Biggest Travel Trailer?

[Stevedbvik1]

Great Discussion

Picking up a Lance travel trailer this weekend. I have a stock 21 lariat tremor with factory tow and an added Ford accesory trailer brake controller. Planning WD hitxh and focused safe driving practices 65 max sped ect. No plan to further modify the truck.

My wife and I travel fairly light. Living in CA Gold Country, our trips will always include foothill and mountain pass driving.

Windage behing this small truck is my only real concern.

What additional wisdom -guidance do you have? Appreciate your knowledge and input.

2018 Lance 1995 Trailer Specs

Dual Axle

Length 23.67 ft. (284 in.)

Width 8.06 ft. (96.75 in.)

Height 10.17 ft. (122 in.)

Dry Weight 4,080 lbs.

Payload Capacity 1,620 lbs.

GVWR 5,700 lbs.

Hitch Weight 365 lbs.

You should have no problem pulling that. Just make sure to get the WDH set up right. We pull something similar to this at around 4600-4800 loaded with a single axle and it does just fine

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[Big Blue]

The Ranger is certified to tow 3500 kg in Australia but the GCM (Gross Combined Mass) is 6000kg so if you are going to tow the 3.5 tonne max you won't have much payload. And yes the trailer ball download is considered part of that payload.
Additionally you have to be sure you don't exceed the front and rear axle loading. Front seems illogical until you consider the extra weight transferred if you use a weight distribution hitch.
It's all a balancing act. Also any accessories you attach to the truck eat into your payload. For example I have an ARB steel bullbar ~ 80Kg, plus an ARB canopy say ~ 130Kg which takes 200 odd Kg off my payload before I chuck anything into the back.

Because full size trucks like F150's, Rams, Silverados, etc are uncommon and expensive here, mid size trucks like the Ranger, Toyota Hilux, and Isuzu D Max tend to get pressed into heavy towing service here. Your only other options are Land cruiser or Nissan Patrol full size wagons.

Having said all that we have a 17 foot Jayco Journey Outback dual axle caravan ( travel trailer) which (according to Jayco) tares at 1950 Kg and GVM's at 2450, we rarely load it that full, but 160 litres of water and food and crap for a couple of weeks away does tend to add up.

Being a dual axle the ball weight is quite light, it actually tows better with some water in the front tank. The outback models are heavy because they have a reinforced chassis and independent trailing arm suspension with coils and shocks for use on rough roads.

We recently took ours on a round trip to Victoria and back for about 3000 km mostly on the tar. But a lot of back roads with steep climbs, rough surfaces etc. It towed like a dream, the Ranger had no problems at all with it.

You sir, have a very good grasp of how all the various weight ratings play into safe towing. It seems all some people see is the 7500 pound towing number and don't take into account all the other actual ratings for the truck. That towing number is a maximum number when all other conditions are right, which almost never happens in real life. Especially when towing a travel trailer.

 

[Big Blue]

You should have no problem pulling that. Just make sure to get the WDH set up right. We pull something similar to this at around 4600-4800 loaded with a single axle and it does just fine

I agree you should have no issues with that. The tongue weight is a little light but that is a dry number. Make sure it is between 10% and 15% of your loaded weight when you travel. When you pick out your WDH get one with built in sway control and don't go heavier than needed. Bigger is not always better in this instance. Needs to beatched to the trailer. With tandem axles it should tow very nice.

 

[bentroia]

Great Discussion

Picking up a Lance travel trailer this weekend. I have a stock 21 lariat tremor with factory tow and an added Ford accesory trailer brake controller. Planning WD hitxh and focused safe driving practices 65 max sped ect. No plan to further modify the truck.

My wife and I travel fairly light. Living in CA Gold Country, our trips will always include foothill and mountain pass driving.

Windage behing this small truck is my only real concern.

What additional wisdom -guidance do you have? Appreciate your knowledge and input.

2018 Lance 1995 Trailer Specs

Dual Axle

Length 23.67 ft. (284 in.)

Width 8.06 ft. (96.75 in.)

Height 10.17 ft. (122 in.)

Dry Weight 4,080 lbs.

Payload Capacity 1,620 lbs.

GVWR 5,700 lbs.

Hitch Weight 365 lbs.

The capability and drive charachteristics of the stock lariat tremor, with tow pkg, for this 4K 24ft total length trailer, provides a fun safe easy to manage driving experience.

Installed an Equalizer brand 600 - 6000 weight dist. sway control hitch and the Ford Accesory trailer brake control. Towed this trailer about 1,000 miles on mostly 2 lane mountain roads in OR and CA. Tow mode was always on, and cruise control active most of the time, between 50 and 60 mph. There was plenty of power. Only the steepest winging grades caused higher revs and 45 ish max. It always felt stable and safe and I had no previous towing experience. Avg mpg was 10.9
.

 

[Cmar]

I agree some pretty impressive rigs being pulled. But, and I will probably get slammed for this, the one number nobody talks about is GCVWR (Gross Combined Vehicle Weight Rating). This is a number the towing guides specifically tell you NOT to exceed. For our trucks this number varies depending on cab style a if it is 2 or 4 wheel drive. It goes from 12150# to 12500#, with SuperCab 4x2 the lowest and SuperCrew 4x4 the highest. The 7500# max tow rating also has a footnote to it stating that it is for an empty truck with a single 150# driver.

I would love to see CAT scale slips for some of these huge rigs loaded for travel with all passengers showing you are under the GCVWR for your truck.

This 7500# max rating is not a hard number no matter what you have done to you truck or how much stuff you have in it. It is a sliding number based on a lot of factors.

Indeed over here the GCM ( Gross combination mass) as it is called here is 6000 Kg ( 13227 lb) so if you tow a trailer of 3500 Kg which is the maximum the truck is rated for , you don't have much payload given the Tare mass of the Aus version is ~2250-2300 depending on model and trim. Add a couple of people a full tank of fuel and a bull bar and canopy (topper) or bed rack, and there is not much left.

 

[Big Blue]

Indeed over here the GCM ( Gross combination mass) as it is called here is 6000 Kg ( 13227 lb) so if you tow a trailer of 3500 Kg which is the maximum the truck is rated for , you don't have much payload given the Tare mass of the Aus version is ~2250-2300 depending on model and trim. Add a couple of people a full tank of fuel and a bull bar and canopy (topper) or bed rack, and there is not much left.

Yeah add an aftermarket bumper, winch, bed rack, bigger wheels/tires or other equipment and it eats into the payload and towing number real quick.

 

[Pinecrestjim]

I would love to see CAT scale slips for some of these huge rigs loaded for travel with all passengers showing you are under the GCVWR for your truck.

Here you go... Rockwood Mini Lite 2109s: 23' hitch to bumper, 8' wide, 10.5' high. Dry weight 4,493, CCW 1,344, Hitch 557.

SEE POST THAT FOLLOWS THIS POST.

These are actual Cat tickets for our last weekend of camping. Myself and my best half, a heavy toolbox and about 1/2 tank of fuel in the truck. Equalizer 10K 4point WDH. Bars were in the truck bed when not connected. Camper was loaded with clothing, food /drinks for a 3 day weekend, 10 gallons of fresh water, 0 gallons in gray & black tanks, two full 30# propane tanks, two 100Ah Li batteries in the pass thru along with other necessities.

Weigh tickets are, L to R: w/ WDH, w/o WDH, truck only (Ranger 4x4 Lariat with the two of us in the truck).

You can plug the numbers into this linked calculator which is what I use. I was 10# over on the receiver per the tickets.

 

[Pinecrestjim]

Apologies, that was the first set of weigh tickets on the drive home from purchase. I'll post the tickets I mentioned in the above post when I get home...

 

[Pinecrestjim]

Here are the CAT scale weigh tickets on that last camping trip, along with a picture of the rig with WDH engaged.

 

[Pinecrestjim]

I tested using 93 octane on a 398 mile flat highway, I-95 up Florida’s east coast. 40 gallons of fuel, 9.95mpg pulling our MiniLite at 60-65 mph.

I’ll be running 87 octane after this last fillup runs out. Will report the mpg on the return trip.

 

[ctechbob]

I tested using 93 octane on a 398 mile flat highway, I-95 up Florida’s east coast. 40 gallons of fuel, 9.95mpg pulling our MiniLite at 60-65 mph.

I’ll be running 87 octane after this last fillup runs out. Will report the mpg on the return trip.

It's your truck, do as you please, but I will mention again that towing with 91-93 octane isn't about fuel economy. It is more about engine health. The ECU in the truck can likely only pull so much timing out of it to prevent detonation when the loads are heavy, ambient air is hot, and the motor is working hard pulling a load for long periods of time.

Will it grenade? Probably only a small chance of that, but I would consider it trip insurance and a cost of doing business when towing.

 

[Grumpaw]

I tested using 93 octane on a 398 mile flat highway, I-95 up Florida’s east coast. 40 gallons of fuel, 9.95mpg pulling our MiniLite at 60-65 mph.

I’ll be running 87 octane after this last fillup runs out. Will report the mpg on the return trip.

As posted, don't use regular or mid grade when towing a heavy load....use high test...91--93 octane.
Reg may be ok for a very short distance, but for what your towing...high test.
Heck, even on a daily use I run mid-grade, never regular.

 

[Grumpaw]

Getting ready to hook up the trailer for a 2 week trip. Going to upper NY, Lake George and then on into Vermont near Quechee State Park. Wife hoping to see some color change, but we just needed to get away for a bit.
And yes, I use top tier high test when I tow. Also, I don't give a poopie what my mpg is, I don't sweat over it, and plan on a fuel stop every 200 miles. Pretty much drive on the top 2/3 tank.

 

[Peragrin]

The fall color change is just starting grumpaw. The long hot summer just recently started to let go. So now is a great time. "I live in new hampshire about parallel to lake george so similar weather.

Safe travels

 

[ctechbob]

The fall color change is just starting grumpaw. The long hot summer just recently started to let go. So now is a great time. "I live in new hampshire about parallel to lake george so similar weather.

Safe travels

Even here in north GA on the GA/NC line there are some trees starting to turn. Seems to me that it is early this year, although I don't have anything to base that on other than my brain telling me it seems early.

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