Please help. Between kz connect model c303RL and highland ridge Mesa Ridge model mr2910rl. Any big up or downsides to either? First travel trailer for me and my wife. Will be working from trailer and following our son in college as he travels playing baseball. Thanks in advance for your help
Picking between two travel trailers
- Thread starter Wayne C
- Start date
The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an RV or an interest in RVing!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Pugapooh
Well-known member
Are these new or used? What is your tow vehicle? Payload and towing limit?
What about Trailer weight?
What about Trailer weight?
darsben
Well-known member
Pugapooh said:
Good questions specially payload capacity. Numbers are on a sticker near drivers door
Arch Hoagland
Well-known member
In addition to Pugapooh's questions I add....Have you ever had an RV?
It appears they are both about 30 foot trailers which will require a 3/4 ton truck to pull them safely.
It appears they are both about 30 foot trailers which will require a 3/4 ton truck to pull them safely.
Arch Hoagland
Well-known member
The layout you like the best is usually suggested.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EMUW-vGYX8 Highland
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-xfcs9xlts KZ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EMUW-vGYX8 Highland
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-xfcs9xlts KZ
Pugapooh
Well-known member
12,200 for your truck,from the sticker in the driver side door area? Any after factory modifications? The weight gurus can help you figure out what your truck can safely handle. The weight of passengers and all the stuff in the truck matters too.
I'm no expert on the payloads,etc but 12200 seems like too much for a 150.
Thanks for researching before you buy.
I'm no expert on the payloads,etc but 12200 seems like too much for a 150.
Thanks for researching before you buy.
I wouldn't pull anything longer than 25' with a F150, no way, no how. Too big of sail in the wind for that truck. Go read the thousands of posts on this topic in this forum. Glad you came here before buying, there is a lot more to the equation than you may have thought.
darsben
Well-known member
MAYBE you can tow 12,200 IF I repeat IF you do not exceed the PAYLOAD rating of the truck. The payload rating of the truck is one of the factors you need to take into consideration. Payload is determined by the weight of everything you put in or on the truck. This includes 10-12% of trailer weight plus all passengers, animals, tools, adult beverage, etc. It is usually the most limiting factor. SO you can listen to the salesman who tells you what you want to hear OR you can let us know what the PAYLOAD of your truck is. Find it on the sticker near the drivers door. Take a picture and post it
Gary RV_Wizard
Site Team
You are going to get a lot of feedback that says you probably shouldn't choose either one, or at least should investigate length & weights more thoroughly. I'll leave those very valid concerns to others, but I suspect an analysis will show they are both OK, though perhaps pushing the limits of good sense.
The choice between any two RVs of the same type boils down to which one suits your lifestyle and needs the best. An RV is first & foremost a house, and a furnished one at that, so it has to meet your living needs and provide the degree of comfort and amenities you want. A too small bathroom, an awkward tv viewing angle, or inadequate storage space can ruin your experience even if the quality is superb (it won't be) and the trailer tows like a dream.
You mentioned working from the trailer, but neither of those floor plans seem to offer much in the way of working space. Basically either the dinette or seated on a sofa. If that's what your work requires, all well and good. If you need internet and phone service, you also want to work out plans for that, not always easy or reliable when living in an RV.
The choice between any two RVs of the same type boils down to which one suits your lifestyle and needs the best. An RV is first & foremost a house, and a furnished one at that, so it has to meet your living needs and provide the degree of comfort and amenities you want. A too small bathroom, an awkward tv viewing angle, or inadequate storage space can ruin your experience even if the quality is superb (it won't be) and the trailer tows like a dream.
You mentioned working from the trailer, but neither of those floor plans seem to offer much in the way of working space. Basically either the dinette or seated on a sofa. If that's what your work requires, all well and good. If you need internet and phone service, you also want to work out plans for that, not always easy or reliable when living in an RV.
I appreciate everyone?s input but I want to reiterate this truck specifically has a special towing package. Feel free to look on Fords site. 3.5 liter V-6. Special front and rear suspensions designed to tow up to 12,700 pound. With that being said these two trailers are between 7-8,000 pounds. We have no plans to go above that amount. I don?t understand how ford can sell a product like this if it isn?t true
darsben
Well-known member
Let me give you a radical example Take an trailer with its wheel all the way in the back. It will put much more load on the tow vehicle than a trailer with tires in the center.
So the choice is yours look and get educated or do not look on the door frame for the PAYLOAD CAPACITY
I am just trying to educate you..
I was going to look your figures up but the Ford guide requires the tire size 15, 17 or 18 inch wheels
So the choice is yours look and get educated or do not look on the door frame for the PAYLOAD CAPACITY
I am just trying to educate you..
I was going to look your figures up but the Ford guide requires the tire size 15, 17 or 18 inch wheels
Optimistic Paranoid
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jan 19, 2013
- Posts
- 355
Wayne C said:
It's true, but . . .
Keep in mind that all manufacturers, both the truck and the trailer manufacturers, play numbers games for marketing purposes. "Our truck can tow more weight than Brand X can!" The F150 can tow up to 12,700 pounds provided there is nothing in the truck but the driver.
Here's the way it works in the real world.
The Curb Weight of the truck - which is it's empty weight with a full tank of gas and all other fluids, anti-freeze, etc. PLUS the weight of all passengers, including the family dog if he's along, PLUS the weight of all cargo - suitcases, a generator you are carrying in the bed, whatever, PLUS the Tongue Weight of the trailer you are pulling EQUALS the Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW). This is what the truck actually weighs, when fully loaded and pulling the trailer. It must be LESS than the truck's Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) which you will find on a sticker near the driver's door. This is the Maximum Weight the design engineers say it can carry.
Now do the same thing for the trailer. The base weight of the trailer, plus the weight of all options. (Got an air conditioner on the roof? Odds are the manufacturer didn't include it's weight in the published base weight. They like to advertise the lowest weight they can. It's better for sales.)
So the trailer with all options PLUS full water tank, full LP gas tanks, PLUS all the weight of all your clothes, bedding, food, pots and pans, etc. EQUALS the actual Gross Vehicle Weight of the trailer. (and there is probably a sticker inside one of the cabinets telling you what the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating of the Trailer is, which is the most weight the axles and springs are rated to handle.
Now add the GVWs of the truck and the trailer together and you'll have the Gross Combined Weight. The Ford Towing guide for 2018 lists the Gross Combined Weight Rating for your truck as 17,000 lbs when pulling a trailer. In other words, it can only pull 12,700 lbs if the actual weight of the fully loaded truck itself is 4,300 lbs or less.
Oh, and on page 15 of the towing guide it discuses Frontal Area limitations, which in your case is 60 square feet. The Towing Guide is here:
https://www.fleet.ford.com/resources/ford/general/pdf/towingguides/Ford_Linc_18RV&TTowGuide_r8_May15.pdf
Btw, the same sticker on your truck that lists your GVWR will also list your Gross Axle Ratings (GAR) which is the maximum weight each axle can carry, yet another thing to keep in mind.
You might want to take your fully loaded truck to your nearest CAT scale and get your actual numbers, both front and back. And don't forget to add your anticipated Tongue Weight to the rear figure.
https://catscale.com/
The Escapees Club has a program called Smart Weigh which weighs your vehicle on individual scales and gives you the actual weight each wheel is carrying. They've got good info on this site:
https://www.escapees.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/182-smartweighpamphlet-web-0415.pdf
BoomerD
Well-known member
I have a 2018 F150 that's rated to tow 10,700 lbs...but the payload capacity is only 1851 lbs.
Payload includes passengers, tow hitch, tongue weight of the towed vehicle, any cargo in the bed, pets, etc.
Payload includes passengers, tow hitch, tongue weight of the towed vehicle, any cargo in the bed, pets, etc.
brclark82
Well-known member
Mesa Ridge has an UVW of 6500 and a GVR of 8500, 29 foot trailer that is 33.5' pin to rear
KZ is UVW 6500 and GVR of 8300, 30' trailer that is 35' pin to rear
Chances are you will be in the 900lb tongue weight range after its loaded, make that 1000lbs after WD hitch just to make it easy. Depending on trim your truck probably has around 1500-1700lb payload capacity (if you look at the sticker in your door panel you will know exactly what this number is).
That means you have between 500-700lbs for people/cargo in the bed before you max it out. You may very well be within this range but its still good to know for sure.
As far as the trailers, the layout is very similar and I would say quality between those 2 brands is also similar. It doesn't even look like there are any features/options that really set one apart from the other.
On a trailer that length, I would recommend the 2nd AC in the bedroom. This is an option on either trailer and while something you can add later I would at least make sure I got the 50 amp upgrade.
KZ is UVW 6500 and GVR of 8300, 30' trailer that is 35' pin to rear
Chances are you will be in the 900lb tongue weight range after its loaded, make that 1000lbs after WD hitch just to make it easy. Depending on trim your truck probably has around 1500-1700lb payload capacity (if you look at the sticker in your door panel you will know exactly what this number is).
That means you have between 500-700lbs for people/cargo in the bed before you max it out. You may very well be within this range but its still good to know for sure.
As far as the trailers, the layout is very similar and I would say quality between those 2 brands is also similar. It doesn't even look like there are any features/options that really set one apart from the other.
On a trailer that length, I would recommend the 2nd AC in the bedroom. This is an option on either trailer and while something you can add later I would at least make sure I got the 50 amp upgrade.
