F150 Towing Recommendations

[johndeerefarmer]

There are two kinds of sway. One is caused by not enough tongue weight. The second is caused by the wind or a passing vehicle.

i have had multiple F150's and SD's since 2011.

I towed a 30' travel trailer with my '11 F150 with the ecoboost engine. I used the Equalizer WD hitch. It worked good most of the time. With winds over 15-20 the trailer would start swaying as the wind hit.
I bought the GD Reflection 29rs next. It's a fiver and the plan was to pull it with my '17 F150. The truck has plenty of power to pull it but once again the wind gives me trouble. If the wind is over 15-20 mph I won't pull it. I then bought the smaller Reflection 220rk fiver. Same story only this one does slightly better because there is less sail for the wind to blow against.
Last year I needed to take the larger 29rs to Colorado (about 600 miles from Texas to CO). I bought a '16 F250 and pulled it with that. The winds in west Texas and NM can be brutal and the F250 did great. I don't think I would have made it with the F150.

All of my f150's have been max tow. When Ford changed to aluminum and we lost 700-800 lbs of weight, towing became more of a problem. My '13 F150 towed way better than my '17 does.
You can look into a HDPP (Heavy duty payload package) for the F150 but I don't know how much better it would be.

As far as ecoboost vs V8 goes. The ecoboost is a pleasure to tow with. Plenty of power and doesn't have to shift gears often. The V8 will shift more often but most reports say you will get better fuel economy while towing.

If you plan on towing in the mountains or higher wind areas I would consider a Super Duty. If you stick with the F150 definitely look into the HDPP. You also need the Equalizer hitch (not E2) or something similar. Don't go cheap on the hitch or you will regret it.

[Heavy Half Ton]

If you want to tow, you need the MAX PAYLOAD. HDPP in the parlance. Accept nothing less. 2500 lbs is significant. With the max payload, you will automatically get max tow. And the 3.5 with 3.73 gears.
You can only get it by ordering it, there will be none on any dealers lots. 8 to 10 week wait, only built in the Kansas City plant. Max trim is XLT 301a. Mine is a super crew, with the tailgate step, running boards, nav, as loaded as I could get it.
The 250/350 certainly have their place, but if you want to maximize the capabilities of the 150, you HAVE to order a HDPP. I plan a small 5er like the 230 rl. No way to do that and keep the numbers in the envelope without the HDPP.

[Heavy Half Ton]

Also, the 2018+ 5.0’s are having some pretty serious oil burning issues, the forums are full of people on their second (even third) engines. The 3.5 with the 3.73 gear set is a wonderful thing.

[NNetherton]

So my plan is to buy slightly used on a used car lot (2016-2018 models, less than 40K miles), not looking to purchase brand new, but will make sure to get something with the HDPP and Max Tow packages.

You guys are really making me start to question the F150 though. I want to do this right the first time, but also need to keep within a reasonable budget. Was hoping to spend around $35K on the truck and $25K on the trailer.

We do plan to make annual trips out west to National Parks as we have 2 boys that we want to create family experiences doing those things. So definitely will be in high winds and mountains once a year. Last thing I want is to under buy the truck and turn around and have to fork up more $ to upgrade something I wish I had known all along. Appreciate the insight and lessons learned.

[Heavy Half Ton]

If you find an HDPP on a used car lot, buy a lottery ticket too!






A new HDPP bare bones 4X4 will set you back about 43k after negotiations and incentives. You can get a chance at a PCO, a personal cash offer by hitting the ford site and requesting a brochure for the f150. Then, in an email, *might* get a PCO for up to 3k more off the deal. Worth a try.

[pjmjunior]

If you want to tow, you need the MAX PAYLOAD. HDPP in the parlance. Accept nothing less. 2500 lbs is significant. With the max payload, you will automatically get max tow. And the 3.5 with 3.73 gears.
You can only get it by ordering it, there will be none on any dealers lots. 8 to 10 week wait, only built in the Kansas City plant. Max trim is XLT 301a. Mine is a super crew, with the tailgate step, running boards, nav, as loaded as I could get it.
The 250/350 certainly have their place, but if you want to maximize the capabilities of the 150, you HAVE to order a HDPP. I plan a small 5er like the 230 rl. No way to do that and keep the numbers in the envelope without the HDPP.

Great insight. I just priced out a EcoBoost HDPP and it came out to $30 less than a similarly optioned F-250 gasser. I understand the OP's reluctance to go the SuperDuty route but I'd suggest test driving one before making a decision. Some additional research will show that the F-250s holds their resale value slightly higher than the F-150s.

[bryancass]

I too am looking for a tow vehicle for the 2150RB we just bought. I also want to stay in the 1/2 ton category because it will also be our daily driver. So I am looking at the maxxed out models of the Ford F-150 and the GMC/Chevy 1500 - those two brands apparently get better mileage than Ram. These are the requirements I wrote down just today to help me narrow down the search for used trucks:

For any truck model - required:
* Payload > 2000 lbs.
* GCWR > 16,500 lbs.

2016+ Ford F-150 4x4 short bed Supercab or Supercrew 2016+
* Max trailer tow pkg
* 10-speed transmission if available
* 3.5L GTDi V-6
* 3.55 or 3.73 differential

2016+ Chevy/GMC 1500 4x4 short bed Doublecab or Crewcab
* Towing package
* 3.42 or 3.73 differential
* 5.3L V-8 or 6.2L V-8


I have yet to figure out how to tell if a given used truck came with the tow package or what the GCWR is. GVWR is available on various sites like http://www.trailerlife.com/trailer-towing-guides/.

[Heavy Half Ton]

Great insight. I just priced out a EcoBoost HDPP and it came out to $30 less than a similarly optioned F-250 gasser. I understand the OP's reluctance to go the SuperDuty route but I'd suggest test driving one before making a decision. Some additional research will show that the F-250s holds their resale value slightly higher than the F-150s.

Thanks. I went with the 150 HDPP, because 95% of my driving is commuting 130 miles every other week. I really don’t care for the way the super duties drive. Also, we plan on state parks, and many require max length to be 30’, which is in the HDPPs game plan. I enjoy 22 to 23 mpg on the commute. The SD would be almost half that.

[pjmjunior]

Thanks. I went with the 150 HDPP, because 95% of my driving is commuting 130 miles every other week. I really don’t care for the way the super duties drive. Also, we plan on state parks, and many require max length to be 30’, which is in the HDPPs game plan. I enjoy 22 to 23 mpg on the commute. The SD would be almost half that.

I can't speak for the SD gasser but the only "commute" I ever did in my SD Diesel was the drive back from the dealership in Portland to my home in Bend and I got 19.9mpg. That was the only time I drove the truck with just me in it and nothing in the bed.

[Chiefblueman]

So my plan is to buy slightly used on a used car lot (2016-2018 models, less than 40K miles), not looking to purchase brand new, but will make sure to get something with the HDPP and Max Tow packages.

You guys are really making me start to question the F150 though. I want to do this right the first time, but also need to keep within a reasonable budget. Was hoping to spend around $35K on the truck and $25K on the trailer.

We do plan to make annual trips out west to National Parks as we have 2 boys that we want to create family experiences doing those things. So definitely will be in high winds and mountains once a year. Last thing I want is to under buy the truck and turn around and have to fork up more $ to upgrade something I wish I had known all along. Appreciate the insight and lessons learned.

If buying used, be sure to check the payload sticker on the truck. This is the true and only payload rating for that particular truck. Brochure or online payloads are maximums for minimally equipped trucks. I think your chances of finding a used HDPP package is slim. The payload on a well equipped crew cab F150 with max tow can be well under 2000 lbs.