January 30, 2019
Good day. We wanted to post in a quick update for our
blog to cover our tow vehicle. We were
originally going for a small Class A motor home and towing the Jeep, when we
found out the both payments would be too large to afford at this time in our lives. When that little burst of reality hit, we
decided that a medium size fifth wheel trailer would be best, as we would trade
in the Jeep for a pickup truck to tow the fiver.
So now we need to
figure out what size, type and model of truck to get. Fortunately, I have owned all three of the
American manufacturer’s trucks in the past.
In 2016 I drove a Ram 3500 dually, and I didn’t care for the interior
fit (I am 6’5”) and the rear dual tires made it tough to park in our condo’s
parking spot. When looking at 5th
wheel trailers, we found that we needed a truck that could tow between 10,000-15,000
pounds. Since we dream of going out
west, we needed a truck that would not have any issues with mountain
passes. While a gas-fueled truck might
be up to both tasks, a diesel-powered truck would be more than enough. Lastly, because we want to do a lot of
boon-docking (camping in an area that is free or almost free, such as BLM areas)
in the future that may be miles away from pavement, 4-wheel drive is a must. Inserted note here: In June/July 2018 We traveled with our 5th wheel to spend
12 days with family in southern-central Florida. We drove thru and arrived during a downpour,
and I was told that this season was some of the rainiest days experienced in
some time. The 4-wheel drive and locking
rear differential came in handy when the RV Park we stayed at had 6-8 inches of
grassy muck where the trailer was to be parked!
I rode in a friend’s
(thank you Karla!) 2016 F 250 and I was very surprised with the room in the
interior and the ride. After looking at the
2017 Ford HD Brochure and Trailer Life Towing Guide, I found that a Ford F-350
Diesel 4WD Crew Cab truck could tow up to a 20,000 pound 5th wheel
trailer. The exact weight and towing a
pickup truck can safely and in some states legally haul, one must review the
door stickers and find the formulas and start figuring. We figured to get a 5th wheel that
was hopefully 35 feet in length at most and under 15K pounds in total weight
(wet). I have snippets of both aforementioned
references below.
2017
Trailer Life Towing Guide
So finally, we ended up
with a New 2017 (In February 2018) F-350 SRW 4-Wheel drive diesel Lariat. While the “bells and whistles” of this truck
wasn’t exactly what we were looking for, we traded the Jeep in on it. We feel truly blessed with this truck, as it
has been awesome. No problems towing, no
problems in rain and snow, and the mileage around town is between 14-16 mpg and
towing is around 9.5 to 10.5. Diesel is
easy to find, DEF (Diesel Exhaust Fluid) can be purchased at a truck stop, or
Walmart (my preferred method) and the truck uses DEF mostly when towing. We have purchased around 14 gallons in 14K
miles.
This set up is working
well for us, and we feel very blessed.
Everyone is different with different wants and needs, so what we do
might not work for you. This blog is just
to help those people who are or want to purchase an RV and start
traveling. We will list the good and the
bad, but it has all been a blessing, thank you God!
Until next time, Rhonda
and Paul wishing you a great week!
