I currently have a 2011 250 CC/SB 4wd with 6.2. I got it new and it has been fine but after having diesel SD's for so long it has been tough not having that turbo to kick in especially when towing. A friend bought a 3.5L with the max tow and has hauled a large camper all over the country for the last year and loves it. I just purchased a '17 3.5L with 10 spd tranny and max tow package. It will be great for my camper and am planning on a WD hitch to keep it level. I have air bags on the 250. I also have a Sundowner 4 horse gooseneck so plan on putting the B&W in next week. My question is will I need air bags with the gooseneck. I will be traveling short distances with the horse trailer but don't want to totally squat the truck. How much weight over the axle will the truck handle? The trailer is all aluminum and not that heavy. Probably less than 8k with horses. I found out with the 250 that the airbags are a lot easier to install before the hitch but don't like the ride they create.

Thanks.

Brian

 

So, what does the payload label on the door post of your truck say the amount of payload that is available? 8K would possibly put approx 1600 lbs of pin weight on your truck.

 

I don’t pick the truck up for a couple of weeks and they are going to install the hitch and spray in bed liner so I don’t know what the payload capacity is. I was hoping the gurus here knew that information based on what the truck is. I can certainly ask the dealer what it is.

 

Sorry, I don't even have a guess for a F150 like that. I would think though that 1600 lbs of pin weight from the gooseneck would be pushing the max payload pretty close and then whatever the hitch weighs. You're not going to have much left if any!

 

2017 towing guide right here:
http://www.fleet.ford.com/resources/...de_r5_Mar3.pdf


Page 19.

 

Search here for payload




https://www.fleet.ford.com/truckbbas...F-150_v1-0.pdf

 

Keep in mind that this will not be 100% accurate for each and every truck. Number of passengers, gear, whatever else you have in the truck, plus the tires they put on it may effect it too.


You will want to check those tires and make sure they are LT e rated, not P tires.


I would also get it on the scales and see what the actuals are per axle and compare that with the door sticker and sidewall of the tires.

 

The empty pin weight is actually pushing 1700# if I have done my research correctly. I am going to have the hitch installed because I will mostly be pulling the GN locally and my BP camper for distances. Looks like airbags are in the future, but I will see how it drives first.

 

Brian....you never did say what you are getting....Regular cab...SuperCab, SuperCrew...2WD....4WD...short WB....Long WB...Trim level....XL, XLT, Lariat???? All of that will affect the payload capacity of the truck by over 1000 lbs from best case to worst case scenario.

 

2017 150 with supercrew, lariat, 4wd and 157” wheel base with max tow package and 3.5L EB.

 

That looks to be a 2040 payload limit according to the chart above. Not sure I'd be digging that pin weight on an F-150 myself.

Griz

 

I’m not sure I will either, but it’s what I have now so I will see how it goes and make adjustments as needed. I pull that trailer so little these days and mostly just within a 10 mile radius that hopefully I will get by. If the kids decide to rodeo, then I guess it will be back to a bigger truck.

 

I wouldn't sweat 10-20 miles with it. Not likely to give you too much trouble like that.

Griz

 

I've towed 11,000 with my 2015 F-150 KR Screw FX4 ecoboost. No issues with power, it pulls very diesel like. But stopping...thats a whole issue on it own. I had a trailer brake failure while towing, I slid halfway through an intersection because the front brakes kept trying to to lock-up even at very low speed on flat terrain. The anti-lock kicks in, but the fronts still skidded badly. It was a wake up call for sure. Not saying its not doable, but its going to have some serious limits that a super-duty DRW would laugh off. I returned from the same trip, same route but down to 9,000 lbs total and that felt very secure.

 

I towed a 10K fiver for over 20,000 miles with my 2011 F150 Max to for 3 years. I added Supersprings and Bilsteins. If I were doing it today, it would be Sumosprings instead of airbags.