Hauling Travel Trailer with F-150

ETXAg05

11:47p, 4/11/24

As a family we are planning to take a 6 week road trip this summer. Is it crazy to do this with a 2018 F-150 V8 FX4 and travel trailer?

Travel trailer is 29ft long and just under 8,000lbs loaded.

I do have access to a 2015 F-250 that was my dad's. He passed away last September. I'm just not sure how reliable his truck is.

Dill-Ag13

5:29a, 4/12/24

Tow rating is 9000-1000lbs depending on rear end. Have you towed anything that heavy before?

FIDO*98*

6:13a, 4/12/24

There's more to towing a travel trailer than towing capacity. You're going to get blown all over the road in your F-150 even with the best anti-sway hitches on the market. I'd pass on the 1/2 ton and take your dad's truck

HumbleAg04

6:26a, 4/12/24

People geek out on towing capacity but as mentioned previously that isn't the only important metric.

The F150 can pull it but sounds like a white knuckled six weeks.

mm98

6:50a, 4/12/24

If I'm towing a giant barn on wheel with a half ton I usually tap out around 6500-7000. Wind and sway is too much. Our scouts enclosed cargo trailer is 6000 and that sways quite a bit.

8000 pound da of flatly laid cargo is different due to aerodynamics.

ETXAg05

7:37a, 4/12/24

After I posted this I found a thread on the travel forum that ended up being helpful. Definitely made me decide to use my dad's truck. Appreciate the feedback from y'all too.

reproag

8:34a, 4/12/24

Take the Super Duty

easttexasaggie04

8:39a, 4/12/24

Yep...you won't regret the bigger truck. The wind sucks with those big trailers.

Complete Idiot

9:10a, 4/12/24

Since it's an option, I'd get the F-250 checked out by a mechanic then take it.

The F-150 with E rated tires and something like a ProPride hitch would be fine but a bit more tiring to drive that setup than compared to the F-250.

Moral High Horse

9:18a, 4/12/24

29 foot? I had a hell of a time with my f150 on i-10 with a 12' uhaul trailer. Whipped up a storm back there.

Sorry about your old man by the way.

TexAg1987

10:42a, 4/12/24

In reply to ETXAg05

ETXAg05 said:
As a family we are planning to take a 6 week road trip this summer. Is it crazy to do this

yes

mm98

11:00a, 4/12/24

In reply to TexAg1987

TexAg1987 said:
ETXAg05 said:
As a family we are planning to take a 6 week road trip this summer. Is it crazy to do this

yes

OP having a change of plans 3.5 days into his trip...

lp01

11:25a, 4/12/24

Sounds like you made your decision, and you won't regret switching to the F250. We did smaller trips with an F150 and a 28' for a year. Got blown all over the road. Knowing we were taking a 3 week trip covering 10 states last summer, and I swapped to an F250. Night and day difference.

bam02

11:39a, 4/12/24

Get your dad's truck serviced and checked by a good mechanic and take that. You will not have a good time doing that much towing of a 29 foot travel trailer in a half ton.

FIDO95

1:18p, 4/12/24

We have a 32' GD Imagine that I can tow with my '19 F150 3.5 Ecoboost. I have a very good weight distribution hitch and sway system that I would never drive without. I have never felt uncomfortable driving.

Having said all that. If I had access to an F250, I would use that (with my current hitch system) over my F150. It's not just easier towing, it's the heavy duty brakes and suspension on the truck that will make the rider more comfortable. Sounds like you made the right choice. I would recommend taking the new set up to a local RV/KOA local within an hour drive for a quick weekend trip. It will be helpful to work out the kinks you haven't thought about before heading out on your long trip. I would also recommend having some time of tire pressure monitoring system on your trailer. This is the one we use:

https://www.amazon.com/Hieha-Monitoring-Motorhome-Real-time-Temperature/dp/B0B1QJCC9V/ref=sxin_16_sbv_search_btf?content-id=amzn1.sym.975f7eae-0382-4fd6-bcc9-4efbfe9a9c95%3Aamzn1.sym.975f7eae-0382-4fd6-bcc9-4efbfe9a9c95&crid=5D6JB0RJD3MX&cv_ct_cx=tpm+for+rv&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.5vq9_QVW4d7uMbKqGM5oqQ.0_IkuwMCB61dYWCvMql9QQ4ce64IS8eamxPRQWJuLP0&dib_tag=se&keywords=tpm+for+rv&pd_rd_i=B0B1QJCC9V&pd_rd_r=db1236ff-0fc4-4207-8bf4-e6f9aad92ffc&pd_rd_w=upKf8&pd_rd_wg=DsWP7&pf_rd_p=975f7eae-0382-4fd6-bcc9-4efbfe9a9c95&pf_rd_r=T2HSXEH7ZE7KPV7Y3YX1&qid=1712945757&sbo=RZvfv%2F%2FHxDF%2BO5021pAnSA%3D%3D&sprefix=tpm+for+%2Caps%2C139&sr=1-1-5190daf0-67e3-427c-bea6-c72c1df98776

No material on this site is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See full Medical Disclaimer.

ETXAg05

2:17p, 4/12/24

Thanks again everyone. This was really helpful and has settled the anxiousness I was feeling.

n_touch

2:17p, 4/12/24

In reply to mm98

mm98 said:
TexAg1987 said:
ETXAg05 said:
As a family we are planning to take a 6 week road trip this summer. Is it crazy to do this

yes

OP having a change of plans 3.5 days into his trip...

I laughed way to hard at this. I have been there

texags08

2:55p, 4/12/24

In reply to FIDO*98*

FIDO*98* said:
There's more to towing a travel trailer than towing capacity. You're going to get blown all over the road in your F-150 even with the best anti-sway hitches on the market. I'd pass on the 1/2 ton and take your dad's truck

One man's take.

I tow pretty much this same setup with an F150. Previously did it with a short wheel base Expedition. It isn't fun, but you will not get blown all over the road if you have the proper sway/weight distribution hitch setup.

Even in the SWB Expedition the worst I had it was going down to Mustang Island on a VERY windy day. Kept it at 60mph for that and was fine.

What is your towing experience with this rig?

EDIT: Saw you already decided. There's no wrong answer here, but the 250 will be a more comfortable ride overall.

Chetos

6:05a, 4/13/24

I've seen these light weight trucks tear their engine mounts pulling rigs within their tow capacity. I think some of those ratings are for onsie twosie short trips.

AceAggie05

7:21a, 4/13/24

We hauled our camper with an F-150 for a couple of years. Our camper was only 5500 lbs, and hauling was a chore. That 5.0 just couldn't get up to speed without being 2-3 gears down. After 3 years and $5k in repairs, we traded to a 6.2 GMC. It was night and day between the two. Not only did the engine go however fast I wanted, but the GMC was vastly more stable with sway. Never buying another ferd.

AgEng06

8:46a, 4/13/24

In reply to texags08

texags08 said:
FIDO*98* said:
There's more to towing a travel trailer than towing capacity. You're going to get blown all over the road in your F-150 even with the best anti-sway hitches on the market. I'd pass on the 1/2 ton and take your dad's truck

One man's take.

I tow pretty much this same setup with an F150. Previously did it with a short wheel base Expedition. It isn't fun, but you will not get blown all over the road if you have the proper sway/weight distribution hitch setup.

Even in the SWB Expedition the worst I had it was going down to Mustang Island on a VERY windy day. Kept it at 60mph for that and was fine.

What is your towing experience with this rig?

EDIT: Saw you already decided. There's no wrong answer here, but the 250 will be a more comfortable ride overall.

So you're the guy we all pass on the road and shake our heads...

texags08

8:51a, 4/13/24

In reply to AgEng06

AgEng06 said:
texags08 said:
FIDO*98* said:
There's more to towing a travel trailer than towing capacity. You're going to get blown all over the road in your F-150 even with the best anti-sway hitches on the market. I'd pass on the 1/2 ton and take your dad's truck

One man's take.

I tow pretty much this same setup with an F150. Previously did it with a short wheel base Expedition. It isn't fun, but you will not get blown all over the road if you have the proper sway/weight distribution hitch setup.

Even in the SWB Expedition the worst I had it was going down to Mustang Island on a VERY windy day. Kept it at 60mph for that and was fine.

What is your towing experience with this rig?

EDIT: Saw you already decided. There's no wrong answer here, but the 250 will be a more comfortable ride overall.

So you're the guy we all pass on the road and shake our heads...

I guess you're the guy pulling a 9k lbs camper with a 350 dually?

texags08

9:04a, 4/13/24

Have done thousands of miles with this setup and had zero issues. I now use my truck and have done another thousand or so with it. But the Expy is at 180K miles and running strong with no drivetrain issues. TT is just shy of 8K lbs loaded. We had one blowout with the tires that came on the TT when we bought it used. Outside of that it's been smooth sailing

, even on those high wind days.

Dialed in WDH and good trailer brakes are the key. The 3.5EB can pull this thing without trouble.

Corps_Ag12

1:58p, 4/13/24

In reply to texags08

texags08 said:
AgEng06 said:
texags08 said:
FIDO*98* said:
There's more to towing a travel trailer than towing capacity. You're going to get blown all over the road in your F-150 even with the best anti-sway hitches on the market. I'd pass on the 1/2 ton and take your dad's truck

One man's take.

I tow pretty much this same setup with an F150. Previously did it with a short wheel base Expedition. It isn't fun, but you will not get blown all over the road if you have the proper sway/weight distribution hitch setup.

Even in the SWB Expedition the worst I had it was going down to Mustang Island on a VERY windy day. Kept it at 60mph for that and was fine.

What is your towing experience with this rig?

EDIT: Saw you already decided. There's no wrong answer here, but the 250 will be a more comfortable ride overall.

So you're the guy we all pass on the road and shake our heads...

I guess you're the guy pulling a 9k lbs camper with a 350 dually?

With a full water tank it's closer to 10k but at 37' I'm much more comfortable in my single rear 1 ton than I would be in any half ton.

texags08

2:08p, 4/13/24

In reply to Corps_Ag12

That's cool, you do you. Like I said before, no wrong answers.

My gripe is with people that say it is not safe or can't be done to tow within the upper limit of your trucks overall capacity.

My amusement comes from those that justify buying a bigger truck after they get an appropriately sized TT for their current truck. If it doesn't pull like nothings there then it must be too heavy… But just because it's amusing to me doesn't mean it's wrong, it's their money.

GrapevineAg

3:19p, 4/13/24

Easiest way to control sway is to slow down. Saw a couple of setups 1-2 weeks ago where 3/4-ton or 1-ton trucks were pulling TTs that size and they were all over the place. They had weight-distributing hitches, but they were going 75-80 mph. Had to be a miserable experience for them, and not great for everybody else on the road near them.

mm98

7:52p, 4/14/24

Slightly related topic, I added AirLift 1000HD to my Ram 1500 this weekend. Next tow will be in 4 weeks. Plan on running them around 40-45 psi. Interested in seeing what kind of difference it makes.

easttexasaggie04

9:59a, 4/16/24

Not to derail but I recently switched from 2019 F-250 PowerStroke to a 2023 Ram 2500 Cummins. I was surprised how much better the Cummins pulled my camper and it gets 3-4mpg better. I wouldn't have thought it would be that much better of a towing experience but it really is.