Finally towed this weekend

[Noseoil]

Took the truck up into southern Colorado this past weekend & had the teardrop trailer attached. The trailer weighs in at 1700#, the truck had the Leer 100 shell, a cooler & some odds & ends in the bed as well. The hardest pull was over Raton pass as I was leaving town, from 6,500' up & over 7,800' into Colorado. My son had an elk hunt & I went along as cheap labor if needed (it wasn't this time, no elk this year). It pulled well over the pass & I used the "Sport" mode the entire time of towing & for the 4x4 stuff we did. It went over the pass without any trouble, just down-shifted & kept pulling.

We camped in the Purgatorie river headwaters & had a nice weekend in spite of some snow, high winds & cooler temperatures. Average mileage on the way into camp was a recorded 18.5 based on the dash readout, but I'm still on the same tank of fuel, so I'm waiting to see what the calculated mileage was for the trip. It's running at 17.3 now due to the 4X low he had to do in the hills.

We did a bit of offroading & the truck performed well. Some rocky stuff, steep grades & switchbacks were included, but there were no problems going from 2X4 into 4X4 & then 4X4 low on some of the steeper grades. Looking forward to some new tires at some point, but the factory ones did well enough, in spite of some nasty rocks & bumps.

When I returned, my wife informed me that "we" had won an old oak table at an auction on Saturday (beware when you leave to go hunting) & I needed to dump the teardrop, hook up the flat bed & run to Cimmaron to pick up the trailer as soon as I got home. It was a long day of hunting, snow in Colorado, clear skies in Raton & driving to another town for the table. All's well that ends well & the table is still sitting on the trailer in the garage, waiting for some help to get it into the house.

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[MTB-BRUH]

Looks like fun and that setup looks like a blast! I’m glad it tows it well, we would all be in trouble if it didn’t tow that 1700 lbs well lol

 

[Deleted member 1634]

Did you use Sport mode in lieu of Tow/Haul mode? I usually use tow mode when towing and it does a similar sort of thing where it holds the gears longer, but also downshifts more aggressively during braking, slowing, or downhill stretches. So that helps a lot with the extra weight.

I have noticed that I barely feel our teardrop (1500-1800lbs loaded) back there when towing. It's quite nice and I'm very happy with it.

 

[RedlandRanger]

Did you use Sport mode in lieu of Tow/Haul mode? I usually use tow mode when towing and it does a similar sort of thing where it holds the gears longer, but also downshifts more aggressively during braking, slowing, or downhill stretches. So that helps a lot with the extra weight.

I have noticed that I barely feel our teardrop (1500-1800lbs loaded) back there when towing. It's quite nice and I'm very happy with it.

The one time I towed, I barely felt the loaded UHaul trailer behind mine (~2000 lbs loaded) - and I really liked how Tow/Haul handled the truck when engaged. It did a great job of holding gears a bit longer and downshifting when going downhill or stopping. My only complaint is that I needed to re-enable it after every stop. Seems like it should be able to sense the trailer being connected and automatically enable it.

 

[Deleted member 1634]

The one time I towed, I barely felt the loaded UHaul trailer behind mine (~2000 lbs loaded) - and I really liked how Tow/Haul handled the truck when engaged. It did a great job of holding gears a bit longer and downshifting when going downhill or stopping. My only complaint is that I needed to re-enable it after every stop. Seems like it should be able to sense the trailer being connected and automatically enable it.

Agreed. There are plenty of other settings that automatically engage like blind spot extension, or disengage like the rear sensors, cross traffic alert, and auto start/stop. So it seems like a simple thing to have auto engage, and then you could push the button to disengage it, in the same vain as the auto start/stop.

 

[Noseoil]

I just use sport mode for towing, easy to use & let the transmission do its job. Once the trailer is hooked up & sees the harness, it adapts to the longer length on the side sensors. It seems to do a pretty good job with the extra length in the lane, shifts are a bit better & it keeps the rpms higher into the torque curve for hills. I can always shift up if necessary, but with the hills I was in, it's easier to let the truck & transmission do the job.

 

[RedlandRanger]

I just use sport mode for towing, easy to use & let the transmission do its job. Once the trailer is hooked up & sees the harness, it adapts to the longer length on the side sensors. It seems to do a pretty good job with the extra length in the lane, shifts are a bit better & it keeps the rpms higher into the torque curve for hills. I can always shift up if necessary, but with the hills I was in, it's easier to let the truck & transmission do the job.

Curious why you don't use Tow/Haul mode instead of sport mode? Tow/Haul was created specifically for towing.

 

[Noseoil]

Got the truck used, where the ^&*$ is tow-haul mode switch, light, lever, actuator, or knob? I've looked in the manual & there's no mention of it. It goes into detail about towing limits, elevations, hitch, chains, etc. Can you tell me where it is in the cab or manual?

 

[RedlandRanger]

Got the truck used, where the ^&*$ is tow-haul mode switch, light, lever, actuator, or knob? I've looked in the manual & there's no mention of it. It goes into detail about towing limits, elevations, hitch, chains, etc. Can you tell me where it is in the cab or manual?

Depending on your truck, it is a button down near where the Auto Stop/Start is located - it looks kind of like a trailer. If you didn't get the tow package maybe you don't have it?

 

[oggvorbis]

Got the truck used, where the ^&*$ is tow-haul mode switch, light, lever, actuator, or knob? I've looked in the manual & there's no mention of it. It goes into detail about towing limits, elevations, hitch, chains, etc. Can you tell me where it is in the cab or manual?

It's on page 148 of the manual. The button is one of them in this area of the console that I have circled in red. Looks like the indicator icon from page 86. Hope this helps!

 

[Deleted member 1634]

Depending on your truck, it is a button down near where the Auto Stop/Start is located - it looks kind of like a trailer. If you didn't get the tow package maybe you don't have it?

I'm pretty sure every Ranger has it regardless of if you have the tow package or not. I think when I was looking, the tow package only included hardware (receiver and harnesses) not software (sway control, tow mode, etc.). Because every Ranger is capable of towing without the receiver, you just put a ball through the bumper like the old days. I could've misunderstood though.

 

[Noseoil]

Thanks, looked it up in my manual & it's on page 149. I was looking in the towing section, my bad, should have looked in the transmission section, go figure. It would be nice to have it in the towing section, where I would normally look for towing info.

Will give it a try next time I tow. Was happy with sport mode, as it allows the motor to run in a better rpm range for a load & shifts are better.

 

[Deleted member 1634]

Thanks, looked it up in my manual & it's on page 149. I was looking in the towing section, my bad, should have looked in the transmission section, go figure. It would be nice to have it in the towing section, where I would normally look for towing info.

Will give it a try next time I tow. Was happy with sport mode, as it allows the motor to run in a better rpm range for a load & shifts are better.

Agreed, there should at least be a mention of it in the towing section, if not the entire explanation.

And I guess what we're saying is that Tow/Haul mode does all of those same things as Sport mode (holds the revs, doesn't shift as much, etc.), but also downshifts/engine brakes for you when decelerating as well, which is nice for going downhill or having to stop abruptly for a light or something. I know it's been really nice for me.

 

[PNW_Ranger87]

Looks like a nice setup! What tow behind is that? I like how it's nice and lightweight and is below the roof of the truck. I think my tent camping days are limited.

 

[Noseoil]

PNW, it's a home build, based loosely on a "Benroy" design from long ago, but with more modern stuff inside. I don't sleep on the ground any more, it's a 5" good foam mattress with a 3" memory foam topper, so it's very comfortable. It's a bit heavier than I had originally thought (wanted 1200#, ended up 1660# dry with nothing loaded), but has 20,000 miles on it now & is wearing very well after bumping along on some rough roads, mountains & a life in the desert where it was built. Basic dimensions are 5' wide, 4' tall & 9' long. 100 watt solar panel, group 27 AGM battery, stereo, flat screen TV, sound bar, BluRay player, etc. etc. etc...

You can see more about these things on the TNTTT web site. Go to the "Builds" & take a look at Tony Latham's journal (#4) to see the procedure. Mine uses aluminum skin, his is epoxy & bed liner, but they are similar.

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