| |
Subject |
Author |
Date Posted |
Forum
|
 |
RE: Ford F-250 Brake Controller Install
The factory controller has the ability to access vehicle stability information and take steps to control an unstable trailer. That could be a life saver.
You need to be aware that the factor controller (at least in my 2016) model turns off the brakes below about 3mph, presumably to prevent burning up the brake actuators. There will be times that you don't want that to happen and you should keep a hand on the manual override. Example: coming down a steep gravel drive and trying to make a sharp turn onto a gravel road. I nearly got pushed off the side of a mountain once. It took me a while to figure out why. Any stop on a steep hill while towing heavy can be a challenge. In my case I am towing a trailer about twice as heavy as the truck.
|
Groover
|
03/17/23 11:52am |
Tow Vehicles
|
 |
RE: part three of the broken frame saga.
Link to the article... https://www.truckcamperadventure.com/is-the-eagle-cap-1165-too-big-and-heavy-for-a-one-ton-dually/
Fwiw, my 2010 F450 has a 14,500 GVWR from the factory and licensed for 16000 lbs. The newer trucks are not rated higher, so this paragraph is off a bit. I'm under my GVWR, but mine is only 9 1/2 ft double slide. Relative to the larger ones, it's light. :D
Boatycall had a triple slide Eagle Cap on his 2011 F450, or did. I wonder how it's holding up. He was also towing behind it.
But as one Ford F450 owner discovered, a class 4 truck is no panacea when it comes to hauling a heavy camper. Immediately after the rally, this particular owner took his rig, consisting of a 2013 Ford F450 and a 2015 Eagle Cap 1165, to a local CAT Scale to get weighed. He was horrified to learn that his truck was overweight by whopping 2,400 pounds. With a GVWR of only 14,000 pounds and a payload rating of only 5,443 pounds, his truck was woefully overmatched by the 1165. The CAT Scale printout showed 5,160 pounds on the steer axle and 11,280 pounds on the drive axle for a total of 16,440 pounds. Before buying the truck, he was told his F450 could carry “anything” that he wanted and “not to worry.” Obviously, this wasn’t the case with the 1165. When it comes to payload, this illustrates how far today’s trucks have come from trucks that are 10 to 20 year older. Always research before you buy.
I haven't checked lately but the last time I did the F450 pickup was optimized for trailer pulling, not hauling. The F350 pickup was actually rated to carry more than the F450 pickup.
This just goes to show that you shouldn't take the dealer at his word. Make sure that you find the critical information in writing from the factory.
|
Groover
|
03/17/23 10:40am |
Truck Campers
|
|
Is this the biggest/heaviest TC on the market?
Rugged flat bed TC
"The 2023 Rugged Mountain Denali 3S is a hard side, triple-slide, dry bath truck camper made for long bed trucks. The interior floor length of the 2023 Rugged Mountain Denali 3S is 12’7”, the interior height is 6’8”, and the center of gravity is 64” from the front wall.
The Denali 3S has an 80-gallon fresh tank, a 77-gallon grey tank, a 35-gallon black tank, and a 6-gallon water heater. It can accommodate up to ten Group 27 batteries and has two 20-pound propane tanks.
Rugged Mountain is reporting the base weight of the Denali 3S at 5,538 pounds. The cost of the 2023 Rugged Mountain Denali 3S is $74,900."
Base price is $74,900. You can option it up to $125,000. 5500 series truck recommended as dry weight is 5,538lbs. Why not go for the F600?
It is a beautiful rig but it is a monster! I used to think that my old 12'6" bed length TC with no slides was large and heavy at 3,500lbs
|
Groover
|
03/12/23 11:44am |
Truck Campers
|
|
RE: The Ford Explorer Men only Edition
I dropped my subscription to Consumer Reports when they down rated my ford cause it didn't have that wonderful safety feature, padded visors. IIRC they were a $5 option
bumpy
remember when dashboards were hard metal, no padding?
There were dozens of different shift patterns and locations for automatic transmissions, Chrysler push button on the left of the dash, column, some with park at the top or far left, some with park at the bottom, drive and reverse in different locations
GM with the 4 position key, one was unlocked and you could start the car w/o a key in the ignition.
and the wonderful Gov't mandated spedo with a max speed display of 85mph in the 1980's
suicide rear doors, really nice to get into the back seat. has shown a revivial in a few cars.
I remember picking up a Consumer Reports in a book store long ago (but not 70 years, I am not that old) and read the review on the Crown Vic which was that the car was awful. Next I looked up the Grand Marquis and discovered that it had a great rating! I haven't given them much thought since that happened.
My dad had on of the those GM cars that didn't require a key, it was a 1963 Belair. He not only left it in the unlock position but also left the key in the trunk lock, ready to use. Never had a problem from either one, except for friends taking the key out of the trunk lock and bringing it to him. The original keyless car. For people that had grown up in small towns with horses and wagons vehicle security did not seem to be very important.
|
Groover
|
03/09/23 11:42am |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
RE: Some worry about payload……
Was that an overload or is it just falling apart?
|
Groover
|
03/04/23 08:41am |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
RE: RAM 3500 with HO 6.7L Cummins SRW
Just discovered that the new RAM we ordered has been built and is waiting to ship. The 2015 RAM 2500 with the regular 6.7L Cummins that we have now will get around 20-21 miles per gallon when running empty on a trip. Does anyone have experience with the HO on fuel mileage? Both trucks have the 3.73 rear end.
Thanks
Pretty sure your 2015 SRW has the 3.42 rear end ,unless you put 3.73's in it . As far as mileage no idea , but would stand to reason having 3.73 in the new one ,probably slightly less mileage would be my guess .
The High Output also has a lower compression ratio which is also likely to contribute to poorer fuel economy when empty. On the other hand, I would guess that neither the gear ratio nor the lower compression ratio will have much affect on the truck's towing mileage.
That is less than a 10% gear ratio change so it shouldn't have a big effect. You don't generally see a large drop on diesel fuel economy until you start getting out of their torque range. The drop in torque is largely due to less efficient combustion.
|
Groover
|
02/24/23 12:46pm |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
RE: Do we have a pickup glut already?
^^ I second this and add I always buy used over paying the inflated prices for brand new.
I mostly buy new because the used trucks that I have found generally either cost as much as a new one or have been totally ragged out. I suspect that most people trading for a new vehicle focus on how much the dealer is giving them for the used one are oblivious to the fact that they are paying way too much for the new vehicle. Then they honestly believe that their used truck is actually worth what the dealer was offering.
Some years ago I special ordered a loaded F250 and about 5 years later I saw someone advertising essentially the same truck, including year model, and he was asking more than I had paid for mine new.
|
Groover
|
02/23/23 01:36pm |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
Do we have a pickup glut already?
GM shuts down Indiana plant for 2 weeks
"Feb 23 (Reuters) - General Motors said on Thursday it will halt production at its Fort Wayne Assembly truck plant in Indiana for two weeks from March 27 as inventory starts to outweigh demand with the easing of supply-chain snags.
Shares of the U.S. automaker fell 3% in early trade, while rival Ford Motor Co was about 1% lower.
After two years of U.S. automakers scrambling to keep pace with demand amid a parts shortage, GM's decision to cut production of its highly-profitable pickup trucks signals a shift in the status quo.
"GM probably is trying to maintain pricing power with this move but it's also contradictory to what they've been saying for a while recently that demand remains very strong," Morningstar analyst David Whiston said."
I would guess that more than one manufacturer is affected. Ford sent me a $2000 coupon for a new F series truck a couple of weeks ago. I just checked incentives for the F150 and they are offering 0% financing for 3 years plus $1000 Bonus cash through the end of February.
|
Groover
|
02/23/23 09:33am |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
RE: 25% better mpg from current diesels? Too good to be true?
As StirCrazy said "There is more than the cost to measure value. Being able to increase range by 25% is worth something."
Not having to stop as often or worrying about giving out of fuel is nice. In virtually every discussion here about electric vehicles range is a key item. While it is less of an issue with diesels it is still an item.
If you are satisfied with your current range then you could carry 20% less fuel and increase your payload by 70lbs in a Superduty with the 48 gallon tank, or a 120lbs in my class A. Less time at the pump when you stop would be nice as well. Or don't use the extra weight capacity and have better performance.
A similar savings in DEF was reported. That is also worth time, weight and money. It is really amazing to me how some people blow off savings. It is almost like they are proud of how much they spend.
|
Groover
|
02/10/23 09:04am |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
RE: 25% better mpg from current diesels? Too good to be true?
With diesel being about 25 percent higher in cost than regular gas where is the net savings?
Just saying/asking... :hThe price of gas has nothing to do with it. They aren't comparing gas and diesel.
Yeah, people almost always try comparing gas and diesel by the cost per gallon but what you're actually buying is energy content. Diesel has about 13% more energy content than gasoline, and when ethanol is added to gasoline it lowers the energy content even more. All this according to our faithful and honest Government Agency, the EPA.
Diesel already gets 10-15 percent more miles per gallon than due to that extra energy content, higher compression and lack of a throttle plate. Another 25 percent on top of that would be huge. So the questions are whether this works as stated in the real world and whether any diesel engine will be politically acceptable in 5 to 10 years.
|
Groover
|
02/06/23 12:35pm |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
25% better mpg from current diesels? Too good to be true?
Engine Builder magazine is reporting on a new piston design by Speed of Air® (SoA) Engine Technologies that claims to improve the fuel economy of the three leading pickup diesels by 25%. It obviously would be an expensive retrofit but might not cost much if offered by the OEMs.
Article
I love to see new tech like this but so much of it never gets to mass production that I have learned to be skeptical.
|
Groover
|
02/06/23 07:23am |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
RE: 2024 GMC and 2023 Super Duty
Dealer markups seem to have gone away around here. With the vehicles I see starting to pile up on the dealer's lots I expect to see some serious discounts soon.
|
Groover
|
01/29/23 12:31pm |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
RE: DISCUSSION: 8 ft + crew cab vs. SUV
I think that a lot depends on whether your truck will be dedicated to towing the trailer or if it is also going to be used for other tasks. I just ran an errand to Home Depot and Walmart and was thinking how glad I was that I wasn't in a crew cab pickup with an 8ft bed. Even my crew cab with a 6.5ft bed feels cumbersome in parking lots. With trucks being so high these days reaching something in the front of an 8ft bet can be quite a challenge too.
|
Groover
|
01/23/23 01:46pm |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
RE: EV alternative for light/medium duty trucks
Grover I'm all for nuclear power, if you can tell me how and where to safely store the waste. Until that happens I'm anti nuclear.
I believe that there are plenty of good options for storage.
That is pretty naive.
Fact is no country anywhere in the world has a long term disposal site In operation.
No one wants high-level nuclear waste in their backyard.
So nuclear waste sits at open and closed nuclear plants, a huge security risk.
Look at the radioactive half lives of the high-level waste components:
Technetium-99 211,000 years
Tin-126 230,000 years
Selenium-79 327,000 years
Zirconium-93. 1,530,000 years
Caesium-135. 2,300,000 years
Palladium-107. 6,500,000 years
Iodine-129. 15,700,000 years
If we continue on our current path how long do we have before climate change kills us all? The climate change activists seem to think it will be before the natural deaths of my children. How do you compare potential deaths 15,000 years out to sure deaths within the lifetimes of your children? Or, are you saying that climate change isn't really all that bad?
Keep in mind that we probably only need to buy another 50 years or so before fusion is viable and fusion doesn't make those types of waste.
I still believe that if we can get past the NIMBY attitude there are solutions to nuclear storage that will either outlast our civilization or until even better solutions will be found.
I know what the problems are, I want to hear solutions.
|
Groover
|
01/17/23 11:10am |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
RE: EV alternative for light/medium duty trucks
Grover I'm all for nuclear power, if you can tell me how and where to safely store the waste. Until that happens I'm anti nuclear.
I believe that there are plenty of good options for storage. It is just that for every solution there are some people in opposition to it. Just yesterday I saw an article claiming that offshore windmills are killing whales and need to be banned. Windmills and solar panels both create large quantities of hazardous waste. Some of it is possibly as dangerous as anything that could comes out of a nuclear plant. Environmentalists are tearing down hydro plants and blocking new ones. Sometimes this is taken to far extremes. A dam near me was blocked 30 years ago by an environmentalist just looking for an excuse to block the dam. He found a previously unknown type of minnow in the river and the dam was blocked to save the minnow. Later it was discovered that the minnows are plentiful elsewhere but had not been noticed before.
So, if we block coal, nuclear, hydro, windmills, solar panels, and all types of petroleum products, how do you propose that we get around? Before you say horses keep in mind that they not only leave waste products in the road they also pollute the air and will even die in the road to be hauled away. You should read some articles about how nasty cities were before horses were replaced by the Model T.
Every power source has drawbacks. We either have to kill of 99% of the humans and go back to the stone age or we have to find a manageable course forward. Personally, I believe that nuclear fission has proven to be the safest and cleanest source we have that is both expandable and affordable. It is looking more and more likely that fusion will be a viable power source in the not too distant future but we are not there yet. There is also some significant progress being made with solar panels and they could well be the best option in many places. We need to keep an open mind to all options.
|
Groover
|
01/17/23 09:15am |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
RE: EV alternative for light/medium duty trucks
Too many things do not make any sense.
At a time when we are all being pushed into EVs, and electricity supply is constrained.... We have companies with warehouses full of computers running 24/7 To "mine" fake money. The electricity wasted doing this could have far better and more productive uses.. Then this fake money is sold to a greater fool for real money in the hopes that an even greater fool will come along and pay even more for it. So long as we as a society fall into this madness, I do not see how we can possibly affect the climate in a positive way.
I have a long list of things that do not make any sense, but this is enough for now
You are right about the madness. As a Tesla owner I believe that electric cars have a definite place on our roads and that that place will expand as everything related to electric cars improves. My concern is that most of the people pushing electric cars don't seem to have a clue on where to get the electricity. Sure, solar and wind will help but I don't believe that it is going to get us more than about half way there.
As an engineer the obvious answer to me is that we need more nuclear power at a more affordable price. In the near term that is probably small modular reactors of the sort that Bill Gates has been promoting. With enough carbon free electric power we might even be able to start pulling CO2 back out of the air or make synthetic fuels with carbon pulled from the air. The response that I generally get from environmentalists is that nuclear power is too dangerous. And yet the can't show any damage done by nuclear power that is nearly as catastrophic or impending as much as the damage that they predict from too much CO2 in the air. There is an old saying about not getting the carriage in front of the horse but as far as I can tell most environmentalists don't even know why the horse is needed.
Basically, many of the environmentalists are just as much or more in denial than most of the climate change deniers. If the "environmentalists" had not been in such determined opposition to nuclear power in the last 40 or 50 years we would have had a lot less fossil fuel consumption and the environment would be in a lot better shape than it currently is.
|
Groover
|
01/16/23 02:16pm |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
RE: Broken Frame on a RAM 3500
Wonder if this is related to the Frame Flex (or lack of) shown in this video?
https://youtu.be/_f3CAnH7WIM
That clip demonstrates the uber strength of RAM’s hydro-formed frame, but if used improperly, ain’t nothing infallible…
3 tons
Too stiff can be bad as it lets you get into the material fatigue zone more quickly. That may be why chassis/cab trucks use less rigid C-channel frames with thicker steel. Better to flex than break.
|
Groover
|
01/07/23 10:26am |
Truck Campers
|
|
RE: Broken Frame on a RAM 3500
Another good point. No one knows how his rear suspension was set up. But one thing is certain, that camper won’t haul on that truck without something else besides the stock springs.
Unless you are bottoming out the suspension going with stiffer springs adds stress to the frame. The suspension is there to absorb the bumps. Making it stiffer reduces that capability.
|
Groover
|
01/03/23 11:42am |
Truck Campers
|
|
RE: Broken Frame on a RAM 3500
Regardless of the well discussed issues here the frame failure was most likely due to fatigue. Fatigue is caused in steel by REPEATED stressing over 50% of bend strength and release. Flexing over bumps can cause a lot of stress and release situations.
40 years ago many of the truck campers I saw had shock absorbers on the front of the cabover going down to the front fenders. The point of these was to absorb the frame damaging stresses that lead to fatigue and also control a bouncy ride. I ran a rig for 20 years that was probably more overloaded than the one here. It was 19'6" overall with the cabover hanging out so far over the Supercab that it hit the radio antenna. It had a lot of frame flex that I felt had to be dealt with. I didn't like the shocks but I found some fairly still but flexible foam and built a cushion to go between the cab and the cabover just behind the windshield and full width. That extra leverage on the frame did a lot to reduce the flexing and improve the ride. Also, my truck never broke in half. Just a thought for people with long and heavy campers.
If the frame was cut or welded to without smoothing the transition areas of focused stress that can lead to increased fatigue and early failures. For example, if a bracket is welded to the frame in a way that leaves a sudden step it will likely fail at the edge of that step weld bead. The step needs to be extended and ground to a smooth transition. Also, many frames are heat treated and can be locally annealed by welding and that can also lead to stress failures.
Modern frames are designed to be light and strong which means that stresses are spread evenly throughout the metal. If you mess with the way those stresses are spread disaster can result.
|
Groover
|
01/03/23 08:07am |
Truck Campers
|
|
RE: No scheduled maintenance on Ford Superduty
Wow! That is an interesting and expensive situation. Reading that little book in the glove box is getting more and more important.
My 2022 F150 came with a "Cliff Notes" edition of the owners manual. The real one is on line, or you can request they send one to you.
I don't think that very many people ever read the paper manual anyway.
Did you check to see if you can call up the full version on the screen? I had the impression that it is in the truck's memory. Lighter, less expensive and takes less space than the printed version. Plus, specific to your vehicle.
|
Groover
|
12/29/22 11:29am |
Tow Vehicles
|
|
