Pls Help, lost selecting a tow vehicle

[n2916s]

I went to see the Titan HD at the Miami Auto Show and it is a beast. It is so overbuilt (especially the frame) that it weighs about 1500 pounds more than any of the half tons which is a yin/yang kind of thing -- you'll never break it but you will get more payload out of a F150 with max payload.

I am waiting for the numbers on the HD Version powered by the 5.6 liter gasser.

Price will be everything, I believe. While I am a big Nissan fan (my current TV is a 2004 Titan with 197000 miles on it) I am not interested in paying a huge premium for the privilege. And I won't settle for less than a ton of payload.

It would be nice if they would discuss pricing already...

Mike

[n2916s]

Jeffryorange,

Whether or not your Ecoboost will comfortably tow your new Airstream depends on two things: your gearing and your payload.
The 3.55 rear end or higher would be preferable and at least 1750# of payload (the number on the tire and payload sticker on the driver's door pillar)

The gearing will help deliver the amazing torque of the Ecoboost efficiently.

The payload is because your tongue weight will probably be northwards of a half a ton. 1750# will let you take along some folks and some toys.

Mike

[Arcticfox]

Originally Posted by jeffryorange

I have a similar question (sorry for butting in on your forum!!!).
We just purchased a 28' Int'l Signature with gross weight of 7600 lbs and hope to tow it with our 2012 Ford F150 Lariat 3.5 liter eco-boost. Do any of you experts out there see a problem with that?
thanks.

We pull our 28' FC with a 2014 F150 Eco boost and have no issues. Our truck is configured with the 3.73 rear end and the max tow package. It handles the trailer very well and we have been very happy.


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[switz]

The Airstream 28" Internationals have a factory literature tongue weight of 950 pounds, the heaviest tongue weight of the Airstream product line. The collective experiences are the literature tongue weights are low.

When I picked up our 2013 25FB International Serenity, the dealer had added the street side and rear awnings, a 155 watt solar panel in addition to the 600 watt inverter. We added the Hensley hitch head. The fresh water tank and propane tanks were full. The literature tongue weight of 833 pounds was now 1,150 pounds.

I put all the tools and heavy gear in the rear of the coach, so when loaded for camping, the tongue weight was 1,175 pounds.

After major modifications, the literature tongue weight of 773 pounds tongue weight of the 2014 31' Classic became 1,350 pounds. After upgrading to a 600 amp-hour lithium battery and removing the four Lifeline 92 pound model act 300 amp-hour 6Vdc batteries and their enclosure on the tongue of the trailer, the weight is now 1,175 pounds.

The design of the 28' models has a lot of the storage under the front sofa with side return assembly which will make keeping the tongue weight under 1,200 pounds a challenge if a Hensley or ProPride hitch is installed. It could even be heavier.

Thus the selection of tow vehicle has to be predicated on one that has enough payload (usually the base model in the 1/2 ton world) for the tongue weight plus:

camper shell weight to cover stored 'stuff' in the bed of pickup which could include grill, generator(s), gas for grill and gasoline for generator(s), chairs, and tables etc

the driver and passenger(s)

pets

It all adds up very quickly. One does not want to drive with the headlamps aimed at the tree tops and little weight on the steering wheels.

Also, many of the factory installed towing receivers are only rated 1,200 pounds of tongue weight. That may not be the number if a weight distribution style hitch is installed. Some brands may derate the receiver to compensate for the leverage forces imposed when the weight distribution system is connected.

We retrofitted a Curt receiver rated 2,550 pounds tongue weight and a 17,000 pound trailer on our 2012 Dodge Ram 2500HD Cummins.

[m.hony]

Originally Posted by n2916s

I went to see the Titan HD at the Miami Auto Show and it is a beast. It is so overbuilt (especially the frame) that it weighs about 1500 pounds more than any of the half tons which is a yin/yang kind of thing -- you'll never break it but you will get more payload out of a F150 with max payload.

I am waiting for the numbers on the HD Version powered by the 5.6 liter gasser.

Price will be everything, I believe. While I am a big Nissan fan (my current TV is a 2004 Titan with 197000 miles on it) I am not interested in paying a huge premium for the privilege. And I won't settle for less than a ton of payload.

It would be nice if they would discuss pricing already...

Mike

Price may be a deal breaker-
I'm not sure of gas engine prices, but I've heard $70,000 for a diesel-
That's too high!


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[n2916s]

The dealers were told 40k to 60k depending on how pimped out, diesel/gas. The Titanium HD I saw at the Miami Auto Show had pretty much every option known to man, including a very nicely executed leather interior. Not real interested in that level of trim because it really kills payload.

The first ones will probably be pretty pricey because there are a lot of folks on the Titan forums dying to pony up whatever they ask in order to have the latest, greatest yadda yadda...

I am hoping that things will be a little more reasonable by next Fall.

Time will tell

M

[nrgtrakr]

We considered a new tow vehicle the other day. A Jeep Cherokee with a diesel sounded nicer than the last gas guzzler we had. A Dodge 4dr 1/2 ton 4x4 diesel sounded even better. But the prices on these things - really?

[DC Bruce]

Regarding diesels, be aware of a couple of things: the 6.0 and 6.4 liter diesel in the older Ford trucks has a very high failure rate. Secondly, older diesels did not have an exhaust brake. Ford was the last to add it, only a couple of years ago. I believe Dodge (Cummins) was the first. Without an exhaust brake, a diesel provides much less engine braking than a gasoline engine. Consider looking for a 3/4 ton with a gas engine in your price range.

[nrgtrakr]

We like our 99 F250 7.3 diesel with automatic transmission and no exhaust brake - it works just fine.