Biggest Travel Trailer?

[John Earley]

What’s the biggest TT y’all have towed. Feet and weight And describe how well the Ranger did? Fuel economy as well ?

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[AzScorpion]

Steve @Grumpaw has a new Jayco that's probably one of the largest I've seen on here. He has it set up perfectly to tow with the Ranger and he'll see this and can give you all the specifics.

 

[brroberts]

40’ 5th wheels, but not with the Ranger! My travel trailer is not large. I have towed a 7K dump trailer, but it does not have the windage of most travel trailers and has monster brakes that can stop the Ranger when needed. I also don’t tow it more than 60 miles or so.

 

[Nomadjohn]

What’s the biggest TT y’all have towed. Feet and weight And describe how well the Ranger did? Fuel economy as well ?

We have a KZ escape 21. This is a 24' trailer with a 20' box and represents the largest trailer I would want to pull from the point of view of dragging a large box behind the truck. The GVWR of the trailer is 4500 lbs and the truck pulls it great and breaks are not an issue. Tongue weight is ~600 lbs and this does affect total payload.

The biggest issue we have is the resultant gas mileage which is usually 9-11 MPG depending on wind and grade. This makes longer trips a real hassle because we are constantly having to fuel up.

 

[ctechbob]

My 26DJSE is the absolute biggest I would consider. Similar in size to Grumpa's, just a hair lighter. 11mpg is about what I get, although that's mostly highway, smaller roads would be slightly better. There's also a member here with a similar Jayco. I tow with an E2 WDH and Bilstein rear shocks. 40psi in the truck tires all the way around. You do feel the trailer back there, and I wouldn't tow in a windstorm, but other than that, it's fine.

I'm waiting on my drop shank to show up. The stock unit they ship with the E2 isn't enough to get the trailer properly leveled. It was supposed to be here before this weekend's trip, but Amazon lost the stupid thing, so it will have to wait until the next trip.

For reference, here is our rig with the shank set to the lowest stock setting. The rear end of the Ranger is tall, there's no doubt about it.

My Ranger is also a light spec 2WD with a 1711# payload, so weight isn't really an issue with just 2 of us in the truck and everything else in the trailer. Lariats/4WD and higher-spec trucks could run into payload issues if you're loading them up to the gills.

 

[Grumpaw]

Jayco 24RL. 29 foor total with a 24 foot box.Trailer weight is around 6500 lbs witha 690 tongue weight.
2 wd Ranger Lariat, Eibach rear shocks, Roadmaster Active Suspension on rear.
36 psi front, 40 psi rear. Set of ClearView mirrors installed. Blue Ox hitch system.
Tows fine...I definitely know its back there but very manageable. Between 10-11 mpg.
I would not tow anything larger, and I would not recommend towing this large unless you are experienced. It is near max of what the Ranger is capable of safely towing.

 

[Mirage775]

My 26DJSE is the absolute biggest I would consider. Similar in size to Grumpa's, just a hair lighter. 11mpg is about what I get, although that's mostly highway, smaller roads would be slightly better. There's also a member here with a similar Jayco. I tow with an E2 WDH and Bilstein rear shocks. 40psi in the truck tires all the way around. You do feel the trailer back there, and I wouldn't tow in a windstorm, but other than that, it's fine.

I'm waiting on my drop shank to show up. The stock unit they ship with the E2 isn't enough to get the trailer properly leveled. It was supposed to be here before this weekend's trip, but Amazon lost the stupid thing, so it will have to wait until the next trip.

For reference, here is our rig with the shank set to the lowest stock setting. The rear end of the Ranger is tall, there's no doubt about it.

My Ranger is also light spec 2WD with a 1711# payload, so weight isn't really an issue with just 2 of us in the truck and everything else in the trailer. Lariats/4WD and higher-spec trucks could run into payload issues if you're loading them up to the gills.

Jayco 24RL. 29 foor total with a 24 foot box.Trailer weight is around 6500 lbs witha 690 tongue weight.
2 wd Ranger Lariat, Eibach rear shocks, Roadmaster Active Suspension on rear.
36 psi front, 40 psi rear. Set of ClearView mirrors installed. Blue Ox hitch system.
Tows fine...I definitely know its back there but very manageable. Between 10-11 mpg.
I would not tow anything larger, and I would not recommend towing this large unless you are experienced. It is near max of what the Ranger is capable of safely towing.

Yall are insane, there's no way I'd pull a trailer that big with my Ranger, LOL!

I bought a new 2011 Silverado X-cab, 2wd, with the small 4.8 V8, then we bought an Outback 19 foot trailer and it was almost too much for that truck! Then, in 2013, I traded up for a new 2013 Silverado Z71 4x4, X-cab, with the bigger 5.3 V8, that pulled the Outback like it wasn't even there! Then we traded the Outback for a Winnebago 32 foot trailer, which the same Silverado pulled/stopped just fine, we just never used it much, so we took a major hit on it...

I know the tongue and tow ratings are good for the Rangers, but stopping is also something to consider.

We wanted another trailer, but we have 3 large Pitbulls and I'm not a short guy, so our options are super limited. I'd love to buy an old Greyhound Bus and make an RV out of it, then I could just pull the Ranger around

Just my $.02

 

[BassRanger]

I know the tongue and tow ratings are good for the Rangers, but stopping is also something to consider.


Just my $.02

Trailer Brakes

 

[deleriumtremor]

Jayco 24RL. 29 foor total with a 24 foot box.Trailer weight is around 6500 lbs witha 690 tongue weight.
2 wd Ranger Lariat, Eibach rear shocks, Roadmaster Active Suspension on rear.
36 psi front, 40 psi rear. Set of ClearView mirrors installed. Blue Ox hitch system.
Tows fine...I definitely know its back there but very manageable. Between 10-11 mpg.
I would not tow anything larger, and I would not recommend towing this large unless you are experienced. It is near max of what the Ranger is capable of safely towing.

To my mind, the most important factor you mentioned is your experience.

Anyone asking the question really needs to understand how important experience is in the equation of how big.

 

[Squatchranger]

What’s the biggest TT y’all have towed. Feet and weight And describe how well the Ranger did? Fuel economy as well ?

Not a travel trailer but I have towed my families 21 foot boat all city driving and not a whole lot distance wise but my mpg (with 35's bear in mind) is like 15 with the boat but its a lot of stop and go, wet weight is like 5500 and change. handles it beautifully, you can definitely feel you are towing something but it doesn't have any hesitation or feel like its crying for help, very composed and very smooth. I wouldn't personally go much higher than that weight wise or size wise with mine but I generally air on the cautious side.

 

[Squatchranger]

Yall are insane, there's no way I'd pull a trailer that big with my Ranger, LOL!

I bought a new 2011 Silverado X-cab, 2wd, with the small 4.8 V8, then we bought an Outback 19 foot trailer and it was almost too much for that truck! Then, in 2013, I traded up for a new 2013 Silverado Z71 4x4, X-cab, with the bigger 5.3 V8, that pulled the Outback like it wasn't even there! Then we traded the Outback for a Winnebago 32 foot trailer, which the same Silverado pulled/stopped just fine, we just never used it much, so we took a major hit on it...

I know the tongue and tow ratings are good for the Rangers, but stopping is also something to consider.

We wanted another trailer, but we have 3 large Pitbulls and I'm not a short guy, so our options are super limited. I'd love to buy an old Greyhound Bus and make an RV out of it, then I could just pull the Ranger around

Just my $.02

Yeah even with surge or electronic trailer brakes physics is a thing

 

[subquark]

Trailer Brakes

Don't ride your brakes and lock out a top gear or two?

 

[Mirage775]

Trailer Brakes

No shit! I've been pulling trailers almost everyday, for almost 30 years, electric and air brakes.

Most of the braking I'm talking about is from the towing vehicle, as electric trailer brakes are finicky, in my opinion.

Air brakes are better, but have their issues too..., but we're not talking about air brakes in this situation.

That's why I hate commenting on posts, because of certain types of comments!

 

[BassRanger]

Yes, electronic trailer braking systems aren't without issue, but If you are sizing your trailer based on what the tow vehicle can safely stop, you probably shouldn't be pulling over 2,000lbs with a Ranger.

The main issue with travel trailers is surface area and length. A big thing with "half ton towable" travel trailers is axle placement. To keep tongue weight down on these larger TTs the axles are usually more toward the center of the trailer. This gives wind and other factors a big mechanical advantage in pushing the rear of the truck around. This is why weight distribution and sway control are highly recommended with shorter wheelbase trucks.


If you are new to travel trailers, an honest, knowledgable RV salesmen or just a friend is invaluable. Many of these lots will try to sell you the biggest thing within spec of the truck. To the contrary, some will insist you need a 3/4 ton+ to pull anything longer than 20'. Good thing about these boards is there's plenty of good info and experience to bounce off.

 

[John Earley]

I didn’t start this thread to have people arguing about weight. Let’s face it Ford has been around for years built everything from planes to army equipment heavy trucks to compact vehicles I’m pretty sure that they’ve tested there ranger and 7500 pounds is likely under rating it like they all do. I only care to hear about what they are towing out there with their rangers and so far I don’t see anybody posting towing a trailer that is more than the capabilities of the vehicle so please everyone just post what you’re towing and how much it weighs and keep your comments about weight to yourself no one cares about one person’s opinion the truck is rated for 7500 so let it go

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