Buying a truck to pull my NEW AS

[mckenej]

We have a 2018 flying cloud 25 ft front bedroom and pull it with an F150 super cab 4x4. We have towed over 20000 miles all over the country including the rocky mountains and have 0 problems we have a 3.5 Turbo in the truck

[AM2PMtravels]

I still agree with bigger is better here’s my two cents . I had a 2015 Toyota Tundra loved the truck and I was towing a Kodiak 36ft 7400pd trailer , we took a few trips in it but gas mileage was God awful 6-7 mpg and it had a small tank so first think to consider . It’s a whole lot easier to get into a Truck stop to get diesel vs trying to navigate around a small gas station with 50 idiots blocking you . Second is wear and tear on that smaller truck , but first and Foremost is SAFETY . Just because it can pull it doesn’t mean it can tow it , here is my eye opener. Once I purchased my Ram 2500 Cummins we took our first trip to the mountains in it and on the way home coming down a very steep grade as I rounded a curve there sat a car in my lane at a blind spot he should not have been there and there was nowhere to go . As i hit the brakes my brake controller kicked in along with my Exhaust break and trailer breaks to bring that monster behind me to a stop just about 2 car lengths away . I have no doubt if I would have been in my tundra I would not have been able to stop in time and it would have been very bad . Bigger trucks have bigger breaks , Transmissions, Payload etc and the grunt of the Cummins climbing a Mountain is awesome Go bigger if you can there is a big difference in my eye .

[Luke Grisott]

2020 Ram 1500 limited Hemi . ( 2019-2020 model) recommended. Better towing capacity. Better overall truck.
Towing capacity 12,045
Tongue weight 1050
45 inches of legroom backseat also Recliner’s.
Air suspension - makes for a beautiful ride.
Leather package and 12 inch screen as luxurious as any SUV.
Retractable runningboards -Easy in and out for us ladies.
Tows our 2018 25FT FBT International serenity beautifully.
Snugtop tonneau cover -perfectly matched with Rams color
This is just one woman’s opinion and recommendation who never believed she say her favorite vehicle is a truck.
The color we chose was maximum steel looks beautiful with our airstream.
Congratulations on your first Airstream. The real silver lining is the people you’ll meet on this journey. See you down the road neighbor.
The Silver Buffalo # 22624

[pteck]

Originally Posted by AM2PMtravels

Bigger trucks have bigger breaks , Transmissions, Payload etc and the grunt of the Cummins climbing a Mountain is awesome Go bigger if you can there is a big difference in my eye .

Glad you're enjoying your truck.

It's important to understand that to your point, a larger truck may have higher brake (heat) capacities, but it shouldn't be conflated with shorter stopping distances. HD trucks are not known to be great at stopping or handling. Because a bigger truck also has much higher weights. With tire sizes not appreciably larger.

There's info to suggest a properly setup 1/2 ton will out stop an HD truck in a single emergency stop situation. The tow vehicles brakes stop the tow vehicle. Trailer brakes stop the trailer. If you're brake bias is setup correctly.

[Daquenzer]

Originally Posted by jan55255

The one thing that doesn’t seem to get mentioned is the capacity of the actual hitch. I spoke to the Ford reps in Hershey at the last RV show (2020) about hitch capacity. They said a class 3 is rated up to 800# and a class 5 goes up to 1500#. Don’t go by what the RV salesman says. The F-150 and other light trucks are designed for a class 3 receiver, it’s the limiting fact. If the hitch weight is within 20%, go heavy duty.

Incorrect. The F150 has a Class IV hitch. I know of no F150's with a Class 3 hitch. My pickup has a hitch rating of 1280lbs. That's the way I bought it. I sat down with the dealer and specifically ordered it to meet the specifications needed to tow. And my salesman at Ford was a truck specialist.

[Daquenzer]

Originally Posted by pteck

Glad you're enjoying your truck.

It's important to understand that to your point, a larger truck may have higher brake (heat) capacities, but it shouldn't be conflated with shorter stopping distances. HD trucks are not known to be great at stopping or handling. Because a bigger truck also has much higher weights. With tire sizes not appreciably larger.

There's info to suggest a properly setup 1/2 ton will out stop an HD truck in a single emergency stop situation. The tow vehicles brakes stop the tow vehicle. Trailer brakes stop the trailer. If you're brake bias is setup correctly.

Agree. In fact when I stop with my trailer, I am amazed at how quickly my F150 comes to a stop when the trailer brakes are engaged. In fact if someone is depending upon their truck to stop them alone, then I wonder if they have their gain set up appropriately.

[oldenavy]

I'm a bit surprised at all the comments about HD trucks being bad daily drivers. Our RAM 2500 diesel is my daily driver and I think it rides & handles fine. It's not like a luxury car, but it's not uncomfortable at all. It rides as good as our Corvette, maybe a bit better (although it is no match when it comes to acceleration or cornering). We take it on road trips even w/o the trailer as it has plenty of room for all the stuff my better half likes to pack...

As for mileage, I get 17-19mpg when not towing in mixed driving. We recently got 21+ on a road trip w/o the AS and typically get 11-13 when towing our 30' AS.

Many have commented on the torque for mountain climbs and the braking for descents. I completely agree and that's worth the extra expense of the HD diesel truck for us.

[DKB_SATX]

Originally Posted by oldenavy

I'm a bit surprised at all the comments about HD trucks being bad daily drivers. Our RAM 2500 diesel is my daily driver and I think it rides & handles fine. It's not like a luxury car, but it's not uncomfortable at all. It rides as good as our Corvette, maybe a bit better (although it is no match when it comes to acceleration or cornering). We take it on road trips even w/o the trailer as it has plenty of room for all the stuff my better half likes to pack...
.

Horses for courses. Where I grew up was much like your town appears to be... Under 2k people, surrounded by large rural properties, and we lived 5 miles out. The '69 1-ton work truck with a Knapheide box that I used for farm chores and work for Dad's business wasn't fun, but there was always someplace to park it and never any significant traffic so it wasn't a pain. Now I live in a close-in neighborhood in a large city and prefer a truck that doesn't have a ZIP code.

[renderit]

Just traded my daily driver 2014 GMC 1500 Crew for a 2021 GMC 2500 Denali Diesel in December.

Milage about the same. Fuel more expensive.

Ride just slightly stiffer. But quieter and the seats are much nicer.

It is not as agile, though not much different, slightly more ponderous feeling but I am getting used to it.

While I don't "jet around" quite as much as I used to most of the feel of it being bigger is because it is. Longer, taller.

It does feel as though it needs more space to stop. But no push with something behind you.

I will say it also feels like there is NOTHING behind you when you are pulling the same trailer.

The old one was nice, but in trailering the new one is STERLING.

[21Airstream]

Originally Posted by Spec7op

... The Ram dashboard (large touchscreen display is impressive looking, however, impractical. I find it hard to make selections in a bouncing truck with touchscreens. I’d rather tune my radio or adjust temperature with a knob, something I can hold onto and quickly adjust...

Most high option Rams have controls on the steering wheel for this reason (mine doesn’t though, it has the base radio with knobs).

[Capt who]

Go big or stay home, that's what my wife told me. I looked at 5 brands both 1/2 & 3/4 ton trucks gas and diesel. I ended up with a F250 Diesel CCSB 4x4 with 10 speed trans and 3.31 rear. All 5 brands that I looked at would probably pull my 25' FC. Some were lite on tongue weight/payload others had to small fuel tank, etc.
When you look at a truck that gets great mpg it more than likely won't be a great tow vehicle and vice versa. Take the F150 as an example: Ford says highest tow rating in its class and they say great mpg. What they don't tell you is that they are talking about 2 different trucks, different rear gear ratio and engine, tires, suspension etc.
In general a 250 or 2500 is a heavier truck and will handle the job of towing better than a lite truck.
By the way I am getting 15 mpg when towing and 20+ not towing. With standard 34 gal fuel tank I have close to 500 mi range when towing

[ROBERT CROSS]

Originally Posted by renderit

I will say it also feels like there is NOTHING behind you when you are pulling the same trailer.

YEP...just what you want...no awareness of the trailer behind you...NOT.

Good luck with that.🤔

Bob
🇺🇸

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by AM2PMtravels

I still agree with bigger is better here’s my two cents . I had a 2015 Toyota Tundra loved the truck and I was towing a Kodiak 36ft 7400pd trailer , we took a few trips in it but gas mileage was God awful 6-7 mpg and it had a small tank so first think to consider ...... .

Hi

There had to be something really odd about that rig compared to the typical Airstream. Weight wise, you are a bit lighter than our Classic when normally set up for a trip. Length, if anything might improve gas miles.

In 40,000 miles of towing we have *never* seen a tank of gas run below 9 MPG. When I stomp my foot, indeed the instantaneous number gets pretty bad. Eventually somebody yells at me and I let my foot off the gas . If the day is targeted at "getting there", the trip may well be at ~73 MHP. Yes mileage suffers compared to 63 ... sorry about that.

Bob

[Gibson3798]

Originally Posted by DCPAS

Glad you like your truck. You summed up rather well what large truck folks are willing to tolerate.

That’s a pretty poor job of summing up anything. He dislikes touchscreens while driving on a rough road.

Try again.

[Bcc75]

I really wish some folks would have the opportunity to tow the same trailer with the 1/2 ton vs 3/4 and see for themselves the difference. It would stop a lot of this ‘I have towed my trailer for xxxxx miles all over the world with no problem’ rhetoric that you hear on these threads. People that say that in most cases have not towed with both trucks so of course they will say that they have had no issue. How many of these guys were overloaded and did not know it? I was overloaded, I will admit with the 1/2 ton.
I had the unique opportunity to tow with both. In a nutshell, my conclusions:
Trailer: International 25RB
1/2 ton -2020 F150 Lariat. FX4. 3.5 Eco. Max tow. 20” wheels, 1683# payload.
3/4 ton- 2020 F250 Latiat. FX4 6.7 diesel. 2200 lbs payload
Using equalizer E4 hitch. on both.

F150: Plenty of power. Rpm’s get a little high on the grades especially on the descents in tow/haul ,but after all, it is a 6 cyl. 10 spd tranny handled well. 12 mpg towing. 18-19 non.
At 67 mph on interstate, when semis pass there was that ‘sucking’ feeling that everyone talks about. Outside of that, no sway.
The combination felt a little soft but honestly that was not as obvious to me until I experienced the F250.
Braking was ok but I was never really super comfortable with it. Had to set the controller at at least 8 to get a firm stop.
Payload is what is. You can’t trick the #’s. The loaded tongue weight of the trailer is around 950lbs. That left me about 700lbs for people and stuff. Again that’s black and white.
Great daily driver.
Again, had I never towed with an F250, I would have thought all of this was within the margins of being acceptable.

Now for the F250.
As plain as I can put it, outperforms in every aspect.
Power is incredible. The engine brake is a game changer on the grades. Handling and stability is rock solid. No sucking with the semis. No sway whatsoever at 70 mph. 16mpg towing, 20 mpg non.
Braking. Huge difference. Here is a test of you ever get the opportunity:
Go to safe location, empty parking lot , etc. Hitched up, loaded for camping. Unplug your trailer from the truck, get up to about 25 mph and apply firm brakes. If you could ever do this with both trucks, as I did, and see the difference then this alone would sell you on the HD truck. This is a simulation of what could happen if your trailer brakes fail. I know it doesn’t happen often, but it’s a
possibility.
I have all the payload I need and can load comfortably without stressing.
As far as the daily driver, I commute every day in metro Atlanta. I’m ok with it.
I mean for all of you that say 40 acre field, another zip code, etc. An F250 is one foot longer than a F150 short box. Same width(same exact cab). And about 4” taller. That’s it. Yes the size is intimidating at first. You get used to it after about a week
That’s my 2 cents. If anyone wants more info about my direct comparison of the 2 trucks, PM me and I will be glad to chat.

[pteck]

Originally Posted by Bcc75

I really wish some folks would have the opportunity to tow the same trailer with the 1/2 ton vs 3/4 and see for themselves the difference. It would stop a lot of this ‘I have towed my trailer for xxxxx miles all over the world with no problem’ rhetoric that you hear on these threads. People that say that in most cases have not towed with both trucks so of course they will say that they have had no issue. How many of these guys were overloaded and did not know it? I was overloaded, I will admit with the 1/2 ton.
I had the unique opportunity to tow with both. In a nutshell, my conclusions:
Trailer: International 25RB
1/2 ton -2020 F150 Lariat. FX4. 3.5 Eco. Max tow. 20” wheels, 1683# payload.
3/4 ton- 2020 F250 Latiat. FX4 6.7 diesel. 2200 lbs payload
Using equalizer E4 hitch. on both.

F150: Plenty of power. Rpm’s get a little high on the grades especially on the descents in tow/haul ,but after all, it is a 6 cyl. 10 spd tranny handled well. 12 mpg towing. 18-19 non.
At 67 mph on interstate, when semis pass there was that ‘sucking’ feeling that everyone talks about. Outside of that, no sway.
The combination felt a little soft but honestly that was not as obvious to me until I experienced the F250.
Braking was ok but I was never really super comfortable with it. Had to set the controller at at least 8 to get a firm stop.
Payload is what is. You can’t trick the #’s. The loaded tongue weight of the trailer is around 950lbs. That left me about 700lbs for people and stuff. Again that’s black and white.
Great daily driver.
Again, had I never towed with an F250, I would have thought all of this was within the margins of being acceptable.

Now for the F250.
As plain as I can put it, outperforms in every aspect.
Power is incredible. The engine brake is a game changer on the grades. Handling and stability is rock solid. No sucking with the semis. No sway whatsoever at 70 mph. 16mpg towing, 20 mpg non.
Braking. Huge difference. Here is a test of you ever get the opportunity:
Go to safe location, empty parking lot , etc. Hitched up, loaded for camping. Unplug your trailer from the truck, get up to about 25 mph and apply firm brakes. If you could ever do this with both trucks, as I did, and see the difference then this alone would sell you on the HD truck. This is a simulation of what could happen if your trailer brakes fail. I know it doesn’t happen often, but it’s a
possibility.
I have all the payload I need and can load comfortably without stressing.
As far as the daily driver, I commute every day in metro Atlanta. I’m ok with it.
I mean for all of you that say 40 acre field, another zip code, etc. An F250 is one foot longer than a F150 short box. Same width(same exact cab). And about 4” taller. That’s it. Yes the size is intimidating at first. You get used to it after about a week
That’s my 2 cents. If anyone wants more info about my direct comparison of the 2 trucks, PM me and I will be glad to chat.

If only it were so black and white.

No doubt your impressions and experience tells you what truck can serve you better. Depending how others use their vehicles, it may not all be gravy. Because for everything an HD may do well, there are real compromises in other ways. Weight, agility, cost, size, ride, size in city, commuter use, just to name a few. For my use with national parks or off-road overlanding, an HD truck, especially heavy diesels, become a whale out of water.

An HD truck in my mind may be an easy button. Or perhaps a great option for a full timer out in the open expanses. The real opportunity may be to make a half ton tow well, with all the other things it innately does well.

Many including AndrewT have tested many examples of all the possible TVs out there and then some. His opinion of HD trucks may not even be what you assume to be the white side.

[AM2PMtravels]

In response to a few people saying that a 1500 could stop quicker loaded than a Cummins , F250 , or Duramax Heavy duty ... I would highly disagree and one reason is the Exhaust break is the game Changer with these heavy duty trucks , it’s literally like having a whole extra truck with stopping power along with your breaks and the trailer breaks . This is something that you have to drive to experience , I can come down the steepest mountain with my trailer and literally never have to touch my breaks . And the best thing about it is it’s automatic so as soon as I let off the gas to grab that break peddle it’s putting double force slowing you down . Its really one of the best features , and the stability you get at highway speeds alone are very noticeable.

[papegardens]

We’ve pulled our 2017 25’ FC for 4 yrs with a Nissan Titan XD, both diesel and regular. Now have a new Titan XD Pro4, we’re on the road doing its maiden voyage now, happy with its performance also. We tow with a blue ox. 90k, all over including a variety of amounts in passes.

[DKB_SATX]

Originally Posted by AM2PMtravels

In response to a few people saying that a 1500 could stop quicker loaded than a Cummins , F250 , or Duramax Heavy duty ... I would highly disagree and one reason is the Exhaust break is the game Changer with these heavy duty trucks , it’s literally like having a whole extra truck with stopping power along with your breaks and the trailer breaks . This is something that you have to drive to experience , I can come down the steepest mountain with my trailer and literally never have to touch my breaks . And the best thing about it is it’s automatic so as soon as I let off the gas to grab that break peddle it’s putting double force slowing you down . Its really one of the best features , and the stability you get at highway speeds alone are very noticeable.

An "exhaust break" would be a damaged exhaust causing a leak. Brakes are what stop vehicles. "Break peddle" makes me want to scream.

Time and again, braking tests of HD trucks have shown that they don't out-stop half-ton trucks. The bigger trucks have bigger brakes to stop the bigger truck. In certain situations, such an an unbraked trailer on a long descent, the bigger brakes of an HD truck provide reduced fade after many brake applications in a short time period.

Since both classes of trucks went to 4-wheel disk brakes there hasn't been a huge real-world difference in friction braking. What extra braking force is available is consumed by the extra mass of the truck, since the contact patch is roughly the same for SRW trucks. Exhaust brakes on the diesels do make a big difference in easy drivability, but in some situations you want to have the trailer brakes engage as well for good control rather than just pushing against the back of the truck.

[AM2PMtravels]

Originally Posted by DKB_SATX

An "exhaust break" would be a damaged exhaust causing a leak. Brakes are what stop vehicles. "Break peddle" makes me want to scream.



Time and again, braking tests of HD trucks have shown that they don't out-stop half-ton trucks. The bigger trucks have bigger brakes to stop the bigger truck. In certain situations, such an an unbraked trailer on a long descent, the bigger brakes of an HD truck provide reduced fade after many brake applications in a short time period.



Since both classes of trucks went to 4-wheel disk brakes there hasn't been a huge real-world difference in friction braking. What extra braking force is available is consumed by the extra mass of the truck, since the contact patch is roughly the same for SRW trucks. Exhaust brakes on the diesels do make a big difference in easy drivability, but in some situations you want to have the trailer brakes engage as well for good control rather than just pushing against the back of the truck.

Yes brakes... when I’m using text to talk driving down the road I don’t check for misspelling but you know what I meant thanks for pointing that out lol BRAKES !!!