How much HP to haul a camper?

[Skeeter]

I was wondering if my 98' Ford Ranger with a 2.5 4 cylinder engine would have troube hauling one of these "pop up" campers. Can anyone share any operating experiences? My max power is 119 ponys. I was considering a used empty shell model, maybe the Falcon or Finch which are the lightest models. Has anyone removed the interior? I sincerely appreciate any information. Thanks-

 

[pvstoy]

I was wondering if my 98' Ford Ranger with a 2.5 4 cylinder engine would have troube hauling one of these "pop up" campers. Can anyone share any operating experiences? My max power is 119 ponys. I was considering a used empty shell model, maybe the Falcon or Finch which are the lightest models. Has anyone removed the interior? I sincerely appreciate any information. Thanks-

Manual transmission with overdrive? You will find that going up hill and or against a head wind you will be out of 5th gear to keep up. It will be slower and will have to pre plan to get some momentum and the right gear when heading up a grade.

But with that said, I had a FWC Fleet model on my ‘83 Toyota 4X4 long bed and had the stock 4 cylinder engine and the current heavy bumpers and larger tires. I think you will be fine, just slower.

I have a friend with a Eagle shell model and a small two wheel drive p/u and he does just fine.

Get the camper model you want and make it your own. Later if the truck won’t cut it to your standards then get a newer (used or new) truck and move the camper to it.

 

[pvstoy]

Oh and by the way,

Welcome to the Forum.......

 

[DirtyDog]

I pulled a large Uhaul trailer from Oregon to Colorado with that same truck. It will do the job, but slowly.

 

[Alaskan Snowbirds]

Not much help here...but welcome!

Skeeter,

Welcome! I'm new to the forum too and have been enjoying it a lot.

We just put a new FWC Grandby on our '07 Dodge 2500 4x4 (gas V8). It's the first camper we've been around for 35+ years...so I'm not much help to you, but I am interested to hear the responses to your question.

We may get a rig similar to yours as a backup vehicle and for our daughter to use when she's home from school. If we do, I'd like to rework an older FWC for it (she likes to camp too). It would be interesting to hear how different mini/mid size rigs perform with campers (i.e. 4cyl Ranger/Toy/Dakota vs. 6cyl Ranger/Toy/Dakota vs. 8cyl Dakota)

I was glad to see that pvstoy and DD weighed in. Patrick's (pvstoy) first generation Toyota PU looks sweet! I'd like to hear what he replaced the original 4cyl with and how it handles the highway hills now. (If I remember correctly, he has two transfer cases in it, so going uphill slow shouldn't be a problem!)

The picture with your user name (I think it's called an avatar?) looks more like black spruce in interior Alaska than doug. fir in Mukilteo?? (Skeeter sounds like interior Alaska too!) If so, that's a great place for a commercial pilot to build time! We had a PA-18 in the garage at one time, but when darling daughter showed up, it left

Welcome and best wishes,
Duane and Susan

P.S.

mtn-high posted this link to a 6' camper in Colorado:

http://denver.craigslist.org/rvs/979321844.html

It might take some work to make it fit your rig but for $3C it might be worth it! Check the Four Wheel Campers web site for the camper fit page.

Cheers! D

 

[highz]

Hey Skeeter,

I have a '99 4WD Ranger with the 4.0L V6, manual tranny and a 2008 FWC Eagle. Even with the heftier engine, I have to gear down and go slower on some hills. I can really feel the addition of the Eagle. However, I bought a pretty well loaded Eagle and not a shell.

Hope this helps rather than muddies the waters more.

I'm a relatively new lurker with not a lot of spare time to post on any forum, although I've added one picture of my rig at Sugarite Canyon SP in New Mexico. That's to satisfy the picture "requirement"

Also, I'd like to thank all the site regulars who all helped me pick my Eagle options, my Supersprings and my E-rated tires as I lurked. You guys are all great. Hopefully I will have more time to post to the forum when I retire.

Cheers,
Highz

 

[ScottBailey]

Highz: Nice looking rig.
Skeeter: pvstoy's advice is good. The camper certainly could outlast a truck.

 

[Skeeter]

Thanks



Hi Everyone,

Dirty Dog, PVStoy,Alaskan Snowbirds ,Highz& ScottBailey - Thanks so much for all of the welcomes and advice. We really appreciate it! Everyone here has such great ideas! We are very happy we found this website! -We were at the point of getting overwhelmed and now we are REALLY overwhelmed..but excited.

Highz- Really like your set up ! Great pic! Used to live in Farmington.

Alaskan Snowbirds- That picture was taken on our first trip to Alaska last year! It was in the backcountry of the Kenai peninsula last September. We went for a week of backpacking and kayaking and just loved Alaska.
We may have an opportunity to spend this summer at the Kenai Wildlife Refuge... That's why we are looking for a camper!!
-Always wanted to fly a SuperCub! No tailwheel time...

With the regard to the economy, we are hoping to pull off an inexpensive way to transition our mini truck into a Recreational Vehicle.
Our truck ('98 Ford Ranger XLT) is a 2wd, manual, 2.5 liter, short bed. - I manage to get 30mp gallon on the highway.

Called the guy in CO about the fwc, left message, crossing fingers!
-

 

[Rockjok]

I was in a situation similar to yours last year with a small truck tho' mine's a 98 S10 with a 4.3l V-6. I ended up with a used Falcon shell to which I added plastic walmart drawers etc for storage, a catalytic heater, propane tanks, cooktop, microwave, generator, and battery etc.

The Falcon was made for a bed even shorter than my 6 foot but has the extra length over cab bed which is what I wanted. The objective was a go anywhere rig that would be comfortable for inclement weather or extended trips. For shorter trips in warm summer weather I'll take my bike with my dogs in their sidecar.

I had to modify the floor to fit my trucks wheel wells so the camper would sit all the way forward. It looks a bit funky but I kinda like keeping my tailgate and having outside storage. It wasn't hard even with my minimal carpentry skills. With a full load for a couple weeks I end up a hundred or so lbs over the gross weight limit but the CG is right on. You'll probably need some suspension mods even with the smallest camper. My firestone airbags have worked well.

As to power, I think you'll probably find things are fine up to about 50 mph and then it'll take a lot more power to maintain speed. I highly recommend getting a scangage II to help monitor your power settings and mpg etc..

Here's pics showing the "stock" fitment, the amount of floorpack I cut out, the final fitment (San Rafael Reef, Utah) and my alternative wander the west rig.

 

[DLN]

Skeeter and Highz,

Welcome aboard and best of luck.

 

[Alaskan Snowbirds]

Sounds like a great summer plan!

Skeeter,

Hearing about your plans takes me back to '74 when Susan and I spent two weeks in a Jeepster Commando towing a utility trailer made from a '53 Chev truck front end tenting to Alaska from Washington (Lordy...I am starting to sound like a geezer..."I 'member back in 74"...I guess if the shoe fits...)

On that trip we met a couple at Kluane Lake campground who were pulling a small camp trailer (not an ultralight) with a Ranger (I don't know what engine). I ran into him again a year or so later on the Russian River and he was living in Seldovia. They had finished out the trip in good shape and were still using that Ranger/trailer combination for trips in Alaska. I'd guess that pvstoy hit it just right, gears and patience will work.

We’ve spent a couple weeks in our camper now so we can offer a few thoughts on that. It is comfortable for us. Ours has furnace, pressure hot water and refrigerator…what luxury!…but not necessary (and sometimes not desirable). The pop-up works great. Having the fabric right at your head when you're in the cab-over is a lot like being in a tent. I keep ear plugs handy and use them if we're near roads or the wind picks up. Much nicer than worrying about a tent collapsing on you in the wind though!

In cooler weather I get concerned about the water system, especially the hot water tank, freezing on long drives. We may get a small 12V heater (like some vans and SUV’s use in the back) for those times. If I were to head out in any serious cold I wouldn’t use the water system at all, just drain it and carry water in 5 gallon containers and heat water on a stove.

The propane froze at low to mid 20’s but it came back after I pulled the tank and heated it in the cab for a bit. After the furnace was running in the camper the propane seemed to do OK. That might not be the case in serious cold though and using some other type of heat (or a North Face Dark Star bag!) might be needed. There have been some threads on this forum about using a combination stove/heater that is made by Wallace (I think Toyo makes one too). They run on diesel and a lot of smaller cabin boats here in Alaska use them. They should work at reasonably cold temperatures if set up correctly (though annual maintenance is mandatory to keep them running smoothly and they are fairly expensive). I don't know when you plan to head up The Highway but we've hit heavy snow and cold (but not minus temps, if I remember correctly) weather in both late May and early September, both times just north of Whitehorse. That isn't normal for that time of year though.

If you haven't already, you might want to ask the owner of the FWC in Colorado to do a few measurements for you and check to see that it will fit your rig before you commit. I'd think height would be pretty easy to deal with but some of the older campers are too wide for the newer pickups (usually at the tailgate (?) but I'd check wheelwells too) and it could take a lot of work to modify (I'm sure there are folks on this forum who would be able to tell you exactly how much).

If the FWC in Colorado doesn't work out, you might consider an ultralight trailer. The older ones are usually a "rounded unibody" type fiberglass skin, but there are all kinds of newer designs too. There are some advantages to not having canvas on the sides of your rig when you are asleep in brown bear country, one being that reaction (reloading) time is longer. I understand that some campgrounds don't allow tents or fabric pop-ups because of bear problems (Llaird (sp?) River is one that sticks in my mind), but you might be allowed if you kept the top down for sleeping. Downside for me with trailers is I hate towing on ice/snow and generally don't like towing at all (and, living in Juneau now, we'd have to refinance the house every time we got on the ferry to go someplace because the charge for the length is so high! Build The Road!)

There's a site called the expedition portal at: http://www.expeditionportal.com/ . You might want to look it over if you haven't already. If you sort through the chaff you may find some kernels of wisdom and some ideas for other types of campers/trailers that would work.

I'm guessing Alaska uses more commercial pilots than anyplace else in the world. If you decide to stay you might even get to fly a plane with a round engine that sounds like a real plane and that has the tailwheel on the proper end!

Sorry about the length of this monster...hope you find something you can use in all these words.

Duane and Susan

 

[highz]

Skeeter,

Most Rangers have a hump in the bed toward the rear of the drivers side for a second gas tank fill line. If you buy used, you will probably have to notch the camper to accommodate the hump. Should be no big deal.

 

[LAWNMOWERMAN]

Not to be a smart ass(allthough I certainly am) the Ranger mini truck was not introduced until 83.I was traveling through the west in the summer of 74 in a 1959 Willys Sedan Delivery and my memory is spotty at best.I'm blaming the water.

 

[Mark W. Ingalls]

Not to be a smart ass(allthough I certainly am) the Ranger mini truck was not introduced until 83.I was traveling through the west in the summer of 74 in a 1959 Willys Sedan Delivery and my memory is spotty at best.I'm blaming the water.

I had a Ranger before that, I think it was really a Mazda.

 

[LAWNMOWERMAN]

In 1965, the name "Ranger" was first introduced as a premium styling package for the Ford F-Series full-sized pickup trucks. The name was taken in 1982 for the line of North American compact trucks introduced in mid-1982 as an early 1983 model to replace the Toyo Kogyo (Mazda)-built" Ford Courier".Just to clarify,I am sure the Ranger that was refered to was a full size Ford with the Ranger package.

 

[Mark W. Ingalls]

oh yeah... 'courier'...

 

[Alaskan Snowbirds]

Thanks for keeping me honest guys.

They say the mind is the second thing to go....

It wasn't a full size rig and it was a Ford, so I'd GUESS it was a Courier.