Towing Questions...Help

[newhornetowner]

Can I safely pull my 2006 Keystone Hornet 31bhs rated at 7200lbs with a 2012 Ford E150 Cargo van rated at 7500lbs with a electric brake controller? I live in Florida and we have no hills to deal with.....Any help would be appreciated :)

[labs4life]

Without any further info.... My guess is yes, just not safely. I think you will be over on most if not all of the specs on that van. That is a fairly long trailer as well, which will cause a big problem with sway. The shorter wheelbase of the van is not conducive to that long a TT.
just my opinion based on the information.

[rode2nowhere]

x2, too much with too little

[KanTC]

Here's the brochure for 2006 models... the weight you're quoting is the trailer's empty/dry weight.
Once loaded, the trailer will be more weight than your van is rated to tow. Not safely, IMHO.

http://www.rvusa.com/specbase/pictures/%7BB808B6E2-AB0A-4A38-9C8E-0384741B9FB2%7D_Hornet.pdf


Terri, the Chevy co-pilot :)

[newhornetowner]

Thank you for your speedy responses.....I didnt think that was a good idea....I just thought possibly i could have used it to transport it home from the dealer....:-( Just purchased it thursday and the dealer wants it out by next sunday....so until i can buy a truck that will haul it, I guess I will try looking on something to rent to get it home....thanx for your responses:)

[labs4life]

Glad we could you help you!! That is what the forum is for!

[theeyres]

If the dealer isn't too far away and you don't have to go too fast and it is empty I wouldn't hesitate just hauling it home. Don't think you would have a problem if you take it easy. Just don't try to pull it once you load it up.

[Bob Landry]

I agree you will be fine getting the trailer home. I just wouldn't do any extensive towing with it.

[Outbackmel]

Can I safely pull my 2006 Keystone Hornet 31bhs rated at 7200lbs with a 2012 Ford E150 Cargo van rated at 7500lbs with a electric brake controller? I live in Florida and we have no hills to deal with.....Any help would be appreciated :)

Suggestion: don't make a fast, poor, decision. Any dealer worth dealing with has a few responsible people on call with the right equipment to get the rig to your location. Cheap, no. Less aggravation, yes. Consider your costs of renting the correct equipment, if available, costs of fuel, meals, etc of the 2 way trip and you will likely be close to same cost, if you are honest in your thought process :)

I paid to have my new 5er delivered from Louisville to N Georgia 2 years ago. Gave me time to convince my wife we needed to sell her beautiful high end SUV and buy, OMG, a 2500 series diesel truck. Worked out. Eventually bought her a new Escape Limited, momma's happy, you know the rest :)

Another thing: just because you rent a big vehicle, unless you have a proper hitch set up, even empty, you can have sway.

Good luck on your decision. This experience will define your happiness with the camper for at least a year :)

Previous rv was a 2005 31 ft Hornet super slide bunkhouse model.

[newhornetowner]

ok, was just out looking at trucks for a few hours....anyone know if a Dodge Ram 2010 1500 SLT with a 4.7v8 be plenty to pull to travel with ???

[gepaine]

Can't believe your dealer is pressuring you to take delivery!

If that happened to me, I'd be letting the dealer know that I will be taking my business elsewhere next time!

[labs4life]

ok, was just out looking at trucks for a few hours....anyone know if a Dodge Ram 2010 1500 SLT with a 4.7v8 be plenty to pull to travel with ???

You should have the gvwr of the truck and the trailer. Keep in mind the to the weight of the trailer will be transferred to the truck as part of your payload. Payload is the gvwr-curb weight of the truck. I don't know what that trailer weighs, but say 7500 lbs is accurate your hitch weight will be 13-15% of that number. Payload will be a limiter on a lot of half ton trucks.
Good luck on your search and ask all be questions you want. Keep in mind, the more info you give us, the more accurate the responses will be!!

[newhornetowner]

ok, any info about using a 1995 dodge ram 2500 v10 to pull my 2006 keystone hornet 31bhs ? before i go take a look at it ??:)

[Bob Landry]

ok, was just out looking at trucks for a few hours....anyone know if a Dodge Ram 2010 1500 SLT with a 4.7v8 be plenty to pull to travel with ???

With battery, propane, and cargo in he passthrough, the tongue weight is likely to be around 900 lbs. That aded to passengers and any cargo in the truck is probably going to exceed the capacities of just about any 1/2 ton vehicle. A trailer of that size is really close to 3/4 ton country. I would get out of the 1/2 ton mindset and get something that you can load up and not worry about. That also leaves possibilities for a trailer upgrade in the future

[labs4life]

I looked up the weight for the trailer and it is 7350 dry. Add propane and all the goodies and you could be pushing 8100-8200 pounds. Maybe more depending how much stuff you take. Figuring a 14% tongue weight is 1150 pounds. I can't find any info on the dodge online, but the payload on older 2500 series trucks was much less than the newer ones. This 1150 would be payload for the truck. You would also have to add to this fuel, passengers, firewood, bikes, etc.

Take for instance my f250, a 2002 f250 with a 7.3 powerstroke had a gvwr of 8800#s. my '12 250 with a 6.7 powerstroke has a gvwr of 10k#s. I gained 1200#s off the bat. My truck might be a bit heavier than the '02 but not by 1200lbs.
All that said, I really cant give you a good answer....will it pull it, sure. Will you be within the specs of the truck, I have no idea.

[gepaine]

FYI: The actual hitch weight of a 2006 Keystone Hornet 31bhs is listed by Keystone as 700# (dry). That's approximately 10% of trailer weight - not the 13-15% that others have estimated.

[labs4life]

FYI: The actual hitch weight of a 2006 Keystone Hornet 31bhs is listed by Keystone as 700# (dry). That's approximately 10% of trailer weight - not the 13-15% that others have estimated.

This is correct. But towing a loaded TT with 10% tongue weight is not pleasurable unless you have way more truck than needed. It does not sound like newhornetowner will have that much overkill which is why the 13-15% tongue weights were used. Plus this is a 34+' TT, so the additional tongue weight will be needed to combat sway.

[Bob Landry]

And that hitch weight loaded is going to jump to 750-800 lbs,