Decision to make, 2025 Imagine XLS 22MLE VS 23LDE for my truck specifications.

[AndreBeaule]

Hello everyone.
We are looking into buying either a GD Imagine XLS 22MLE or a 23LDE. We would like to have MLE and LDE owners input to help us choose the right RV. I just changed my truck for a new 2023 Ford F150 Lariat Supercrew cab, 6 1/2 feet box with 5.0L engine with Max tow package and 3.73 differential. Attached are my trucks capacity numbers from Ford's towing calculator, which is linked to the truck's VIN, so theses numbers are directly linked to all the options for my truck.

We are leaning more for the 23LDE because (kitchen a little bigger, closed bedroom for more privacy when bringing our grand kids, larger seating on the couch). Since the RV is not yet purchased, we don’t want to make a costly mistake.

Will we be fine and safe and have a nice travel experience with my pickup?

Thank you in advance for all of your inputs.

Andre

 

[redfernclan]

We have a 23lde and pull it with a 23 Sierra 1500 3L. Would not hesitate to pull it anywhere.

 

[AndreBeaule]

We have a 23lde and pull it with a 23 Sierra 1500 3L. Would not hesitate to pull it anywhere.

Thank you for your reply

Do you have a weight distribution hitch?

 

[traveldawg]

Thanks for joining. We have a good group of members here. You will get a lot of helpful information. Beware - we like spending you money on "neat" "stuff"

With that out of the way.... I have a few thoughts I'll share based on past experience with floorpans/lengths but will leave the weight discussions for others. Note: I do not have either of these but have towed TTs extensively with light duty vehicles prior to moving to larger RVs (and they all towed well).

• Many people avoid rear kitchens as the rear of a trailer gets a lot more shaking, rattling and wiggling than the middle or front.
• Be sure to compare wheel base of tow vehicle with the length of the trailer. I'm pretty sure there is some limit to how long a trailer should be towed behind different wheel bases, especially those of light duty vehicles.
• I'd prefer a bathroom that is not directly adjacent to a kitchen.
• I like the idea of 2 entry/exit doors.
• Shorter length gets into far more sites than longer lengths.
• Looking over those XLS floor plans I tend to like the 22RBE.

Like I said, others will join in the discussion. Welcome aboard again, hoping you get some good information to help with your decision.

 

[AndreBeaule]

Thanks for joining. We have a good group of members here. You will get a lot of helpful information. Beware - we like spending you money on "neat" "stuff"

With that out of the way.... I have a few thoughts I'll share based on past experience with floorpans/lengths but will leave the weight discussions for others. Note: I do not have either of these but have towed TTs extensively with light duty vehicles prior to moving to larger RVs (and they all towed well).

• Many people avoid rear kitchens as the rear of a trailer gets a lot more shaking, rattling and wiggling than the middle or front.
• Be sure to compare wheel base of tow vehicle with the length of the trailer. I'm pretty sure there is some limit to how long a trailer should be towed behind different wheel bases, especially those of light duty vehicles.
• I'd prefer a bathroom that is not directly adjacent to a kitchen.
• I like the idea of 2 entry/exit doors.
• Shorter length gets into far more sites than longer lengths.
• Looking over those XLS floor plans I tend to like the 22RBE.

Like I said, others will join in the discussion. Welcome aboard again, hoping you get some good information to help with your decision.

Thank you for your thoughts. Have a great day

 

[redfernclan]

Thank you for your reply

Do you have a weight distribution hitch?

Yes, we went with the "Anderson". Got tired of the bars and greasy noisy stuff. Works OK and easy to use. I don't think it takes as much weight as the ones with the bars though.

 

[AndreBeaule]

Yes, we went with the "Anderson". Got tired of the bars and greasy noisy stuff. Works OK and easy to use. I don't think it takes as much weight as the ones with the bars though.

Thanks for your reply, I am also planning to go with the Anderson. All in all, the total weight of the Anderson WDH is lighter then the WDH with bars.

 

[redfernclan]

Thanks for your reply, I am also planning to go with the Anderson. All in all, the total weight of the Anderson WDH is lighter then the WDH with bars.

I also like that it is quickly adjustable if it is not riding well. short trip, long trip. Fully loaded tanks or running light. There are a few tricks to hooking it up if your not square with the RV. Easy to figure out but if you get them both and have issues, be sure to ask for help. Lots of knowledgeable folks on the site wanting to help.

 

[AndreBeaule]

I also like that it is quickly adjustable if it is not riding well. short trip, long trip. Fully loaded tanks or running light. There are a few tricks to hooking it up if your not square with the RV. Easy to figure out but if you get them both and have issues, be sure to ask for help. Lots of knowledgeable folks on the site wanting to help.

Thank you again.

Have a great day

 

[Riverbug]

We have a 23lde and pull it with a 23 Sierra 1500 3L. Would not hesitate to pull it anywhere.

Curious what your actual tongue weight is? Have you taken yours to a scale while loaded?

 

[Riverbug]

Welcome! We had a 2022 22MLE for 1.5 years (purchased June 2021), then opted to get a 2023 23LDE (purchased Jan 2023). At the time we purchased the 22MLE, the LDE wasn't released yet and had we known it was coming we would have waited.

We liked the MLE very much. The main issues were; we didn't like the door being at the foot of the bed. Not fun getting up in the middle of the night and stepping on the front rug and having sand stick to your feet. Walking into the front door and always having the bed right there. I go out the door early in the morning with my coffee and wife is still in bed, right there. Very small bathroom, less than 2' square in front of toilet, cabinet, and shower. Makes it difficult for a tall or wide person to get dressed after a shower. I had to face the shower otherwise, I there wasn't enough room to get my pants on.

The LDE is a bit longer, vastly larger bathroom, bedroom separation, larger sofa. Heavier with same suspension so you lose cargo carrying capacity. Personally, I wouldn't go back to the MLE after having the LDE.

Regarding towing, the LDE is significantly heavier on the tongue, mainly due to the fact that the shower and toilet are in front of the axles, whereas the tanks are all behind the axles on the MLE. The fresh water on the LDE is over and slightly behind the rear axle and the galley is at the very back. But assuming you use the bathroom while traveling you will almost always have something in those tanks. I installed an off-grid system with 4 - 280AH batteries. The tongue weight was higher than stated on our paperwork before we loaded anything. With the things I've added, we're running nearly 17% on the tongue. On this trip to Alaska for the summer we recently found that the A-frame is now distorted and cracked (that will be a separate post at some point). Not saying you'll have the issue, just a point to consider your trucks payload and potential tongue weight of the LDE vs MLE.

Most likely you'll be very happy with whichever model you choose. Have fun exploring them and with your purchase!

 

[AndreBeaule]

Curious what your actual tongue weight is? Have you taken yours to a scale while loaded?

Sorry, I am in the decision and info acquiring phase. Purchase will be in spring 2025. This is why I am asking for input from all of you before I do the purchase. So to your question, sorry to say that I don’t know.

 

[redfernclan]

Curious what your actual tongue weight is? Have you taken yours to a scale while loaded?

No I have not. I'll be honest, hooked it up, didn't squat a lot. Put on the WDH and off we went. As I loaded the trailer, it seemed to tow better, and tows the best with a full tank of fresh water. The 1500 Sierra was and upgrade from the Canyon and towed much better so have never been concerned about tongue weight. Too little and it would be wagging the dog, too much and it would be squatting the truck. I suppose I should check it just to be sure. Again, just being honest.

 

[Riverbug]

No I have not. I'll be honest, hooked it up, didn't squat a lot. Put on the WDH and off we went. As I loaded the trailer, it seemed to tow better, and tows the best with a full tank of fresh water. The 1500 Sierra was and upgrade from the Canyon and towed much better so have never been concerned about tongue weight. Too little and it would be wagging the dog, too much and it would be squatting the truck. I suppose I should check it just to be sure. Again, just being honest.

Not at all, appreciate the honesty. I think most people don't ever weigh. I only ask because our paperwork said it was 597# from the factory. Then adding propane and everything else it will go up naturally. But ours seems way too heavy on the front for what we have loaded and I didn't weight it immediately when we brought it home so now there's no way to corroborate if it weighed more than what was stated on the paperwork. The best I can do now is completely unload it and see what it weighs without any extras, but I've added an off-grid system that I'm not going to remove at this point. But we're 17% on the tongue and overweight on GVWR. Anyway, I was just curious if others found their runs heavier than they would have expected...

 

[Riverbug]

Sorry, I am in the decision and info acquiring phase. Purchase will be in spring 2025. This is why I am asking for input from all of you before I do the purchase. So to your question, sorry to say that I don’t know.

Yep, no problem. My question was actually directed to @redfernclan based on his post...

 

[AndreBeaule]

After alot of research, YouTube viewing, comment reading and reviews, this is what I came up and will be doing when I will purchase our Grand Design XLS 23LDE.

1 - I will install the RAS spring system (Road Active Suspension), the HD model for my 2023 F150 Lariat.
2 - I will use and install the Anderson Weight Distribution/anti-sway system.

These two systems are very easy to install our selves and will probably maximize the road handling experience of the RV + truck. Even though all weights (hitch, payload and GVWR of the truck) are all below the limits of the truck. Like my mechanic father in law always says (stronger never brakes ?).

Do any of you already have this setup on your equipments? If so, what is your take on it? Thanks ahead for your inputs.

Just found this thread… seems someone else also had the same question earlier this year.

Towing with a Ford F-150

We are newbies to RVing. We own a 2023 Ford F150 4x4 supercrew XLT 5.0 V8 with a max tow package. 3.73 axle. GVWR:7050 GCWR:18,400 Max Payload:1823 Max towing 13,000 Front GAWR:3525 Rear GAWR: 3800. We are considering buying a Grand Design Imagine XLS 23LDE UVW: 5597 Hitch:524...

www.mygrandrv.com

 

[redfernclan]

Not sure what Ford has, but a lot of the newer GM trucks have an "anti-sway" feature. Works with the traction control and anti lock brakes to detect sway and apply the brakes to negate it. Wondered why I needed rear brake pads at 65,000 miles when the front ones were still at 70%.

 

[AndreBeaule]

Not sure what Ford has, but a lot of the newer GM trucks have an "anti-sway" feature. Works with the traction control and anti lock brakes to detect sway and apply the brakes to negate it. Wondered why I needed rear brake pads at 65,000 miles when the front ones were still at 70%.

Ford has the same feature when the Tow/haul driving mode is selected.

 

[Wileykid]

Not sure what Ford has, but a lot of the newer GM trucks have an "anti-sway" feature. Works with the traction control and anti lock brakes to detect sway and apply the brakes to negate it. Wondered why I needed rear brake pads at 65,000 miles when the front ones were still at 70%.

The "anti-sway" system is standard in all the new trucks (Ford/GMC/RAM) for about the last 5-6 years with the factory installed trailer brake system.

If your rear brake is wearing faster, maybe the trailer brake gain is not adjusted right. With about 30,000 miles on my Chevy 3500, and about 16,000 miles of it towing 15,000 lbs, there is about a 5% difference showing on my brake pad life.

 

[Mike_Z]

Ford has the same feature when the Tow/haul driving mode is selected.

My 22 Ram has it also. Pp 322-3 of the manual.