Towing with a Ranger?

My husband is about to get a Ford Ranger, 2-wheel drive supercab with towing package. By posted weights, this should tow the 2720, but I'm wondering whether any of you have experience with the Ranger or similar. Is this truck up to the job?

Thanks -
Pam

When I first got my 2720 I had a Dodge Durango, which I think is just a little larger than the Ranger. When pulling the TM it just did not feel right. It pulled it with no problem but it felt as if the trailer was driving the truck not me.

With todays prices and the improved gas mileage of the larger trucks I think you both would prefer a full sized truck. The cost should be about the same and gas usage only slightly higher.

This is just me, everyone else will most likely say go for it. I just like the controll I have with the larger truck much better.

[Bill]

Pam -

I'm skeptical, but we need more info.

What is the advertised tow capacity of your specific Ranger configuration?

What is the "posted weight" of the TM that you are considering?

Bill

Goto www.ford.com then to brochures, Ranger and towing specs. A 2-whl drive Ranger should tow a 2720 OK, as long as you get the automatic transmission.

Neither a Ranger nor an F150 with a manual transmission will do the job. Ford light duty manual trans are not up to the task.

BTW, our fully optioned 2720SL, packed, fresh water and water heater full and gray tank empty weighed in at 3340lb on the axle plus about 490lb tongue weight - and we don't pack that heavy. My rig was weighed on a certified truck scale.

So if you figure 4000lb. you should still be OK with a good margin with a 4.0L Ranger 4x2 with tow package - it appears to be rated to tow about 5800lb.

Hope this helps.

In regards to post by Bill-NM
We are about to purchase a 2004 2619, we are counting on the factory weights specs being close to correct. You state your trailer weighs 3340 on the axle and another 490 on the tongue thats 3,890 Lbs  Your 20 gallons of fresh water is only 160 lbs, where is the other 1.000 lbs above the factory spec of 2680lbs for a 2720SL.

If the factory is spec is off by 30% ?? We will have to re- consider.

Jack & Gayle Hall

[Bill]

The factory spec is correct FOR WHAT IT STATES!  It tells you the "dry weight" of the camper.  The dry weight, by definition, does not include anything more than the bare bones camper.

It does NOT include any factory options.  Think air conditioner, awning, spare tire, TV antenna, swing tongue if you get one,

It does not include anything you carry in the camper - think food, clothes, dishes, tools, TV, microwave, bedding, canvas chairs, charcoal grill, etc.

It does not include fresh water in the water tank, gray and black water in their tanks.  For some reason, I think it does include propane in the propane tanks.

When you add all this, Bill_NM's results are typical, and are almost exactly equal to mine.

This is not a Trail Manor thing - this is universally true for all manufacturers.  They tell you what the basic box weighs, and then let you load it up to match your personal preferences.  It is a surprise to new owners - it was a surprise to me - but frankly I'm not sure how it could be handled better.

Bill

The UVW tag inside my 2720SL says 2830lb. I don't know if TM weighs the trailer with all options, but I suspect not. Ours has recessed A/C, two hanging cabinets and swing hitch, plus others. I suspect the factory weight is for the base unit.

I also was surprised at the weight. The total was 11,200 lbs, with 3340 on the trailer axle, which worked out about right. Our truck is heavy and we put all the other heavy stuff in the bed, not in the trailer. The scales we used are certified and I have no reason to believe they are not accurate.

What we added to the trailer was 20 gal in the tank, 6 gal in the water heater, 2 full propane tanks and our stuff. We don't carry heavy stuff in the trailer and don't even take a TV, just a small microwave. This was at the start of a one week trip so the frig was full and we had a weeks worth of clothes in it.

I have read on several RV forums that the manufacturer's stated weights are often light. Don't know for sure about TM, maybe someone will respond with further info, but I am suspicious.

If you are close to your tow limit with a 2619, I strongly suggest having the rig weighed before you buy - that's the only way you will know for sure.

Thanks to all of you for the detailed input. The 2720 SL is the one we're considering down the road (little pun there  ), so the details on loaded weight are just what we needed.

I'm glad I stumbled on this forum before we bought the truck. Good input to talk over with hubby....

Pam

I definitely agree with the last few posts.  We bought our 2720SD with the "newbie" assumption that the dry weight plus a "little" extra weight for options would be okay for our Honda Odyssey.  But when we had it weighed at a truck scale recently, we were "enlightened" to the fact that the options added to our TM (the typical ones listed in earlier posts) quickly reached our max for our Odyssey of 3200lbs (we are a family of 4 - hence the 3200 vs 3500lbs).  

We had to make a tough decision - pack EXTREMELY light (no frills) and no mountain hills or get a tougher tow vehicle.  We opted for the second idea (03 Toyota Sequoia - 6500lb tow capacity).  I want my kids to see the country and not have to worry where we can go by weight.  

[RockyMtnRay]

Last Saturday I had my rig (2002 TM 2720SL towed by a '96 Jeep Cherokee) weighed at a RV weight clinic put on by the RV Safety Education Foundation. Unlike the axle weights obtained at commercial scales, the RVSEF uses a separate scale under each wheel.

Per instructions, I loaded the TM as I would for a week or so of boondock camping: 3 gal fluid in the Toilet, hot water tank full, fresh water tank full, grey water tank empty, fridge full of food and beverages (around 30 lb total), closet about half full, cabinets fairly full. In the front, I'd stowed a lightweight microwave (~20 lbs), a moderately heavy folding chair (~10 lbs), my backpack (~15 lbs), and the TM's over-sink cabinet filled with dishes (melamine), glasses (acrylic), and various condiments (total weight around 30 lbs) and some other miscellaneous items...total weight around 90 lbs.

My TM does not have an Air Conditioner nor does it have the TV antenna but it does have an awning and folding hitch. When weighed, the TM was connected to my Jeep with a WDH with 4 links dropped.

The resultant weights were interesting: Much like Bill_NM, my total TM axle weight was 3250 lbs (apparently typical or a bit below due to no AC and packing lightly with lightweight stuff). However and quite importantly, this was from 1500 lbs on the curb (door/cabinet/wardrobe) side and a rather startling 1750 lbs on the street (toilet/water tanks/refer) side.

Since the 2720's tires are rated for a max load of 1870 lbs, I'm pretty close to the max on the street side tire...particularly since I often drop 5 links on the WDH (instead of the 4 links I used when it was weighed) which likely transfers another 25 to 50 lbs per tire back to the trailer tires.

Other weights were about normal...hitch weight was 525 lbs (likely from all that stuff stowed in the front of the TM). Total TM weight was therefore 3775 (limit is 4080 IIRC) and my Jeep is rated for 5000 lbs total with up to 750 lbs hitch weight (using a WDH). The Jeep has a Front GAWR of 2500 (actual was 1850) and a rear GAWR of 2700 (actual was 2550). Total GCW was 7650 lbs versus the Jeep's GCWR of 9060 lbs.

Soooo, although all axle and hitch weights would have been nicely "in the green" using normal axle weighing techniques, these axle weighing techniques would not have revealed how close to the max I've been on that street side TM tire.  In the future, I'm no longer going to depart with the fresh water tank containing more than 6 to 8 gallons of water. That will reduce that side's weight by around 100 lbs and still give me enough water to get through the first night if need be. (Since the availability of potable water in primitive/boondock campgrounds (e.g. NFS, BLM) is often uncertain here in the arid west, it would be imprudent to leave home with a completely empty tank).

If you have an opportunity to attend a RVSEF weight clinic, I highly recommend you do so...you may find that although total axle weights are fine one tire is well over its rated limit. This clinic was totally free and sponsored by a very good local RV dealer (though not the TM dealer)...Pikes Peak Traveland.