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Travel Trailer Debate- Experienced Opinions Wanted

ShadowsPapa

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Well one more update. We welcomed our 3rd child July 23rd and very quickly realized that having 2 Jeeps (JL and JT) just wasnt practical for our family hauling needs. Dont get me wrong- you can physically fit 3 car seats, but to only have the Jeeps just wasnt working (no room to feed baby on road trips etc…)

So after much debate we decided to sadly part ways with one Jeep. The good news is we traded my wife’s JL and kept the JT. The bad news is my wife’s new vehicle makes the JT seem even more inadequate for towing. The new purchase is a 2021 Ford Expedition with hd towing package. Rated at 9200lbs towing, 930 lbs weight distributed tongue weight and our specific vehicle has 1639lbs of payload- which is fantastic considering how highly optioned it is and particularly for having the panoramic roof.

To account for the shorter wheelbase I upgraded to an Equalizer hitch from the E2 to address any potential sway concerns. After a few test runs I am shocked. I really didnt think I was unsafe with the JT until now… I was. Despite the shorter wheelbase the Expedition pulls the camper effortlessly. I expected the powertrain to be better- I had an ‘18 F150 with the same 3.5 ecoboost and 10 speed, but I didnt realize how night and day the difference would be. Best of all fully loaded with the whole family along we are well under payload capacity and I can drive relaxed knowing my family is safe.

So in summary I really cannot recommend towing in excess of 6k with a JT Rubicon for more than short local trips. I love my JT dearly, but from both a stability and especially a powertrain standpoint it just doesnt have it.
The voice of logic and reason.
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MarkN

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Keep mindful of your gear. Food, cookware, clothes, bedding, tools, grill, chairs, etc. There is a lot to pack and it adds up quickly. Once you get loaded for a trip, take the rig to a truck stop with scales and weigh it. Try to look for light weight alternatives where ever you can. Good luck.

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Keys Life

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My wife and I are looking at travel trailers for our family of 4 soon to be 5. After looking at several brands and layouts we have narrowed our search down to 2 models:

Grand Design Imagine XLS 21bhe
Dry Weight 4698
Tongue Weight 456
Length 24’ 11”

Grand Design Imagine XLS 23bhe
Dry Weight 5325
Tongue Weight 504
Length 27’ 11”

The price difference between trailers is negligible, making the 23 alot more trailer for the money, more spacious due to it’s slide (21 doesnt have a slide), and has the nicety of a separate front bedroom. It is for sure my wife’s pick and likely the trailer we would be happier with long term.

However, my JT is a Rubicon auto- 7k max towing and 1198lbs payload. I am fairly comfortable with the weights of the 21bhe, thinking if we pack light I can stay in the 5500 lb range and keep tongue weight under 600lbs. With the 23bhe even packing light I’m sure we will be over 6000lbs and pushing 650 on the hitch. Will obviously be using weight distribution with sway control for either trailer, and already have a Curt Spectrum installed.

I’ve towed 6000lbs with the JT in the form of my 18ft utility trailer with JD tractor loaded. It did better than I expected, but the sidewall profile of a travel trailer is a whole different ballgame.

Anyone have experience towing travel trailers in this weight range? Going over 5000lbs dry worries me a bit- is the extra couple of feet in length and 600lbs total/ 50lbs tongue weight that big of a deal?
I have a Forest River 24JS which weighs in a 4,800 dry. Our Gladiator is the Overland model with the tow package and, integrated break controller. We were in the same situation choosing TT brands and sizes. While a slide is a nice addition it adds approximately an additional 1,000 pounds to the trailer. In Monroe County (Florida Keys) they allow you to weigh your rig at the county landfill so, we know how much we really weigh. We travel with just my wife and I, no water and very little in the truck or trailer. Loaded the trailer is running around 5300 and the payload of the truck with both of us and full fuel, weight distribution hitch and a Diamondback bet cover is around 5500. Together that is 10,800 pounds. The GCWR limit is 11,100 for my truck. So, we are only 300 pounds under. Take the time to do the research on GVWR and GCWR before purchasing.
OK so that being said, we just got back from a trip to Colorado and back from Key West to Montrose Colorado. The Gladiator did fine towing the trailer both on flat and through the mountain passes. We drove I-70 from Denver to Montrose and encountered some pretty steep grades. The Jeep did fine but did rev pretty high on the uphill grades. I-70 was a cakewalk, We kept the speed to 55 to 65 and had no problems maintaining 55 on the grades. I would not want to go much faster than that especially on the down grades. I used manual shifting to keep the rig from getting away on the down grades and that worked really well. You can expect to get around 11 miles per gallon on average depending on the ambient temperature and road conditions.
One thing you will run into is wind and that can be downright scary. In some cases we ran into some serious wind storms where we had to drop down to 45 mph. Any faster and the TT was hard to handle. On the trip back we had to take SR93, due to road closures, and I can tell you that was white knuckle ride. It is a two lane road with hairpin turns and recommended speeds of 25 mph on some of the turns. The Jeep did fine but, it was not a fun ride towing a TT. We then did the summit of Monarch Pass and it is much steeper than I-70. The Jeep did alright but the tack was running in 5,000 range for most of the climb.

Through Texas we encountered temperatures of over 100 degrees and, we had higher transmission and oil temperatures on that ride than through the mountains.

So, all that being said, I would have to agree with Daniel. You are not going to be able to safely tow the 5,325 TT when you consider the luggage and toys you want to take. I would either opt for the smaller XLS21 or take a look at the Forest River options. I also agree with taking two vehicles if you want to take the entire family. Otherwise you are going to be overweight. Of course the other option is looking a different tow vehicle. The Gladiator will do the job, but, you will always be limited to what you can take with. It works great for us but, we are only two people and we take minimal stuff. Also, most of the time we are running on flat roads.

So, in summary I wanted to give you some real life experiences with towing a 24ft travel trailer with the Gladiator. If you are towing on flat roads most of the time you will be fine following Daniel's advice, take another vehicle along. Where and how far you plan to tow is also a big consideration. Good luck and let me know the outcome.
 
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wennybekon

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My experience with travel trailer has been a good one. I and my family has been using my own for few years. It makes camping very easy and comfortable for us.
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