What toy hauler can I pull with 2018 F-250 Diesel? Recs???

[viperfam4]

We are in the market for a toy hauler.  Just got a 2018 F250 Diesel short bed 4WD.  We have a TT and are looking to purchase a TH.  I have been researching, and I'm having a hard time finding something NICE in a decent size (35-40') that we can tow.  I LOVE Grand Design toy haulers. They are my first choice, but it looks like I may be out of luck with their toy haulers due to weight.  Recs for comparable toy haulers that will work for us?  New truck is NOT an option. 

Thanks!

 

[Ranger smith1]

We used to have a Montana Toy Hauler a 347THT. It was 36' long and pulled nicely with my 2500 I had.

 

[viperfam4]

Thanks.  I'll check that out. 

Anyone else?

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

The F250 is limited in cargo capacity needed to handle the pin weight of a larger 5W.  Estimate the pin weight as 20% of the trailer GVWR and you will be quite close to reality.  I think you will find that most toyhaulers in the 35-40 ft range have pin weights between 3200 and 4000 lbs, probably more than your F250 can cope with.

To find the cargo capacity of your particular F250, look at the "yellow sticker" on the driver door frame.  It's probably not all yellow, but the yellow should stand out and it says Tire & Loading Information or something close to that.  Remember, though, that the truck has to carry its passenger as well as the trailer pin weight.
F250 owners are often disappointed to learn that their truck could PULL a big 5W but cannot carry the weight it places on the truck bed.  Heck, an F250 diesel can probably pull a mountain down the road, but many of them have less than 3000 lbs of cargo capacity.

 

[triplethreat]

My 2011 F250 CrewCab, 4x4, S.B., Diesel XLT (not many options, like the Lariat or King Ranch) had a payload capacity of a measly 2148 lbs.  So in real numbers, a 10,000 lb GVWR 55ver, plus a 175 lb 5ver hitch, put it over the payload capacity, without adding anything else like passengers, firewood, tools, etc.  Anything and everything that goes in or on the truck counts against your payload capacity number.

A trailer the size you are thinking about will have pin weights well over your payload capacity without question.

I ended up buying a 35' tow behind T.H instead of a 5ver, that has a GVWR of 13K and a hitch weight in the 1350 lb range.  That was about all I could do at the time.  I still have the T.H., but I now have a Crew Cab Dually and have lots of extra payload capacity if I should decide to buy a bigger trailer/5ver.

 

[viperfam4]

Thanks for your help.  I'm pretty upset that our F250 can handle so much less than I thought it could. 

 

[gravesdiesel1]

I know you said you were against it, but you caan upgrade to a 350/3500 SRW for not much extra $.  I am looking at getting the Grand Design Momentum 351M to upgrade from my current TT.  I have a 3500 but have a 4500 on order.

 

[viperfam4]

I really want the 351M as well.  Bad thing is, we JUST bought our truck.  Like a month ago.  Weren't really thinking about getting rid of our 34' TT at the time, but now we are.  Just really bad timing.  I'm afraid we would lose a ton of money on the truck if we were to trade it in for the 350.  I honestly don't know what to do.  It really stinks. 

 

[Gods Country]

I really want the 351M as well.  Bad thing is, we JUST bought our truck.  Like a month ago.  Weren't really thinking about getting rid of our 34' TT at the time, but now we are.  Just really bad timing.  I'm afraid we would lose a ton of money on the truck if we were to trade it in for the 350.  I honestly don't know what to do.  It really stinks.

You asked the right questions before jumping into something your truck can't carry.  That doesn't stink one bit. )


More often then not it's the other way around and hurt feelings because people cannot believe their TV cannot do what they thought it could.

 

[Yonderm8]

FWIW  ... for 4 years I towed a 36' heavy, Arctic Fox all over the country with 2012 F250 diesel. Some here will call me careless and I may have been ignorant but we went coast to coast several times and put 70,000 miles on both doing so. I bought the truck because a neighbor pulls his 5er with one. He also pulls a boat behind the 5er. Neither of us ever had any problems of any kind. I did put an air lift on the rear axle to be able to adjust bed height. ... just sayin

 

[triplethreat]

There are a lot of people that tow overloaded, anywhere from slightly overloaded all the way to......OMG Overloaded.  That still doesn't make it safe or the right thing to do

 

[martin2340]

Thanks for your help.  I'm pretty upset that our F250 can handle so much less than I thought it could. 

I too was in the same boat as you. I went to the RV show in Hershey PA after purchasing a 2017 Diesel F-250 Lariat only to find out I had only a payload of 2,320 lbs.

 

[martin2340]

I know you said you were against it, but you caan upgrade to a 350/3500 SRW for not much extra $. 

I thought the same thing in upgrading and you are right except for one thing, trade in value. They offered me over $10,000 less than what I bought it for 3 months later with 2,600 miles on it and I got what I felt was a great deal when purchased.

 

[viperfam4]

I too was in the same boat as you. I went to the RV show in Hershey PA after purchasing a 2017 Diesel F-250 Lariat only to find out I had only a payload of 2,320 lbs.

That's our truck, but a 2018.  Maybe 800 miles now?  Grrrr.

 

[triplethreat]

I hate to admit it, but I made the same mistake back in Oct. 2010 when I bought my F250 (the one I talked about in post 4 above).  Back then I knew next to nothing about towing a heavy trailer and just figured that I could buy a 3/4T with the 6.7 Diesel and could probably pull about anything I wanted to buy.  I was going to buy the truck (I had an enclosed trailer that I hauled our race bikes in) and then in 2016 or 2017, buy my dream 36-38' Toyhauler.  In October 2016, a serious case of REALITY set in when I started looking at 38' 5vers and the amount of pin weight that they had.....even empty.  They were all 500, 600, or more over my payload of the F250 that I had bought and loved.  The rest is history.

 

[steveblonde]

Sorry but your 250 is going to be seriously overloaded so you have a couple of real options
A - trade and get a 350
B- call standens and find a shop to install extra springs and a engineering co and get the truck re certified about $2000.00
C forget the 5er, that 250 will pull a really really nice toy hauler bumper pull
Cheers

 

[triplethreat]

"C" is the option that I took!

 

[grashley]

Go for option C.  While a FW puts 20% of its weight on the truck, a bumper pull TT TH will only place 10 - 12% on the truck.  It can SAFELY pull twice the TT TH as it can a FW TH.

You have a great truck.  Now you need to find the right TT to put behind it!

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I've known a couple people who tow large fivers with F250/2500 trucks.  Grossly overloading the truck suspension and yes, they do have wear & tear problems with the trucks. They truck doen't fall apart on Day One, but they do suffer.  I'm not suggesting you do this, but I know you are going to see and hear that "other people do it".  Folks will tell you a 250 chassis is exactly the same of a 350, and to some extent that is true. You need to get down to the details to note where the differences lie.

The biggest problem area is the rear axle suspension and tires. That's the limiting factor on a 250 carrying capacity.  You need to look closely at the trucks Tire & Carrying placard and at the ratings for the rear GAWR and the tires themselves (max carrying is embossed right on the sidewall). 

 

[gravesdiesel1]

Sorry but your 250 is going to be seriously overloaded so you have a couple of real options
A - trade and get a 350
B- call standens and find a shop to install extra springs and a engineering co and get the truck re certified about $2000.00
C forget the 5er, that 250 will pull a really really nice toy hauler bumper pull
Cheers

I would go for "A" but would also consider "B". 
You rarely hear of anyone going from a fifth wheel to a travel trailer, but you often hear of folks going travel trailer to fifth wheel.  Gooseneck/fifth wheel trailers pull more stable, turn sharper, are easier to back and offer shorter overall length for the same amount of interior living space.