I am considering purchasing a 30 feet trail runner it would be my first time experience. I would be pulling it with a 1/2 ton ecoboost. I'm a little conflicted if I really want this purchase. I would mainly use it to pull to the coast.

And maybe occasionally to the river. My question to the members is if you have purchased one, would you do it again and what has been your experience?

can Eco boost tow? I know they can not plow - in 2 hours threw a rod, nephew went against plow company recommendation, used plow 6ft, barely enough for a driveway,I drove the truck before the plow, more noise than power in spite of the turbo - gas consumption pretty thirsty. 2017 3.5 eco boost 150 4wd, wonked out with 35k miles.

I have a 33' towable RV Heartland Prowler. I use a '18 f250 gas engine. NO way would I pull it with a 1/2 ton. Even my previous 28' Passport ("lightweight rv"), you could pull it with a 1/2 ton... but I wouldn't do 100+ miles with a 1/2 ton. I have done trips from northern IN to NY, northern MI, TN, and Ohio.

thk you all for the responses:( T and Vee my brother suggested that I get a F250 or that I would regret the purchase. The guys at the RV dealership just swear by the Ford spec's and to be quite honest I had my own reservations.

Thats what I love about this community as property owners we can generally speak to many topics as consumers.

Life is Good

Dan,

My friend with a giant RV trailer says to rent one before you buy. And new RVs need lots of work in the dealer’s shop before taking the first trip. His took 6 months at the shop before he could use it.

Dave Ramsay says they are not a good investment. Price divided by number uses plus extra fuel minis FAST depreciation.

On the flip side I read that supplies are high and prices are lower. The crowd that bought during the lockdown are tired of them and selling.

Funny this question has come up. I'm in the very process of the same and I have a Ecoboost with the heavy duty tow package. The main thing you need to check is your payload capacity and the trailer's tongue rating. You will run out of payload first. My truck is supposed rated to tow 11,000 lbs but has a payload capacity of only 1600 lbs. The tongue weight on a trailer that big is around 10% to 15% which means the trailer alone with put you at your payload capacity before you put anything else, including yourself and passengers, in the truck. The most you can safely tow with a half ton is roughly about 8000 lbs max. The biggest benefit of stepping up to a 3/4 ton is greater payload capacity if you want to roll with something bigger. I don't want to spend money on a bigger truck, so that will limit the sort of trailer I get.

Brad, Tried to tell my sister the same thing. They had none of that silly talk. Bought a used RV for 80k. Then a month later upgraded to a new 120k version. Then decided they needed to pull a car but the new blazer wasn't gonna cut it so traded it off for a used jeep.

So far they took one trip from IN to AL. The rest have all been in state. Plus they live on 14 acres of woods, so why do it?

When you buy an rv, you need this understanding:

1. They are more work to maintain than a house. No matter what you have to stay on top of it or they will literally fall apart.

2. They are not sound investments. They will depreciate.

2A. You don't buy an rv for the investment. You buy itfor the memories/lifestyle. I would post the pictures I have taken from my rv trips. Family and nature pics. Value: priceless to me.

3. My mom has a house in FL. Thats the only place she really goes and can stay unless its a hotel/Airbnbroute. I go wherever I want and stay in my little home.

You need to match the towing vehicle to the tow behind vehicle.

Make sure you have the proper tool for the job or you will damage the tool.

Check your towing capacity/package first.

Make sure your vehicle is well maintained and that the brakes are in great condition. You need to be able to pull it, but most importantly you need to be able to stop it. Another place where a bigger truck is better. Or, a smaller camper.

GKARL, It is out of their budget as well. Marital issues so he decided to buy the love. All the while trapping her with lifelong payments for toys and such.

We don't talk much any more. He not at all.

Your ecoboost won't last long towing that thing. Exhaust and turbo temps skyrocket on those motors when they're made to work hard for a long time.

If you really wanna do this, get a 3/4 ton (GM 2500 or Ford F250) with diesel engine, and park the trailer under a canopy (not a tarp) when you're not using it.

GKARL you don't know the half of it. He refinanced the house for another 30 years and paid off the tractor, the hot tub, the above ground pool, the gator and some other stuff.

But it's a cheaper monthly cost now he says. Ugg, buying a hot tub for 30 years? Holy cow!

Anyhow it is just sad that she is all in on it now. When (if) he kicks first she is debt ridden. They lost money from the get go.

Sorry, I'm a little late to the game. We just got home from a week in the Colorado mountains with my 33 foot 5th wheel. I tow it with a F150 with a the 3.5 ecoboost without any problem. The trailer weighs 6700 pounds and has a 1200 tongue weight. Check the door tag on your truck to see what it's rated for. Not all F150's are created the same. Tow capacity ranges from 6K to 10K on the various F150's. Tongue weight from 1100 to 1600. Way too many variables to determine if it is within the rating for your truck.

RVing isn't for everyone. Some love it, some hate it. We started out with a tent trailer, then a fold-out, then a bumper pull, and finally a 5th wheel. Here's some thoughts:

Rent one for a weekend trip first to see if you like it.

Longer isn't better especially with bumper pull, even with sway bars they can sway badly in wind and passing 18 wheelers.

Longer also means less places you can gas up and maneuver.

5th wheels are a dream to pull over a bumper pull

RV's will only be a cheaper vacation if you stay in one place for more than 4-5 days (longer is better) and use it more than half a dozen times in a year.

We average about 9 mpg when towing ours. It can vary from 8 in a headwind at 70MPH to 11 with a tailwind at 60MPH.

There is LOTS of maintenance on an RV. I am constantly having to fix something. I had some weatherstrip come off around a slide on this trip that I'm going to have to fix.

Our biggest thing isn't that it's cheaper it's that we can cook some of our own meals (healthier), can get closer to nature by staying right in the forest, on the beach, or beside the lake. Hard to find places at a reasonable price to do the same when staying in hotels.

I went to a campground earlier this year and stayed in a cabin. It was awesome to see the fellowship that the campers had there with one another.