Towing and New Truck Questions

[bbheli]

Hello Everyone, what a great forum and loads of awesome information.

Hello,

I am presently towing a boat 20'2" Lund pro V 202 fiberglass. It seems without gear the boat and trailer with 50 gallons of fuel has a weight of 5291#. I tow with a 2014 escalade (short version) with the big rims and the air shock system which I don’t think is good for towing. I notice some sway from time to time especially when passing semi-trucks. Got pushed into another lane one time in high cross winds.I have been looking at the F-150 and yesterday towed with my friends 2016 King Ranch V-6 and it seemed like a much better tow. I a not sure if it was the longer wheel base of the truck over all,

I have been consumed with the all-new 1500 Ram advertisements so yesterday called the dealer looking at a limited crew cab 1500 with 5'7" box VIN 1C6SRFHT7KN725527 and in talking to the truck guy he tells me the F-150 is to light these days for towing and it won’t be the same ride. He said that’s in part to the new aluminum frame. He told me the Ram 1500 will pull this all day easier, safer and with much better performance.
The passenger weight will be around 600LBS plus gear clothing and food and so on. I generally tow less than 200 miles for most trips however will do 400-800 mile trips a few times in the year. First goal is safety, I don't like the sway, and don’t like the feeling of being pushed sometimes. The boat has surge breaks.

I would greatly appreciate all feedback and experiences.

Thank You

 

[SpeedyV]

Hello Everyone, what a great forum and loads of awesome information.

Hello,


I am presently towing a boat 20'2" Lund pro V 202 fiberglass. It seems without gear the boat and trailer with 50 gallons of fuel has a weight of 5291#. I tow with a 2014 escalade (short version) with the big rims and the air shock system which I don’t think is good for towing. I notice some sway from time to time especially when passing semi-trucks. Got pushed into another lane one time in high cross winds.


I have been looking at the F-150 and yesterday towed with my friends 2016 King Ranch V-6 and it seemed like a much better tow. I a not sure if it was the longer wheel base of the truck over all,



I have been consumed with the all-new 1500 Ram advertisements so yesterday called the dealer looking at a limited crew cab 1500 with 5'7" box VIN 1C6SRFHT7KN725527 and in talking to the truck guy he tells me the F-150 is to light these days for towing and it won’t be the same ride. He said that’s in part to the new aluminum frame. He told me the Ram 1500 will pull this all day easier, safer and with much better performance.



The passenger weight will be around 600LBS plus gear clothing and food and so on. I generally tow less than 200 miles for most trips however will do 400-800 mile trips a few times in the year. First goal is safety, I don't like the sway, and don’t like the feeling of being pushed sometimes. The boat has surge breaks.


I would greatly appreciate all feedback and experiences.

Thank You

Definitely check out the sticky thread on towing.

 

[Rick3019]

Hello Everyone, what a great forum and loads of awesome information.

Hello,


I am presently towing a boat 20'2" Lund pro V 202 fiberglass. It seems without gear the boat and trailer with 50 gallons of fuel has a weight of 5291#. I tow with a 2014 escalade (short version) with the big rims and the air shock system which I don’t think is good for towing. I notice some sway from time to time especially when passing semi-trucks. Got pushed into another lane one time in high cross winds.


I have been looking at the F-150 and yesterday towed with my friends 2016 King Ranch V-6 and it seemed like a much better tow. I a not sure if it was the longer wheel base of the truck over all,



I have been consumed with the all-new 1500 Ram advertisements so yesterday called the dealer looking at a limited crew cab 1500 with 5'7" box VIN 1C6SRFHT7KN725527 and in talking to the truck guy he tells me the F-150 is to light these days for towing and it won’t be the same ride. He said that’s in part to the new aluminum frame. He told me the Ram 1500 will pull this all day easier, safer and with much better performance.



The passenger weight will be around 600LBS plus gear clothing and food and so on. I generally tow less than 200 miles for most trips however will do 400-800 mile trips a few times in the year. First goal is safety, I don't like the sway, and don’t like the feeling of being pushed sometimes. The boat has surge breaks.


I would greatly appreciate all feedback and experiences.

Thank You

I pull a camper about the same weight I am using airbags for squat I have no problem with sway because I have a swaybar I understand it’s not recommended to use a sway bar with surge breaks I did notice looking at the box it says eliminates squats sway and bottoming out. Not sure how airbags would help sway maybe someone that’s more familiar with airbags might be able to answer that question

 

[bbheli]

Definitely check out the sticky thread on towing.

Thanks for the link, i saw that however it doesnot cover the truck I am looking at. Im looking for some live input.

Best,

Brett

 

[jeffmc306]

Hello Everyone, what a great forum and loads of awesome information.

Hello,

I am presently towing a boat 20'2" Lund pro V 202 fiberglass. It seems without gear the boat and trailer with 50 gallons of fuel has a weight of 5291#. I tow with a 2014 escalade (short version) with the big rims and the air shock system which I don’t think is good for towing. I notice some sway from time to time especially when passing semi-trucks. Got pushed into another lane one time in high cross winds.I have been looking at the F-150 and yesterday towed with my friends 2016 King Ranch V-6 and it seemed like a much better tow. I a not sure if it was the longer wheel base of the truck over all,

I have been consumed with the all-new 1500 Ram advertisements so yesterday called the dealer looking at a limited crew cab 1500 with 5'7" box VIN 1C6SRFHT7KN725527 and in talking to the truck guy he tells me the F-150 is to light these days for towing and it won’t be the same ride. He said that’s in part to the new aluminum frame. He told me the Ram 1500 will pull this all day easier, safer and with much better performance.
The passenger weight will be around 600LBS plus gear clothing and food and so on. I generally tow less than 200 miles for most trips however will do 400-800 mile trips a few times in the year. First goal is safety, I don't like the sway, and don’t like the feeling of being pushed sometimes. The boat has surge breaks.

I would greatly appreciate all feedback and experiences.

Thank You

Thanks for mentioning you have surge brakes - that makes a difference when shopping for a weight distribution hitch + sway control. Check out this post on eTrailer - someone else with a boat had the same question: https://www.etrailer.com/question-119504.html
Hope that helps!

 

[bbheli]

Yep but im not shopping for sway bars I am shopping for a truck.

 

[mjamesgt]

I have a 2019 limited and pulled my 22 foot wakebaord boat for the first time this past weekend and it did great. Boat and trailer is 6200 lbs on the cat scales. I used to tow with a 2008 tahoe with air ride suspension so I also know your prior experience. The truck suspension is much stiffer and the extra wheelbase makes everything more stable. Also most boat trailer manufacturers strongly suggest against WD hitches.

 

[jeffmc306]

Yep but im not shopping for sway bars I am shopping for a truck.

Understood - my assumption was you’d be pulling with the Ram. If you want the best towing capacity consider the 3.92 axle ratio which ups the limit to at least 11K lbs (more depending on options). Also, towing mirrors and 33 gallon fuel tank would round out the package. Or, if you can see around your boat, stick with the standard mirrors, you’ll enjoy the 360 camera views (lose it with towing mirrors).

I have those options to tow a 27’ Airstream travel trailer (7600 lbs.) due mid-April. The Ram is a sweet ride...