What acronym should I look for when buying a new TV

[love2rvcamp]

Looking to buy a new TV to replace 2001 F150 to tow our 2008 Rockwood 8313SS.

We are looking at a F150 (5.0 or the ecoboost) or a Tundra.

What should we look for specifically when looking at towing limits/ratings. GVWR, GCWR,

We just want to make sure we read the door sticker correctly and know what numbers we need to watch for.

[APT]

Details on their new TV!

[Ron3rd]

love2rvcamp wrote:
We got a new 2013 F250. We are good to go.

Very good choice. Which engine did you get?

[Fisherguy]

love2rvcamp wrote:
We got a new 2013 F250. We are good to go.

Congrats on the new truck!
You go with the diesel?

(You know no one's going to notice what you posted and will keep giving your advice, right?) :W

[tatest]

GCWR, but it won't be in the door, rather in the owner's manual, tabulated across models, engines, axle ratios, whatever matters. Finding out the axle ratio might not be simple, if that's a GCWR factor.

GVWR and axle weight ratings, and corresponding tire sizes and pressures, will be on the DOT certifcation sticker in the door. That will be relevant to towing also, because you have to carry the weight from the trailer hitch within those limits. But finding out weight already on the truck won't be easy either.

[love2rvcamp]

We got a new 2013 F250. We are good to go.

[pappcam]

A 1/2 ton with a towing package would be fine for an occasional pull to closer campgrounds but if you're planning on touring around I'd look at a 3/4 ton.

[ReferDog]

Stay off the 1/2 tons, get 3/4 and you will have enough, gas or diesel,things change over time you might want a heavier unit later on.

[petenewell]

There is a lot of good info in this thread. BurbMan and JBarca have excellent suggestions, in fact John's could be a sticky.

The details about "How To" get this right are here, the real issue is what you will talk yourself into based on other variables. Don't take this personally, we all do it to some extent or another.

The classic is someone that has a half ton, does not want to buy a new truck, then tows or hauls something that is too heavy. They then talk themselves into believing that it is OK because others do it or because they did not crash on that first trip.

This is hypothetical, I'm not putting words in your mouth, but lets say your DW was pressuring you to get the 1/2 ton, and or one of the imports because she likes those trucks for her needs. You could feel pressured to make that vehicle OK for towing and talk yourself into it when you shouldn't.

Like I said I think many of us do this to some extent or another. You are in a GREAT position in that you can start fresh and buy the exact right thing.

[campigloo]

Lot's of math available just to make sure you get the bare minimum truck required to do the job. You're investing a lot of money so why not invest enough to get good performance, comfortable driving and a safe ride that won't stress the vehicle?

[BurbMan]

I'll just re-post my answer to the same question you asked in this thread. Ask the question any way you like, the answer is going to be the same....do the math of what you are planning to carry and tow, and see what your capacity requirements are. No acronym is going to do the math for you. In fact, I already did the math for you.

hmknightnc wrote:
Since you are buying a new TV and to ensure you don't end up with something on the edge or giving you poor performance I would recommend you do the following
- Look up your TT GVWR (not dry weight) and multiple that by 15%
- Count the number of people going traveling and multiply by 250
- Guestimate the amount of stuff you will have in truck
- add 400# for fuel and hitch

Add all of the above up and then look for truck with a door sticker payload/cargo capacity with that number or greater. This will get you truck that more than meets your needs for TT hauling.

Good advice and I'll try to help fill in the blanks...this model 2008 Rockwood 8313SS camper has a dry weight of 6501 and GVWR of 7784. Let's say the loaded weight is 7500 lbs. 7500 x 15% = 1125. Since 15% is on the upper edge of tongue weight ranges we'll assume that includes the hitch itself.

OP's signature says wife and 2 kids, so we'll estimate that people and cargo are 200 lbs each. 200 x 4 = 800 lbs. I believe that the factory sticker that shows cargo or payload capability already assumes a full tank of fuel.

So, 1125 + 800 = 1925 is the minimum cargo weight that you should be looking for. If you click the link above to the Ford website, there are number of 150's that will provide this level of cargo capacity and safely tow that Rockwood.

[gmw_photos]

JBarca wrote:
....snip.....
A F250 and a F150 are not that different in price now if you are going to a much heavier loaded TW camper in the next few years. If your staying in the same weight range, then life is good.

Just for kicks I went to the GMC website and "built" a 2014 Sierra 1500, and also a 2014 one ton dually. $48K or so for the 1500, $54K for the 3500. I was shocked they were that close in price.
The 3500 I priced out was a gas engine.

[campigloo]

X2 fisher guy. For me, with a trailer very similar to yours, I find the 3/4 ton diesel the only way to go. I live in S. La. and it's flatter than where you are. Have towed smaller, lighter trailers with 1/2 tons and yes, it moved them from point A to point B. The overall performance of the rig IMHO is well worth the extra initial investment. My Cummins chugs along @ 2000rpm @70mph. In W.VA a couple of weeks ago, we hit a 9% grade about a 1 1/2 - 2 miles long, 60 mph @2000rpm in 5th gear:awesome! My experience is that a gasser is going to hum at a much higher rpm., use more fuel, strain the tranny, rear end, brakes and suspension. Since I grudgingly went to the diesel two trucks ago, I will probably never get another gas truck. I went to one vehicle dealer and he guaranteed this 40hp riding mower would pull anything! LOL Anyway, best of luck with the new truck, whatever you choose

[Fisherguy]

rockwood 8313ss

I know the above link is for a different year, but that's a 34 foot trailer with a GVW of 8500 pounds, I don't think any 5.0 gas powered half ton or Toyota is going to be able to handle something that big unless it's pretty flat where you live and where you're going.

[JBarca]

love2rvcamp wrote:
Looking to buy a new TV to replace 2001 F150 to tow our 2008 Rockwood 8313SS.

We are looking at a F150 (5.0 or the ecoboost) or a Tundra.

What should we look for specifically when looking at towing limits/ratings. GVWR, GCWR,

We just want to make sure we read the door sticker correctly and know what numbers we need to watch for.

First off, good for you on doing some homework trying to figure this out for yourself.

Since you already own the camper and have a truck, suggest doing this "first" so you are armed with real world weights. No guessing or him hawing and no one saying, sure it will pull all day long.

Load up your present day truck with what ever camping gear is going in the truck bed and the cab. That includes people too.

Also load the camper the way you go camping.

Now head to the truck scales. If you have a good idea you are already in weight issues, make 2 trips.

Truck only, Weigh the truck front and rear axles loads with gear/people in the truck. Then go back and weigh the empty truck. Do some math. Now "you" know exactly what what the truck has to handle from a cargo perspective.

On the second trip when you are empty, take the camper fully loaded the way you are going camping. Pull the camper and truck on the scales and unhook the WD bars but yet still hitched. You need a front & rear truck axle weight and the 2 TT axles on a separate scale. Take a weight. Then hitch up the WD bars, pull off, unhitch in the yard and go weigh the empty truck. Do some math and now you know the loaded weight of the camper and the loaded tongue weight. You need the WD bars off to do this as they shift weight to the camper axles.

This costs you, some time and about $14 to $20 dollars for the truck scales. Now "you" are armed with real weights, no fudging, no guessing before you pay good hard earned money on a new truck that might be OK or not.

The rear axle on the truck in a 1,500 series truck is the weak link. The rear axle and receiver WD rating generally follow what the rear axle can handle, but not always. You have to check From the scale weights you know the bed cargo weight on the rear axle and just figure the actual loaded tongue weight to be handled by the rear axle. Technically WD removed some of the rear axle weight to the camper however this will be a saftey cushion for you.

Pulling, since you know the actual loaded TT GVW, find the the actual empty GVW of the new truck you buying with all the options. Then add to the truck weight the truck cargo and people. Add all 3 weights and this creates a GCW. You are going to need some reserve towing capacity for loose of frontal area of the wide and tall camper. Everyone has a different comfort level of reserve capacity however more is better. 1,200# to 2,000# is good, more is great for your combo. Compare the GCW of your actual plus reserve to the new truck rated GCWR.

Once the rear axle/receiver fits and the GCW fits, you need to check the GVW of the truck agasint the GVWR of the truck. If your still good, then OK. If not, well you have to loose some weight/cargo or figure if you can **** to the camper

Here is another tip, LT tires. Ford use to offer a LT upgrade on the F150, While they are D load range, they are better than the standard P rated ones. The LT's will create a more stable towing experience.

Hope this helps and good luck

John

PS. Also think, Am I going to upgrade this camper is a few years or not? Now is the time to figure that out. A F250 and a F150 are not that different in price now if you are going to a much heavier loaded TW camper in the next few years. If your staying in the same weight range, then life is good.