Towing with a Ford Expedition

[Doublemks]

We are trading in our class A motorhome for a pull behind camper. We will be using our 2010 Expedition(8900lb tow). We are looking at the Sundance xlt 291qb ( heartland) and the Vibe extreme lite 287qbs(forest river). Can anyone give opinions on either camper and also pulling a 5500-6500lb camper with this vehicle? Thank you in advance.

[theoldwizard1]

Doublemks wrote:
BTW, what do you guys do if you want to camp off the grid? I didn't know campers don't come with generators.

Get a "portable" generator. Depending on you A/C unit (obviously the biggest load), you will probably need something between 2500 and 4000 watts (peak).

Honda is the "gold standard". Yamaha is probably #2. Both are good, but expensive. Champion generators have not been around as long as Honda or Yamaha, but they have earned a good reputation at a LOT LESS COST !

You will be hard pressed to find some one here recommend anything other than those 3.

[Doublemks]

Thank you all so much for taking the time to educate me. Until we decide on a camper and get set up, I won't fully know what your saying, but I get the idea. Motorhomes are so much easier, Lol. And I'll miss all my storage ( and generator) BTW, what do you guys do if you want to camp off the grid? I didn't know campers don't come with generators.

[temccarthy1]

I have a 2013 Expedition with 5.4 L Triton V8 and tow a 2014 Keystone Bullet Ultralight 285 that has a 30 ft box. It weighs about 6000 loaded and tows fine with an E2 WDH. I maintain 60- 63 MPH and it is comfortable towing. The Expy has plenty of power for hills maintaining at least 50 on the steeper interstate hills. We are traveling with only 2 adults and a 20lb dog however so that helps!

[MikeJulieGDImag]

Doublemks wrote:
Forgive my ignorance, but we only have motorhome experience for the last 12 years. What do you guys mean " dialing in" the weight? Your adjusting the tow bar or moving weight in camper from front to rear or? Is there a particular sway bar, etc that you'd recommend for newbies?

I have a blue ox wdh and what I mean by dialing it in was how many chain links I went up to increase the tension on the bars thus distributing the weight from the trailer on the tongue to get the front axle weight back to stock. I have a post somewhere on here that explained my weights at the scales with the different setups. Basically with the trailer hooked up if I had no wdh setup on it I would lose a couple hundred lbs off the front axle compared to stock with no trailer which would cause me to lose steering control. By changing the tension on the bars I was able to redistribute the weight off the rear axle and back to the front so I got my steering control back. It all depends on what hitch you have on how it's done.

Don't be afraid to ask lots of questions. Before we bought our TT I had my reservations about what the Expy would pull. I came on here and got lots of good info. In fact, Rustycamperpants was one that answered alot of my questions and put my mind at ease with the Expy and it's towing capabilities.

[Rustycamperpant]

I am talking about getting the wieght distribution hitch set up correctly. The angle of the hitch head can be adjusted to distibute wieght differently between your Expys rear and front axles. On my WDH, I can add or remove washers on the head to change the angle, thus changing the way the TT tows and how your Expy drives.

The dealer may get the sete up close, but you may have to "dial it in". When you look at a wieght distribution hitch look at the torsion bars and think "wheel barrow", If you lift up on the wheel barrow handles, more wieght goes to the front axle, when you push down on the wheel barrow handles more wieght goes to the rear axle. At least this is what I am talking about.

Some will post that you need a one ton, or semi to pull anything ... take it all with a grain of salt, there is a lot of good reading on this site and you can learn a lot from it. Stay within your Expys limits and you will be fine, it is an exellent tow vehicle ... just dont go too heavy.

[Doublemks]

Forgive my ignorance, but we only have motorhome experience for the last 12 years. What do you guys mean " dialing in" the weight? Your adjusting the tow bar or moving weight in camper from front to rear or? Is there a particular sway bar, etc that you'd recommend for newbies?

[Rustycamperpant]

MikeJulieGDImagine wrote:
I tow a 2017 Grand Design Imagine 2800BH with a 2013 Ford Expedition EL. The dry weight of the trailer came in at 6204 lbs. It took me a couple of trips and a trip to the CAT scales to get the WDH dialed in but once I did I feel completely comfortable towing the trailer. In fact, I just got back yesterday from a trip up into the Smokey Mountains and it had no problems pulling it up the mountain running 55mph and on the way back home yesterday I was in rain (sometimes heavy) for the first 180 miles, including back down the mountain. When I'm towing I usually run around 60mph, except in the rain and when a tractor trailer or big box truck passes I slow down to 50mph and its fine. I do plan to upgrade to 'E' load tires in the near future. I know a 3/4 ton truck would probably do better but considering a I have wife, 2 kids, and 2 dogs, a full SUV is what I have to have.

This X2. My TT is about the same size and it took a few trips, but now that I have the WDH dialed in I have no issues. I set my cruise control at 63 unless it is a hilly area. I had no problems through the smokies either.

[theoldwizard1]

As long as the Expedition has the HD tow package (HD radiator, extra transmission cooler, 7 pin trailer connector). These can all be added.

[MikeJulieGDImag]

Doublemks wrote:
Thanks, that's reassuring to hear! Our Exp is an EL as well. We also have two kiddos but typically leave the hairy dog at home these days, lol. I'll check out your camper but the weight seems close to what I'm looking at. Thank you for responding

We looked at the Forest River VIBE's and they all seemed too heavy for where I wanted to be. The max 'dry weight' I wanted to be at was 6300lbs to allow that cushion for the family/dogs and stuff we bring along. It worked out good because in all the campers we looked at (literally 100s), Grand Design was by far the nicest we came across. If you need bunks they have 3 bunk house models in the Imagine line. The 3150BH would be too heavy but there is also the 2800BH and 2400BH. We absolutely love the 2800BH. If you want to get an idea of how other Grand Design owners feel about there trailers, head over to the grand design owners webpage.

[Doublemks]

Thanks, that's reassuring to hear! Our Exp is an EL as well. We also have two kiddos but typically leave the hairy dog at home these days, lol. I'll check out your camper but the weight seems close to what I'm looking at. Thank you for responding

[MikeJulieGDImag]

I tow a 2017 Grand Design Imagine 2800BH with a 2013 Ford Expedition EL. The dry weight of the trailer came in at 6204 lbs. It took me a couple of trips and a trip to the CAT scales to get the WDH dialed in but once I did I feel completely comfortable towing the trailer. In fact, I just got back yesterday from a trip up into the Smokey Mountains and it had no problems pulling it up the mountain running 55mph and on the way back home yesterday I was in rain (sometimes heavy) for the first 180 miles, including back down the mountain. When I'm towing I usually run around 60mph, except in the rain and when a tractor trailer or big box truck passes I slow down to 50mph and its fine. I do plan to upgrade to 'E' load tires in the near future. I know a 3/4 ton truck would probably do better but considering a I have wife, 2 kids, and 2 dogs, a full SUV is what I have to have.

[Doublemks]

Right, but of course the dealers all day that we can tow anything. Were you comfortable towing the 4400lb trailer? How about long distance?

[kerrlakeRoo]

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[Terryallan]

mbutts wrote:
I went from a 4,400 lbs. trailer to a 7,300 lbs. (32') trailer with my Expy and I found the new trailer terrifying to tow.

With the length and weight of the units you listed, you will be uncomfortable at best. It's difficult shopping when the manufacturers all list "dry weight" and don't include the weight of "mandatory options" in the figures. I would allow a much, much larger safety margin with that tow vehicle due to it's squishy rear end.

To find the true dry weight, The weight of the trailer sitting on the lot in front of you. You only need look at the yellow sticker. It tells the weight of the trailer as it sits, and with empty propane tanks, and battery. Of course it won't stay that way when you start loading it. But is a good place to start

[Doublemks]

Also how was towing your smaller rv?