Bought first rv trailer

[BuddyB]

Just this month purchased a 2012 Keystone Cougar Xlite 32SAB. A long trailer for a first timer! My first tow was from Elkhart, IN back to Bloomington, IN. I even made it through Indianapolis traffic without causing a six-lane interstate pile-up! I towed this 7,168 (dry) rv & 650 lb. tongue weight with a 2010 Ford F150, FX4, Supercrew cab. The engine is the Triton 5.4L 3V V-8 with a 3.73 HD rear axle gear box. It has factory installed trailer sway control; factory installed trailer towing pkg.; 7,200LB GVWR Pkg; maximum towing weight (on paper) is 11,200LB. I'm figuring around 8,000 pounds is all I would want to pull with this truck. I had a Primus IQ elect. brake installed along with one Eaz Lift hitch sway control and a Eaz Lift weight dist. hitch system. On the open road it was getting 15.4mpg and in stop&go traffic I logged 14.8mpg. I stayed between 55/65 mph when possible. I could tell I had weight behind me but I didn't have any "white-knuckle" driving experience.

[poncho62]

Welcome to the forum.....I find that mileage surprisingly good....Are you going by the dash display or actually figuring it out when gassing up?

[Kristi]

Congrats! Glad to hear the trip home went well. Enjoy your Cougar!

[GaryWT]

Congrats and good luck. That is good gas mileage, most get about 10 mpg.

[Delightful]

Wow...that is great mileage. I have never gotten better than 11 when towing the trailer.

You will love "camping"...it's 20+ years for me and I plan on going until I am no longer physically able to do so. What a wonderful way to enjoy nature and "Take the house with you".

Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy!

Delightful

[theasphaltrv'er]

Wow! that's fantastic gas mileage pulling a TT that size with a itty bitty 150. ..lol

[bdgmbdgm]

I would think twice about towing that trailer with a f150. All you considered was the weight. you did not consider the wheelbase of the truck.

you just put a very very large tail on a very very short truck.

I would suggest that you step up to a 3/4 ton for that size trailer. But that is another can of worms.

I bet the dealer told you it would be ok. Well that triton v8 and the transmissin as well as the truck in my opinion are undersized for your needs.

just my opinion.

[So Cal CPA]

I am just surprise by the gas mileage!!! :eek:

I get 9-10 towing my Cougar 28rbs with the Hemi.

[BuddyB]

Poncho62...Yeah, I thought this was really good milage too. I was going by the in-dash read out. It was a four hour trip from the dealer in Elkhart, IN to Bloomington, IN. Last year I had a K&N cold air induction system installed and I saw a large jump in my power and gas milage!

[BuddyB]

When I first saw the Cougar 32SAB, I thought man no way will this F150 tow this monster!. But, it did and I might add without much difficulty. Should I get a F250? Probably. The F150 FX4 supercrew cab cost 42,000 dollars and is paid off. Do I want to buy another truck? No. The trailer when I travel will be around 8000 pounds. Will I be unsafe? will the truck be overloaded? Do I NEED to buy a 3/4 ton truck? I'm am totally uninformed about RV's and towing them. I bought the truck two years ago and then this month bought the RV trailer I have made one trip towing the trailer...from the dealer in Elkhart, IN. through Indianapolis, IN rush hour traffic. Total trip four hours. Any good info would be appreciated.

[Ken / Claudia]

Load up the trailer and tow it to a scale. Check the weights of the truck with and without trailer and trailer wt.s Read the payload rating of your truck and look at the side wall listing of the tires and what the max. weight the tires are made to carry. With luck you will not be overloaded, if so you may want to change some stuff up. Thats another topic.

[EcoBullet]

Load up the trailer and tow it to a scale. Check the weights of the truck with and without trailer and trailer wt.s Read the payload rating of your truck and look at the side wall listing of the tires and what the max. weight the tires are made to carry. With luck you will not be overloaded, if so you may want to change some stuff up. Thats another topic.

Good advice.

If it checks out OK, I would feel comfortable for shorter trips on fairly gentle terrain in light winds. But, add stout crosswinds or mountain driving and I'd be skeered.

[mom2budnbug]

Welcome. You can find a lot of information on the forum concerning TV and weights. Probably so much that it could make your head spin, but well worth looking at. Enjoy your new trailer.