Anyone pulling a horse trailer?

[Fox940]

So I'm buying a 3 horse trailer and the GVWR is 7000 lbs so it's well within my tow rating of my Gladiator with Max Tow package. I won't be towing anywhere that amount anyway.

I have to make a 16 hour trip to get a couple of horses. Anyone tow a horse trailer regularly and would be comfortable doing that? I have a Ram 2500 Powerwagon,, but it would take twice the amount of fuel so that's why I'm thinking about the Gladiator for the trip?

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[ShadowsPapa]

So I'm buying a 3 horse trailer and the GVWR is 7000 lbs so it's well within my tow rating of my Gladiator with Max Tow package. I won't be towing anywhere that amount anyway.

I have to make a 16 hour trip to get a couple of horses. Anyone tow a horse trailer regularly and would be comfortable doing that? I have a Ram 2500 Powerwagon,, but it would take twice the amount of fuel so that's why I'm thinking about the Gladiator for the trip?

Horses aren't stationary - they can move a bit even in a small trailer.
Frankly, tow rating or not, I'd avoid towing the maximum any truck is rated for. And with live animals, I'd be even less likely to tow that much.
I bet that by the time you load down that poor Gladiator with that weight, and the frontage on the trailer, your MPG will be closer to what the Ram would be.
I can't see you getting better mpg with that load with the Jeep. Not unless that Ram does only 12 or less.
If those horses shift at all, you're really gonna feel it in that little Jeep.

 

[Fox940]

Horses aren't stationary - they can move a bit even in a small trailer.
Frankly, tow rating or not, I'd avoid towing the maximum any truck is rated for. And with live animals, I'd be even less likely to tow that much.
I bet that by the time you load down that poor Gladiator with that weight, and the frontage on the trailer, your MPG will be closer to what the Ram would be.
I can't see you getting better mpg with that load with the Jeep. Not unless that Ram does only 12 or less.
If those horses shift at all, you're really gonna feel it in that little Jeep.

Yeah, you are right. I knew that just needed someone else to say it. Hopefully I have a tail wind both ways in the Power Wagon.

 

[KVJ]

It will take more than 16 hours with the gladiator!

 

[Jaxmax]

I have towed a lot of horses, and other trailers ,what the Gladiator does well is all compromises , sure it has a 7,600 lb tow capacity but you will be getting pretty low MPG even with a narrow horse trailer, so sure the Power Wagon sucks gas around town, but once you put a load on it it will get better gas mileage then the Gladiator and have more “ Beef” to handle the trailer.
Right tool right job thing!….Jack

 

[Choatecav]

So I'm buying a 3 horse trailer and the GVWR is 7000 lbs so it's well within my tow rating of my Gladiator with Max Tow package. I won't be towing anywhere that amount anyway.

I have to make a 16 hour trip to get a couple of horses. Anyone tow a horse trailer regularly and would be comfortable doing that? I have a Ram 2500 Powerwagon,, but it would take twice the amount of fuel so that's why I'm thinking about the Gladiator for the trip?

Well, I just saw this thread and it sounds like you have seen the light in time but just to add my 2 cents, please do not try pulling a horse trailer using the light chassis, short wheelbase of the Gladiator. I have pulled horses all over the country for many years and just the thought of this scares me to death. DEFINITELY use the 3/4 ton Dodge that you have! For all the reasons mentioned, (especially the shifting weight of horses/stock) it could be a disaster.

Thanks for asking first.

 

[rr11]

A thought on the fuel usage. I no longer have a horse trailer, but I pull a motorcycle trailer about the same size. The wind resistance on the trailer at 70 cuts my MPG to about 12 towing. I have found that I get about the same gas milage using my F250 to pull the trailer, and it has great towing mirrors. In your place I would use the Ram. better at towing and a less stressful trip for all involved

 

[Fox940]

I've been thinking about this and No I'm not going to pull the horse trailer with the Gladiator. I may end up trading the Gladiator in on a 1500 in the future.

When I was a kid everyone pulled everything with 1/2 ton pickups gooseneck horse trailers, bumper pulls, whatever they were being towed by 1/2 ton regular cab pickups with low horsepower motors. It makes me wonder how we ever survived. I have a 79 Ramcharger and I've towed a lot with that vehicle in the past years with no trailer brakes.

 

[chorky]

I've been thinking about this and No I'm not going to pull the horse trailer with the Gladiator. I may end up trading the Gladiator in on a 1500 in the future.

When I was a kid everyone pulled everything with 1/2 ton pickups gooseneck horse trailers, bumper pulls, whatever they were being towed by 1/2 ton regular cab pickups with low horsepower motors. It makes me wonder how we ever survived. I have a 79 Ramcharger and I've towed a lot with that vehicle in the past years with no trailer brakes.

Man that would be a shame to trade it in :-(

 

[Fox940]

Man that would be a shame to trade it in :-(

I probably won't unless they want to offer me a heck of a deal. Thing is I don't even use my Gladiator off road, I use my Power Wagon.

 

[Choatecav]

I know you don't wanna trade your Gladdy, but I am glad to hear you are not pulling the horse trailer with it. I have more than my share of horror stories in pulling horses. And most of them have to do with too little horse power and too short of a wheel base.
When I was in my 30's I was ten feet tall and bullet proof. Now, in my 60's I wonder how I survived.

 

[Caveman]

I pull a lightweight Brenderup HT with one horse loaded fairly regularly about 600 miles each way, with one end of the trip involving about 50 miles going up and down in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The Brenderup is a European trailer, made to be towed to anything from a mid-sized SUV on up, with a tongue weight fully loaded of 250#. I use a WD hitch, as is recommended, and it is a nice combination for towing (truck, WD hitch, HT). Not sure it would be as nice with two large horses in it, but with my one Quarter Horse on board, along with some tack, the HT tips the scales at about 3400#, about half of what my truck (2020 Sport S Max Tow) is rated to pull. I will say that even with this relatively light load, fuel consumption drops dramatically, to maybe 12.5 mpg. In addition to being heavy, horse trailers have a lot of flat frontal area and create a lot of drag. As others have said, I think the PowerWagon is a much better idea when hauling anything like a traditional 3 horse trailer, especially if you are hauling multiple horses.

 

[Kirk*Mojave]

Due yourself a favor use the powerwagon

 

[Fox940]

Sure glad I have my Powerwagon. I did some checking this afternoon and the market on Gladiators has tanked. With the current interest rates and current used values it is a very bad time to buy. Glad I got my Gladiator when I did.

 

[bleda2002]

I've been thinking about this and No I'm not going to pull the horse trailer with the Gladiator. I may end up trading the Gladiator in on a 1500 in the future.

When I was a kid everyone pulled everything with 1/2 ton pickups gooseneck horse trailers, bumper pulls, whatever they were being towed by 1/2 ton regular cab pickups with low horsepower motors. It makes me wonder how we ever survived. I have a 79 Ramcharger and I've towed a lot with that vehicle in the past years with no trailer brakes.

Because while all the trucks have gotten bigger and our midsize are bigger and more capable than 1/2 tons of yesterday, they still have the word midsize attached and people are antiquated. I'm not saying go load up crazy, but considering the SAE metric for tow rating bet most of these would handle close to the max just fine assuming you adjust speed and stopping distances appropriately like people used to do in their less capable trucks.

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