Newbie question

Go with the diesel. Everyone has their own mpg stories. But my hauler is 5,200 dry, 7,500 with water, coolers, quads, etc. and I get 8-12 mpg depending on speed. At 60 mph I'll get 12, at 75 I'll get 8. Empty, similar deal. Over 20 at 60 and 16 at 85.

My personal thought is not to listen to the 150 crowd. Yes it's a good setup, but if you are towing more than once it twice a year, you'll regret it. If you think you'll ever get a fifth wheel, go with a one ton. Otherwise a 3/4 ton is perfect.

For gas, it will work, depends on cost benefit. If money is a priority over towing easy over mountain passes, then gas works. If you prefer towing ease, then get a diesel. I don't regret getting rid of my Chevy 6.0 gas for one second.

To compare I have a 19 ft rubicon toy hauler which is about 5700lbs (dry) then add my Harley super glide just a normal cruiser and it is about 680lbs, my freshwater tank holds 82 gallons (~ 650lb), then add gear, kitchen stuff, propane, batteries, etc... you will be well over the 1000lbs you estimated. What I would look at is what does the trailer weigh and how much is the cargo capacity. Then get a truck to meet or even better to exceed that (in case you get a larger trailer later on). I started towing that rig with a 2011 F-150 V8 5.4L and it worked it hard and it also squatted the truck big time. After about 3 trips I traded it in for a 2012 Ram 2500 with a cummins and dont regret it one bit! Towing that setup with the cummins on flat ground I will get 12/13 MPG, mountains 9/10MPG the F-150 was lucky to get 10 MPG. Trailer hardly even drops the rear of the new truck maybe inch or 2 and the extra power is nice for the hills, also the heavier duty truck is much more stable towing. It is also my daily driver, I get about 19 MPG on the highway and 14ish in town. If it wasn't for the mountain driving out west I would have prolly gone with a 2500 gas to save some money on the price of the truck. Hope this helps.

Cycler: If you go for a smaller truck, get one with the towing package. It will give you beefed up suspension and better cooling. Before you write off the idea of an F150 class truck, why not check some of the owners forums for the vehicles in question? I find they can be very good sources for honest performance information. I should also mention that I am currently pulling something similar to your rig with a 2008 F150 with a 5.4L v8 and towing package. I have had no issues with insufficient power or overheating.

Boogie 4Wheel and bvereshagen, thank you both for you replies. Boogie 4whl, I see you have an older Dodge w/Cummins, do you think your mileage would be better with the newer models?

Bvereshagen, I obviously misread the towing capacities, I will double check, thanks for pointing that out. However, I am still uncomfortable putting that kind of strain on a 1/2 ton truck.

Cycler: some of the F150 options show a towing capacity of over 17000lbs. That is for the new ecoboosts. People I know who have bought them confirm that they have extraordinary towing capability at low rpm. Here is a link to specs for the Canadian versions: http://www.ford.ca/trucks/f150/specifications/towing/ . The US models should be similar

My signature combo... Trailer weighs approx 6000 before water and bike.

Having a front bed is great because you can stop overnight and not need to unload the bike to use the trailer. I do wish I had a 24' instead of the 21' simply because my street bike (VTX1800T, 8'2" overall) protrudes into the living area a little bit too much. On my trailer, it also eliminates the ability to use the built in table/couches located at the back of the trailer.

When I was using it as a base camp for an extended work arrangement away from home, I parked my bike in it as a garage and just use a small chair and folding table. I kept the bike tucked up tight against one wall. But this was only me being in the trailer, it would have been tight for 2 people.

Running 65mph avg, I get 12-13mpg, sometimes in the 14's. With my truck, I have plenty of capacity in both weight and power. I do not feel my 700+lb tongue weight. The trailer rarely pulls me out of 4th on the steep interstate hills. I do not plan routes or worry about what roads to take.

We've been from LA to Glacier, interstate and 2-lane. I've never had an issue with hills, temperatures, or feeling underpowered.

With the available vehicles, I would go either a newer gas or maybe an older diesel; pricing would be similar. With my current trailer and something terrible happening to my truck, I'd be looking really closely at a Ford V10, Ram 6.4L, or maybe even a 6.0L or 8.1 GM depending on what I found available to me. I'm really attracted to the Ram Ecodiesel, but would be close to ratings after we packed up for a family of 4. Ford Ecoboost is another possibility.

bvereshagen wrote:
How much time is your truck going to be hauling your trailer? If you are going to be on the road full time, then a one ton diesel makes sense in terms of capability and fuel cost. If you are going to be on the road one or two months a year with the truck being used for short trips around town the rest of the time then a big diesel will never pay for itself and short start and stop trips will actually be bad for it. An alternative might be an F150 supercab with an Ecoboost V6. It will haul more than twice your payload requirements and be far more versatile when you are not hauling a trailer.

Thanks for the reply. Point of fact, we would not be on the road full time, but, plan to take 1-2 week vacations, maybe 8-10 times a year. I looked at the towing capacity for the F150 as you described, towing max is about 8300lbs. I would hate to put that kind of strain on the truck a dozen or so times a year. I currently have a 2010 F150 SC, with the smaller V8, and pulled a 23' Parker center console from Virginia to NJ a couple of years ago. Mileage was horrendous. I mean it would have been cheaper to hire someone to haul the boat for me. But, it was a good learning experience.

How much time is your truck going to be hauling your trailer? If you are going to be on the road full time, then a one ton diesel makes sense in terms of capability and fuel cost. If you are going to be on the road one or two months a year with the truck being used for short trips around town the rest of the time then a big diesel will never pay for itself and short start and stop trips will actually be bad for it. An alternative might be an F150 supercab with an Ecoboost V6. It will haul more than twice your payload requirements and be far more versatile when you are not hauling a trailer.

100% get a diesel. Spend some time reading posts here about weights and towing capacities. For a few bucks more get the 1-ton as well, getting a bigger rig with more capacity will give you options now and down the road. Otherwise you could be limited.