000-6000lbs which is well over what your truck is rated to tow(2600lbs with 3.08 gears), and yes it would be really slow and cumbersome on the highway. To get the tow rating up to where it needs to be and protect the transmission the truck needs 4.10 gears in the axle but even then this trailer will be a full load for the truck so it'll be "interesting" to drive in windy conditions.

P.S. The load ratings above are pulled directly from my 1990 owners manual, and yes tow rating is very much dependant on axle gearing.

 

Will it tow it? Well, do you mean once, from where you bought it to where you are going to park it? Absolutely. Are you planning on taking this thing cross country on the interstate towing it several hundred miles per day? Then, maybe the wrong truck/camper combo. I have a 90 F250 with the 4.9 and a ZF 5 speed and 4.10 gearing. I recently towed a 28 ft. RV trailer about 150 miles for the first time. The weight of the 28 footer should be relatively similar, (7000 gross, i figured 5000-5500 empty) to the 23 footer you are talking about. The 4.9 handled it great, but again I have different gearing and a granny first gear. I think if you are planning on towing this thing regularly it might not be a good idea. I suppose if you have a heavy half-ton and a weight distributing hitch your suspension should be able to handle it, but as I recall the M5od is not that renowned for heavy towing. Certainly if you are planning on just driving it up to your lake property and leaving it there, and you can keep it out of 5th gear, you should be fine, otherwise, maybe something lighter (or a bigger truck) is in order. I just think that with the high gears, you're gonna be slipping the clutch a lot to get it moving, not what you want to be doing every weekend. Also, if you are planning on getting this rig past 40 miles per hour, I would absolutely insist on a brake controller if you don't have one already. Yeah, making sure you have enough power to get 'er rolling is important, but not nearly as important as being able to stop it from pushing you down a hill. Let us know what you decide, and good luck either way.

 

I alsp pull a trailer that is more than should be with my truck, however I only plan on pulling around my state and only a few times a year. The trade was I rebuilt the tranny with a shift kit, added Hellwig load leveling springs, added the largest transmission cooler I could find, changed all ujoints and drive shaft support bearing, and switched all fluids to full sysynthetic. I am pulling a 24' 5th wheel camper.

 

You should upgrade gears, 3.08 might be too little, but i think you shouldnt have a problem, just dont expect to be there as fast as you wanted

 

My truck used to pull a 27' Coachmen dual axle camper. It weighted in a 7,000 pounds. My truck is a supercab, and at the time it had a 302 and 3.55 gearing in the axle. It was kinda slow, but once it got up to speed it was smooth sailing. I pulled it around 60mph, had a weight dist hitch and sway control.

Gearing will help you out the most. The only other thing would be a 5.8. There is a huge, huge difference in towing power b/t the 302 (5.0) or even the 300 (4.9) and the 351w (5.8)

Keep in mind too that a 4x4 is rated for more than a 2wd, and Supercab rated more than a regular cab. (If I am not seriously mistaking)

 

Depends on what you mean. Trucks are rated by GVWR, which is calculated using brake stopping ability, axle rating et. al. So while a 300 L6 will PULL eleventy billion of something, what's more important is whether the truck can bring it to a halt in a reasonable amount of time.
Whether the truck/engine/axle combo is able to pull it fast enough for your preferences is another thing. Stay at the GVWR or below and you'll be fine.

 

9 year old thread resurrection