Ford Ranger handling issues towing Rockwood MiniLite

[Don_88]

Hi everyone! We just took our first real trip with our travel trailer, and the 4.5 hour drive gave us some real problems. First, I could not really go any faster than 60-63 MPH without this problem, and I could not identify what was causing it.

The problem was that driving felt like the trailer was pushing my truck around, or that I was driving into a headwind coming at my driver's front corner or my passenger's front corner. It did not feel like a trailer sway, and in fact, the trailer looked like it was tracking fine. However, I felt like I was fighting something and was constantly having to keep adjusting my steering wheel left and right up to 2-3 inches at a time.

I am not talking about the pressure wave from 18-wheelers--that I could handle, but I felt like I had to make those same adjustments even where nothing was beside me. Only when I was in the 50's or slower did I feel like I had any control.

Now here are the specifics:
I was driving a 2019 Ford Ranger with tow package (which is stated at 7500 lbs, with 750 lbs tongue). I was pulling a 2026 Rockwood MiniLite 2109S. These are connected with a Blue Ox SwayPro 1000 WDH. (Note, this is my first big-box trailer; I previously pulled a large pop-up around for a few years, and even went to Colorado and back to NJ and hardly noticed I had anything behind me.)

I have attached pictures of the various weight and tires labels from the truck and from the trailer, as well as my CAT scale weighings of (1) the truck only (with the hitch in the bed), (2) the truck and trailer, but without the WDH bars, and (3) the truck and trailer all hooked up for travel. We had what we would consider a normal week-long trip loaded up here.
So for this long message, I am hoping that some of you towing experts can take a look to give me some ideas of why I was fighting so much during this drive. I expect all the numbers are here, but I am not sure how to put them all together to tell me what was good or not. Thanks in advance!

I asked also in a Facebook group, but I got all sorts of answers, and I am hoping for more clarity here from some folks who are more knowledgeable.

Don Johnson
Lafayette, NJ

 

[bigbAZ]

Looks like you're pretty close to GVWR, maybe over depending on if the passengers were loaded in on those weights and fuel/supplies etc. You are a bit over on frontal area which is limited to 55 square feet on the Rangers per Ford, the frontal area on the Rockwood is 80-82 square feet.

IMO you are bumping up against the limits of the truck.

Tell us about your tires, type and load range etc and pressures.

 

[Kirk]

The first thing that I will point out is that your new trailer has far more frontal area to act like you were dragging around a large sail, so that factor will be far greater than was the case for the popup. That same thing is true for the sides of the trailer. In both cases that area has more than doubled so both drag and side effects have also doubled. We need to know more about the Ranger that you tow with. Is it a single cab, or possibly a 4 door crew cab, short or long box? The wheelbase of the tow vehicle is important to the handling of the trailer.

The standard rule of thumb for matching a tow vehicle's wheelbase to a travel trailer or RV length is known as the 110-20 guideline: Base size:
A 110-inch wheelbase handles a 20-foot trailer.
Scaling up: Add 4 inches of vehicle wheelbase for every extra 1 foot of trailer length.
130-inch wheelbase: Accommodates about a 25-foot trailer.
150-inch wheelbase: Accommodates about a 28-foot trailer.
A shorter vehicle wheelbase is easily pushed around by a longer trailer when wind or bumps cause sway. A longer wheelbase resists twisting and masks the push from the trailer, keeping the setup stable.

 

[Ex-Calif]

Your combined weight is 10400.

Your truck is 5200 so your trailer is also 5200. When hitched there is 4560 on the trailer axle so 640 tongue weight which is 12.3% and probably OK.

The internet says your wheelbase is 128 inches which fits Kirk's rule.

However with 2380 and 3600 on the steer and drive axles you get 5980 gvw. This is very close to the 6050 mgvwr of your truck.

You are also very biased to the rear axle making the front light.

Add windage and bottom line is that you are at the limits of your truck.

You can't move weight rearward because the hitch will get too light.

Unless I'm doing math wrong I think you're stuck.

Edit - Follow up question. Are you carrying anything in the truck bed? It seems weird that only 640 lbs will max out your truck total weight.

 

[Don_88]

Looks like you're pretty close to GVWR, maybe over depending on if the passengers were loaded in on those weights and fuel/supplies etc. You are a bit over on frontal area which is limited to 55 square feet on the Rangers per Ford, the frontal area on the Rockwood is 80-82 square feet.

IMO you are bumping up against the limits of the truck.

Tell us about your tires, type and load range etc and pressures.

My truck tires are:
Front: Bridgestone Dueler A/T RH-S DOT Date: 3619 Max load 2337# at 51psi / Treadwear:400 Traction:B Temp:B
Rear: Michelin Defender LTX M/S2 DOT Date: 2425 Max load 2601# at 50psi / Treadwear: 820 Traction:B Temp: A

 

[Don_88]

Your combined weight is 10400.

Your truck is 5200 so your trailer is also 5200. When hitched there is 4560 on the trailer axle so 640 tongue weight which is 12.3% and probably OK.

The internet says your wheelbase is 128 inches which fits Kirk's rule.

However with 2380 and 3600 on the steer and drive axles you get 5980 gvw. This is very close to the 6050 mgvwr of your truck.

You are also very biased to the rear axle making the front light.

Add windage and bottom line is that you are at the limits of your truck.

You can't move weight rearward because the hitch will get too light.

Unless I'm doing math wrong I think you're stuck.

Edit - Follow up question. Are you carrying anything in the truck bed? It seems weird that only 640 lbs will max out your truck total weight.

We didn't have much in the truck...we had a toolbox (maybe 40-50#), a 10x10 canopy (maybe 30-40#), 3 or 4 folding chairs, and a medium-sized cooler to cover a meal and snacks for the drive.

 

[Don_88]

The first thing that I will point out is that your new trailer has far more frontal area to act like you were dragging around a large sail, so that factor will be far greater than was the case for the popup. That same thing is true for the sides of the trailer. In both cases that area has more than doubled so both drag and side effects have also doubled. We need to know more about the Ranger that you tow with. Is it a single cab, or possibly a 4 door crew cab, short or long box? The wheelbase of the tow vehicle is important to the handling of the trailer.

The standard rule of thumb for matching a tow vehicle's wheelbase to a travel trailer or RV length is known as the 110-20 guideline: Base size:
A 110-inch wheelbase handles a 20-foot trailer.
Scaling up: Add 4 inches of vehicle wheelbase for every extra 1 foot of trailer length.
130-inch wheelbase: Accommodates about a 25-foot trailer.
150-inch wheelbase: Accommodates about a 28-foot trailer.
A shorter vehicle wheelbase is easily pushed around by a longer trailer when wind or bumps cause sway. A longer wheelbase resists twisting and masks the push from the trailer, keeping the setup stable.

I should have mentioned this earlier - sorry about that!
This is a 2019 Ranger XLT Supercab - the extended cab with the min-doors to get in the back seat, not the crew cab. It also has a 6-foot bed.

 

[Ex-Calif]

We didn't have much in the truck...we had a toolbox (maybe 40-50#), a 10x10 canopy (maybe 30-40#), 3 or 4 folding chairs, and a medium-sized cooler to cover a meal and snacks for the drive.

400 in pax, 108 in 18 gallons of gas and 200 in incidentals is about 708 pounds. Add 650 in tongue weight and at 1360 you are closing in on your 1554 pound payload.

 

[Derby6]

Numbers seem to indicate your OK--But I just hate pulling with a vehicle that small and light; especially when the trailer out weighs the tow vehicle.

That being said, how level are you? It is possible that you have overtightened the Blue Ox SwayPro 1000 WDH to where you were rear end drive tires of truck had little to no weight on it. NOTE--If the adjustable hitch is set at wrong height you could be "level" but the rear end still have little to no weight on it. OR it possibly could be the opposite, where you have too much on the truck.

 

[bigbAZ]

My truck tires are:
Front: Bridgestone Dueler A/T RH-S DOT Date: 3619 Max load 2337# at 51psi / Treadwear:400 Traction:B Temp:B
Rear: Michelin Defender LTX M/S2 DOT Date: 2425 Max load 2601# at 50psi / Treadwear: 820 Traction:B Temp: A

Those are both SL load range which are common on passenger cars and SUVs. They give a softer ride but the cost of that ride is a flexible, squishy sidewall. Going to a true load range C truck tire would probably mitigate that constant squishy feeling in the steering you are getting, especially since you are so close to or over your max numbers.

 

[Arch Hoagland]

What is the tires actual size? 14", 15", 16"?

 

[Don_88]

What is the tires actual size? 14", 15", 16"?

They are 17"

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

We didn't have much in the truck...we had a toolbox (maybe 40-50#), a 10x10 canopy (maybe 30-40#), 3 or 4 folding chairs, and a medium-sized cooler to cover a meal and snacks for the drive.

Don't forget the driver & passenger(s). They are cargo (payload) too. It all counts toward the truck GVWR.

Others have explained in some detail, so I'll just repeat the bottom line: you are pushing the limits of the truck with that trailer so it's not surprising the ride & handling are coming up short. I'll also add that you should not expect to exceed 60-62 mph towing a boxy trailer. Even slower would be better. Wind resistance increases with the square of the speed, so even an extra 2-3 mph will have a noticeable effect. SLOW DOWN!

 

[Ex-Calif]

I've been noodling your situation more.

Are you sure the wdh is adjusted properly?

You've had a 400# shift from the front axle to the rear axle. 2780 to 2380.

My understanding is the wdh is supposed to mitigate most, if not all front end lift.

Take a look at this video.

Are you seeing measurable squat? How much in inches?

You'll still be near gross weight but with a more distributed load you'll ride better.

Also I agree partially with Gary. I drive 62 but that's for fuel burn. 11.3 vs >10 at 70mph.

But even if you are not swaying at 62 you should be able to drive faster.

Link - WDH Adjustment explained

 

[Domo]

Ask someone to follow you and VERIFY it is not sway due to weight balance of the new trailer.

Verify proper WDH tension.

 

[Kirk]

This is a 2019 Ranger XLT Supercab

The wheelbase of the 2019 Ford Ranger is 126.8 inches (3,220 mm) for all US-market configurations.

First 110" gets 20'
Another 16.8" is about 4' more or an ideal of no more than 24' in trailer length.

 

[CharlesinGA]

Combined wt 10480
minus truck only 5200
Available payload 850

10480 combined wt
-5200 truck alone
=5280 trailer wt
-4500 axle wt
=780 tongue weight.

Truck is overloaded. as you can only put 70 lbs in it to reach trucks GVWR

Trucks Rear axle gross wt is 3370 lbs
It scales at 3600 lbs (230 lbs over)

Your combined weight is 10400.

Your truck is 5200 so your trailer is also 5200. When hitched there is 4560 on the trailer axle so 640 tongue weight which is 12.3% and probably OK.

The internet says your wheelbase is 128 inches which fits Kirk's rule.

However with 2380 and 3600 on the steer and drive axles you get 5980 gvw. This is very close to the 6050 mgvwr of your truck.

You are also very biased to the rear axle making the front light.

Add windage and bottom line is that you are at the limits of your truck.

You can't move weight rearward because the hitch will get too light.

Unless I'm doing math wrong I think you're stuck.

Edit - Follow up question. Are you carrying anything in the truck bed? It seems weird that only 640 lbs will max out your truck total weight.

Check your numbers again. (ignore the numbers from the third weigh with the weight bars connected, they are meaningless with the exception of knowing how much weight is moved to the front axle, but this is much better determined with a tape measure)

 

[Don_88]

Thank you, everyone for your advice here. It looks like I am bumping my head on the ceiling of my limits, and now I am going to start looking to a vehicle step-up, as we want to do a cross-country trip next year...

 

[Ex-Calif]

Thank you, everyone for your advice here. It looks like I am bumping my head on the ceiling of my limits, and now I am going to start looking to a vehicle step-up, as we want to do a cross-country trip next year...

Expensive but good decision.

Check specs carefully but in general avoid 4X4 (unnecessary weight) and look for a long bed (generally higher payload).

I'm very happy with my 5.7 Ram 1500 quad cab long bed. I've put 90k trouble free miles on it and it tows my 6600 lb 25 footer a dream.

8600 towing, 1800 payload and 15,000 mcgvwr.

 

[Derby6]

but in general avoid 4X4 (unnecessary weight)

If you live and stay south 100% this may be good advice. Otherwise a 4x4 could be a much better option.
Not sure where OP lives or travel plans.