Hey there,

I am a total newbie to the world of trucks and towing, for despite being a horse owner for many years, I somehow survived without owning a truck. Finally decided to bite the bullet, as I want to be able to tow a trailer with a couple tons of hay for my horses.

I got lucky (I think, pray, hope...) and found a beautiful 1992 F-150 with a 5.8 V8, 4WD, auto, tow package, some after market thing (I think called a gear splitter or something like that) that is supposed to make things better when you tow, also some kind of cooler thingy for when you are towing...my husband would know all the details.

The truck literally belonged to a lovely grandmother who kept it in immaculate condition, and it only has about 124,000 miles on it. It looks almost brand new. Only thing we saw that my husband thinks needs replacing is the hangers (?) in the rear. Other than that, looks good inside and out, besides perhaps needing some minor things the hubby can take care of -- he's a pretty good car dude.

What I would like from you good folks are any tips on things we can/should do to make hauling a trailer safer and easier. I saw some people talking about overdrive and this and that -- I know NOTHING and don't want to damage my truck or hurt anyone, including myself. We have a very nice, heavy-duty flat deck trailer, 7.5' x 13', with two 3500 lb. axles. I'm planning to put 4-5,000 lbs of hay on it. Any advice?

Many thanks,

Susan

 

Susan,

I have the same truck as you.

The rear springs are really light. 3-500#'s of tongue weight really drop the back end.
Make sure you have a reciever hitch and you are not towing off the bumper with that weight.

The Heavy Duty trailer with 2-3.5k axles is not heavy duty. If it was heavy duty it would have 5.2k or 6k axles. It is a standard or light duty trailer.
The 7k axles capacity includes the trailer weight. I'd guess the trailer at a modest 1500-2000#'s which leaves a load capacity of only 5-5.5k, so you're good there; but you might consider a set of weight distribution bars

The automatic in these trucks is a weak link. Service it reguarly (every 20-35k miles)

Happy towing and congrats.

 

See, I told ya I know nada! When I said "heavy duty", I was comparing it in my mind to some rattley little trailers I've seen that look like they are made out of tin and would fold up if you put a sack of cement on them. This one is very solid and does weigh about 1500 lbs. The guy we got it from said it could take 5500 lbs. max.

We do have a receiver hitch -- thanks for the info about the springs! Is that something that can/should be replaced with stronger ones?

I greatly appreciate your help.

Susan

 

I don't think you should necessarily replace the springs, but a set of air bags would help a lot.

 

I agree as it will also maintain your unloaded ride quality

 

Wouldn't air bags be a pricey investment for just hauling hay? I only haul hay about twice a year, and besides that I dont tow much of anything besides the boat. I think a spring would be cheaper and just as good, I just can't see paying for air bags unless you would have to haul it a awful lot. Just my 2 cents though

 

Air bags let you still have a decent ride when you are unloaded. Stiffer springs will kill the unloaded ride.

 

You answered this yourself.
You only tow a couple of times a year and you would have to deal with a harsh ride from heavier springs for most of the year.... more than your few tows a year.

Sounds like a perfect pitch for getting into air bags.

 

Right - now, if you used your truck almost exclusively for towing and/or carrying heavy loads, then springs would be fine. If that's what the OP is going to be doing and is willing to have a terrible ride with no load, then maybe springs would be the way to go.

 

The OP did not say how far or how fast she would need to go. If the hay dealer is local, she may only be going a short distance on local roads.
The best advice is to go slow at first. Avoid sudden stops or fast turns. Find some empty roads to practice on. A 7,000 # trailer on a half ton pick-up really changes the feel. Stopping and turning both take a lot longer. If you get too much weight on the rear of the truck, you may feel the steering get lighter. Avoid this situation.
Distribute the load over the entire trailer. The front needs a little more weight than the rear. Ideally, about 5% to 10% of gross weight should be on the tongue. If trailer is 7,000#, you need 350# to 700# on tongue. If you are too light in front, the trailer will sway or 'fish tail'.
The 'cooler thingy' is probably an automatic transmission cooler. This really helps on longer and hotter trips. If the truck has overdrive, leave it OFF when towing. Since you have a 4WD, you might as well use it when the trailer is hooked up.
Good luck.

 

Not on dry paved roads.

No, 10% to 15%.

 

If you are going to exceed 500 pounds of tongue weight (the amount of weight being carried by the hitch) you will need a weight distributing hitch setup to redistribute some of that weight onto the trailer. Properly loading the trailer and taking it easy are key. Also, be sure that the trailer has some form of brakes... you do not want to ask your 17 year old brakes to stop 12,000 pounds (about 5k pounds for the truck and up to 7k of trailer weight).

Practice with an empty trailer until you know how large it is and how you need to adjust your driving style for the length and width of it behind you. It will feel different when it is loaded, but knowing the size of it is always going to make you more comfortable.

Trust me, the F150 can safely get the job done as long as you are safe in how you go about it. I tow a 23' travel trailer that is stupidly heavy for its size with no issues, as well as a small utility trailer with dirtbikes and stuff (not at the same time, I can't legally double tow since I let my Class A expire).