RV Trailer Towing With F-150 Lightning - Considerations & Discussions

[TRP]

Pin weight on any 5th wheel is going to exceed the payload of a lightning. I wouldn't try to pull a 5th wheel with any 1/2 ton in the first place.


I think the bigger problem will be that the 5th wheel will almost guarantee you will be over payload. Ford is shooting for 2k and if they can hit it that will be on a base model. Add options and you will eat that up fast. I would bet most will have a payload of 1500-1600. Take a small 5th wheel with a GVW of 7500 - 23% you are at a pin weight of over 1700 and now you have to add people and stuff in the truck.

We have a gooseneck horse trailer with a gross weight of 7000lbs. We currently pull it with a 2018 F150. It works fine. There are plenty of horse trailers that will work on an F150 with a gooseneck. There are a few 5th wheel trailers that are F150 friendly, not many, but they are out there.

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[RT21KRH]

The first generation 2022 Lightning is full of limitations. If you cannot accept all of these then wait or buy something else. We used to call a purchase like this "The Bleeding Edge".

My RV camping fifty years ago planning included trying to find sites with running water, outhouses, and maybe a power outlet.

My Lightning will pull a 7,000 lb. 31 foot travel trailer with 30 amp input but with plenty of 12v backup batteries and portable solar panels (1600 watts).

I have hopes of a 150 mile range on mostly level roads in decent temperatures and I will use the hypermiling techniques learned from 11 years in a hybrid (no jack rabbit starts, coasting when possible, anticipate stops, and limiting AC). I will preplan for RV Parks with 50 amp plugs to recharge and use the Lightning bed plug in to power my trailer when possible. When not possible I camp with 12v power. I will enjoy my trip more by booking two days at each campground. I hope I can camp as close as possible to cities with quick charge stations and go to them with my trailer parked elsewhere. While charging or waiting for a charger I hope I can plan to go to a nearby restaurant or just walk around and enjoy the new town's parks or shops.

I assume I can daisy-chain my trailer to the Lightning while it is charging but the back-up plan would be to plan to use one at a time over the two days (use 12v in the trailer at night).

RVing used to be at a much slower pace than the hundreds of miles rigs are now pulled each day. Going back to that time is a Lightning limitation (at least until the 2nd Generation).

The plus would be now I will be able to afford using my RV again. Pulling it with my Silverado 2500HD cost me $0.40/mile. Figuring a $15.00 EV 'fill-up' that will cost me $0.10/mile and zero $ if I fill up through my RV hook-up over a two day period.

Of course, I only camp less than 5% of the year so the rest of the time I will drive my Lightning for about $0.05/mile.

Somebody tell me how wrong headed I am.

You have the right attitude and it may be a fun project for awhile. But the whole point of a full size pick up in my mind is no limitations. It does whatever you want (except fly). Don’t sell your Silverado, you’ll want it back in 3 months. Use the Lightning to pick up groceries in style!

 

[D-Pa]

I'm in the same boat as you. We never take our RV more than 3 hours away from home so we should be able to make it to our destination using the existing charging infrastructure. It will just take a little longer than it would have with our Ram 1500.

I think part of the fun of being an early adopter is learning how to work around the limitations of the technology.

Your last sentence says it all. I'm in complete agreement

 

[rodsterinfl]

I am enjoying this thread discussion. I own an Airstream 25 dual axle but I ended up ordering a hybrid instead of the Lightning as I do travel longer distances and often get in ridiculous traffic jams (once one five hours!). I cannot do anything about the traffic but I was not comfortable with the prospect of the distance. That said, I applaud those considering such a truck!

 

[Sdctcher]

You have the right attitude and it may be a fun project for awhile. But the whole point of a full size pick up in my mind is no limitations. It does whatever you want (except fly). Don’t sell your Silverado, you’ll want it back in 3 months. Use the Lightning to pick up groceries in style!

Old folks have learned it’s not all bad to learn to live with limitations.

Anyway, I just sold my lease 2018 Silverado 2500HD with 3,000 miles for $42,000, a profit of $15,000 (my Lightning down payment).

 

[GABAR]

Until it‚s actually available for consumers to use in the real world, everything else is just speculation.

 

[Easycamper]

The fifth wheel question is one that you really need to investigate. The hitch plate needs to be mounted over the rear axle, which is right over the rear electric motor mount cage. Look closely at the published cut-away pictures. Will there be any third-party manufacturers willing to market what you need and how would this affect warranties? Given the tight space under how easy would installation be?

Yep it’s going to be a bit of an unknown. Possibly a universal kit will work with or without some modification. Might need to get something fabbed up. It would be great if B&W or any of the other hitch companies make something pre-fabbed. Not sure if the market is big enough for them but we’ll see.

 

[Erik]

I hope that RV makers and RV review sites start reporting drag coefficient and Wh per mile at 70mph. Until now GVWR was the key metric, but with EVs the Wh per mile will become more important.

I am planning to rent a Scamp when I get my Lightning to see what the impact on range is. It is very round and light, so I hope the impact will be less than 50% reduction in range.

I found this blog post from someone towing an Airstream Basecamp with a Tesla. He says that there was a lack of data of the impact of towing an trailer on the range and that he now has all the data to calculate his range, but he does not share the data.
https://www.airstream.com/blog/ambassador-brian-eddy/

 

[powerboost]

I am enjoying this thread discussion. I own an Airstream 25 dual axle but I ended up ordering a hybrid instead of the Lightning as I do travel longer distances and often get in ridiculous traffic jams (once one five hours!). I cannot do anything about the traffic but I was not comfortable with the prospect of the distance. That said, I applaud those considering such a truck!

Wouldn't it be cool if someone came out with an additional add on battery for our Powerboost hybrid or a replacement with much more capacity? Add a Tesla Powerwall to a Powerboost to gain even more range. Out west in Portland, Oregon, if you pulled a heavy trailer to either beach or mountains, the charging infrastructure just doesn't exist yet. Maybe AAA will have to supersize it's fleet of roadside assistance to include recharge stations on wheels. My hat is off to you folks that tow to give it a shot with full electric. Other parts of country probably are better set up to make it work.

 

[shutterbug]

Maybe AAA will have to supersize it's fleet of roadside assistance to include recharge stations on wheels. My hat is off to you folks that tow to give it a shot with full electric. Other parts of country probably are better set up to make it work.

AAA tried it years ago.
https://www.torquenews.com/1083/aaa...-charging-program-hopes-return-better-service

AAA had EV service vehicles in Portland, Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, Phoenix, and Orlando. However, the folks from AAA noted its special service was going mostly unused. ​

 

[astricklin]

AAA tried it years ago.
https://www.torquenews.com/1083/aaa...-charging-program-hopes-return-better-service

AAA had EV service vehicles in Portland, Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, Phoenix, and Orlando. However, the folks from AAA noted its special service was going mostly unused. ​

They probably also found that it was just cheaper and faster to tow the vehicle to the home or nearest charging station.

 

[ChasingCoral]

Oh boy, cooking crockpot meals in the frunk while driving on the way to a tailgate might be epic.

Just make sure to strap down the lid cause "that sucker's quick!".

 

[ChasingCoral]

It definitely wouldn't make sense that you couldn't charge your tools while driving.

Or run your electric cooler.

In fact, the Sync 4A screen has the ability to separately turn on and off each of the outlet zones: Frunk, Cab, and Bed.

 

[astricklin]

Just make sure to strap down the lid cause "that sucker's quick!".

 

[rodsterinfl]

I hope that RV makers and RV review sites start reporting drag coefficient and Wh per mile at 70mph. Until now GVWR was the key metric, but with EVs the Wh per mile will become more important.

I am planning to rent a Scamp when I get my Lightning to see what the impact on range is. It is very round and light, so I hope the impact will be less than 50% reduction in range.

I found this blog post from someone towing an Airstream Basecamp with a Tesla. He says that there was a lack of data of the impact of towing an trailer on the range and that he now has all the data to calculate his range, but he does not share the data.
https://www.airstream.com/blog/ambassador-brian-eddy/

Did you see the Car and Driver Internet post about the Lightning? It says that the towing will remove around 60% of the range. When I looked around, that is what I believe would be correct. The article says less than 100 mile range expected. https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a36481590/ford-f150-lightning-range-towing/ Of course, we have not idea what Cd will do. I have an Airstream but I have never towed anything else to compare it to.

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