Well tow vehicle type really. I'll apologize in advanced for the newbie questions. Wife and I have always tent camped but with the arrival of two little guys the past two years we started thinking about popups. Long story short we impulse bought one from our neighbor.Stats:2400 lbs dry3400 lbs GVWRGuessing about 400 lbs for water, batteries, propane. Maybe somewhere in the 3000 to 3200 range loaded.Now I've never towed **** in my life so I started going down the Honda Pilot route. Naturally you focus only on towing capacity (5000 lbs). Problem is that we live in and will be driving this thing all over CO so in the 5k ft to 10k ft range. All the fine print I read has the GVWR and GCWR derate to the point where I'm pretty darn close to the limit.So then bump up a level to small trucks. The Tacoma/Ranger line of trucks. Everything looks good there. Still a bit light in the GVWR department but turns out it doesn't matter cause the child seats are a bit of a no go in those cabs.That bumps me up to the Tundra/F150/etc line. More power than we need but with the large cabs, the family can practically play a basketball game in the backseat.So I feel stuck between not quite enough of a tow vehicle and under powered in the Pilot, but almost too much truck in a Tundra/F150. (too much being a waste of money, mpg, etc when it's not towing).Just curious what some more experienced towers think about the situation. Can I get away with the Pilot in the CO mountains without while knuckling? Or if I really want stress free, do I need to put on my big boy pants and get a half ton for a little PuP?Thanks for reading and thanks for any insight.

It is really up to you but odds are you will find the pop up a lot of fun and the next thing you know you will be looking for a travel trailer with a slide or two. You might not think so now but just wait. With two small kids and all the stuff you will take personally I would go with a F-150 equipped with the towing packages. You don't need all that but like I said, you will eventually. Handling and gas mileage will be negligible but the room and safety will be priceless.

While most vehicles mentioned will do the job, the F150 with the Eco-boost engines, will work great for you. Not only do they give huge power to tow, especially in the mts, due to the turbos, but get great mileage when running empty. For your use, the 150 with 2.7 Eco, will do it all, and has been a good engine. If you think you may be moving up, after using the PUP, then the 3.5 Eco may be a better choice for your next trailer. Most people that start out with a small camper, move up in size. You may as well start out with a truck capable of pulling a 7K lb trailer up the hill.Jerry

I didn't see food, clothing or anything else in the trailer...so plan on being at the GVWR from the start plus some stuff in the truck bed.Those little munchkins...they get bigger, they get bikes, they take friends, you take firewood, etc... A basic 1/2 ton 4 door truck is a nice option for a family of 4. When buying, probably the biggest number to watch is the Payload sticker by the door. 1/2 ton trucks have a wide variety of payloads depending on how they are equipped. Avoid the weak ones with 1400-1600 payload (a family of 4 with teenage kids can easily eat up 700lb of the payload just with bodies) and try to get something up in the 1800-2000lb range. That will give you a lot more flexibility in the future if you get a bigger trailer.The turbo powered engines they are putting in 1/2 ton trucks really come into their own in mountain driving. A Naturally Aspirated engine loses around 3-4% of power for every 1000ft of elevation...so if you are up at 6-7,000ft you are down by around 20-30% on power. Now a truck that was just a bit of a dog at sea level is really struggling. With a Turbo, it force feeds air into the engine largely negating the altitude based power losses.

If you get a pickup truck, get cap for the bed - then you will have plenty of protected room for all your "stuff". Food, clothes, firewood, bicycles, etc.

I towed our pop up with a pilot, but never above 4000’ feet. It did well with it, but the brakes on the pilot are not the greatest. I normally pulled the pop up with my truck, and it was a much more comfortable drive. The kids will grow, and when you start wanting to take the kids bikes scooters etc, having the truck will make it much easier. We bought our pop up when the kids were 4 and 6, and used it for 9 years, and went to a travel trailer. We had great vacations it it. Enjoy it!!

Help choosing tow vehicle | Good Sam Community

Campinghoss
Explorer II
Aug 25, 2020
It is really up to you but odds are you will find the pop up a lot of fun and the next thing you know you will be looking for a travel trailer with a slide or two. You might not think so now but just wait. With two small kids and all the stuff you will take personally I would go with a F-150 equipped with the towing packages. You don't need all that but like I said, you will eventually. Handling and gas mileage will be negligible but the room and safety will be priceless.
MFL
Nomad II
Aug 25, 2020
While most vehicles mentioned will do the job, the F150 with the Eco-boost engines, will work great for you. Not only do they give huge power to tow, especially in the mts, due to the turbos, but get great mileage when running empty. For your use, the 150 with 2.7 Eco, will do it all, and has been a good engine. If you think you may be moving up, after using the PUP, then the 3.5 Eco may be a better choice for your next trailer. Most people that start out with a small camper, move up in size. You may as well start out with a truck capable of pulling a 7K lb trailer up the hill.

Jerry
valhalla360
Navigator
Aug 25, 2020
I didn't see food, clothing or anything else in the trailer...so plan on being at the GVWR from the start plus some stuff in the truck bed.

Those little munchkins...they get bigger, they get bikes, they take friends, you take firewood, etc... A basic 1/2 ton 4 door truck is a nice option for a family of 4.

When buying, probably the biggest number to watch is the Payload sticker by the door. 1/2 ton trucks have a wide variety of payloads depending on how they are equipped. Avoid the weak ones with 1400-1600 payload (a family of 4 with teenage kids can easily eat up 700lb of the payload just with bodies) and try to get something up in the 1800-2000lb range. That will give you a lot more flexibility in the future if you get a bigger trailer.

The turbo powered engines they are putting in 1/2 ton trucks really come into their own in mountain driving. A Naturally Aspirated engine loses around 3-4% of power for every 1000ft of elevation...so if you are up at 6-7,000ft you are down by around 20-30% on power. Now a truck that was just a bit of a dog at sea level is really struggling. With a Turbo, it force feeds air into the engine largely negating the altitude based power losses.
Tvov
Explorer II
Aug 25, 2020
If you get a pickup truck, get cap for the bed - then you will have plenty of protected room for all your "stuff". Food, clothes, firewood, bicycles, etc.
wowens79
Explorer III
Aug 25, 2020
I towed our pop up with a pilot, but never above 4000’ feet. It did well with it, but the brakes on the pilot are not the greatest. I normally pulled the pop up with my truck, and it was a much more comfortable drive.

The kids will grow, and when you start wanting to take the kids bikes scooters etc, having the truck will make it much easier.

We bought our pop up when the kids were 4 and 6, and used it for 9 years, and went to a travel trailer. We had great vacations it it. Enjoy it!!
Sjm9911
Explorer
Aug 25, 2020
Decisions, Decisions. Eaither will work with the pup. But as stated, the full size truck will give you lots more room for people and stuff. You really will not need a truck cap. Stuff to put in the truck bed will be, leveling stuff, table , chairs, cooler , etc. The pop ups dont have the space of TT. So the truck bed will help a ton. Also, the pups are low so they tow a bit easier then a TT. You are not pulling a wall behind you. Whatever you get make sure you get a seven pin conection and a break controller. If you dont go with the full size truck the tow package will be needed.
fx2tom
Explorer
Aug 25, 2020
IMO the F150 with the 2.7 EcoBoost and 10 speed transmission would be perfect for what you need. We had one as a rental on vacation a couple years ago. 19 MPG in mixed driving (not towing obviously). If I were in your shoes that is exactly what I would buy.
COmountains
Explorer
Aug 25, 2020
Wow, something I didn't expect... nearly a consensus! It's one of those things where I realize that 95% of the time the pickup won't be necessary, but the 5% where it will likely make my life much more relaxing.

I had heard mixed reviews about the ecoboost in the mountains. Running hot when going uphill at full load, but I'll be nowhere near that. Even if true, I think I would be good.

When looking in the future, naturally I would love to say that we'll be happy with the Pup and won't need to upgrade but I know how that goes.

I appreciate everyone's time in responding, can't thank you all enough.
Durb
Explorer
Aug 25, 2020
We owned a Coleman tent trailer with about your same specifications. Originally towed it with a Toyota T100 which wasn't ideal. The drive train was fine but the short wheelbase and long rear overhang made for a choppy ride. Later moved on to a Nissan Titan which pulled the trailer well unless the water tank was full then it swayed viciously. Reese makes the steadi-flex lightweight weight distribution hitch with anti sway which will improve your tow regardless of vehicle.

I also believe you will be happier with a full sized crew cab truck as your family grows. Many great times and memories with that tent trailer.
IdaD
Explorer
Aug 25, 2020
We pulled that size popup with a 2010 Pilot and it worked pretty well. That's not what I'd go out and buy for towing, though, we just happened to have one.

I would recommend a half ton truck at least. Yes it's more than you need for that trailer, but the general progression is that you will more than likely upgrade to a larger trailer in the future and getting a more capable tow vehicle now will help make that an easier process. Plus you have two little kids. Little kids like to have stuff with them, and they don't stay little for very long. Having extra capacity and cargo space is a lot better than being tight on either. I think you would appreciate having a truck bed for kid toys, bikes, dog kennel, extra water, chainsaw, BBQ, etc., etc. Popups are pretty limited in the cargo carrying department.

Forum Discussion

Help choosing tow vehicle

About Tow Vehicles

Related Content

Need help choosing new tow vehicle

Choosing the right tow vehicle

Which hitch to choose?

Help choosing first RV

Help me choose