Will a F-150 Pull a 25’ Safari on Georgia Route 75 ?

[Jim Clark]

We are thinking about a trip Enota Mountain Retreat, the reviews are good but feel free to state an opinion. I am concerned that my F-150 will have a problem handling the road grades on Georgia Route 75 around Hiawassee Georgia. I have the 5.4 liter engine pulling a 25’ Safari. We have pulled through the area west of Atlanta on I 20 with very few problems. Yahoo maps routes us up I 65 but we can also do I 59 to I 20 to get to Atlanta it is north of Atlanta which concerns me.

[wanderer1]

If your f-150 is rated for the weight you should be fine.Back in the old days,almost all t/v and motorhomes ran gas engines. you'll just be a little slower going up the hills. Make sure you have the right w/d hitch set up though....Brian

[Fyrzowt]

When you hit the grades, pull the trans into a lower gear as needed and take your time. No prob.
I pulled my 25' Safari into the Sierras with my GMC 1500 4.8 CID. I would guess that the Sierras are more of a pull than what you have back there. Enjoy your trip.
Dave

[Jim Clark]

Thanks, I have a good hitch and the truck is in good shape. I will have the brakes checked, I feel better now.

[jwe63]

Greetings from the Dirt piles of British Columbia. We just purchased an '03 25 foot Safari. I tow it with the '07 Tundra 5.7L no problem. Set the cruise control on 95-100km/h (55-60mph) and relax.

I think the main thing is take your time on the really steep grades, gear down....no hurry.

[vswingfield]

Hi Jim,

I have a 2000 F150 with the 5.4. I believe that it would pull my 24’ Trade Wind just about anywhere. Now that I have gotten the 34’ Excella, I am considering upgrades. My previous TV was a 77 ¾ ton Dodge van with a 318, smaller than the 5.4 which is about 330. The switch to a four-barrel and dual exhaust helped, bit it made nowhere near the power of the new 5.4. Wasn’t anywhere near as nice inside either. You'll be fine.

Vaughan

[Streamer1]

Jim, at the risk of starting a war or something, I'll just say "yeah a 1/2 ton will do the job" (It won't be a piece of cake though). Now if you are like me and a bunch of other folks, I like more than the ability to do "just get the job done." I'm pulling my 25' International with an 06 PSD. Overkill some may say. I however, like having the power and not using it versus needing the power and not having it. Also, with a 3/4 ton diesel there is no doubt YOU are in charge (Heavier truck, bigger brakes, etc...). I often had the feeling when I had my 1/2 ton that the trailer was "driving the TV" and telling it where to go and when to do it.

Good luck with whatever you end up doing.

[Van]

I have no doubts my '05 5.4 F-150 could pull a 25' just about anywhere. I currently tow a 23' all over the Oregon Cascades, Coast Range and out into the Blue Mountains of eastern Oregon without any troubles. I wouldnt want to go bigger than 25' though.

In fact i have passed 3/4 ton deisels of all makes towing 28-30 SOBs climbing hills. The 5.4 is a great engine with plenty to do the job. Just be careful on the downgrades is all.

[Jim Clark]

Again, thanks to all I do feel better. The only time you go uphill in New Orleans is to go over a bridge. I think the world of my F-150 and will not replace it until it is necessary and more than likely it will be with a PSD. If I am lucky I will not have to do that for a few years. The more I use my 25' Safari the more I like it, it is more than I need. I often wonder how much do you need to RV when I am parked next to a huge class A or 5th wheels. I will now tell the wife to start her planning.

Thanks again Jim

[mi silver]

jim i've pulled a 99 safari with a 1998 f 150 with a 4.6 for the last8 years all over the south and thru the mountains many times and iam still using this rig. i do have a hensely hitch and use mobile one . your f150 should have no problems

[ScottW]

Jim, I pulled an 06 25' Safari with the F150, 5.4l and had no problems. Never drove on an interstate, rather took all back roads (our choice). Pulled good. Bought a 30 Classic (07) and then bought a new f350, psd. No probs, obviously.
See ya at Gonzales this Oct?

[HowieE]

Your going to see some hills north of Atlantia. Where you are going is just north of Brasstown Bald. I pegged my themerature guages on that one with my 87 Diesel Sub and a 34 fter.

The limiting factor on a Ford is the radiator. I assume youu have a 373 rear and not a 342. If you can latch onto a Police radiator your trans and engine will love you.

[vswingfield]

Originally Posted by HowieE

The limiting factor on a Ford is the radiator. I assume youu have a 373 rear and not a 342. If you can latch onto a Police radiator your trans and engine will love you.

Additional cooling is an excellent suggestion.

Vaughan

[nilesrob]

I-75 in N. Georgia is tame - mountain-wise. There is one area coming out of Chattanooga where there is a bit of an incline, but in whole the route should be very do-able with your F-150. We used to tow a 31 SOB with an Expedition (similar to F-150) and I-75 was never a problem.

[steamboatcat]

Originally Posted by nilesrob

I-75 in N. Georgia is tame - mountain-wise. There is one area coming out of Chattanooga where there is a bit of an incline, but in whole the route should be very do-able with your F-150. We used to tow a 31 SOB with an Expedition (similar to F-150) and I-75 was never a problem.

I-75 in GA, which is quite flat, is different than GA rt. 17/75 which goes between Helen and Hiawassee. RT. 75 is a mtn. road with grades as steep as western mtn. roads, but the steep sections will be shorter than you get out west.
Its a place where people like to take motorcycles because of the curves, IIRC all the steep climbs have a second lane for slower traffic, but some of the downhill sections are one lane- we downshift our F250 SD even when not towing to help our brakes with engine braking when we are driving through this neck of the woods.

Catherine

[Wabbiteer]

Wow - all these responses and no one asked Jim Clark what Ford has certified his truck to be capable of as stated on either via the door column sticker or manual & options look-up.. Note one factoid a manual read resulted in for my '99 F-150 is a 500 pound deduct for 17-inch wheels that is not noted on the door column!!

The Airstream weight PDF I have stops at 2003 but lists the 25' Safari as 680 pounds tongue weight, 4920 dry weight and 6300 GVWR...

[pmclemore]

I think if you take it easy, you can do anything as long as you don't do it too often. My worry would be overheating the tranny, especailly when you don't have a trans temp gauge to monitor things. You will be climbing at relatively low rates of speed, which means your trans fluid will not have a good way to cool off. It is unlikely that your trans will lock into gear in a hard climb, so a lot of heat will be generated.

So I would make a point to pull off a couple of times when you recognize that you are working hard (overlooks, perhaps) and idle your engine at high idle for a few minutes before going off again. Enjoy the moment.

Slow speed when the tranny is working hard is death. So help it with extra cooling when you can.

The other guys have addressed the downhill issue very well.

Pat

[nilesrob]

I stand corrected - I thought the road in question was I-75, which seemed like a non-issue to me. The road from Hiawassee to Helen is VERY steep with a lot of sharp curves. I'd take all precautions, check weights and capacity - all that stuff before towing on that road.

[vswingfield]

Does anyone remember when Airstreams were towed behind cars? Even though it was an SOB, Rickey didn’t pull Lucy with a ¾ or 1 ton truck. I have seen an owner’s manual with a Dodge Dart towing on the cover. Come on, you can do it with a bicycle.

Vaughan

[HowieE]

Originally Posted by vswingfield

Does anyone remember when Airstreams were towed behind cars? Even though it was an SOB, Rickey didn’t pull Lucy with a ¾ or 1 ton truck. I have seen an owner’s manual with a Dodge Dart towing on the cover. Come on, you can do it with a bicycle.

Vaughan

Also if you remember they changed the definition of Horse Power since then. The new ponies are not a match for their fathers unless they are screaming at high RPMs.

Heat dissapation was a lot better because of the openness of the engine area.

Western mountains have long grades that alow you to shift down and maintain a steady speed were as eastern hills tend to be winding roads that frequently have you braking and again accelerating under load.