Hello all, new to the forums and new to RVing. Have a small dimemna. We purchased Ford Expedition 2012 EL (131" Wheel) with Tow Package allow for 8900# towing. We are looking at Cougar 31SQB at 7200#.Do you think it is a good marriage? Any thoughts? Thanks.

Might be borderline, but impossible to say without weights and payload numbers.

Ignore the 7200# dry weight as it is a joke. The GVWR is 9,000# which will generate nearly 1200# of tongue weight. That much trailer is nothing I would want to tow with a 131" wheelbase and I suspect you will be out of payload before you load much in the TV. You can probably do it if you load very lightly and leave most of the family home but it won't be much fun (without them and towing). Good Luck! :W

When you say you can't / shouldn't is it safety, or damage to vehicle. Where are the concerns? Just trying to figure out biggest I can safely tow. Getting bigger is not ego related :), have 4 small kids.Thanks.

linchat wrote:When you say you can't / shouldn't is it safety, or damage to vehicle. Where are the concerns? Just trying to figure out biggest I can safely tow. Getting bigger is not ego related :), have 4 small kids.Thanks.The biggest issue is likely to be the payload on the expedition. Max payload on a 2013 Expedition EL is just around 1600 pounds. If your trailer has a tongue weight of, say 1000 pounds, that only leaves you 600 for all the passengers plus all the cargo you want to carry in the vehicle. With 4 kids you'd probably need a 3/4 ton to properly handle that trailer.

linchat wrote:When you say you can't / shouldn't is it safety, or damage to vehicle. Where are the concerns? Just trying to figure out biggest I can safely tow. Getting bigger is not ego related :), have 4 small kids.Thanks.Here is a quote from the Trailer Life Magazine 2012 Towing Guide:"The gvwr figures are neither guideline nor estimates; they are limits, and there are numerous valid reasons the manufacturer arrived at these figures. If you think the figures are "close enough" or have a fudge-factor percentage built in, think again. Your warranty coverage, and your safety may be at risk."Running at or near your rigs limits is, IMHO, a fools errand. There is simply no good reason to do so. That much trailer will probably have the tail wagging the dog in all but the best weather and flattest roads. This obviously is mere speculation on my part but I would urge caution. What is your TV's max payload and tow capacity? You will very likely exceed your GVR long before you get to the tow capacity even though you will probably be under your GCWR. :C

Ford Expedition 2012 EL Limited 31 foot Trailer

Aluminum_Siding
Explorer
Feb 07, 2013
I'd go with a lighter trailer
mister_d
Explorer
Feb 06, 2013
SprinklerMan wrote:
I pull a 30 ft sunset creek with a v10 excursion . Its a 3/4 ton truck basically . My truck is rated for 10k towing , camper weighs 8400lbs loaded .I know its back there. What always concerns me when towing is braking , I can stop with the 3/4 tons brakes , I wouldnt trust a 1/2 ton vehicle with towing weight with family on board .

Your tow vehicle should not be using it's brakes to be stopping the TT.

OP - there are many lighter trailers out there - I would do my best to stay away from the limits. We towed our current TT with an Expedition at every limit and it wasn't pretty. I would also try to keep it 30' or under.
linchat
Explorer
Feb 06, 2013
What expedition do you have? The EL?
CarolinaHokie
Explorer
Feb 05, 2013
We have a ford expedition and we tow this lightweight model. We had some problems with it initially (bought it new), but just want to show you that there are lighter bunkhouses out there. I would not tow anything bigger than this with my expedition! (this is 5085 lbs dry and 7530 gvwr)

http://cruiserrv.com/shadow-cruiser/s_280qbs/specifications.html
bedell
Explorer
Feb 04, 2013
Speaking to the question of interior height: I am 6'6" and we have an Open Range TT which has lots of headroom for me; even good clearance under the speakers and lights. I think it has as much headroom as the main level of a fifth wheel. On the other hand, the trailer is 32ft long and weighs just under 7000# empty weight. We tow with a long bed Silverado 2500HD so it is a pretty comfortable tow.
Happy trails.
Mickeyfan0805
Explorer
Feb 04, 2013
Make sure you consider the long-term implications if you plan to keep these for a while. You may have 4 'small' children now, but they won't stay that way. As your children grow, the weight on your TV will grow with them. People will argue over length, adjusted ratios, and all sorts of things. IMHO, however, there is no getting around that a family of 6 will far exceed the GVWR of a 1/2 ton vehicle long before they exceed anything else!

FYI - We are a family of 5 with 3 small children, and I figured we had to be under 5k 'dry' in order to fit within the GVWR's of an Expedition.
Terryallan
Explorer II
Feb 04, 2013
SprinklerMan wrote:
Terryallan wrote:
SprinklerMan wrote:
Terryallan wrote:
SprinklerMan wrote:
I pull a 30 ft sunset creek with a v10 excursion . Its a 3/4 ton truck basically . My truck is rated for 10k towing , camper weighs 8400lbs loaded .I know its back there. What always concerns me when towing is braking , I can stop with the 3/4 tons brakes , I wouldnt trust a 1/2 ton vehicle with towing weight with family on board .

Again. Neither the brakes on your Excursion, OR a 1500 truck , are rated to stop the trailer. The brakes on the Ex are only rated to stop the GVW of the Ex. Not the TT. That's what the TT brakes do.

Don't be fooled in to thinkin a bigger truck is rated to stop a bigger tailer. It's not. Anything over the GVWR of the TV, the TT brakes have to stop.

He Did , his trailer connector came loose , no brakes on a 15,000 lb tripple axel fifth wheel . he had to replace his brakes and dry off his seat.

They may not be rated to but they will , The brakes and calipers are bigger on my excursion vs my old f 150 , yes the ex has a greater curb weight . but it will stop both rather well with out the trailer brakes. Accidents happen , as well as mistakes , a friend had his trailer plug come loose on his tripple axle 5th wheel pulling with a f 350 dually , going down an good incline , he stopped safely , found a parts store spent the next 2 hours replacing all the brakes and front rotars. Bigger brakes , better stopping .

Overloaded barkes are overloaded brakes no matter what they are on. As for the down grade. I use very little brakes on a down grade. I let the engine hold it back, Touching them only briefly for turns. Sounds like he rode his all the way down.

Lessions, and a exhaust brake could be his friend
APT
Explorer
Feb 04, 2013
The dry tongue weight at 925 pounds is more than your receiver is rated. Loaded, it will only go up. For a large family, I estimate the TT will be at 8500 pounds with about 1000 pounds of tongue weight. That is far too much for your Expedition.

You need to look at two different limits for estimating how much RV you can tow, not tow rating. Open the driver's door and look for this sticker on the door or door jam.

Subtract your estimated weight of family and stuff you think will be inside the Expy.

Then look at your receiver for something like this sticker:

Take the lower of the two and multiply by 7.7 for an estimated loaded TT weight.

My guess is you need to stick to TTs under 6k dry with under 650 pounds of dry TW.
BigBoy11
Explorer
Feb 04, 2013
linchat, you are running it REAL close! I have a 2011 Expedition XLT and a 31 ft. Kodiak that is 5900# dry weight and once we get loaded, full of gas, supplies, all the "stuff" we carry in the TT, there are times I wish I had more uuumph! The brakes are no problem but the pulling power up some of the mountains are a bit of a struggle.
SprinklerMan
Explorer
Feb 04, 2013
Terryallan wrote:
SprinklerMan wrote:
Terryallan wrote:
SprinklerMan wrote:
I pull a 30 ft sunset creek with a v10 excursion . Its a 3/4 ton truck basically . My truck is rated for 10k towing , camper weighs 8400lbs loaded .I know its back there. What always concerns me when towing is braking , I can stop with the 3/4 tons brakes , I wouldnt trust a 1/2 ton vehicle with towing weight with family on board .

Again. Neither the brakes on your Excursion, OR a 1500 truck , are rated to stop the trailer. The brakes on the Ex are only rated to stop the GVW of the Ex. Not the TT. That's what the TT brakes do.

Don't be fooled in to thinkin a bigger truck is rated to stop a bigger tailer. It's not. Anything over the GVWR of the TV, the TT brakes have to stop.

He Did , his trailer connector came loose , no brakes on a 15,000 lb tripple axel fifth wheel . he had to replace his brakes and dry off his seat.

They may not be rated to but they will , The brakes and calipers are bigger on my excursion vs my old f 150 , yes the ex has a greater curb weight . but it will stop both rather well with out the trailer brakes. Accidents happen , as well as mistakes , a friend had his trailer plug come loose on his tripple axle 5th wheel pulling with a f 350 dually , going down an good incline , he stopped safely , found a parts store spent the next 2 hours replacing all the brakes and front rotars. Bigger brakes , better stopping .

Overloaded barkes are overloaded brakes no matter what they are on. As for the down grade. I use very little brakes on a down grade. I let the engine hold it back, Touching them only briefly for turns. Sounds like he rode his all the way down.