TV Preference... thinking about Ford F-150?

[boubou]

Originally Posted by Bttravel

Congrats on the new TV. The Fords are good looking rigs and have really improved in performance in the past ten years. You'll enjoy the comfort and stability. I didn't see may Ram owners here so I had to throw my 2 Pennies in there. 2010 Ram 1500 Quad Hemi with standard 3.55 axle pulling 17bh Grey Wolf. With trailer at about 3900 lbs up and down the Ozark hills of Missouri (hiway 67, 21, 44, 160 and Arkansas roads around Bull Shoals, lake Norfolk, etc.) I average 9 - 10 mpg. The hemi is something else when it gets in it's power band. On flatter terrain I can eek out a little over 10 to 10.5. Just the truck gets 18 to 19 consistently on the same roads. Had to reset the WDH as the RV shop didn't get it right. Amazing. A 3.73 axle would be a little better, but I'm not complaining. Have a great time with the new rig and roll on down the highway.

Also Ram owner here, same truck, QC 1500 2010 Ram 4x4 (your's 4x4?)
Pulling good so far but havent gone far yet, our tt is heavier tho. 5800 lbs loaded, I expect to be stopping every 3 hours for fuel lol

[MIKE44460]

Originally Posted by dretired

Enjoy your new truck ..i like my F150..Attachment 13325

I can’t believe the number of people that pull a 5er with a half-ton truck. The dealers and manufactures will tell you anything to sell a truck. Do you have any idea of the rear axle bearing loading for the weight you are putting on them? A three quarter ton rear axle is a completely different animal than the rear axle on a half-ton truck, at least on the big three; offshore trucks, I have no idea what they use.

[schrederman]

I agree... When I bought my 1/2 ton Ford, I knew it's limitations. My new TT will weigh about 6,000 pounds loaded and that's definitely enough...

[dretired]

Originally Posted by MIKE44460

I can’t believe the number of people that pull a 5er with a half-ton truck. The dealers and manufactures will tell you anything to sell a truck. Do you have any idea of the rear axle bearing loading for the weight you are putting on them? A three quarter ton rear axle is a completely different animal than the rear axle on a half-ton truck, at least on the big three; offshore trucks, I have no idea what they use.

Its amazing.. at what a F150 can do now..

[dretired]

Originally Posted by FreedomTracker

Decided on the 2012 Ford F-150 4x4 5.0L V-8 SuperCrew with Tow Pkg. Rated for 7700lbs. This should be a great TV for many years if I can afford to keep that 36 gallon tank filled up :-)

Thanks to everyone who contributed by sharing your thoughts and experience...!

I have put this out there for others to consider ...including myself..A 2012 Ford F150 XLT.. Super Crew, 6 1/2 foot box.. with..3.5 Eco boost...3.73 Limited slip ..4x2...Heavy Duty Payload Package ..Max towing Package..( Includes those nice towing mirrors)...gives 11,300 lbs for towing ..and...2,600 lbs payload..a very nice 1/2 ton !!

[boubou]

Baffles me that 1/2 ton ford has such a big payload....

[VacaBill]

We have a 2011 F 150, 5.0 6 speed trans, max tow package. Our truck has under 4000 miles, we are pulling a Rockwood 2703 SS. We get about 16 MPG around town, Around 10 MPG towing and we have a max tow of 9600#. A couple of things to think about. Mirrors are not wide enough to tow a travel trailer on most F 150's. Second and a larger expense, we had to upgrade our tires to light truck rated tires. The weight rating was high enough, but the P rated tires that come standard on the F 150 have too much flex in the sidewall of the tire and can contribute to handling issues. Great truck we love it.

[dretired]

Originally Posted by boubou

Baffles me that 1/2 ton ford has such a big payload....

Is.. a 1/2 ton truck ...really at 1/2 ton anymore ??

[wneise]

Mike, first off, yes half tons have come a long way. Gone are the days when a half ton would only haul a half ton. Then again you can say the same for 3/4 tons as well. Second, the term 5er doesn't just mean a 16,000 lb goliath that is 15 feet high puts 3500 lbs on your rear end. Manufacturers are putting out half ton towable 5ers in the 6000-9000 lb range with lower clearances and aero nose cones. With the lower weight and front end, there is also a smaller pin weight. Almost all are less than 2000 lbs and you still get the stability of a 5er which beats any anti-sway hitch.

[cstover]

I am waiting to see how tow ratings plummet when the new standard (SAE J2807) are put into place for model year 2013. Tundra's dropped from 10800 to 9800.

I still love my Tundra and it tows my TT great for me.

[fordmantpw]

Originally Posted by cstover

I am waiting to see how tow ratings plummet when the new standard (SAE J2807) are put into place for model year 2013. Tundra's dropped from 10800 to 9800.

I still love my Tundra and it tows my TT great for me.

I'm pretty sure Ford already goes by the standard. I think the switch to the new engines for the '11 model year ushered in that standard at Ford.

[cstover]

Originally Posted by fordmantpw

I'm pretty sure Ford already goes by the standard. I think the switch to the new engines for the '11 model year ushered in that standard at Ford.

Everything I have read is that everyone except Toyota (they backed down their models that year) will adopt the new standard during model year 2013.

[FreedomTracker]

Looks like the new SAE standards will at least enable a minimum way to evaluate tow capability of each TV based on the factors measured... kinda like apples & apples vs. oranges... For a little more info:

Tow Ratings Finally Pass the Sniff Test - The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) - Automobile Magazine

[fordmantpw]

Originally Posted by cstover

Everything I have read is that everyone except Toyota (they backed down their models that year) will adopt the new standard during model year 2013.

Ford hasn't come out and said "we're using the new standards" like Toyota did, but internally, I'm 99% sure they are using the new standards to verify their numbers.

[cstover]

Fordman they just might be well doing it, but I doubt it. I love Fords, just got rid of my exploder and we use 350's and 450's at work. I just don't see Ford using those numbers yet as their published ones.

[Rsgtivr6]

Originally Posted by cstover

I am waiting to see how tow ratings plummet when the new standard (SAE J2807) are put into place for model year 2013. Tundra's dropped from 10800 to 9800.

I still love my Tundra and it tows my TT great for me.

SAE started the tow rating standards testing project in 2009 and Dodge tested the 2010 Ram 1500 to those standards and GAINED 1500lbs GCWR over '09 with no hardware changes. Before the rating standards, companies set their own ratings. Dodge, Ford, and GM generally underrated their trucks for the next year in case another company boosted theres a bit (same thing with engine tuning, the Hemi jumped to 390bhp with new tuning magically after Ford and GM put numbers in that territory). Toyota, Nissan, and Honda all pushed their ratings to the limit to entice people to their "full size" trucks. Many tests showed these trucks strained at rating while the domestics moved along normally at theirs.

Just what I observed through some poking around. At the end of the day, it's your wallet, empty it the way you feel you need to.

[gvanmeter]

I have a 2006 F-150, Super Cab 4x4 with 5.4L. My friend has the F-250 with the exact same engine, same tranny, same gears. 3.73.
Why can he pull more- per sticker and charts and graphs?---- Yeah I know he has heavier springs and shocks and brakes, but his truck also weighs more than mine. If I put helper springs on my rear to help with the squat from heavy 5er, and the 5er has good brakes,... why is that an issue? My 5.4 is a pulling machine, maybe lousy gas mileage, but I figure if I'm happy pulling my 5er and or boat around and enjoying life, why worry so much about MPG? Is 5 more MPG really going to make a difference at tax time?

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by gvanmeter

I have a 2006 F-150, Super Cab 4x4 with 5.4L. My friend has the F-250 with the exact same engine, same tranny, same gears. 3.73.
Why can he pull more- per sticker and charts and graphs?---- Yeah I know he has heavier springs and shocks and brakes, but his truck also weighs more than mine. If I put helper springs on my rear to help with the squat from heavy 5er, and the 5er has good brakes,... why is that an issue? My 5.4 is a pulling machine, maybe lousy gas mileage, but I figure if I'm happy pulling my 5er and or boat around and enjoying life, why worry so much about MPG? Is 5 more MPG really going to make a difference at tax time?

Helper springs do not increase GVWR because in most light trucks the limiting factor is the thickness and construction of the frame; not the axles or tires.

Tow rating (how much of a sled of steel you can PULL) is based on the drive train (engine, trans, and rear). Whether your truck can CARRY it's share of the load is what the GVWR number is all about.

For a properly balanced and safe tow, the truck must be able to shoulder (carry - available payload - etc) 10-15% of what you are towing for a travel trailer and 15-25% of what you are towing for a 5th wheel.

If your frame can't handle that, it will work harden from flexing and crack.

[Hob]

Herk,

I wish you hadn't put this line out here, "If your frame can't handle that, it will work harden from flexing and crack." Now Lippert will have another excuse for the reason so many trailer frames they make are cracking and breaking. They don't need any help. They just need to make frames for 5th wheels that hold up.

Best regards,

__________________

[TTNewbees]

Think herk is referring to TV frame, not trailer...... How does a TV frame affect a lippert trailer from? But like my name say I am green.