Val Nicoson wrote: Quick question
for you all. My husband is looking at replacing our truck and found a used
one. I'm not so sure this is a good deal or not...or whether it could
safely haul a 2-horse bp horse trailer carrying 1-2 horses (approx under 1000lbs
each).
1994 F-150 Flareside Supercab that was a stepside short bed.
Has a 5.8L V-8 with tow package and 134K miles for approx $5K
I owned a 1988 F-150 8-cyl
2-wheel drive straight side regular bed truck for eons, and it pulled
my bumper hitch horse trailer beautifully. Generally I took only one horse
(Thoroughbred) when I went foxhunting, eventing, dressage shows, carriage
events, etc. Traveled close to home mostly, but there were a few "several
hour trips" thrown in from time to time for taking the driving horse (or pony
pair) and carriage to the annual carriage conferences. Never had a
problem, but I was cautious to never park where the ground was muddy or
deep.
Sadly, the truck met it's
match when I bought an 18' steel gooseneck stock trailer which would
carry both pair of ponies and carriage without us having to lift the
carriage into the truck bed. <whew!> The weight of the trailer was a
bit too much for the F-150 (it struggled on hills) so I sold it to a guy
who uses it to commute, and I now own a bruiser of an F-250 with heavy-duty
everything (including a low torque transmission). The new truck is terrific with
my big gooseneck, and can pull my friend's 2-horse bumper hitch trailer --
loaded with two big 16.3h Thoroughbred foxhunters -- like it is pulling nothing
at all.
As long as the F-150 you
select is mechanically sound, and you're only pulling a 2-horse bumper
hitch, you should be fine. I'd still keep shopping around, though -- $5K
for a truck with 134k miles on it sounds a bit high to me.
:-)
