Towing a Ford Ranger

[wlm]

We know nothing about motorhomes. We are looking toward retirement and would like to buy a motorhome and tow our Ford Ranger. Will a class c do that or do we need to go to class a? Should we look for a diesel? We are looking at spending around $100000. Any advice you can give us would be greatly appreciated on what would be good to buy and what to look for.

 

[John&Andrea]

Welcome. The E450 on a Class C will tow the ranger as well as a gas Class A. You need to make sure you can flat tow the ranger. Some are flat towable and some are not. Ford is a good choice on a Class C and the only choice on a gas Class A. Diesel is another level you will not need it to tow but will give you more hp and torque. In the mountains that can come in handy. You budget will get you in class A or C, I would recommend looking on line to get an idea of what is out there. RVtrader.com is a good place to start. Some resorts and campgrounds have an age limit on rigs of 10 years old. I sold my 2009 5th wheel in December, I was towing with an 04 F250 and we were still going and were never challenged on the age. Both looked good I’m not sure how much that is really enforced.
Good luck on your search.

 

[Old Bubblehead]

Welcome!
As John has indicated, there are many options out there. Also as he mentions, your truck may be towable 4 down. Your owners manual is the first place to look, it will detail the models of Rangers that can be Recreational Towed or Dinghy Towed. Once you have that info you can understand your options. If your truck is capable of 4 down towing, the next issue is weight. This impacts the RV you select. You will need to find an RV that has the correct hitch rating and weight handling characteristics.

Figure out your truck first, then you know when you go shopping for the RV what your limits are for the rig.

We towed a Chevy Colorado with our first coach (Newmar gas rig), we had also looked at the Rangers and could have towed them.

Best of luck!

 

[MapNerd]

Both a gas class A and Class C should be able to tow a ranger just fine. Just check the hitch rating and make sure it’s rated to tow the weight of the ranger, fully loaded as you would tow it, plus another 10-20% for a safety margin.

To tow a ranger, it needs to be 4x4 with a two-speed transfer case. This is standard equipment on a modern 4x4 Ranger.

I also recommend installing a charge line. Rangers and F150s generally do not need this but the steps to put them in flat -tow mode can be a bit confusing for some and modern Fords have an unfortunate feature wherein if the vehicle’s battery becomes depleted while in flat-tow mode, the vehicle will shift into gear. There have been several reports of that happening to folks while they were towing and the end resolution required a compete transmission swap at a minimum. Ford has not been covering these incidents as warranty claims but calling them operator error.
A charge line should avoid that nightmare by keeping the battery charged while in tow. Ford says you don’t need this but it is literally $6 worth of insurance.

 

[Old Bubblehead]

Both a gas class A and Class C should be able to tow a ranger just fine. Just check the hitch rating and make sure it’s rated to tow the weight of the ranger, fully loaded as you would tow it, plus another 10-20% for a safety margin.

To tow a ranger, it needs to be 4x4 with a two-speed transfer case. This is standard equipment on a modern 4x4 Ranger.

I also recommend installing a charge line. Rangers and F150s generally do not need this but the steps to put them in flat -tow mode can be a bit confusing for some and modern Fords have an unfortunate feature wherein if the vehicle’s battery becomes depleted while in flat-tow mode, the vehicle will shift into gear. There have been several reports of that happening to folks while they were towing and the end resolution required a compete transmission swap at a minimum. Ford has not been covering these incidents as warranty claims but calling them operator error.
A charge line should avoid that nightmare by keeping the battery charged while in tow. Ford says you don’t need this but it is literally $6 worth of insurance.

Just talked me out of a Ford for my next toad.

 

[MapNerd]

Sorry. Wasn’t my intention. It scared me when I first read about it too but knowledge is power my friend. Now you can make an informed choice. I tow an f-150 with no issues or worries because I have a charge line and I know about the issue. Lots of folks do as well.

plenty of other great tow vehicles out there. I think @Neal toes a Colorado but IIIRC, that requires a battery disconnect with is a different kind of pain in the butt.

FWIW, I think Ford met some owners in the middle and gave them steep discounts, but mileage varies depending on conditions. Personally, I just wouldn’t tow any vehicle without a charge line. It doesn’t hurt if it’s not needed but it helps a ton if it turns out that it is needed and is just undocumented.

 

[Old Bubblehead]

Sorry. Wasn’t my intention. It scared me when I first read about it too but knowledge is power my friend. Now you can make an informed choice. I tow an f-150 with no issues or worries because I have a charge line and I know about the issue. Lots of folks do as well.

plenty of other great tow vehicles out there. I think @Neal toes a Colorado but IIIRC, that requires a battery disconnect with is a different kind of pain in the butt.

FWIW, I think Ford met some owners in the middle and gave them steep discounts, but mileage varies depending on conditions. Personally, I just wouldn’t tow any vehicle without a charge line. It doesn’t hurt if it’s not needed but it helps a ton if it turns out that it is needed and is just undocumented.

No worries, we have a Colorado now and dealt with the battery disconnect. Been towing it for two seasons, great toad. We had a gasser when we picked it, so were weight limited. Also did not have air brakes on gasser. New rig has more capability, and a bit bigger/ more comfortable toad wouldn't be a bother. No rush, we will research for a while before changing.

 

[Britman55]

We know nothing about motorhomes. We are looking toward retirement and would like to buy a motorhome and tow our Ford Ranger. Will a class c do that or do we need to go to class a? Should we look for a diesel? We are looking at spending around $100000. Any advice you can give us would be greatly appreciated on what would be good to buy and what to look for.

I tow a 2019 Ranger XLT 4x4 with my gas Class A. Tow bar is the Blue Ox Avail series and the supplemental braking system is the Demco Stay-in-Play Duo. Following the procedures listed in the Ford Ranger owners manual I have found the set up to tow relatively easy. I do not have a charge line installed as I was told I don't need one. So far my set-up has been very reliable.

 

[MapNerd]

No worries, we have a Colorado now and dealt with the battery disconnect. Been towing it for two seasons, great toad. We had a gasser when we picked it, so were weight limited. Also did not have air brakes on gasser. New rig has more capability, and a bit bigger/ more comfortable toad wouldn't be a bother. No rush, we will research for a while before changing.

What’s the reason for needing to disconnect the battery anyway? To prevent charge depletion? If so, you could just get a batteryminder or another charge line, wired directly into your electrical cable from the coach, then there should be no need to disconnect the battery.

The Ranger and Colorado are both very similar trucks, why were you considering switching given that they are pretty much the same size truck with the same capabilities?

 

[MapNerd]

I tow a 2019 Ranger XLT 4x4 with my gas Class A. Tow bar is the Blue Ox Avail series and the supplemental braking system is the Demco Stay-in-Play Duo. Following the procedures listed in the Ford Ranger owners manual I have found the set up to tow relatively easy. I do not have a charge line installed as I was told I don't need one. So far my set-up has been very reliable.

The 2020 and below model years have a very simple process to put the vehicle into flat tow. It is hard to mess up. The 2021 models moved all of that into the dash screen, and you enable it via the in-dash menu using your steering wheel controls. There is a post on here somewhere with a young lady demonstrating it and it’s a pretty convoluted set of like 20 steps. As with anything, I’m sure once you’ve done it a few times it gets easier but man they nested it pretty deep in the settings.

 

[Old Bubblehead]

What’s the reason for needing to disconnect the battery anyway? To prevent charge depletion? If so, you could just get a batteryminder or another charge line, wired directly into your electrical cable from the coach, then there should be no need to disconnect the battery.

The Ranger and Colorado are both very similar trucks, why were you considering switching given that they are pretty much the same size truck with the same capabilities?

The steering is electric and needs to be isolated is what i was told. We are looking at F150 size for next truck.

 

[MapNerd]

An F150 might be a bit heavy for a gasser. I know going from our Jeep Cherokee to our F150, I definitely noticed the F150’s additional heft, particularly when climbing, whereas I’d never noticed the Cherokee.

sometimes I think a Ranger with the Tremor package would have been just as good.

 

[Britman55]

The 2020 and below mode years have a very simple process to put the vehicle into flat tow. It is hard to mess up. The 2021 models moved all of that into the dash screen, and you enable it via the in-dash menu using your steering whee controls. There is a post on here somewhere with a young lady demonstrating it and it’s a pretty convoluted set of like 20 steps. As with anything, I’m sure once you’ve done it a few times it gets easier but man they nested it pretty deep in the settings.

Was not aware of the newer Ranger procedures but now that you mentioned it I guess I should feel lucky that my model year is more simplified . I still have a checklist in the glove compartment anyway and follow it even though I think I have it committed to memory. My DW seems to think it’s a good idea!

 

[Joe Dutchstar]

Read the User Manual for the 2021 Ford Ranger. Pages 227 -230.

https://www.fordservicecontent.com/Ford_Content/Catalog/owner_information/2021-Ford-Ranger-Owners-Manual-version-1_om_EN-US_10_2020.pdf

 

[MapNerd]

That doesn’t seem too bad!