What are you guys towing?

[Chris M]

Inspiring

Nothing like learning things the hard way.
Bad when it affects others, though.

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[fjwlobo]

Inspiring

I guess making sure YOU know your limits, pay attention to your speed, and pay attention to your surroundings is an understatement. ? ? ?

As far as the "OH SH*T" ? (aka. Homer moment). It's like making a cut.

ALWAYS CHECK TWICE!!! ?

Hopefully these things never happens to you or me when I start towing my soon to own TT. ? ? ?

 

[dtech]

I guess making sure YOU know your limits, pay attention to your speed, and pay attention to your surroundings is an understatement. ? ? ?

As far as the "OH SH*T" ? (aka. Homer moment). It's like making a cut.

ALWAYS CHECK TWICE!!! ?

Hopefully these things never happens to you or me when I start towing my soon to own TT. ? ? ?

Guy in my subdivision went from towing a Mini Lite TT to a massive motor home, there is a Maverick Gas station close by but not one of the larger ones that accommodate big rigs, this cheap bastard takes the motor home there for his 1st fillup and proceeds to take out protective railings and damage a gas pump and his rig had a big gash in the side, if it was the Titantic it would have immediatedly sunk. Sometimes when I've stayed in those RV parks and met some of the elderly dudes driving those massive motor homes I wonder if they could pass a driving test.

 

[GhostStrykre]

Just finished up my first time towing with the Ranger (or towing at all, really). Averaged 15.3mpg with a 2100lb trailer (dry), an ATV, and some gear.

Trip down the ATV was up close to the front of the trailer. I sensed some vagueness in the steering that I didn’t love so I shifted the ATV back a few feet but kept it from being behind the axles. It made a small improvement but not a lot.

ultimately, I didn’t love the towing experience. I’m not sure if I need to purify my weight management, or what. The Ranger is bone stock aside from a Ford installed trailer brake controller. Maybe the FX4 suspension at 80k miles didn’t like it? Or maybe I just need to spend more time towing and get use to it. Unsure.

in the end it was a fun weekend in Kentucky and the ranger got me there and back safely. So alls well that ends well.

 

[ctechbob]

The 'FX' shocks are frankly garbage for towing work and at 80k, they're even that much more tired.

If it is something you're going to be doing on a regular basis, you would be well served from a 4 corner shock upgrade. Bare minimum upgrade the rears, but all 4 will make a huge difference.

That and verify your weights.

 

[OGMix376]

Just finished up my first time towing with the Ranger (or towing at all, really). Averaged 15.3mpg with a 2100lb trailer (dry), an ATV, and some gear.

Trip down the ATV was up close to the front of the trailer. I sensed some vagueness in the steering that I didn’t love so I shifted the ATV back a few feet but kept it from being behind the axles. It made a small improvement but not a lot.

ultimately, I didn’t love the towing experience. I’m not sure if I need to purify my weight management, or what. The Ranger is bone stock aside from a Ford installed trailer brake controller. Maybe the FX4 suspension at 80k miles didn’t like it? Or maybe I just need to spend more time towing and get use to it. Unsure.

in the end it was a fun weekend in Kentucky and the ranger got me there and back safely. So alls well that ends well.

Pretty sure I’ve read (here on this forum) that the oem shocks on just about all packages for our trucks.. leave something to desire when it comes to pulling anything..
Seems like most who pull switch out the OEMs nearly immediately..
I have a tremor I pulled a little toy hauler for my wife’s stepdad. (Had a am/pro shift kart in it with tools, spare parts, and many spare sets of tires.) I think it was overall about a 3k lbs…. the fox shocks and multi leafs seemed good for me.. (barely felt the thing behind me at all.).
Pics from I think a little over a year ago now. Your trailer seems obviously bigger

 

[GhostStrykre]

Pretty sure I’ve read (here on this forum) that the oem shocks on just about all packages for our trucks.. leave something to desire when it comes to pulling anything..
Seems like most who pull switch out the OEMs nearly immediately..
I have a tremor I pulled a little toy hauler for my wife’s stepdad. (Had a am/pro shift kart in it with tools, spare parts, and many spare sets of tires.) I think it was overall about a 3k lbs…. the fox shocks and multi leafs seemed good for me.. (barely felt the thing behind me at all.).
Pics from I think a little over a year ago now. Your trailer seems obviously bigger

I mentioned to my wife that I wondered if the suspension was contributing to the experience, but I also have a tendency to force myself to believe things just to justify a purchase. Seems crazy to me the truck would have such excellent tow numbers for a midsize only to have an uncomfortable setup.

 

[ctechbob]

I mentioned to my wife that I wondered if the suspension was contributing to the experience, but I also have a tendency to force myself to believe things just to justify a purchase. Seems crazy to me the truck would have such excellent tow numbers for a midsize only to have an uncomfortable setup.

Yep, being able to do it and being comfortable are just two different things in Ford Ranger World.

Only going to get worse as trucks become more and more about being a 4 door family hauler than a machine built to do work.

 

[OGMix376]

Yep, being able to do it and being comfortable are just two different things in Ford Ranger World.

Only going to get worse as trucks become more and more about being a 4 door family hauler than a machine built to do work.

I was about to state the same sentiment. ?

 

[Grumpaw]

Just finished up my first time towing with the Ranger (or towing at all, really). Averaged 15.3mpg with a 2100lb trailer (dry), an ATV, and some gear.

Trip down the ATV was up close to the front of the trailer. I sensed some vagueness in the steering that I didn’t love so I shifted the ATV back a few feet but kept it from being behind the axles. It made a small improvement but not a lot.

ultimately, I didn’t love the towing experience. I’m not sure if I need to purify my weight management, or what. The Ranger is bone stock aside from a Ford installed trailer brake controller. Maybe the FX4 suspension at 80k miles didn’t like it? Or maybe I just need to spend more time towing and get use to it. Unsure.

in the end it was a fun weekend in Kentucky and the ranger got me there and back safely. So alls well that ends well.

The rig your towing, loaded the way you describe, is probably around 3500 lbs.....you need to weigh to be sure. But that means your tongue weight might be around 350 lbs or more. That along with your description of vagueness in steering points right at the need for weight distributing hitch set up.
You need to weigh the loaded rig to be sure, but anything around a 350 lb tongue weight will benefit from a WD setup.
Almost every hitch company makes WD setups for light 350 lb tongue weights. Proper setup will transfer some weight back to front of truck, getting rid of the vagueness and generally making the rig much more stable.
You have to take into account that your loaded trailer is the same size/weight as many campers/travel trailers and the same forces apply to your "box" trailer.....weight and "sail" area are the same as a 3500-4000 lb camper.
Just my 2 cents worth.....

 

[TheDo114]

Just finished up my first time towing with the Ranger (or towing at all, really). Averaged 15.3mpg with a 2100lb trailer (dry), an ATV, and some gear.

Trip down the ATV was up close to the front of the trailer. I sensed some vagueness in the steering that I didn’t love so I shifted the ATV back a few feet but kept it from being behind the axles. It made a small improvement but not a lot.

ultimately, I didn’t love the towing experience. I’m not sure if I need to purify my weight management, or what. The Ranger is bone stock aside from a Ford installed trailer brake controller. Maybe the FX4 suspension at 80k miles didn’t like it? Or maybe I just need to spend more time towing and get use to it. Unsure.

in the end it was a fun weekend in Kentucky and the ranger got me there and back safely. So alls well that ends well.

Nice setup!

What speed were you going? Was it all the time or on the highway?

The trailer also appears to be fairly nose up and that would load the back trailer axle and cause some sway.

 

[k1w1t1m]

Nice setup!

What speed were you going? Was it all the time or on the highway?

The trailer also appears to be fairly nose up and that would load the back trailer axle and cause some sway.

I also notice that the hitch appears to have no drop. Most trailers will require about a 4" drop hitch on a Ranger.

 

[Grumpaw]

Nice setup!

What speed were you going? Was it all the time or on the highway?

The trailer also appears to be fairly nose up and that would load the back trailer axle and cause some sway.

I noticed that also....but it looks like both the truck and trailer are in what looks like a very slight depression. I'd like to see the rig on a flat road surface before I would comment on it...

 

[Arly]

We tow all winter and less commonly over summer. No problem for our 19 ranger. That silly atv weights nearly 2000lbs.

 

[Big Blue]

Just finished up my first time towing with the Ranger (or towing at all, really). Averaged 15.3mpg with a 2100lb trailer (dry), an ATV, and some gear.

Trip down the ATV was up close to the front of the trailer. I sensed some vagueness in the steering that I didn’t love so I shifted the ATV back a few feet but kept it from being behind the axles. It made a small improvement but not a lot.

ultimately, I didn’t love the towing experience. I’m not sure if I need to purify my weight management, or what. The Ranger is bone stock aside from a Ford installed trailer brake controller. Maybe the FX4 suspension at 80k miles didn’t like it? Or maybe I just need to spend more time towing and get use to it. Unsure.

in the end it was a fun weekend in Kentucky and the ranger got me there and back safely. So alls well that ends well.

Nice looking rig. If this was ACTUALLY your first time ever towing, I would not expecting you to love the experience. Actually "love" is not a term I would ever use with the towing experience. Comfortable maybe, and that comes with experience.

I have a mostly stock 2019 FX4 that a tow a 4K TT with. Many people, myself included have found the OEM FX4 shocks to be lacking for towing. I have Bilstein rear shocks and blue Sumo springs in place of the OEM bumpstops. I also use a weight distribution hitch sized for a 6K trailer.

Hard to tell from the picture, but it does look like your a little nose high on the trailer. Should be level or slightly nose down. A hitch with more drop or adjustable would be a good investment. Weight distribution is also a big factor. The tongue weight needs to be kept in the range of 10-15 percent of total trailer weight. This becomes an item when loading a box trailer such as yours where loads change.

There are many on here that tow bigger trailers than me and are great resources to answer questions, @Grumpaw is just one of them. Take your time and tow safe. With experience and a few tweaks to you setup you will get comfortable towing.

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