Half ton truck payload how to increase it?

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Boatbuilder79

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What limits the payload of a half ton truck? Is it the springs, tires axel or frame?

My truck is an aluminum f150 with the v8 and 4wd. It came with squishy springs and car tires. The sticker on the door says my payload is 1975 pounds with passenger tires. It is rated to tow 9100 pounds.

Is there anything I can do to the truck to carry more weight other than installing an add a leaf or e rated tires and better shocks? (I have already done this)

I want to carry 1000 pounds of camper and pull 5000 pounds of boat.

A diesel 4 door f250 is really expensive and will not fit in the parking deck at work or in my garage.
 
I don't see why you would have a problem doing what you want with what you have ... E Rated tires and perhaps Firestone Ride Rites. I have found will do the trick. If you have electric assist brakes on trailer and anti sway ... should be fine.
 
You can not increase the payload of your truck. It is legally what the sticker says. You can make it more stable to drive and more pretty and all those things but the payload never gets bigger........
 
I guess what I am asking then is what will fail first as I keep adding weight past what the sticker says. Hypothetically. What would keep the truck from failing if I was to add more weight than the sticker says.
 
As others have said no matter what you do to upgrade your weight carrying capacity the legal weight is still the sticker. That being said- Your towing capacity gives a good idea of what your engine and drive train can handle. The rest of the load issues relate to brakes, tires, suspension and frame. I assume you have brakes on your boat trailer so that should not be an issue. I think manufacturers assume that most trucks are driven empty almost all of the time so put pretty weak springs on them so they ride as like a car as they can. If you leave the camper on all of the time custom spring sets are a great way to go-sometimes with airbags. If you take it off part of the year then airbags seam to work better. Definitely make sure to run E rated tires for safety.
 
A good way to go about figuring how much weight you can put into your truck is to go to a scale and weigh your truck with you in it, and a full tank of gas. Subtract that from your gross vehicle weight rating and you have your true payload. I seen to remember that the listed "payload" is not always true for some reason? Not sure how to relate the weight in your truck to the weight you can tow though.
 
Boatbuilder79 said:
What limits the payload of a half ton truck? Is it the springs, tires axel or frame?

My truck is an aluminum f150 with the v8 and 4wd. It came with squishy springs and car tires. The sticker on the door says my payload is 1975 pounds with passenger tires. It is rated to tow 9100 pounds.

A diesel 4 door f250 is really expensive and will not fit in the parking deck at work or in my garage.
Click to expand...
What you want to check is the GCVWR (gross combined vehicle weight rating), which should be listed somewhere, either on the door post sticker or your truck's user manual. This is the maximum combined weight of the truck fully loaded and the trailer fully loaded. Attached is Ford's chart for the 2017 F-150:
https://www.ford.com/resources/ford/general/pdf/towingguides/17RV&TT_Ford_F150_Sep7.pdf

The other number you want to watch is the GAWR (gross axle weight rating), which is the max weight you can have on your rear axle. Since the trailer hitch is at the end of a lever arm, the contribution of the trailer is more than the tongue weight.

Although you cannot change the GCVWR, you can make is safer to drive: stiffen the suspension, E rated tires, better shocks (these you said you have done), bigger sway bars, trailer brakes, . . .

Just get the F-250 diesel. You know you've always wanted to be the first kid in the parking deck to have a chopped, convertible pickup :p
 
Take a look at Ford's option #627, payload package, it increases the payload to about 2,700 lbs with the 3.5 Ecco boost. Similar gains with the 5.0. Body style (supercrew, reg cab, etc.), and trim levels also influence the final payload package gain. One item that will be costly to change is the 9.75 inch rear along with the 3.73 ratio. Find a Ford's parts person!
 
Boatbuilder79 said:
I guess what I am asking then is what will fail first as I keep adding weight past what the sticker says. Hypothetically. What would keep the truck from failing if I was to add more weight than the sticker says.
Click to expand...
First thing you will notice is the squat from the weight. You will want to upgrade springs such that with your desired load you are where you were before adding the load. That will detract from how it rides/safety when you are unloaded.

Some say the shocks need to be upraded too, to handle all the extra inertia.

Brakes are what you will notice next. Find a safe place and do a few panic stops. Start slow and work your way up. Do the brakes still feel good after 3-5 stops from speed? Do you stop straight? Does the back end want to swing around? How much longer does it take to stop? These are things you want to know before you hit the road with an unfamiliar load.

Acceleration. Everybody has different expectations here. Get used to how it feels with the load. Adjust your driving habits accordingly.

Axels and axel seals/bearings can fail if loaded too far over spec. Keep and eye on those and change fluids more often than what the factory asks for.

That's a start.
 
If a new F-250 isn't on the horizon, then a good used one should be...once you know the REAL weight of the camper with full tanks, passengers, food, water, all your gear, personal stuff...and the specs suggested by the boat trailer/boat combo for towing it you can check the VIN tag on the vehicle and the OWNER'S MANUALS to see if you have "enough truck".

Right now I think the consensus is you don't. Spending a lot of money to upgrade that F-150 still does not mean it is SAFE nor LEGAL if you have an accident. I'm sure you already know the difference in stopping distance with and without the boat and trailer behind the F-150 so adding close to 2,000 lbs. to a 1/2 ton capacity truck PLUS the boat is asking a lot of it that the mfgers never built it for.

There is a reason there is an F-150 and an F-250 (and bigger) truck made by Ford (and others)....because bigger loads require "more truck". I assume any truck with that kind of load will need a bigger engine and perhaps be 4 x 4 which also cuts down on the GVWR of the truck as a whole...as does extended cabs or 3-4 door cabs. Many guys here don't stop at an F-250...they go for a one-ton and they don't even tow a boat!

PS...My '88 F-250 cab sits about 76" off the driveway with my 8' CO Alaskan mounted in the truck. It does have LT235/85R 16 tires as the VIN tag calls for. I don't know how tall your F-150 sits though....the newer Ford trucks seem to sit higher. Why not check the signs at the garage at work to see what clearance is allowed and then see how much clearance your current F-150 has and then use that as part of your search for "enough truck" for everything you intend on hauling around...

My point it...I'd hate for you to blow a lot of money on "souping-up" your F-150 only to find out it can't safely handle what you intend on hauling around...and you will probably not get back any of that if you then sold it to buy another truck anyway.
 
I'll take a different angle ...

Because you are towing - and have some capacity there - how about transferring as much wt from the tow vehicle as possible (spare tire if you have one, fuel from the main tank, fishing gear, road trip junk) and as much from the future camper (chuck box, battery, gear, clothing etc) and load it onto the trailer.

You might already be filling up the boat when travelling (like a lot of people) so you may have to alter or change out the trailer to do this.

What ever you do it will cost money, this is just a different way.
 
In spite of what I said above - which was an attempt to answer the OP questions - I am totally onside with Packrat... get enough truck by design. That said, others here use even smaller trucks happily with their campers.

I must say my older truck was a great buy, feels new to me, and handles the load without mods. I bet the truck cost less than what you might spend on "souping up" a F150 to try and get it up to snuff.
 
I really do not see a 3/4 ton diesel in my future.

My 2015 truck will be paid off in 18 months and I would rather sleep in a tent or use air b&b than have another truck payment.

If I get a 1000 pound camper
And 500 pounds of camping gear
And 500 pounds of people
And 500 pounds of trailer toung weight

That would put me 525 pounds over the payload limit of my the truck but still well under the combined weight limit for the truck and trailer.

I am figuring this with a full 80 gallon tank of gas in the boat and a 10 percent trailer toung weight.

I could put all our stuff in the boat and not put gas in the boat till I get there and be right at the payload limit.
 
When we decided to try a pop-top I knew that the 22R in my '84 Xcab yota wasn't going to work. Campers for the mid-sizes just don't exist used. Which put us into a full size. At the time the fuel range (mileage) of a used diesel was much better than the fuel range of a used gasser. That put us into a 3/4t or 1t truck, and I am glad that it did. Once everything was brought up to good condition it has been a great truck for us. No load bearing or brake mods required. I've even taken the rear over-load leafs in the OEM rear springs out of play for a better ride and the truck sits level with the camper in it. Compared to my old '84 yota it is a much bigger truck, but compared to a 1/2t then other than possibly ride height I doubt that there's much difference at all.

Used gasser fuel range may be better in today's used truck offerings, dunno.
 
I am a little biased as I have one and love it. Mini Diesel Colorado. 7000 lb towing. 396 ft lbs torque. Me and my eagle 12000 trip over 20mpg
 
I was specifically thinking of your Buckland, when I mentioned small trucks! I love what you have there... and the mpg is hard to argue with. Would you feel good about having a bigger camper in that truck? Say maybe a Hawk?
 
Squatch is right. The width of the base is tight (1/2” clearance each side) and one must put a 3” platform ...mine insulated... to raise it over the rails. The Fleet now is the one. It is wider on top so not an issue. That is the best match. Life is compromise.
 
Technically you can't increase the legal payload. Though several things can be done to make the truck safer and better handling at the limit and slightly beyond.

Most 1/2 ton trucks these days are sprung for comfort not load handling. Upgrades from air bags to a couple of additional leaves goes along way to making the trucks much more predictable on the road when loaded.

Most trucks these days have pretty decent brakes and plenty of power to get the job done. Just upgrading to aftermarket brake pads can make a noticeable difference in loaded stopping distance.

P metric tire are capable of handling the weight the 1/2 ton truck is designed for. But that doesn't mean they do a great job. Upgrading to a C, D, or E rated Light Truck tire makes a huge difference in handling. But you will likely lose some of the cushy ride.

Not everyone can afford or truly needs a 3/4 or 1 ton truck. But you have to evaluate your needs and be honest on how you will use the truck. 1/2 tons and mid size can work fine. but you need to keep the campers and gear light. Towing loads reasonable.

My Tundra works great for carrying my camper and towing my boat. But I try to act like a backpacker and keep weight at the top of my list and work hard not to get carried away with packing a lot of stuff!
 
I think the OP is saying he has a newish 1/2T F-150, and is not interested in selling it. So, advice like Squatch's is right on. To summarize:

1) E-rated tires
2) Beefed up springs and/or Air bags
3) Keep it light
4) Sway bars
5) Different brake pads
6) Keep it light
7) Weigh before and after
8) Keep it light
 
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