How do they do it? little vehicle/big trailer

[euskyju]

New poster here. I’m curious. I have a 24’ expandable that’s roughly 4000 lbs. dry / 5000 lbs. GVWR. I tow with a Ford F-150 and, before that, a Chevy Avalanche. With both of those tow vehicles, I’m lucky to get 10mpg and maintain 62 mph on the highway…that is, without the thing shifting down to 3rd or 4th, gulping gas and sounding like the engine is going to explode. Yet I continually see people towing big trailers with mid-sized crossovers. Am I missing something? Now, I’ve heard the theory that anytime you see this, you can be sure that those folks are less than 30 miles from home, but that doesn’t explain the guy that flies by me doing 75 towing a 30’ trailer with a Mini-Cooper (exaggeration for effect).

My trailer is 12 years old. I know that new trailers of the same length weigh as much or more, but have they done something with weight distribution on newer trailers that makes them easier to tow?

[cbshoestring]

They push the pedal on the right, ignore that fuel usage display on the dash, let the transmission do its' job.

My RAM just drops a single gear when it gets to about 65 (cruise at 70), then holds that until the "strain" is off the truck (crest the hill). It does not hunt for gears, or drop more than one gear.

I have learned that setting the cruise at 65 keeps me in 6th gear most of the time, and lets me average 12 mpg. Whereas, setting cruise at 70 causes more downshift (5th), to get back up to speed on longer climbs, and decreases fuel mileage to 11 mpg. If I leave the tow/haul off---the engine will even go into "eco" mode on flat stretchs. Doesn't stay there for very long.

For me...the ride is more relaxing to set the cruise at 65. Still, I push it to 70 when I want to, as there is not a lot of difference.

Then again, our TT only weighs 3500#, so I really don't know how "they" do it. I assume they use the vertical pedal---A LOT.

[NWnative]

No complaints from me on my set up with the F150. I am within specs and getting 11.5mpg on average. Tow set ups are much like snowflakes......no two are quite the same. Come to think of it....opinions are like snowflakes as well :). Best to do what works best for your unique situation and is within spec.

[Bedlam]

I feel many of you are discounting driver proficiency and are only looking at the setup and equipment used. Have you ever seen drivers in the winter? One will have a worn out Ford Pinto with tires worn even more and make it work regardless of the weather while another will have a new 4wd with traction control, ABS and winter tires yet still somehow smack the first street sign or snow berm they encounter. I see this when driving off road often and appreciate the skills of the guy with the beater pieced together rather than the guy that throws money on problems to have them go away.

[JAC1982]

transamz9 wrote:

JAC1982 wrote:
We towed our camper originally with a 2013 F150 EcoBoost. It "towed" fine, if you're talking about HP and ability to pull it. However, it was way too light of a truck for our camper with a 6885 shipping weight (so 8000ish loaded?). We were well within the towing capacities of that truck. So, if your vehicle is making weird noises and is struggling with a pretty light trailer, there is probably something wrong with the truck, the trailer, or how you have it hooked up.

All that said, the F150 was terrible to actually take on trips. My husband is not an experienced tower, and our original set up was causing way too much sway and unstableness. Now we have a F350 DWR, and he still doesn't feel comfortable going over 60mph or so... he just doesn't have the experience. I too wonder how some of the rigs we see flying down the highway (I-25 in this case) manage to make it to their destination, but my only guess is, they're way more experienced than we are.

Thank you for the honesty in your post. To be truthful their will be some that tow for years and not get use to it or feel comfortable or ever get "good" at it. There is a skill to towing to a curtain degree but the best thing to do is never do anything that don't feel good to you. For those that are experience the best advice is don't get too good and let your guard down. Mr Murphy will get you when you least expect it.

Yup, I've got a father in law that is one of those "crazy towers"... he'll tow anything with anything. But, for a living, he tows Big Tex gooseneck trailers loaded with pipes and tools in the oil field, so he's got years of experience in all kinds of conditions under his belt. I should say, he DID do it as a profession, now it seems it's more of a hobby that pays since the oil field is in the crapper right now 😞

But, even he had an accident this past year, jackknifing on some ice. If something similar had happened to us, we might be dead. He came out with minor injuries and a totaled 3500 GMC Denali. It can happen to anybody, no matter how much experience, so best to be safe.

[transamz9]

JAC1982 wrote:
We towed our camper originally with a 2013 F150 EcoBoost. It "towed" fine, if you're talking about HP and ability to pull it. However, it was way too light of a truck for our camper with a 6885 shipping weight (so 8000ish loaded?). We were well within the towing capacities of that truck. So, if your vehicle is making weird noises and is struggling with a pretty light trailer, there is probably something wrong with the truck, the trailer, or how you have it hooked up.

All that said, the F150 was terrible to actually take on trips. My husband is not an experienced tower, and our original set up was causing way too much sway and unstableness. Now we have a F350 DWR, and he still doesn't feel comfortable going over 60mph or so... he just doesn't have the experience. I too wonder how some of the rigs we see flying down the highway (I-25 in this case) manage to make it to their destination, but my only guess is, they're way more experienced than we are.

Thank you for the honesty in your post. To be truthful their will be some that tow for years and not get use to it or feel comfortable or ever get "good" at it. There is a skill to towing to a curtain degree but the best thing to do is never do anything that don't feel good to you. For those that are experience the best advice is don't get too good and let your guard down. Mr Murphy will get you when you least expect it.

[JAC1982]

bikendan wrote:

mooky stinks wrote:
A 5000GVW trailer and the eco-boost "sounds like it's going to explode".


I don't get it.:h

i think the OP meant the Avalanche, not the F-150.

He said he has the issue with both vehicles.

[bikendan]

mooky stinks wrote:
A 5000GVW trailer and the eco-boost "sounds like it's going to explode".


I don't get it.:h

i think the OP meant the Avalanche, not the F-150.

[JAC1982]

We towed our camper originally with a 2013 F150 EcoBoost. It "towed" fine, if you're talking about HP and ability to pull it. However, it was way too light of a truck for our camper with a 6885 shipping weight (so 8000ish loaded?). We were well within the towing capacities of that truck. So, if your vehicle is making weird noises and is struggling with a pretty light trailer, there is probably something wrong with the truck, the trailer, or how you have it hooked up.

All that said, the F150 was terrible to actually take on trips. My husband is not an experienced tower, and our original set up was causing way too much sway and unstableness. Now we have a F350 DWR, and he still doesn't feel comfortable going over 60mph or so... he just doesn't have the experience. I too wonder how some of the rigs we see flying down the highway (I-25 in this case) manage to make it to their destination, but my only guess is, they're way more experienced than we are.

[mich800]

mooky stinks wrote:
A 5000GVW trailer and the eco-boost "sounds like it's going to explode".


I don't get it.:h

I was thinking the same thing. Something doesn't sound right. We are not talking about a combo on the edge of the limits.

[naturist]

You've no doubt heard you can't judge a book by its cover. The same goes for vehicles, both TVs and trailers. There are trailers that look small but are very heavy, and there are trailers that are huge but mostly air. There are pickup trucks that look all macho and tough but have payloads in the scores of pounds. And there are SUVs that can drag mountains.

So, don't be too quick passing judgement on the next guy's rig. Unless you see bad handling or watch in horror as their engine spills its guts, give 'em a nod and wish 'em well. But do feel free to shake your head in amazement.

[mooky_stinks]

A 5000GVW trailer and the eco-boost "sounds like it's going to explode".


I don't get it.:h

[SoCalDesertRid1]

I towed a 35' fifth wheel with a Honda Civic for 10 years and it towed great. I upgraded to a class 7 commercial truck and tow a popup camper and it tows great. Anything can tow anything, and it will always tow great. There is never a problem with towing any trailer with any truck, or car. All you have to do is upgrade the tires and a Toyota Corolla is the same thing as an F350, all the rest of the parts are the same. It doesn't matter if you have 2.72 gears or 5.38 gears, the engine will pull the same, but it will get 1 mpg with the 5.38's and 40 mpg with the 2.72's, while towing 25,000 lb fifth wheel. All you have to do is have a newer F150 with 20-speed transmission and it doesn't matter anything else about the truck, cause it will out tow a 10 ton truck with a 4 speed transmission, obviously, because it has all those extra speeds in it, and a backup camera so you don't need mirrors on the truck to see that Mercedes you're running into. :B

By the way, I have some Pacific beach front property in Phoenix I'm selling, good price. Anybody interested??? 🙂

[dodge_guy]

So, what's safer a poorly setup 3/4 ton with a person new to towing who is towing well within its ratings or a well setup 1/2 ton at or just over its ratings with a seasoned tower whims the wheel!

[K_Charles]

We had a 33 ft TT for a few years and pulled it with an SUV (excursion) we also have a ford F150 but it won't pull it very well. The GVWR on the pickup is less then the weight of the X empty. All pickups are not built the same.

[azrving]

And right along with many people trying to not break the bank or stay with their current TV they have sales people telling them SURE, NO PROBLEM you can pull it. 🙂