Can my Ranger carry a slide-in camper?

[rdsrds123]

Hi, I've got the idea that I might want one of those slide-in campers, but I don't know if my Ranger can actually carry it. I've got a 2007 5-spd 2.3 with 3.73 rear end. I've got the short bed, and the camper in question may fit it. I'm not sure how much it weighs, but probably 1200# at least.

If it does fit, I might need to beef up my rear suspension a bit. How could I do this? Airbags?

How is this cam;per usually tied to the truck?

Thanks!

 

[librum]

There was one for the 92, 2.9v6 4x4, stakes fit in the bed stake holes.

Um...
It was more of a simple fiberglass shell though. Very light. The one I remember was a sun rot victim.

So I would think it would be safe that you would have to upgrade engine/trans/suspension. I seem to remember standard springs but also add-a-leaf, and spring coil over shocks. Sorry, memory is getting fuzzier.

 

[97RangerXLT]

I would probably not do it... 4 banger and 3.73 gears should be the first reason screaming at you to not do it. Second, while I personally have not heard of a slide in camper that will fit a Ranger/ S10, if this *does* fit, it will change your center of gravity quite a bit, so depending on how tall it is you could make your truck very unstable.

gas mileage is also going to suck... and remember, your truck is basically rated as a 1/2 ton and you just overloaded it by 200 pounds without even putting yourself, your gear, your wife/ girlfriend and dog in the truck.

those are my thoughts on it.

AJ

 

[hank857]

It will depend greatly on the weight. If its fairly new and made of aluminum instead of wood frame. For a 4 banger you are looking to push it to the limit. Yes there are some campers for the ranger but they are designed to be hauled by a V6 usually with a lower gear ratio. There were several made some years ago but dont remember names. Search for slide in campers then narrow search to imports/small trucks.

Several ways to tiedown, stake pockets the worst. There were/are kits that mount to the frame, there were some that were bolted to the front of the bed. Just all depends. as to support yes airbags best option. Never carried one on the ranger mine were all 10 ft models and on 3/4T trucks. Size will be liimited to NONSelf contained most likely which means ice box small stove no bathroom. Look at lance, wilderness, arctic fox websites to see what they have to offer. However be prepared for the big one. These things new cost more that a small truck some in the 40-50K range for big trucks.

look at here to start:

https://www.search.com/web/compact-truck-campers?qo=related-searches&qsrc=1&ot=organic

 

[rdsrds123]

Thanks guys, yeah, overloaded is the word. I once towed a short self contained trailer home that weighed less than the rated towing figure. Very difficult. Would 411 gears help this?

 

[don4331]

The non-controversial portion: In full size trucks, the camper are secured with "belly bars". This is a steel bar which runs under the frame ahead of rear wheels (in some cases, people run a second bar behind rear wheels). The bar is fastened to the frame (clamped/bolted) and to the camper.

Can versus May:

If you look at example camper: http://www.northern-lite.com/truck_camper_lite_610.php, the empty weight is 1,050 lbs, 14 gals water = 140lbs, clothes, food, etc. and you will have exceeded the 1,260lb max payload of the Ranger. And you, your sandwich maker and the pet aren't in yet.

So, from a legal (insurance) perspective, you may not.

Note: This is where the 'New' Ranger with its 1,200kg payload is going to kick; more than double our existing Rangers.

The towing limit for your Ranger is 1,580lbs, so this camper might not be any lighter than the trailer you towed (assuming it really was lighter than your limit).

Now, the can part: 2.3l/5spd/3.73, probably has a 7.5" with 9" brakes. Upgrading to an 8.8" with 10" brakes (get Aerostar finned drums) with 4.10 or 4.56 gears would help a lot along with 1,750lb HD aftermarket springs and maybe higher load ranger tires (just have a kidney belt when driving without the camper ). Unfortunately, the upgrades reduce your legal payload capacity as their heavier weight counts against your GVWR.

The real answer is: You need a bigger truck than a Ranger for a camper

 

[Shran]

Hauling something in the back of your truck is far different than towing a trailer. You don't have that extra drag slowing you down, but the extra weight will dramatically affect how the truck drives. Having hauled relatively large loads with a 4 cylinder Ranger, I can tell you that it is not cool. My last load of dirt filled the box and was spilling over the sides, and the rear tires were about 1/2" away from rubbing on the body. I'm guessing it was somewhere around 800lbs, I had 2400lbs total between the truck and trailer, and the trailer had a lot more in it. Nowhere near the 1200 you're talking about.

You could do airbags, add-a-leafs, air shocks, etc but it's just not an ideal situation. If you want to camp in a Ranger, get a topper. I know it doesn't have the amenities that a camper would but it's not gonna kill your pickup either.

 

[websunil77]

Nice information shared.

 

[cbr600rx7]

1200lbs of weight in any truck bed is a lot and as said above tow rating is not what the vehicle can carry in the bed. Your GVWR is probaly around 4300lbs (just guessing so go look at your door sticker). Once you know that number subtract the weight of your truck from it (probaly about 3300lbs) that would leave you with only 1000lbs for every thing in the truck to include your camper, people, animals, cargo, fuel, any any thing else with mass. Go over your GVWR and your overloaded. Now people run over loaded rigs all the time and most of the time it's not a big deal. Unless you get pulled by law enforcement or DOT of course and then it's going to hurt a lot. Also in the event of a accident it can come back to really bite you.

Not trying to talk you out of the idea. But I would make sure you are at least legal if you plan on driving it on the road.

 

[cbthomas81]

anyone that says it can't be done is wrong, the truck, camper, and boat has been in my family for 26 years. The truck is a 2.3 l V6 and holds my cab over camper and has done trips of 400 or more miles each year up and over passes, to the mountains, to The Gorge for concerts, and its never giving me a problem besides changing the brakes and oil and a bit upgrading to the suspension which required another leaf spring. Back in the day even carried along the boat (18 ft aluminum Smoker Craft) with the camper. I feel like I should be taking it easier on it now though and keep it to just a camper with the 300k miles ive done.. as long as if you check everything twice and do proper maintenance you should be fine oh, and turn some heads while you're at it when they see this. You might be going in the slow lane up steep hills and high elevation LOL

 

[rusty ol ranger]

anyone that says it can't be done is wrong, the truck, camper, and boat has been in my family for 26 years. The truck is a 2.3 l V6 and holds my cab over camper and has done trips of 400 or more miles each year up and over passes, to the mountains, to The Gorge for concerts, and its never giving me a problem besides changing the brakes and oil and a bit upgrading to the suspension which required another leaf spring. Back in the day even carried along the boat (18 ft aluminum Smoker Craft) with the camper. I feel like I should be taking it easier on it now though and keep it to just a camper with the 300k miles ive done.. as long as if you check everything twice and do proper maintenance you should be fine oh, and turn some heads while you're at it when they see this. You might be going in the slow lane up steep hills and high elevation LOL

This thread is 2 years old

Also, im assuming you have a 2.9 since you said its a 6 cylinder, the 2.3 is a 4 cylinder and considerably weaker then a 2.9.

Plus theres no way id wanna run that in a crosswind.

 

[Uncle Gump]

I have an 072S Skamper and hauled that thing all over with my 94... 4.0L 5 speed 3:73 gear. I think it did pretty good. Crosswinds do matter and I would pay full attention to the speed limits around corners also. My future plans don't include the Skamper really.... but I'm on the fence about selling it. But I suppose it will be up for sale this summer.

 

[racsan]

i went to 4.10's with my ranger, and while it did help with trailer towing, its still a 4cyl and and no where near the tow vehicle my "93 4x4 4.0 3.73 truck was. the bigger issue is getting all that stopped. even with my 4.0 ranger, getting stopped with a load was dicey at times. a full-size would be better in many ways in this situation.

 

[8thTon]

Trailer brakes and load leveler bars work quite well in general.

 

[danelwayne]

Well, It will depend on the weight. I am the truck driver of a towing company "Flat Bad Towing Service in new york" In my experience, you need a bigger truck than a Ranger for a camper.