19’ FC tow vehicle?

[nickteller25]

Thanks for everyones input.

I bought a Sherline scale and tested the tongue with minimal load (no water) and it came in just under 600 lbs.. With the 600# tongue max. on the Ridgeline, I think I’m figuring out why the ride can be rough (including a couple bent weight distribution snap up brackets) when we’re fully loaded, figuring the WDH adds 100# + Yeti + Generator + misc items in the bed, Im probably pushing 800 lbs on the tongue. And trust me, Im cringing as I write that down...

[TBRich]

Another great tow vehicle for 19' Bambi is a Tacoma...Great little trucks and real workhorses. we started our Airstream journey with a 2007 Tacoma with a tow package (#6500) and now have a 2016 Tacoma. Love it ... and it is our daily driver as well.

[nickteller25]

Originally Posted by TBRich

Another great tow vehicle for 19' Bambi is a Tacoma...Great little trucks and real workhorses. we started our Airstream journey with a 2007 Tacoma with a tow package (#6500) and now have a 2016 Tacoma. Love it ... and it is our daily driver as well.

Nice. I think we’re leaning in the Tacoma direction, so I’m happy to hear the positive experience!

[rmkrum]

Tacoma would probably be great for the 19 footer.

We have a short bed, 2012 CrewMax 4x4 with the V6. Great ride on the freeway by itself, quite comfortable. Decent maneuverability in city traffic. My family and pack of doggies loves traveling in it. The newer ones have lots of nice features.

As another data point, we tow a 22 footer with ours, and at that point its still nice and stable, but a touch under-powered climbing the SoCal mountain passes, like the Cajon Pass and the Grapevine areas...but I'm really patient, and don't get upset when the big rigs with their 4-ways on crawl past me (grin).

Yeah, a Tundra would be nice for our situation, but you will find the Taco is quite nice...

[Leilanisteve]

I like our 2016 Chevy Colorado Diesel crew cab for our 19’. The tow haul mode is nice and the engine brake works well on descending the grades. Payload is not too great but works for two of us. Wish it had tow mirrors as an option. Tow rating is 7600 for the 4x4.

[AFTER TAXES]

Originally Posted by brick1

Get your camper weighed, as you will tow it. Check the payload sticker on your drivers door. That is where many vehicles come up short.
It is hard to beat a 1/2 ton (F150 Ecoboost) for towing small to mid size trailers.
I just upgraded from an Expedition to an F250 for towing my new 28. Much easier towing.
brick

following the brick..............lol

[stream19]

We have a 2015 19’ International. Initial TV was a 2015 4Runner, loved the vehicle but was somewhat underpowered and hitch weight capacity inadequate. Traded for a 2018 F-150, 3.5 EcoBoost with tow package. Very pleased with F-150 so far, handles minimum grades in New England with no problems, easy to hitch up, rides smooth, and great mirrors. Heading to Canadian Rockies late summer for ultimate test, anticipating no issues.

[nickteller25]

Originally Posted by stream19

We have a 2015 19’ International. Initial TV was a 2015 4Runner, loved the vehicle but was somewhat underpowered and hitch weight capacity inadequate. Traded for a 2018 F-150, 3.5 EcoBoost with tow package. Very pleased with F-150 so far, handles minimum grades in New England with no problems, easy to hitch up, rides smooth, and great mirrors. Heading to Canadian Rockies late summer for ultimate test, anticipating no issues.

Thanks. Hard to get past the F-150 as a great choice. I think Im going to rent one for a trip to see just how much double the tow capacity makes a difference.

[Gallego]

We have been towing our 19 with a Ford Flex that has very similar maximum capacities to those of the Ridgeline. A good weight distribution hitch and replacing the China Bombs ASAP have provided us with many miles of enjoyment. We live in Florida that is flat, but going over tall bridges we are fine at legal speeds, and although there is a lot of wind and truck traffic in our roads, we never had any scary situation. I friend of us lent us a GMC Sierra Denali and it has been my worst experience towing. I think that using a weight distribution and anti-sway system properly set up, its better than more truck.....(I'll walk to the firing squad wall by myself hehehe)

[jsfranchek]

Originally Posted by Gallego

We have been towing our 19 with a Ford Flex that has very similar maximum capacities to those of the Ridgeline. A good weight distribution hitch and replacing the China Bombs ASAP have provided us with many miles of enjoyment. We live in Florida that is flat, but going over tall bridges we are fine at legal speeds, and although there is a lot of wind and truck traffic in our roads, we never had any scary situation. I friend of us lent us a GMC Sierra Denali and it has been my worst experience towing. I think that using a weight distribution and anti-sway system properly set up, its better than more truck.....(I'll walk to the firing squad wall by myself hehehe)

We just returned from am 8,400 miles trip across the southwest United States with our 2016 Flying Cloud 26U and out 2017 VW Touareg v6. We loved it. We got 14.8 mpg across Nevada and Utah and although we were slowed down a bit outside of Denver (like everyone else), it was comfortable, smooth and a perfect the vehicle. Even the 4 mile 8% grade up from Willow Beach campground on the Colorado River to the highway was great. I am just adding my voice based on experience having just returned.

[brick1]

Originally Posted by twbucksr

Here are the CAT scale numbers from one our trips towing our 2015 Bambi 22FB with our 2014 Honda Ridgeline using an Andersen WDH. Truck payload included 2 adults, Yeti 50 and golf clubs in the cab. Honda 2000i generator in the bed. AS fresh water tank was full.

Attachment 316666

Be sure to check the GCWR of the Ridgeline. You might be over.
brick

[twbucksr]

Brick,
I appreciate your concerns and although we no longer own the Ridgeline or the 22FB, I’ll respond for those seeking the knowledge to understand all the considerations I took and deemed necessary to properly select a tow vehicle, or in our case, an AS that our existing vehicle could safely tow. I downloaded the Ridgeline owners manual, found and attached the page with the information I used to determine which AS’s I could safely tow before we even purchased our first AS. The Ridgeline I owned had a GCWR of 10,088 lbs. The payload was 6,050 lbs. The front axle weight limit was 3,105 lbs. and the rear axle weight limit was 3,245 lbs. I never weighed the tongue but the hitch weight limit on our Ridgeline was 600 lbs. My weight ticket confirms my configuration was within my vehicle and trailer limits.

I strongly urge all readers and posters of this blog to confirm their configurations are within their tow vehicle manufactures limits before they post a boast about how their configuration “tows great without issues” etc., etc., etc.

Attachment 317443

I went thru this same process in choosing our current 27FBQ/GMC Sierra SLT with 6.2L gas and Max Tow Package configuration. We strongly considered a 30’ Classic as our next AS, but the trailer weight would have pushed us into a 3/4 ton diesel truck which neither of us wanted to drive as a daily driver.

[Bobbo]

Originally Posted by twbucksr

Brick,
I appreciate your concerns and although we no longer own the Ridgeline or the 22FB, I’ll respond for those seeking the knowledge to understand all the considerations I took and deemed necessary to properly select a tow vehicle, or in our case, an AS that our existing vehicle could safely tow. I downloaded the Ridgeline owners manual, found and attached the page with the information I used to determine which AS’s I could safely tow before we even purchased our first AS. The Ridgeline I owned had a GCWR of 10,088 lbs. The payload was 6,050 lbs. The front axle weight limit was 3,105 lbs. and the rear axle weight limit was 3,245 lbs. I never weighed the tongue but the hitch weight limit on our Ridgeline was 600 lbs. My weight ticket confirms my configuration was within my vehicle and trailer limits.

I strongly urge all readers and posters of this blog to confirm their configurations are within their tow vehicle manufactures limits before they post a boast about how their configuration “tows great without issues” etc., etc., etc.

Attachment 317443

I went thru this same process in choosing our current 27FBQ/GMC Sierra SLT with 6.2L gas and Max Tow Package configuration. We strongly considered a 30’ Classic as our next AS, but the trailer weight would have pushed us into a 3/4 ton diesel truck which neither of us wanted to drive as a daily driver.

Are you sure that the 6,050# is the payload rating, not the gross vehicle weight rating? That is a HUGE difference. Personally, I doubt that the Ridgeline is rated for you to put 6,050# in the bed of the truck and drive off.

When clicking on your attachment, it says "invalid attachment specified, contact administrator" or some such.

[twbucksr]

Sorry about the attachment snafu. I’ll try again.

You are correct. Thanks for catching that. I stated 6,050 for payload but should have stated GVWR. The payload of the vehicle was 1,450 lbs. That’s what I get for posting prior to the first cup of coffee.

[seesantos]

Hi,

Newbie here. My wife and I are considering a 16' Sport (350# TW/3500# GVW) or 19' Flying Cloud (550# TW/#4500# GVW) - I'd prefer the FC. We have a 2017 Ford Explorer Sport w the 3.5 Ecoboost. It has the 500#TW/5000#TR factory hitch. Both TT fit within the GVWR, so no problem there. I've been crunching the numbers though and the numbers point to the 16' Sport. However, given what I've read people towing a 19' with a Toyota Highlander which has the same ratings as the Explorer and other similar setups, I am surprised no one has called these folks out for having over stressed their hitches! in addition many folks add a WDH which is fine and dandy, but that is additional weight on the hitch. Even the Airstream sales guy said, "A WDH will take off 10-15% of the weight off the hitch." (There's a sucker born every minute, right?) No it won't. So, am I missing something? The 3.5 Ecoboost has plenty of power, but the hitch is rated to 500#. I'm not trading in the Explore any time soon, so that isn't an option unfortunately. In hindsight, I would have bought something else. Any enlightened souls out there to help a guy out? Thanks in advance!

[twbucksr]

Consider the 22FB

[Adventure.AS]

Originally Posted by seesantos

... <snip> However, given what I've read people towing a 19' with a Toyota Highlander which has the same ratings as the Explorer and other similar setups, I am surprised no one has called these folks out for having over stressed their hitches! ... <snip> So, am I missing something? The 3.5 Ecoboost has plenty of power, but the hitch is rated to 500#. I'm not trading in the Explorer any time soon, so that isn't an option unfortunately. In hindsight, I would have bought something else. Any enlightened souls out there to help a guy out? Thanks in advance!

Many people go to a competent hitch professional and have the receiver strengthened to Class IV (or purchase an aftermarket Class IV receiver) designed to use a WD hitch. You are not limited by the lightly engineered receiver that comes stock on most SUVs. The important consideration for the TV are axle and tire ratings.

Class IV hitches used for weight distributing are rated up to 14,000 lbs. gross trailer weight (GTW) with a maximum trailer tongue weight (TW) of 1400 lbs.

[Snarl]

I also have a Flying Cloud 19CB and Tow with a 2019 Honda Ridgeline. I use a Reese EZ-Lift Hitch with WD Bars and Tow with no problems (Set-Up by Can-Am RV in Canada) and use a Tekonsha P2 Brake Controller. Basically there are two of us, clothes, food and gear, about 300Lbs of gear in Trailer, another 200Lbs in Truck (Max). Basically everything we need (Although we are still eliminating things we don't use) and so far (Still new) no problems after about 1200KM Towing, enough power etc... I always Tow with the Water/Waste Tanks empty.

Good Luck