2020 Ranger XL SuperCab - Towing 6,000lbs

[RangerManagement]

Hi All,

I am new to this forum so I apologise if towing discussions are akin to beating a dead horse.

Anyway, I recently moved from LA to SLC and towed my wife's Mazda Cx5. I was confident my Ranger could pull it, but I was not expecting it to perform so we'll!

My Ranger is a 2020 XL SuperCab with only the 101a package. I bolted on a 7500lb rated drawtite hitch mount for towing.

All said, the trailer and the Mazda together weighed about 6,000lbs. Since we were moving I also loaded the bed and can with about 750lbs of cargo.

Acceleration up mountains was of no concern what so ever. In fact, I had to back off the throttle when downshifting into 6th in order to stay below 70mph! The trailer was not braked, so I was a bit concerned. The concern was not necessary because the trans took charge and eased most of the load off of brakes. I believe I only braked 5 or 6 times coming down Hollarand.

All together the trip computer read 14.9mpg over 670 miles in 11 hours 20 min. Definitely impressed. I calculated 14.25mpg but I find that still excellent given the circumstances.

Your thoughts? Also, should I service any particular parts after this?

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[Rviator]

That looks like a U-Haul trailer, if so they have surge brakes. 6,000 lb is way to much to tow without trailer brakes.

 

[RangerManagement]

That looks like a U-Haul trailer, if so they have surge brakes. 6,000 lb is way to much to tow without trailer brakes.

When I reserved this U-haul trailer I did so believing that it had surge brakes. After inspecting it and asking the U-haul employee I was told different. Apparently the brakes on this trailer are only for emergency when the chain is pulled tight.

I could have been mislead by the tech or also just plain ignorant to trailer towing. This was the first time I towed anything.

 

[Leftcoast]

When I reserved this U-haul trailer I did so believing that it had surge brakes. After inspecting it and asking the U-haul employee I was told different. Apparently the brakes on this trailer are only for emergency when the chain is pulled tight.

I could have been mislead by the tech or also just plain ignorant to trailer towing. This was the first time I towed anything.

That's called petting a burning dog.

 

[VAMike]

When I reserved this U-haul trailer I did so believing that it had surge brakes. After inspecting it and asking the U-haul employee I was told different. Apparently the brakes on this trailer are only for emergency when the chain is pulled tight.

I could have been mislead by the tech or also just plain ignorant to trailer towing. This was the first time I towed anything.

It would be illegal to tow that much in california without brakes, and at least around here uhaul doesn't have an auto trailer without them.

 

[ch47dmechanic]

The tech is uniformed, which isn't saying much when it comes to the quality of the personnel that work at the typical U-Haul branch. That trailer absolutely has surge brakes and they're required to inspect them and mark them as inspected/tested. You can see the sticker for it right on the side of the brake fluid reservoir if you use them again. It's something I always check when I use their trailers. Not inspected? Give me another one.

 

[VAMike]

I'm pretty sure every u-haul trailer, even the really small ones, have surge brakes on them. I could be wrong of course. L

They have small ones, under 3000lbs gross, without brakes here. Those would be over the limit in other states and I don't know if there are other versions with brakes or they just tell you not to fill it up or maybe just don't rent them in states with lower brake limits.

 

[RangerManagement]

I'm pretty sure every u-haul trailer, even the really small ones, have surge brakes on them. I could be wrong of course. But if they do, then you're just fine. If they didn't, then you still seemingly did just fine. I probably wouldn't have towed that much, over the mountains, without knowledge of brakes, for my first towing experience. You're a braver man than I. But you survived without incident and had a crash course in towing!

I would not have done this tow if I hadn't driven this route before. There was only one segment of the drive that I stressed a bit for; the Arizona corner of the 15. It's a pretty straight shot otherwise. We left at 3am to avoid any LA traffic or Vegas traffic and it worked like a charm. After the second hour I felt much more comfortable and confident.
Now, there is a north/south highway that runs up Idaho with some insane incline/declines that I would never attempt!

My intention for this thread was to let others thinking of towing with their 5g ranger that it is much easier than I thought it would be. I went searching in the weeks prior to the trip to find other examples of people towing 80%ish capacity and could not find it.

Any sections that I felt even remotely worried about I just put the hazards on and slowed down to 50mph.

 

[tRanger]

Thanks for sharing your experience. I have only towed 1800 so far but that is an amount I have towed many times over the past few years. My experience so far with the Ranger is very good. When hooked up to my 1999 5.4l F150 and my 1997 Mercury Mountaineer 5.0, I can feel it more than with the Ranger. The 10 speed always seems to be in the right gear.

 

[Sarge104]

I suggest doing a differential fluid change since you are over the 5k mark. I suggest only due to if you've done other towing with the vehicle it will help protect your front and rear gears for increased life. If you've allowed the stealer-ship to do it for you, disregard.

I'm impressed with your fuel mileage, I've gotten closer to 10 mpg towing close to that weight, but I'm up higher and its towing in tough terrain, not roads...

 

[RangerManagement]

Thanks for sharing your experience. I have only towed 1800 so far but that is an amount I have towed many times over the past few years. My experience so far with the Ranger is very good. When hooked up to my 1999 5.4l F150 and my 1997 Mercury Mountaineer 5.0, I can feel it more than with the Ranger. The 10 speed always seems to be in the right gear.

I agree. The 10 speed and engine put together make a great pair. The U-haul trailer itself is about 2200 lbs. When I first drove with it I was being so careful. But at the end of the 12 hour day and getting the car off of it, it felt like nothing.

 

[RangerManagement]

I suggest doing a differential fluid change since you are over the 5k mark. I suggest only due to if you've done other towing with the vehicle it will help protect your front and rear gears for increased life. If you've allowed the stealer-ship to do it for you, disregard.

I'm impressed with your fuel mileage, I've gotten closer to 10 mpg towing close to that weight, but I'm up higher and its towing in tough terrain, not roads...

Thank you for the advice on the diff. And I am in the auto parts industry; i avoid the stealership like the plague.

That being said... A broken diff would be a good excuse to get something better than an open diff. LOL

 

[Cabose-1]

Thanks rangermanagement! I know a tt is a lot different in handling. But im looking at some about the same weight. Just maintenance the vehicle regularly, drive safe, good info that you had a good tow.

 

[CB750F]

Thanks for your review. We bought the Ranger to tow a TT. I want to buy something
around 3000lbs, will be my first time towing anything.

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