truck size matter

i am looking at trucks to but at the end of this month. i was wondering if any one pulls a loaded 12' trailor with a chevy s10 or equivalant. very much set on ford f150 or chevy c1500. but was wondering if any of you use smaller trucks and how they perform under the loads. i will be hauling a 33" walk behind and a 48" zero turn. i only have 3500 for a truck.

[Steve]

Lawn care business tips

I think one of our friends on here, Chuck, was doing that for a while and then later he scaled up the truck. The smaller trucks are always going to have a tougher time pulling trailers. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't make do with what you have and then scale up later. It's always better to get started now with what you already have.

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[musician/lawnman]

Hey that's my truck! Well my old one....
Yeah I started with that ranger but I added coil over shocks in the rear to carry the added load. It worked & I would have stayed that way but had to start putting a 2nd ZT in the trailer & a 3rd guy in the truck. I needed a bigger truck & went with an 05' F150 super cab. Good truck but the fuel economy BLOWS. I hear the chevys are a bit better & learned that for the year (05) ford was the worst fuel economy available in a 1/2 ton truck. & I got the bigger 5.4L power plant to boot.

[Steve]

Chuck did you try pulling the trailer with the extra z-turn in the back? How did it respond?

Also would you have continued using that truck if you had 4 doors to allow better in and out access for a crew of 3?

What's the difference in the gas mileage between the trucks per day or week?

[musician/lawnman]

When I only had one mower of course I kept it centered on the trailers axle.
In adding the 2nd one goes all the way to the front (alot more tongue weight) & the other is right behind it. Bettween the 2 they are basically from the front to the rear of the trailer.

I really needed to upgrade more because of the weight. Towing & Hauling.
Loaded with the trailer + 500 or more pounds of brsh that truck struggled. It was paid off so I figured better to trade before I blew it up & made it worthless. So yeah I would have traded anyway. & that truck did have 4 doors but the back seat was only really fitting for an 8 year old.

The new truck is better but even still, I really need to put coil over shocks on it this winter too. Plus I'll have a 2nd truck & crew by next spring.

The ranger got about 20 mpg normal & about 13 towing. The F150 gets only 8.5 - 9 mpg towing & I have no idea about normal driving as the trailer never come off it for long enough to tell, It's a work truck. I don't really drive it for personal stuff. The wife's car gets much better mileage!

[JHall]

How are you today. I know your pain about the truck issues. I have a suburban that is my daily driver to work and back and doubles as lawn truck also. I like the size and it's towing capacity but fuel mileage is awful. But like you said it's paid for so it has to say. I'am just starting out and i have a small trailer that i have already out grown. I brought a 5x10 with 36'' high sides. About two weeks later i found the mower i wanted.When i went to pick it up i realized my trailer was smaller than i would have liked.

jhall

thanks for the input guys. i am going with a f150 for sure now. finding good prices on them in my area

[Steve]

Keep us posted on what you get.

[pblawncare]

I've got a 94 C1500 chevy 2wd with a 4.3 V6. I pull a 16 ft. trailer with it, 2 walk behind toros, billygoat vac, push mower, and the hand tools/trimmer/blower in the back of the truck and it does pretty well. Granted the gas tank is 35 gallons, so it hurts when you pay at the pump but I can generally run 350 miles on a tank with the trailer, 475 without. Good trucks for the price.

[bruces]

my brother has a '07 ranger and pulls a 6 x12 enclosed trailer full of sound and lighting gear .His ranger has had the rear end replaced twice ,and is on its second transmision as well .He gets worse fuel mileage than my full size chevy with a vortec 350 that wouldnt notice his trailer behind it .