Towing with a 2000 Ford Ranger 3.0 Auto

[mgbbob]

Hi folks, I have been looking at Scamps for a while since I think I can tow one with my Ranger. The problem is the bed size. I just found out that the 17' Casita has a larger bed (I am 6'2"....bump my head or sleep well). The Casita weights a bit more 2500 lbs. but is still considerably under my rating for the ranger.

Anyone towing one with a Ranger out there?

Thanks,
Bob

[Jon in AZ]

All Casitas and Scamps are 6'8" wide, so bed length is the same in all of them, about 76". Difference is the width, which gets complicated. Casita 13' and 16' models have a 45" wide bed, while the 17' has a 54" bed. Scamp Deluxe (wood interior) models have a 54" bed. Scamp Standard (fiberglass interior) models have a 45" bed, EXCEPT starting 2014 a 54" bed is an option in the 13' Standard (but not in the 16' Standard). Clear as mud?

A Casita 17D weighs about 3300 pounds loaded, and averages 425 pounds on the hitch. I'm thinking that might be overweight for your Ranger. See http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...rld-43010.html for information on actual towing weights. A Scamp 16' Deluxe would be more like 2600 pounds loaded.

[Borrego Dave]

Bob, I have an '02 Ranger 4dr 4.0 v6 auto and tow an SD 17 and it pulls it well. No WDH but did add Timken rubber helpers on the rear as Rangers tend to squat with a load. Just did a trip with 50mph crosswind gusts through the mountains and the trailer tracked fine. My TW is #364 ready to go. I also travel with a full fresh water tank which is in the rear, helps take a few pounds off the tongue. Not sure how much your truck is rated at, mine is #5850.

[piperjim]

Originally Posted by mgbbob

Hi folks, I have been looking at Scamps for a while since I think I can tow one with my Ranger. The problem is the bed size. I just found out that the 17' Casita has a larger bed (I am 6'2"....bump my head or sleep well). The Casita weights a bit more 2500 lbs. but is still considerably under my rating for the ranger.

Anyone towing one with a Ranger out there?

Thanks,
Bob

Bob:

I bought a package deal last fall....a 2002 Scamp 19' Deluxe with a 2004 Ford Ranger 6 cyl. 3.0L, automatic transmission. I found the Ranger lacking in power. It would pull the Scamp, but it wasn't pretty!! And, the gas mileage just coming across the Plains was atrocious!! Another issue for me is that I live in Colorado and need some power to make it up the mountains. I haven't weighed my Scamp, but it's listed for a total weight of 2800 lbs on the list developed on this forum (I think). You can search for "Trailer Weights in the Real World" and find the list.

I've since modified the hitch, raised the camper 4", and now pull the camper with my Dodge Ram 1500 5.9L. This is much nicer.

Best of luck in your search....

[slowpat]

I have a 2011 Ranger with the bigger 4.0 engine. I recently got a Casita 17 spirit deluxe and towed it home from NoCal up to SW Warshington. I've since gone other places and yes, the gas gauge moves quickly, but the comfort of the trailer is worth it. And yes, it slows down going over the pass, but I don't punch it to keep it up to speed and even slowing down, I am going faster than the loaded semi trucks on the pass.


So, yes, a Ford Ranger can pull one.

[floyd]

My 15 year old Ranger(4.0L 5spd manual) is approaching 170,000 miles, about half of them with a trailer attached. Car dolly, car trailer, utility trailer and dozens of Rv trailers, plus an occasional chain or tow strap.
I don't open the hood between oil changes except to jump start someone else's stranded vehicle.

This past February I made my annual 3000 mile trip to Southern Florida with my Scamp13D in tow, crossed Monteagle at the speed limit with the cruise control engaged. Of course the total payload was only about 2500-2700 pounds.
Total trip fuel consumption 18.5 MPG.
I'm expecting another 15 years if I live that long!
Last I checked, Scamp still owned their mid nineties 3.0L Ranger which has been used to deliver Scamp 5ers for a couple of decades. That is a much lesser engine than the late model 3.0.

[rdickens]

What year is the Ranger and does the transmission have a "S" (Sport) mode?

With a 2014 Ford Escape 2.0L Ecoboost FWD, and with the transmission in Sport mode,
we didn't even slow down going over Donner Pass and over the continental divide (pulling a Scamp13).

Sport mode puts the 2.0L I4 Ecoboost into the 2150 to 2250 rpm range where that engine develops much of its 270 lb-ft of torque. Even going through the foothills and mountains, fuel economy was still 20+ mpg.

For towing, and especially in the mountains, I believe it might be pretty important to run
at an rpm that will produce high, nearly optimum torque. (Of course, I could be wrong. 😉 )

As always, YMMV. 😉

Ray






Sent from my iPad using Fiberglass RV

[slowpat]

I'm not a motor head. I try to conserve gas going up over our White Pass so I'm going around 40 or 45 on the steeper grades. I could kick it in and go faster but then the gas consumption increases. Oh, the speed limit is 50 on that stretch and I'm usually in no big hurry. Chances are I'll get stuck behind the Drinkamugamilkaday truck or another type because it is a two lane road with very few passing lanes.

[Ben and Janie]

I pull a Scamp 16 ft layout 4 with a 2003 3.0 extend cab Ranger with a automatic transmission 3.73 ratio rearend it does a great job get 14 -15 MPG towing 17-18 not towing the truck bed is loaded when towing Scamp weights 2500 lbs I have pulled the camper over the Smokies on I 40 with no problems run 55 - 60 mph while towing

[mgbbob]

Thanks for the information. Some person told me to use 80% of the rated towing rating as a maximum for the vehicle. From what everyone has kicked in here I think that is probably right on target. I think I must look at a trailer in the 2500 max range for the Ranger.

[honda03842]

I have no idea where the 80% rule comes from. It assumes that the manufacturer puts no margin in his number.

As a rule of thumb, in Europe it is common to say that tag-along trailers should weigh no more than 80% of the tow vehicle weight. This has nothing to do with the rating of the tow vehicle.

[floyd]

Originally Posted by mgbbob

Thanks for the information. Some person told me to use 80% of the rated towing rating as a maximum for the vehicle. From what everyone has kicked in here I think that is probably right on target. I think I must look at a trailer in the 2500 max range for the Ranger.

Rangers can be rated at over 6000 pound tow capacity.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by floyd

Rangers can be rated at over 6000 pound tow capacity.

Yup and some in 2000 model year were as low as 1580 lbs tow capacity.

The PDF from Ford showing the towing capacities of the various models of the 2000 Ford Ranger can be found here:

WWW.fleet.ford.com/truckbbas/non-html/2000/bbcamper.PDF

The Ranger specs are on Page 9

[Jon in AZ]

Max looks to be in the 3600-4300 range, depending on exact configuration, for a 2000 with the 3.0L. Given that this truck is now 15 years old, a 17' Casita seems borderline at best and unlikely to give a satisfactory experience. Sticking with something around 2500 pounds loaded makes sense to me.

[Eric Heinz]

At least in 2001 the 4L Rangers had much bigger brakes than the 3L Rangers. (My brother-in-law once put the smaller rotors on my Ranger so the calipers extended over the edge of the rotors.)
I always suspected that they had bigger transmission coolers and alternators too. One very hot summer I towed my 17' Casita from San Diego to Kentucky and back watching the transmission temperature on a ScanGauge. The transmission never did get really hot. I wonder if one could do that with a Ranger that was not designed to tow 6000 pounds.

[floyd]

Originally Posted by Carol H

Yup and some in 2000 model year were as low as 1580 lbs tow capacity.

The PDF from Ford showing the towing capacities of the various models of the 2000 Ford Ranger can be found here:

WWW.fleet.ford.com/truckbbas/non-html/2000/bbcamper.PDF

The Ranger specs are on Page 9

That's the manufacturers "tow rating" , not capacity. The rating doesn't change for a given model and year, but many times it changes from year to year on exactly the same vehicle.
"Towing capacity" on the other hand, is affected by everything from aftermarket parts and modifications to wear and neglect.

[floyd]

Originally Posted by Eric Heinz

At least in 2001 the 4L Rangers had much bigger brakes than the 3L Rangers. (My brother-in-law once put the smaller rotors on my Ranger so the calipers extended over the edge of the rotors.)
I always suspected that they had bigger transmission coolers and alternators too. One very hot summer I towed my 17' Casita from San Diego to Kentucky and back watching the transmission temperature on a ScanGauge. The transmission never did get really hot. I wonder if one could do that with a Ranger that was not designed to tow 6000 pounds.

My 2001 4.0L doesn't have a transmission cooler, but it does have a single rail shifter with which you can actually monitor trans temps by holding the shifter below the knob.

[dbir]

Having owned a 3.0L ranger before i'd be hesitant to tow any significant weight any distance. That 145hp motor will be under significant strain with any major wind or hills, I remember my AC kicking out on uphills and it struggling to keep up with traffic, all while drinking as much gas as a full size and punishing me for having a small fuel tank.

Honestly my 06 jetta with a gas turbo motor was a more comfortable tow vehicle.

[floyd]

Originally Posted by dbir

Having owned a 3.0L ranger before i'd be hesitant to tow any significant weight any distance. That 145hp motor will be under significant strain with any major wind or hills, I remember my AC kicking out on uphills and it struggling to keep up with traffic, all while drinking as much gas as a full size and punishing me for having a small fuel tank.

Honestly my 06 jetta with a gas turbo motor was a more comfortable tow vehicle.

The 3.0L Ford is a great engine with incredible reliability. Ford even makes a blower kit (apples and apples) for it which adds about a hundred HP.

Sounds like your penalty was the automatic transmission and that supercab,and maybe 4X4??(am I right?)... not so much the engine.
I know of several 16 Scamps which have been or are being pulled satisfactorily with 4CYL Rangers.
Of course, this is all contingent on what the definition of is is!
Like what constitutes "significant"... weight, distance, strain, wind, hills or struggling!
Your point is well made though, because you relate how your particular truck felt to you under what you described as a significant load and so you have provided a valuable opinion which should cast its share of light on the question.

The problem is that while an '06 Jetta turbo is a fairly defined commodity,
Simply saying "a 3.0L Ranger" leaves us with nearly a quarter century of production with dozens of variations for each year, not to mention age and condition.
The Ranger (all years and variations)certainly provided a better chassis and had more appropriate mods available for towing than the Jetta.

This all makes for an interesting discussion, but it illustrates the limitations imposed by the OP's inquiry.

One fact remains, The Ranger has been one of the most popular tow vehicles for small fiberglass RVs(I.E.Scamp sized) literally for decades.
[perhaps even the most popular overall]

[dbir]

I can go into more detail,

my truck was an 06, 5 speed, rwd. Photo below.

I can see rangers being popular as a tow vehicle for their size, and in some trim's rated capacity, they are great daily drivers, good sight lines, and easy to park. But, the vulcan 3.0l is a dinosaur, its a nearly 30 year old motor designed to be put into a car, although respectably reliable i didn't find it sufficient for towing frequently (it lacks power to drive out of a sway, to climb hills without being an impediment, and to pass when needed) The 4.0l option makes a world of difference in that vehicle.

For context i lived in Northern ontario at the time, hilly country, and if faced with a head wind, or a climb it would get single digit mpg.

My advice if you're determined to pull with a 3.0l ranger - find a way to monitor the transmission temperatures, make sure you've got trailer brakes, and if traveling in rural areas carry additional fuel (that 17-20 gallon tank will only get you 150 miles loaded with an unfriendly wind) Also check what rear gear your truck is equipped with - They came with 3.55, 3.73, and 4.10, a numarically higher rear gear will greatly assist with the towing - at the sacrifice of higher highway RPM.