down home,
Well, in short, GM, and Dodge, in their 1/2 ton version 4x4, have been flat towable for years and years. Ford, in its infinite wisdom, did not allow its 1/2 ton 4x4 to be flat towed, all the way through the year model 2011. Then, in the year 2012, one of Fords genious's decided "hey, all the other guys have been doing it so, why don't we?"
After that, Fords are now flat towable. As far as the Ford Ranger, that's a bit on the semi-complicated seen too. That is, what's needed in the Ford Ranger 4x4 to be flat towed is called an NTK or, Neutral Tow Kit. You can enquire at your local Ford dealer as to the availability of it. And, not all year models of Ranger accept the NTK kit so, that too will require a bit of investigation if you plan on one of those.
We've been towing a 2011 GMC Sierra 1500 4x4 Extended Cab for about 3 years now and, it's worked out just great. No special applications, no charge wire to keep the battery from draining, no fuses to be pulled and, unlike the 2013 and newer model of the GMC and Chevy, we don't have to pull the negative battery cable each and every time we hook up to tow.
Our truck, with a full tank of fuel, is right at 5,300 lbs. I know 'cause I took it over and weighed it. Our coach is an '04 Itasca Horizon 36GD with the C-7 330HP CAT and, it does quite well with that GMC behind it. No issues what so ever.
The GMC Canyon and, the Chevy Colorado 4x4 units are also flat towable. No idea what they weigh. And, while the Dinghy towing guide, put out by Motorhome magazine does supply weights of the vehicles that can be flat towed, I've proved the wrong twice and they were pretty far off. So, if you're concerned about weight, and have a certain model in mind, don't he lazy and go get it weighed so you'll know for sure what you're dealing with.
Scott
Scott and Karla SDFD RETIRED2004 Itasca Horizon, 36GD Slate Blue 330 CAT
2011 GMC Sierra 1500 Ext Cab 4x4 Toad
2008 Caliente Red LVL II GL 1800 Goldwing KI60ND