Enhancing Tow Experience.

[n9740b]

Good info, thanks for taking the time to share.

I'm planning to hit the scales one more time on the way out for our 3 day Memorial Day trip, to see where we have settled in fully loaded.

We have done about 8 nights on three different trips so far, and I think our equipment and processes are pretty settled. Towed up over Carson Pass (7000ft) last weekend to Tahoe in some 25 mph winds and was pleasantly surprised, very stable, couple fingers on the steering wheel driving experience. SO much easier than our 5000 lb boat with surge brakes over the same pass. Coming down the pass with surge brakes it's very tough to keep the brake temps down. With the TT the aerodynamic drag and 3rd gear was all I needed to hold 45mph downhill going down 5-6% grades in a 50mph zone.

I'm still running Michellin P rated tires at max psi (44), but they don't seem bad.....actually in "sport mode" it rides a bit rough on some pavement.

We have the factory load leveling suspension, which has been awesome. The ability to manually adjust the height up or down 1.5 +\- has helped in steep driveways....we can lower it to raise the tail, or raise it to clear the hitch. Our house driveway is pretty steep and the tail clears by 1/2" if I don't adjust the suspension, too close for comfort depending on the angle I pull into the street.

Our actual tongue weight going out was 740 last weekend on about 6300lbs +\- 100. A little light by the numbers, towed fine, but I wouldn't go much less than that....it just felt a bit light on the nose, no sway, and it was windy. On the way back I moved some weight to the front since we had to haul about 20 gallons in the black and half grey, back down the pass. Our black tank is behind the axles, and grey seems to be right on top. Felt about the same if just slightly heavier on the tongue, not sure if the extra water weight helped stabilize it in the stronger winds that day. Both days, no problem, towed great.

We have the "wireless" Tekonsha brake controller and it works great so far. My first inertial brake controller experience. So much better than the timer units.

I'm sure a 1ton would tow it "better", but mainly to be able to load 1000 lbs on the tongue and not worry about it. Actual towing experience is great, and I can't imagine it being THAT much better stability wise short of a dually. The adjustable air suspension, and shocks aren't something I would give up easily.

Managing the payload in the Sequoia is a lot of work, and it is super low, but overall the Sequoia works great for our non towing life too. I wouldn't full time using it, but for our needs I wouldn't trade it for any other tow vehicle (having a Denali XL previously). As the kids grow we will have to reevaluate, but we should have a minimum of two years I'm guessing.

I'm keeping an eye on the new future Expedition, that being said the tow experiences reported on the current model 2000lbs under its max (not j2807 certified) numbers don't sound that great. Word is the new redesign will be j2807 certified. If they hold onto the 1500 or greater useful load that would could be a future option. Next years f150 Eco boost is getting a 10 speed tranny.....that will be quite the drivetrain.

I was poking around, and noticed lots of talk about the "beefier" brakes on 3/4-1 ton trucks. Up until the last year or two the Ford 3/4 and some one tons had 13" rotors. The new f250/350 have 14.3, the new f150 (certified tow capacity over 11k properly equipped) has 13.8 in rotors. The Sequoia has 13.9, almost an inch larger than 1 tons from 2 years ago, and less than .5 inch smaller than current 1tons rates to tow over 20k lbs.

For the first time J2807 has braking as a criteria for certification. That being said it only from something like 25 mph to zero and the trailer has to remain behind the vehicle by a certain margin. Up until now braking was "all on the trailer" meaning the trailer brakes are supposed to handle the trailer weight. Sure the 3/4 ton trucks has larger brakes then and now, but that was mainly to address the 8000+ curb weight capacity vs 6500ish of the 1/2 tons.

[n9740b]

Here is the handling, sway, and braking requirements under j2807.....which even the f250/350 don't meet, but the f150 and 450 does. They certified the 450 to beat out Ram who has certified their whole line of trucks.


Total Control
The truck-and-trailer “Combination Handling Requirements” of J2807 specify minimum performance for understeer and trailer sway response. The tests are designed to determine the limits of the weight carrying, weight distributing, and stability of a fifth-wheel/gooseneck trailer, with the combo at its maximum GCWR. Understeer (the opposite of fishtailing) is measured at three different levels of Front Axle Load Restoration (FALR), which is a calculation of how much the load on the front axle changes. It can sound complicated, but the procedures are designed so you can be assured your truck will not be steered by the weight of the trailer under typical driving conditions even while pulling the maximum tow weight. For example, with a fifth-wheel or gooseneck hitch, the truck/trailer combination is allowed 0 degrees per g of understeer when there are 0.4 g or less of lateral acceleration and an FALR of 0 percent. In addition to the understeer tests, there is a measurement for the maximum sway damping that requires the trailer to move at a ratio of 0.10 or less at 62.1 mph (100 km/h).

Stop It!
The J2807 standards also have requirements for the braking performance of the truck-and-trailer combination at its maximum GCWR. Combos with a maximum tow rating of more than 3,000 pounds are required to stop completely from 20 mph in 80 feet or less. During this stop test, the trailer must remain within an 11.5-foot-wide lane throughout the entire stop. In addition to the active testing, the parking brake must be able to hold the truck and trailer firmly in place both upward and downward on a 12 percent grade when it is at the maximum GCWR.

[Poppabear]

Man that's a lot to digest. But I bet some of those new braking requirements might reign in some of these outrageous tow ratings. My dad picked up a 2015 F450 platinum a few months back and that thing has some ridiculous towing numbers with it. Something like 31,200lbs towing and a GCVWR of 40,400lbs!!! that's half a loaded semi truck. Needless to say he is pulling their Montana 5th wheel around like its not even back there and still getting almost 11MPg.