# Towing a gooseneck with a RWD 1/2 ton



## Naphth (Jan 7, 2015)

I'm curious to hear what people here have to say about towing a gooseneck horse trailer, say 2 or 3 horses + large tack/dressing room, dry weight of 7000-9000 pounds, with a half ton truck (F150 if it matters), which doesn't have 4WD. 



I think the fact that it's RWD alone is kind of ridiculous when you know you're going to be driving through loose turf/dirt/mud at horse shows and on farms. Never mind that you're bumping right up against the tow rating on suspension designed for what's essentially a grocery getter in this day and age. On 1/2 tons the focus now seems to be comfort over reliability/strength. But I'll let other people who tow regularly give their input.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

Think you are looking for a disaster to occur hurting you, your horses and other innocents that share the road with you.
The truck WILL be overloaded.
I just looked at the 2018 specifications for the F150 XLT, 4x4 and 4x2...***
You tow a gooseneck horse trailer you are going to want 4WD, a larger V8 or diesel engine and the longest bed they allow or you will crack your back window often.
With a lightweight frame, suspension, engine and transmission cooling system and brakes that are going to be overwhelmed it is just a really poor idea.
There is a reason they show in their advertising media towed boats, camping trailers that are not heavy nor do they "move" their contents like horse trailers do...
Hauling with a appropriate sized tow vehicle is not only smarter, it is the life of your tow vehicle and less large maintenance bills because of overuse and abusive conditions to the vehicle.
Forget you get in a accident, I would not want to face the investigation crew as they look at your wreck and put most of the blame immediately on you = going to cost you, period!
Now add the tickets written for being overloaded and possibly having your insurance company refuse to pay bills because _you knew_ you were overloaded and took the rig on the road puts you in severe jeopardy legally...
Nope...get the right tow vehicle or stay home!!
_***these are supposed to be the new/improved numbers on this series and better than older vehicles abilities***_
:runninghorse2:...
_jmo..._


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## AtokaGhosthorse (Oct 17, 2016)

No. 

Get a 3/4 ton, with big brakes and a big gas rig or a diesel.

I have a gas 2013 F250 FX4 with a flat bed. My trailer is 11,000 lbs, steel, 3 slant with LQ and my truck does fine with it (with two horses, a generator, gas, hay, feed, tack, toilet)... UNLESS I've lost momentum for a long steady climb. Then it's gasping and panting at the top of the hill. And that's a 3/4 ton. The brakes are fine.

My husband's crappy looking old Dodge 2nd gen 3/4 ton long bed with a 12v Cummins diesel will tow it like its not there... but it's 2wd and gets stuck on a cow patty.

My daughter's newer (I forget the year) Dodge 3/4 ton 4wd w/a turbo diesel in it, likewise, tows like the goosenecks aren't even there.

In summary:

No.

and

Dodge>Ford.


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

Nope. Nope, nope, nope. The biggest I'd pull with a half-ton is a 2-horse with small tack room. 

The RWD will be overloaded and blow the engine or sit and spin and not move on an incline if it's at all damp. You need a 3/4 ton or larger for that size trailer.


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## Naphth (Jan 7, 2015)

Thanks everyone for confirming what I suspected. Of course in an emergency, like getting to the vet with a dying horse, it'd be better than nothing, but I think a 3/4 ton the the very least should be in the budget when you're working out whether you can afford to keep a horse.


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

Naphth said:


> Thanks everyone for confirming what I suspected. Of course in an emergency, like getting to the vet with a dying horse, it'd be better than nothing, but I think a 3/4 ton the the very least should be in the budget when you're working out whether you can afford to keep a horse.


You can get by with a half-ton, but it should be 4WD and have the heavy-duty suspension, hitch, tranny cooler, etc. And realize that with a half-ton, you are very limited in what you can haul. A 2-horse is about the limit, whether BP or GN hitch. Lots of half-tons around here pulling 2-horse stocks and slants, but everything trailer bigger than that is a 3/4 or 1-ton. If it has a living quarters, it's likely far too big for a half-ton. 

My Suburban easily pulls my stock trailer, but I usually only haul one horse, and usually go no farther than an hour away. If we go farther than that, I borrow a rig from a friend for the day. (1-ton truck and 4-horse trailer w/tack).


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## QueenofFrance08 (May 16, 2017)

I have a friend who tows a 2 horse (all aluminum) Gooseneck with a front dressing room that has been converted to a weekender with a F-150. She does have all of the upgrades suspension, hitch, etc and 4WD on it. She never has any issue and can pull and stop easily but it is an extremely light trailer (built within the last 2 years) and the maximum upgrades on the truck. She also only tows one small Arabian mare who probably is around 800 lbs or less. 

Personally, we have a gas 2004 Ram 2500 which does a great job. We pull a 2004 4 horse weekender (aluminum skin with steel frame) with it and never have had an issue. I'm not sure if I would pick the same set up if we lived in the mountains but it handles MN hills just fine. DH is a mechanic and has made sure it has all the upgrades possible to make towing easier on the truck and the horses.


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