HoBoJoe

Before I bought my Ram 2500 I called a friend who used to tow a 22ft trailer with a newer Tundra than I was looking to buy. He said "it handled it no problem but I couldn't keep the front end from pointing in the air". That's when I decided to go to a 3/4 ton, why buy a Tundra now then have to upgrade when I move to a larger trailer! I would rather not make any compromises with my tow vehicle, and going from an old (2005) half ton to a 2012 3/4 ton made me so much more comfortable towing. I'm pulling somewhere between 6-7k lbs.

Also, I can't imagine going from a 3/4 ton to a 1/2 ton will make you happy no matter what the tow rating was.

Fumes

txhokie4life

I tow my aluminum race trailer with my Cayenne Turbo, with the air suspension and active sway bars -- it does amazingly well. Probably in the 6K-6.5K weight range all in.

I just got back from a 2000 mile round trip towing my trailer with my 37' RV on I10 from Texas-Florida and back. Lots of truck traffic and some tight areas. I upgraded the suspension on the RV to add track-bars front and back and swaybars.
It handled the towing just fine. In fact it was better with the trailer than it was with just the RV and no suspension upgrades.

Mike

ExMB

In that case I have to say your balance is off and so is your loading. If you are sagging in the rear (head lights blinding everybody) you are not balanced with your load. If your front end is wandering ts because you are loaded wrong. WDH doesn't automatically mean correct sway control for what you are towing.
Way more info than what you posted is needed to make your post believable.

Martin S.

A quick chime in...most know there is a protocol from the manufacturer (Reese?) for setting up a WDH. And nothing wrong with using a scale to see how much weight you have on the hitch. I know I am an outlier, but I towed a 20' ATC, about 6,200 Lbs with trailer and car, with a 2006 Toyota Tundra V8....I put 620 Lbs of load on the hitch. The ATC axles are spaced 1 foot further apart than conventional trailers....supposedly to address sway. It seems to have worked, and no WDH.

If you have the capital and the storage space, I must have to agree with many, bigger is better. Sure you can tow "on the edge" but it won't be fun. I would believe that a 2500 is a minimum for towing a 20' trailer.

Now here is the good news, Enterprise Truck Rental, rents 2500 pick up trucks. If you have a location near you, this could be a way to address capital costs and storage of the tow vehicle.

Fumes

All fair points. My 150 is a 2012 so not as stout as the new ones and it's v8 gas. Also not ideal. And short bed. Anyways, Cayman is pretty far forward, I tried a few spots and marked with tape when I had the tongue weight right. Then setup the links connecting the sway bars using the loaded height from ground to get in the right lounge weight and make it level-ish. I use the Blue Ox WHD. I watched that stupid YT video about a hundred times.

The problem is that I'm towing just under 8k and the capacity of my truck is 7700, so when the truck is also loaded...sure it'll do it, but it's no fun and it's not comfortable for the truck. Short trips no big deal running to Summit Point. Watkins Glen w the hills...or VIR.....ehhh

Most of all I need a new truck because I try to always make Evan drive when he's coaching and he complains about the 150 endlessly....has a v10 diesel Excursion fetish....

linzman

I had an F150 for a while and towed a 24' trailer. Never had any of the issues fumes had, but the transmissions on those suck. 60K miles, maybe 5-6K of those towing, and it was shot. The ecoboost engine wasn't bad, although the mpg towing wasn't stellar. Bottom line, you can get away with a sub-par tow vehicle, and it will likely do the job, but you are putting more strain on it that it was designed for, and eventually it will give out. Buckle up and get a big truck up front, and it will last a lot longer with just standard maintenance.

Fumes

yeah sounds like yours was newer. mine has 98k miles and is a '12 - life service towing horse trailers and then race cars.

I will say one thing though - putting towing tires on it helped MASSIVELY. We had a dicey drive to Lime Rock two years ago and Audrey was there and had towing tires delivered to the track. we found a giant bottle jack and they swapped them out and it made all the difference in the world being on good towing tires. So if OP does want to give it a go with the Tundra, towing tires are perhaps a half-step solution

ExMB

Ok, what I see is that you are loaded and balanced wrong if your headlights are pointing at the sky. In addition your WDH is just that. It doesn't have sway control. That is another addon needed with your WDH. You didn't list the model of your WDH since there are some that have sway control as well.

I tow a 24' with a F150 and don't have any of the issues you are exaggerating.

Fumes

Martin S.

Tongue weight is critical...WD hitch really helps too. When I got my trailer, I put the tongue weight scale to work, loaded the car and shuffled in fore and aft a bit until I had 10% of the gross weight on the tongue, about 620 Lbs. I also added helper springs to the rear and new shocks all around. The trailer towed level, no rake. And as I have mentioned, all of this was accomplished using a 2006 Toyota Tundra 4.7 liter, 270 HP motor.

Would I have loved a 2500 diesel tow vehicle? Of course, but after spending some $16,000 on the trailer, this would have been a tough sell to wifey.

ExMB

I think you are exaggerating the conditions you are experiencing. But maybe not. The GCVWR of your truck is 15100 lbs. From what you are saying you are towing under 8000 lbs. The truck weighs 5450 lbs. Taking those numbers that leaves you 1650 lbs for you load (careful now since Ford says max payload is 1440 lbs). Tongue weight is between 800 and 1200 lbs. Lets use 800 lbs. That leaves you 640 lbs for a load since every weight behind the rear axle is considered load (in addition to what you are towing - based on max payload). Now add fluids (including gas), passengers, options on truck, stuff, etc and subtract that. As you can see the numbers add up quickly and get you to the max. If you used 15% tongue weight (1200 lbs) you are exceeding and create the condition you are describing. You say that your WDH has sway control; what is the rating? If you are below the tongue weight its probably not helping.

You track; you are also concerned about safety. Therefore I think you are exaggerating unless the above is closer to what the math says.

No flame.

Kevin Fennell

The problem with the reviews of these trucks is that they all say they are a bad $60k truck. When the reality is that they are a $45k truck if you negotiate. When you compare them that way they are a great value. Confidently tow a 24' enclosed steel at any speed all day long and at least on mine nothing important has broke yet.

ExMB

$45 for a close out MY18. Show the same on a MY19

177mph

So - you're ok with a truck you paid 45k for, brand new, being in the shop for 45 days over 30k miles? Perhaps your standards are lower.

The Nissans have a horrible track record. I suppose any truck can experience problems but this is from multiple reviews.

My 2015 GMC Denali has never been in the shop beyond brake pads and tires at 65k.