F150 Supercrew 3.73 rear real world towing - Page 2

ryanr12076 · 03-23-2012, 10:03 PM

See attached.

TURBS · 03-23-2012, 10:05 PM

the other thing i see is your truck only has passenger style tires not LT
another red flag !

teamgl · 03-23-2012, 11:01 PM

Hi Ryan

Something is not adding up here. The dealer is trying to put you into a camper that is almost 100% of your towing capacity - and that's BEFORE you add any passengers or gear.

I don't know what your options are if you've signed on the dotted line, but in one of the documents from Ford that was listed in the links above, it said to verify with the RV manufacturer before towing a 5'er. That might provide you with a possible out if that is what you are seeking.

If you concerned about towing this RV - and it sure sounds like you are. I would suggest that you take your concern to the owner of the dealership and press for a written statement from Forest River that your truck is suitable for this camper.

Another option is to present the numbers to other parties involved in this transaction -- weigh the camper/truck combo and if you are unable to get insurance (or a loan) due to being over capacity - you might have an out.

Ask the dealer to take your rig down to the local 'point of entry' CAT scales to verify the weights -- if the rig is over weight, he'll have fun explaining that to the state trooper.

Good luck.

ryanr12076 · 03-23-2012, 11:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by teamgl

Hi Ryan

Something is not adding up here. The dealer is trying to put you into a camper that is almost 100% of your towing capacity - and that's BEFORE you add any passengers or gear.

I don't know what your options are if you've signed on the dotted line, but in one of the documents from Ford that was listed in the links above, it said to verify with the RV manufacturer before towing a 5'er. That might provide you with a possible out if that is what you are seeking.

If you concerned about towing this RV - and it sure sounds like you are. I would suggest that you take your concern to the owner of the dealership and press for a written statement from Forest River that your truck is suitable for this camper.

Another option is to present the numbers to other parties involved in this transaction -- weigh the camper/truck combo and if you are unable to get insurance (or a loan) due to being over capacity - you might have an out.

Ask the dealer to take your rig down to the local 'point of entry' CAT scales to verify the weights -- if the rig is over weight, he'll have fun explaining that to the state trooper.

Good luck.

Thanks for the message, we are going to see about getting the same unit without the outside kitchen. That alone drops the dry weight to 7865 from 8568. That should give me a little leeway with the carge ie (family-camping material-loaded up trailer). One of our family members has the same type of ratio for their travel trailer and they are using a suburban for that. So hoping i'll be ok IF the dealer works with me.

lbrjet · 03-24-2012, 06:38 AM

There should be another sticker (same location of the sticker you posted) giving you the payload number for your truck. You have verified the 3850 rear axle and passenger car tires, neither I would want for hauling a large fiver.

ryanr12076 · 03-24-2012, 07:35 AM

Here is the other sticker

crocus · 03-24-2012, 07:57 AM

By removing the outside kitchen, you might get the weight down to the point of being able to pull it. But I would certainly not do it myself. Under perfect conditions, there may be no issues. But add some crosswind and a few semis blowing past, and you will not be happy.
Our fifth is about the same weight, and even our 3/4 diesel gets buffeted. It is not uncomfortable, but I couldn't imagine what it would be like with a 1/2 ton.

My friend has a new Ecoboost and pulls a fifth that is about 800 lbs lighter than ours, and he says it is ok, but not perfect. That Ecoboost has far more hauling capacity than your truck.

And before you put an 'entended pin box' on your camper, just be aware that will put extra strain on the framing of the front end of the fifth. Those frames are known to fail, and increasing the stress in that area is not a great idea.

MtnGuy · 03-24-2012, 08:50 AM

By going to the other trailer, you might be decreasing the overall weight some, but the empty pin weight increases. And that is empty, probably without options, and without camping gear. You are probably looking at a 1200 to 1400 lb. pin weight ready for camping.

You are probably going to over the F150 RAWR, GVWR, and GCWR going down the road.

camper_Lucy · 03-24-2012, 09:25 AM

Ryan I feel bad for you, but trying to fix this by going to the model with out an outside kitchen will not help. Look at the sticker you posted this morning, max combined weight 1451 lbs. That is your limit of the loaded (for camping, not empty) pin weight and the weight of your gas, people, equipment you place in the truck, you are not going to have the capacity to do this with a 1/2 ton and that camper. Here is a good site to get a better understanding of what everyone is saying here as well a a good research spot, and you can take the numbers off you stickers as see exactly what you can pull. BTW forget dry weight it means nothing, in each trailer there is a yellow sticker of the actual build weight as it came off the line, to that you add your gear, propane, water, etc.
http://changingears.com/rv-sec-calc-...eight-fw.shtml

Best of luck with your dealer.

buckeyefan · 03-24-2012, 09:33 AM

I might have missed it, did you already purchase the 5th wheel?
If not, why are you set on a 5r?
There are several TT with outdoor kitchens that your F150 can tow.

TURBS · 03-24-2012, 09:36 AM

he has signed for unit but not picked it up yet !

camper_Lucy · 03-24-2012, 09:45 AM

There is one other item you may want to look into as well, changing the pin box, or adding and extension to allow for the short bed will change the weight dynamics of the stress points on the trailer frame. As you will see by searching the forum that RV frames are not built to be modified or have additions added. What they are suggesting is done many times, but I would request the dealer to get a written document from the RV MFG that that set up is covered and that the frame warranty will cover any broken welds due to the change.

lbrjet · 03-24-2012, 10:20 AM

With 1451 payload you should think about sticking with a travel trailer. Even with a large TT you will probably be at max payload for your truck. If I had your truck I wouldn't even consider a fiver, but to each his own.

ryanr12076 · 03-25-2012, 11:30 AM

Thank you all for your input. I was able to get out of the trailer and had to go with the one without the outside kitchen. Wish me luck!

kamp k · 03-25-2012, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ryanr12076

Thank you all for your input. I was able to get out of the trailer and had to go with the one without the outside kitchen. Wish me luck!

With all due respect, I hope you don't think that just because you got the 5th wheel without the outside kitchen, that all your issues are solved. By the time you load your camper and truck ready to travel, you are still going to be over your truck's tow capacity AND payload capacity. Great, you lightend the dry weight by 700 lbs by eliminating the outside kitchen, but as mentioned dry weights are meaningless. That 5th wheel is going to be over 9200 lbs, and probably substantially over when you are loaded for camping, not to mention the pin weight is going to eat virtually all of your 1451 lbs of payload, leaving very little if any payload to account for passengers, dog, gas, camp chairs, grill, kids toys, etc.

I hate to sound so negative, when you obviously have your heart set on this trailer/truck combination, but for you and your family's sake, I hope none of your trips are more than 10 miles from home. You are going to be whiteknuckling each and every trip, your truck is going to struggle big time, and it's just plain unsafe. By no means am I a card carrying member of the weight police, as I could care less what another person tows with or camps in, but since you wisely came here and asked for opinions, all I can say is there is no way I would jeopardize my family's safety like that. There have been several responses in this thread, and I don't believe I have read one opinion that says you will be fine with this combination. You simply do not have enough truck to safely handle that trailer, bottom line. I do wish you luck my friend, but IMO you are going to need much more than luck on your side...

ryanr12076 · 03-27-2012, 04:58 PM

With long deliberation. We went with a 2012 premier bullet 33' TT. model 31bhpr.

lbrjet · 03-27-2012, 06:22 PM

Congrats and best of luck. The bright side is now you get to use the bed of your truck.

Triguy · 03-27-2012, 06:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ryanr12076

With long deliberation. We went with a 2012 premier bullet 33' TT. model 31bhpr.

Ryan,
I think you made a better choice with this one vs the two 5ers you looked at previously. At 8,000lbs, that GVWR is much more in line with your half-ton. Have fun with your new TT!

kamp k · 03-27-2012, 10:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ryanr12076

With long deliberation. We went with a 2012 premier bullet 33' TT. model 31bhpr.

Beautiful trailer! We had a Keystone previously (not the same model as yours) and we never had any issues with ours.
Looking at the specs on the Keystone website, the GVWR is 8000, and hitch weight of 795, although the length is listed at 35'4". Still, those numbers are much better suited to your truck compared to the 5th wheel you were looking at, though the hitch weight is still gonna be close to 1000 lbs when loaded, so your payload capacity of 1451 is going to be exceeded (assuming you have kids since you got BH model), but not as much as you would have been with the 5th wheel. Make sure you get a good WDH, LT tires, and maybe even consider some airbags. It’s a much better choice of camper for your truck than the 5th wheel. Curious as to how the conversation went with your dealer when you negotiated away from the 5th wheel and into the Bullet? Did the dealer still insist your truck could handle the 5th wheel?

Derekcan · 03-28-2012, 12:18 AM

I think you made a smart move. You may have been able to pull the 5th wheel with an F150, but I'm pretty sure that your transmission would have made sure that it was not for very long.

I did the math two months ago and I thought I could have done it too, but my families safety was more important and I decided to move up to a F250. I now pull without any worries about weight, making the trips so much more enjoyable!

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