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Old 05-05-2012, 07:45 AM   #1
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We purchased a zinger 31sb last year. The dealer that we purchased the unit from towed the trailer to our seasonal lot, from our seasonal crossroads towed the unit back to the factory for repair therefore we have waited to purchase a truck. My question is will a 1/2 ton work to tow the unit or should we purchase a 3/4 ton?
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Old 05-05-2012, 07:57 AM   #2
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Hello Corlly,

My wife and I have a 31bh sunset trail and I tow it with a Dodge Ram 1500 with a Hemi and it tow's it quite well. The trailer weight is about 6900lbs. You should have no problem towing it with a 1/2ton. But I thinl it all comes down to preference. Good luck and happy camping.
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Old 05-05-2012, 08:10 AM   #3
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Since you are going to buy a truck,and I'm guessingnew, for the little additional money involved I say go 3/4 ton. It will be less stress on the vehicle, and will probably handle better as well.

And if you decide to upgrade to a larger trailer, you will already have the tow vehicle for it.
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Old 05-05-2012, 08:11 AM   #4
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you zinger is about 8k lbs empty so either a truck the new f150 hd or a 3/4 ton would he best
i would say that most 1/2 tons would be to small
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Old 05-05-2012, 12:02 PM   #5
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We started out with a Denali 292 (advertised as 1/2 ton towable)and a 2010 Toyota Tundra. Yes, it would tow it but it also struggled on hills (never got into any mountains) and best we ever got was 9MPG.Traded it fora 2008 Dodge 2500 with 6.7L Cummins, plenty of power and 50% more torque and 15MPG. Last year we upgraded to a Cruiser CF335 fiver and this is a perfect match of TT and TV, still get 12-13 MPG towingbigger trailer. If you have a choice and it's within your budget, you won't go wrong with a 3/4 ton diesel of any flavor.
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Old 05-05-2012, 02:50 PM   #6
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Payload is usually the limiting factor with 1/2 ton trucks. Many are listed to tow a great deal of weight but that towing weight does not necessarily apply to towinga travel trailer. The reason is two-fold. First, you have additional wind resistance (you are towing a giant sail behind you). Second, you tend to get a heavier tongue weight with a TT. On average the TT tongue weight should be about 13-15% of the loaded trailer weight (the brochure tongue weight is useless). You do not know your loaded trailer weight. You can either use the TT's GVWR to figure a worse case scenario (15% of 9871= 1481 lbs tongue weight) or try to figure out how much weight you will be loading in it. Many load about 1000-1500 lbs on average (some more, some less)... lets calculate 7875 UVW + 1500 lbs= 9375 lbs guesstimated loaded weight x 15%= 1406 So basically you are lookng at a probably real world tongue weight of 1400 lbs. It is going to be hard to find a 1/2 ton that has enough payload to absorb passengers, fuel (some manufacturers include fuel in payload, some don't so check each individually) and cargo and still have enough payload left for 1400 lb tongue weight. For each vehicle you look at, look at the door sticker inside the driverside door. It will list that particular vehicle's available payload with options.

In addition to payload, you need to be aware of the vehicles GCWR and the weight of that TV. If you subtract the actual weight of the TV from the GCWR, you get an adjusted tow capacity that will likely be a lot less than the original publicized tow capacity. All of this said, you will be far better off going w/ a 3/4 ton now than getting the half ton and realizing you either don't have enough truck or don't have enough power and end up trading it in on a 3/4 ton. Is a diesel necessary? No, is it nice to have? yes! Towing is amazing with it but it is a killer as a daily driver. Trust me, I know, I drive mine on a 35 mi round trip to work daily and drive it around town all the time (all 22 ft of it!!!!!!) Good luck with the hunt.
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Old 05-06-2012, 03:03 AM   #7
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ditto. I am going no bigger than the 26BH ST for my half ton...Later down the road I see a 3/4 diesel in the 5 year plan.
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Old 05-06-2012, 06:23 AM   #8
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We had a 1/2 ton SUV for our 26BL and it was not a good towing experience. Upgraded to the F250 diesel and love it!
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Old 05-07-2012, 02:36 AM   #9
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The 3/4 ton will also have larger brakes and h/d transmission that is the weakest link in most tow vehicles.
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Old 05-07-2012, 03:01 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Corlly
We purchased a zinger 31sb last year. The dealer that we purchased the unit from towed the trailer to our seasonal lot, from our seasonal crossroads towed the unit back to the factory for repair therefore we have waited to purchase a truck. My question is will a 1/2 ton work to tow the unit or should we purchase a 3/4 ton?




One word sticks out in this post. SEASONAL, that tells me that you are not towing this trailer. Or are you? If you need something to move the trailer twice a year from a seasonal lot to a storage lot then you may be able to get by with a 1/2 ton truck, depending on how far you are moving it. You will be throwing money away going with a 3/4 ton gas or double that with diesel to simply move your trailer twice a year. Now, if you plan on towing more than that, go with the 3/4 ton truck. And if you plan on hitting the open hiwayto see the countryside you have to go a step further and get a diesel.

Consider the weight of the trailer, how far you think you might go and how often you might go there. Good luck.

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Old 05-07-2012, 09:24 AM   #11
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Thanks for all the input. We plan on towing the camper about four to five times a year, each trip will be about four hours each way. Would the Ford f150 with the eco boost do the job?
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Old 05-07-2012, 09:28 AM   #12
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it will i would recomend the max tow and heavy paylpad options
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Old 05-07-2012, 11:34 AM   #13
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The F150 ecoboost is known to be a pretty good tow vehicle. Go with the max tow and heavy payload options and pay attention to the actual payload of the one you choose to buy (see my above post with figuring out payload). Also make sure you get yourself a good WDH/sway control like Reese Dual cam, Equal-i-zer, Hensley Arrow or Propride.
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