V6 Ford Ranger and Argosy Minuet

[Dan S]

Will my 3.0 liter V6 be adequate to pull an Argosy Minuet 20 footer?
I'm set on eventually owning an Argosy and nothing larger, as I don't need anything else. My hope is that I can get by with the Ranger until I can get a F-150, or something similar a year or two down the line if needed.

I say F-150 because of ther additional power and the fact I need a pickup to haul to the dump, beauty bark...etc and do not want to have to trade it in for an enclosed SUV with a longer wheel base.

Any thoughts?

Thanks,

Dan

[Janet H]

A minuet weighs in at 2400 lbs - plus stuff and water. I have towed w/ a ford exploder (stick) with similar power plant. It can be done - not really fun on snoqualmie pass.... but can be done. Expect to see your fuel mileage plummet.

Check your towing specs and remember to include the weight of the cargo load in the vehicle when adding up your totals.

[scottanlily]

Hello Dan S ,

The ranger is plenty good for normal use(not towing) ,the 3.0 is too small of an engine.Its only about a 200 cid displacement ,so it would be working pretty hard .some have towed with a toyota pickup with the 3.0 v-6 ,but its working its guts out on hills and such .The rangers size is small as well ,would not be very stable with 20 ' of travel trailer behind it .I service a fleet of these rangers ,and they are reliable and are good trucks ,but I would not tow with one .I would recommend the F150 no problem however ,and would sell
the ranger or trade up for an F150 ,you'll be glad you did the first time you tow that argosy.The explorer uses a 4.0 bigger engine and it is on the edge
as Janet has said.

Scott of scottanlily

[Janet H]

Dan, It's important to remember that you are likely to have the trailer a lot longer than the tow vehicle. Don't buy a trailer to match your tow.... Buy the trailer you really want, then figure out how you will pull it around.

[SilverToy]

Dan et al -

The thing to seriously remember is not the getting going, although that is important obviously - it's the STOPPING that is critical!!!! Stability too, of course.

I would think that a Ranger, while a good vehicle for many things, is TOTALLY outmatched in trying to get a 20 foot ANYTHING the weight of an Argosy to Stop! If not for yourself, think of the others around you.

Just a thought.

Axel
SilverToy

[Janet H]

Depending on the year and the package - a ford ranger can tow up to 5,800 lbs (including cargo...) read your manual and the door jam.....

[SilverToy]

Perhaps I stand corrected. It is YOUR AirStream after all.

just do me a favor and post your routes when towing as I want to steer clear...

Axel
SilverToy

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Originally Posted by Janet

Depending on the year and the package - a ford ranger can tow up to 5,800 lbs (including cargo...) read your manual and the door jam.....

Hi, a Ranger with the 4.0L V-6 OHC engine puts out about 210 HP.
A Ranger with the 4.0L V-6 push rod engine puts out about 160 HP.
And a Ranger with the 3.0 L V-6 push rod engine makes about 135 to 145 HP.

You might get by with the 210 Hp engine and a super cab? But a short bed 3.0 L Ranger would be too short, too light, and too weak power wise. Not recommended at all.

[overlander63]

We pulled an Argosy 20 briefly with a Ranger equipped with a 5 speed and a 4.0 V6. The trailer weighed more than the Minuet you are looking at, but the truck had a bigger engine. The results were less than impressive, and this is in a location where there are zero hills.

[Silvertwinkie]

It's gonna be close....maybe too close....I'd listen to what folks have said, because they are 110% right on the money!

[ljmiii]

Originally Posted by Dan S

Will my 3.0 liter V6 be adequate to pull an Argosy Minuet 20 footer? I'm set on eventually owning an Argosy and nothing larger...

I'm usually the first to tell someone they have more than enough tow vehicle for their trailer - but sadly, a 3.0L Ranger just isn't going to do it.

You didn't say what year or style of 3.0L Ranger you have, but you likely have about 2300lbs of towing capacity. If the Minuet is indeed 2400lbs + water, LP, and stuff, it is likely you are on the wrong side of the line.

A 2007 automatic 4x2 short bed Ranger does have a tow capacity of 2500lbs. If you have one of those and you tow empty and only have yourself in the truck without much stuff you might get by. But as SilverToy said, the Ranger can't stop a Minuet - you'ld need to upgrade the Minuet to disc brakes so that the trailer can stop the trailer. But it still would not be fun.

[Dan S]

On my way home today I stopped in the Honda and Toyota dealers.

I need a small truck at home and I figure the newer mid-sized trucks would be a good place to start looking.

With that, I looked at the Honda Ridgeline, which has a 3.5L V-6 and then the Toyota Tacoma 4.0L V-6. The Honda had a wierd/cool factor but seemed gimicky.

The Tacoma was very similar to my RAV4 in the look and feel. The Toyota guy also gave me an article from Trailer Boats magazine (published by Toyota-ha!) which compared 5 mid sized trucks for 2005. They were the Tacoma, Dakota, Ranger, Canyon and Frontier.

Best overal was the Toyota and Ranger sucked it up. I was impressed with the Tacoma's ability to pull 6,500lbs. It had the longest overall length, the best braking and acceleration. It had 245 hp as compared to the Ford Ranger with 207.

I'm thinking it would make a nice replacement to the Ranger, thoughts?

Dan


-btw: I need a trailer too.

[scottanlily]

Lets just get one thing straight on this tow rating thing .The idea of the
ranger having a tow rating of 5800 lbs is a huge bunch of BS .Ain't gonna
happen ,yeah get it going on the flats ,pray it goes up the mountain and
you don't burn up the trans in the process .This kind of rating business is all
too common these days with trucks or the little SUV vehicals .Silver Toy is
correct ,the brakes are only enough for that ranger and nothing more than that .I work on these vehicals all the time and certainly it is not even close to being up to the task of towing period. Common sense and smart thinking
is needed to make the safest and correct decision on a TV ,look the vehical
over ,see about the brakes ,how big and so on ,does it have a heavy duty
tow package? finally ,Ive heard of no ranger anywhere that has a tow rating of 5800 lbs ,Id think seeing that on the door jam would be cause for concern
in my opinion .

Scott

[JimGolden]

A Toyota Tacoma beat out a Dodge Dakota? How? You can get a 4-door Dakota with a V8 that can pull quite a bit.

The Tritons don't have any torque. They're high revving engines.
Get yourself a 250 with a Powerstroke. HP sounds nice but Torque Gits R Done

Don't want a diesel? One word: HEMI

All jokes aside; even more important than having enough power is enough chassis. A half ton truck would do you well.

Best of luck,

[Dan S]

....now looking at the Ford web site.....F-150 w/ 4.7L V-8.....getting better, right?

ch-ching


Dan

[SilverToy]

Well, after what I took to be a major 'demure' from a MOD no less, I felt a bit bent about what I had said, not cowed mind you, but bent. But then I was right, right???!!?

YOU BETCHA!!!!!!

There came the crescendo of voices that proved my point far more forcefully than I was able to deliver during the 1st crack it. Nice to know that someone has my back, when there is safety and potential disaster looking. Standing TALL again....

Now that the chorus of voices 'of reason' seem to have won the day, there seems to be a very appropriate rethinking of the TV, as it seems the AS is what they want. Bravo!

It's sop nice when things work out for the best of everyone involved. Doesn't happen that often, so noting when it does, is likely the only 'pat on the back' you are going to get.... Great job with telling that dude the Ranger was outmatched, Axel. Why thanks, Axel.

Keep posting as your TV and TT combo come together and tell us the stories about it - aling with LOTS of photos!!!!!!

Enjoy that camping experinence!!!!!!! Don't forget film.....

See you when you get back.....

Axel
SilverToy

[Janet H]

Originally Posted by SilverToy

Well, after what I took to be a major 'demure' from a MOD no less, I felt a bit bent about what I had said, not cowed mind you, but bent. But then I was right, right???!!?


Axel
SilverToy

Axel - no slam intended. I actually agree that a ranger doesn't have the stuff - but when you visit fords towing section online, you find some higher tow capacities...

I have had my own miserable experience with an underpowered tow. The cool thing about about a thread like this the is the breadth of opinion and hopefully the thread starter will read and research before buying.

[Dan S]

....I'm reading and absorbing.......damn, I need a trailer. That tiny Boler will no longer cut it.

Dan

[Jim Clark]

I attempted to tow a Globetrotter with a Ranger, I now drive a F-150 Supercrew.

Thanks Jim

[Dan S]

Sold my 3.0L Ranger and purchased a 2005 Toyota Tundara w/ 4.7L V-8 and then picked up my Argosy Minuet 6.0.

WOW- what a difference. I never even felt as if I was straining anything.....the ride was increadable. Very happy w/ the Tundra.

Dan