Towing fiver with an ecoboost

[camperboy]

If you are towing a fiver with your ecoboost please give me some info:

what trailer are you towing (length, height, and weight)

What gear ratio does your truck have?

How fast do you drive?

What kind of fuel economy do you get?

[CWSWine]

You have to find one that fits your truck. There are F150 with 1200 lbs cargo capacity all the way up into the mid 2000 lbs range or more. If you have F150 decked out and the door sticker says Max Cargo Capacity is 1200 lbs after subtracting 200 lbs for hitch, 300 lbs passengers, and 100 lbs for misc cargo capacity (pin weigh) would be around 600 lbs max. If you Max Cargo Capacity is say 2,000 subtract hitch, passengers, misc cargo you could have a Max Cargo (pin weight) of 1400 lbs.

Here is a excellent guide to what you can tow using your Cargo Capacity for Your Truck. Towing Planner - towing capability calculators

[Fred H.]

If you get the 150 EcoBoost, make sure you get the "max tow package" and "trailer package" This will put you up to the max limits that Ford has for the 150 EcoBoost.

I drive between 65 and 70 MPH, MPG are around 8.5-9.

But like I've always said, if your worried about gas mileage you shouldn't be in the RV group. Just go get a small Smart car and enjoy those high miles per gallon.

[camperboy]

It appears you need the may payload package to have the maximum capacity This gives you 3.73 gears, a larger rear end, larger tranny cooler, heavier frame and extra spring

[drittal]

Can you even get a 2015 or 2016 max payload f150? I have not heard of one being available yet.

[camperboy]

Last I read they are still on hold.

[Skyliner]

2009 27RL Wilcat which advertises 950 lb dry pin weight. 2013 F150 EB wtih 1600 lb cargo, 3.73 rear axle, Max tow rating. Tows great at 65mph about 9mpg on flats. Installed Road Master Active Suspension and have it dialed in at max setting-black spacer.

Plan on reducing pin weight a bit by switching to AGM batteries and moving them to under dinette. Probably going to go to two 20 lb tanks which easily last 2 weeks for us, and will be carrying generator and spare water in rear of the camper.

Spare F150 tire is very heavy and we removed it and will be beefing up the camper bumper to install it there.

Removed rear seats (never used) so our 3 dogs have extra room in the back of the F150.

With these "mods", I'm very comfortable towing our Fiver (~7300 lbs dry) with my wife and our 3 dogs inside the truck.

[Wayne Joan]

I dirve between 60 & 65. Towing MPG is around 9mpg. Trailer & truck specs. are in my signature.

[lynn brownlee]

Borrow a friends 3/4 ton and see what it's like to have the right equipment, just saying

[camperboy]

Originally Posted by lynn brownlee

Borrow a friends 3/4 ton and see what it's like to have the right equipment, just saying

I have a 1 ton right now. My arms can't take the wear and tear of the constant movement of the steering wheel on rough roads.

[camperboy]

Originally Posted by Wayne Joan

I dirve between 60 & 65. Towing MPG is around 9mpg. Trailer & truck specs. are in my signature.

So what type of hitch do you have? A slider?

[lynn brownlee]

I got the power steering with my 1 ton, no more white knuckles and oh no's
Lol

[camperboy]

I have power steering. The problem is the solid front axle. Any bump you hit makes the steering wheel move which in turn makes my elbows hurt. I added a steering stabilizer and better shocks but didn't help much

[CWSWine]

Originally Posted by camperboy

I have a 1 ton right now. My arms can't take the wear and tear of the constant movement of the steering wheel on rough roads.

You have something wrong with our steer if jerking like that!!!

My neighbor has 2014 HD Payload and it rides rougher than my F350 1 ton and even him and wife agrees. You put that stiff of suspension to carry those kinds payload on tuck that light does not make for good smooth riding truck. Before you buy one you should test drive one and see for yourself.

The Max Tow rides lot better than my F350 but when you put E rated tires on it to replace the passenger car tire it rides like 5/8 ton truck.

[camperboy]

Originally Posted by CWSWine

You have something wrong with our steer if jerking like that!!!

My neighbor has 2014 HD Payload and it rides rougher than my F350 1 ton and even him and wife agrees. You put that stiff of suspension to carry those kinds payload on tuck that light does not make for good smooth riding truck. Before you buy one you should test drive one and see for yourself.

The Max Tow rides lot better than my F350 but when you put E rated tires on it to replace the passenger car tire it rides like 5/8 ton truck.

Nothing wrong with the steering, its just the solid front axle and my sensitive arms. Take any truck with a solid front axle and drive it across rough roads or a pasture and watch the steering wheel move. Even though it only moves a little, after several hours of that the inflammation in my elbows kicks in

[Skyliner]

I towed mine 150 miles home driving a borrowed 3/4 ton gas pickup truck. I actually like how my lightweight fiver tows with my F150 than the GM 3/4 ton.

Problem nowadays is that there aren't (m)any new fivers that have a sub 1,000lb pin weight. My 09 27RL Wildcat is so far the one I found with the lightest pin weight. Everything else is 200-350 lbs heavier.

I camp 3 weeks a year. That is 6 drives towing the camper. My F150 is a great compromise and gives me a great all purpose truck when I'm not towing the other 95% of the time. Despite this, I'm not against the idea of a diesel.

I wish Ford had a diesel in lieu of the EB. I'm waiting for the 5.0 V8 Cummins to come out. Its really a 3/4 ton from what I understand with a 1/2 ton label. If I can get one at a good price, I'd probably upgrade my EB F150 to this diesel.

[Sandy12345]

Camperboy, are you saying that the 1 ton is too rough to drive? I am looking at upgrading from a 2007 Tundra to a Ford F350 to two my 9200 lb Forest river fifth wheel. Is the one ton too rough to drive.

[Skyliner]

Originally Posted by Sandy12345

Camperboy, are you saying that the 1 ton is too rough to drive? I am looking at upgrading from a 2007 Tundra to a Ford F350 to two my 9200 lb Forest river fifth wheel. Is the one ton too rough to drive.

I've talked to a couple of F350 owners and they all said that the ride is acceptable unloaded and the only time they had ride issues is on I25 near Denver where the road sections are wavy.

[jz5w63]

Wow, reading all of this I am so glad as a newbee I bought a Ram 1500 with the 5.7 Hemi and tow package to pull our previous 8000 lb Rockwood 29' 5th wheel ultralight. Moved up to a new Flagstaff 33' ultrallight 5th wheel (about 10,000 loaded) and traded for our new (in 2014) Ram 1500 Hemi with a 3.83 AR (vs. previous 3.55) to max my tow rating at 10,500. Been to Florida twice with the new package and just like the previous 2011 Ram I still get 8.5 - 9.0 mpg at 70 mph average over the entire trip to Florida and back from Michigan thanks to the seamless ZF 8 Speed with lots of power and torque to spare. I love this truck and the styling, ride, and comfort are fabulous. My goal was to try to stay just within the limits of a 1/2 ton truck and this Ram is awesome. Prior to these 2 trucks I had always driven Ford or GM products but now I am a convert and didn't break the bank like with a Ford or GM for which I could get a discount. The only add to the truck other than the 5th wheel hitch was a set of Timbren's which really evens out the level when trailer weight is on. These Timbren's in my opinion are better than the much more expensive after market add-on air lifts (air lift stabilizers available from factory on Ram 2500). They are like a little "Michelin" or doughboy man as they have two stacked rubber pods and snap into where the frame bottom-out bumpers are as supplied by the factory. You simply by hand pull the stock bumpers out and put the new Timbren bumpers in using some soap solution and then jacking up the wheel one side at a time to seat them into the vacated cup holder on the body above the frame. This leaves about an inch clearance so the truck still rides smoothly on the variable coil suspension (Ram 1500 does not use leaf springs like Ford 150 or GM 1500) until a load is applied and then the Timbren's supplement the load capability. I was actually put onto these when at a water fill/dump station in western Michigan when a Ford F150 6 cylinder Ecoboost pulled in hooked to a 36 ft. 14,000 lb. 5th wheel and he was sitting perfectly level. He told me about adding the Timbren's. However, this was his first trip from Ludington, MI to Ludington State Park and although he was sitting perfectly level I could not believe he would ever make it to Florida and back with that tow package! I think he had a lot more than he should tackle with his rig! The ecoboost may make horsepower but there is no substitute for the torque of a good V8 either gas or diesel and apparently the Ford V6 Ecoboost does not get any better gas mileage at that! BTW the new Ram V6 diesel can't match the 5.7 hemi for towing power so it is limited to smaller trailers although a nice package if you want a small diesel.

[Mtelkman]

Originally Posted by camperboy

So what type of hitch do you have? A slider?

From the sig line the 5er is a Flagstaff Classic. It comes with a Reese Revolution pinbox so no slider is needed.