An F-250 does look big and feel big when you are moving up from a car or a smaller truck. But you quickly get used to it and you can not compare it to a larger U-Haul, those ride and drive like pigs. We bought our truck used. It has every option you can think of on it, was priced right and now 40,000 miles later have never regretted it. We bought the truck because we knew were going to buy a 5er when the right one came alone and did not want to be as limited as we would have been with a smaller truck. We make frequent trips to our daughter's home in Texas and this truck running unloaded (wife, 2 dogs and our luggage) gets better fuel economy than our other smaller truck ever did.

 

One last question (which I'm sure will bring up 10 more).

Would something like this:
V-Lite Travel Trailer by Forest River

V-Lite 28WRBS work behind an F150? Seems to meet all the good specs:
Dry Hitch Weight 701 lbs. (318 kg)
Unloaded Vehicle Weight 6,121 lbs. (2,776 kg)
GVWR TBA (TBA)
Cargo Carrying Capacity 1,629 lbs. (739 kg)
Exterior Length 31' 7" (9.6 m)

Using a GVWR of 6121+1629, that puts me at a calculated Tongue of 775 @ 10% and 1163 @ 15% and leaving a payload of 1075 @ 10%, 688 @ 15%.

I like the look of that floor plan.

 

What I tell people when they ask, can my truck tow this TT, I say, you can tow anything with anything. Does not mean it is necessarily good for the Tow Vehicle and ethical.

To answer you question yes you would be within the limits of the truck weight wise. Assuming you has a 150 with the highest available tow capacity. And it is long. So you need to take into account the wheelbase of the 150. Here is an equation that should be used as a guide not Gospel:

For every 110" of wheelbase on your Tow Vehicle allows you 20' of TT
For each additional 4" of wheelbase gets you 1' more of TT length. So a standard short bed half ton is in the neighborhood of 141". This will allow 28' of TT. However, this equation does not take into consideration the advances in WD Hitches and sway control. So this equation will give you a ballpark where you should beIMO.

 

NP OP! It was long and I was tired but I thought the long winded story may have a purpose As for thinking about the Class C, they come with their own issues as well. You are effectively stuck with what you bought. If you want to change vehicles or layouts, you have to sell the whole unit. I grew up camping in a Class C. My parents had 2 of them. One a 20 footer and the other was a 25 footer. When we went on vacation, my dad would drive the motor home to the water park or the beach. At the end of the day, back to the camp site for another parking job and hook up. It gets old quick even when you are young. The last couple of trips my parents did in the motorhome, if it was far, they just would rent a car. The more local trips was a chase vehicle driven by mom, my wife or myself.

My mother was the one who prodded my dad into going the trailer route since she saw it more practical. Dad just didn't go that direction due to what we are talking about here. (Tow Vehicle size, etc.) However when they bought the Kiwi at 17 feet and 3300 pounds wet, it worked for them. My dad said he felt more than comfortable towing the trailer on the highway and it would perfect for their needs. About the only thing they got bummed about was the fact it was towards the end of the season. No more camping until the spring.

+1x inifinity There are a number of guys and gals on here that have a good deal of experience in this. The simple fact itguy asked the question and didn't get berated with stupid answers is why I like reading the FTE forums. He is being smart about the process. I see where he is trying to go with his research. If this was a general forum it would have turned into a Brand X sucks or Brand A is better than B fight.


This is similar to what I felt when I was towing with my F150. The longer runs felt more fatigue. Mainly because you feel alot more of the trailer's movements especially in the size class you are looking at. Traveling distance between vehicles, other drivers, traffic, etc. Having the brakes when someone cuts you off is really nice bonus Hence when I used the 250 for the Myrtle Beach trip, fatigue was less of a factor. When I pulled in to the campground @ 1:30AM, it was because I was pulling in at a time I was not use too as much anymore.

If you want to go the F150 route, I would scale back to something in the around 23-26 foot, 4500-6500 pound loaded range. I know many people who own F150s. This is where their trailers range out at. Unfortunately I seen it where they purchased their trailers right on max specs of the tow vehicle. They claim the vehicle is fine and they have no issues with handling it. I like to try to figure out which statement is the BS. the kicker is they do it on P rated low pro tires. It really gives me chills people do this.

 

I tow a 4 horse trialer with a f350 dually and wouldn't go with anything less than 3/4 ton, Good luck with your decision!

 

A horse trailer is WAY different than anything else when its loaded.......a live, movable load. While both TT's and Horse trailers are highly wind resistant, no travel trailer has 4000 lbs + or - of load that moves independently.......Bumper pull, or gooseneck, 4 horse trailers are best towed by very seasoned drivers

 

a Fair number of horse have been ruined by inexperienced drivers while being ttrailed

 

I would say if you go with the half ton, one of the first upgrades you do, or is upgrade the brakes to slotted and premium pads and good E rated tires. You will appreciate spending the money the first time someone cuts you of under tow! And it will not be the last time that happens either!

 

Just some food for thought on the subject...


V-Cross Platinum Rollover - Forest River Forums

 

To the OP:

As we are discussing what truck will suit your needs, I just received the February Issue of Trailer Life with the Trailer Life Towing Guide. In the Towing Guide, the first article has to do with buying the correct truck for your towing needs. And they use the new F-150 as an example. It is a very good article and is very specific. Especially the parts that describe to you how to calculate what your truck can safely topw, tongue weights, ect. And of course it is followed by the towing capacity of every truck sold domestically. It is a very good tool to have if you can get your hands on it. I am not sure if it is for sale at a news stand. However, you might want to think about subscribing to this magazine. Very good information from new RV Models, to trucks to campground reviews. Or perhaps you may know someone who get it.

 

I believe you will find that guide here on the Trailer Life website: Trailer Towing Guides | Trailer Life Magazine

Steve

 

Do they also post the articles associated with the guide? I have always subscribed to the magazine. Never looked on line for it. That is good to know.

 

It does. I answered my own question! Thanks for posting that link RVTech!

 

Just to put some closure to this....

Thanks for all your advice and suggestions. Gave me a lot to think about and go over with the wife. Also found an interesting towing whitepaper written by the RVIA that echoed a lot of points made here.

Ended up pulling the trigger on the F150 on Friday. We both really liked the truck, at 43k it is practically new and with the max tow package should serve us well. Been driving it the last few days and it's a great truck and almost as smooth of a ride as the SHO (which I am keeping).

We looked at a lot of floorplans in the under 30 ft range and around 8k GVWR. We're both confident we can find something that will work with the truck and allow us to tow safely.

Thanks again!

 

Congratulations on the new truck! Good Luck and Be Well!