Getting the right tow vehicle

kaydeejay wrote:
Would really help if you told us what the "rig" was.:?

Agreed, but I read the OP as a hypothetical question. Maybe not.. But, his saying that he doesn't have a truck capable leads me to believe it's a specific rig.

Maybe I read your first post wrong - I thought you were asking how to size the truck you need:S Did you really mean to ask how to find out the weight of the RV?

If you already HAVE the RV, then get the GVWR off the placard on the left front corner.
If it is a TT, then figure 13% of that number will be the worst case tongue weight.
If it's a fiver, then figure 20% of that number will be the pin or hitch weight.

Would really help if you told us what the "rig" was.:?

I have never been to any scales myself. But as a couple others I don't understand why some do not understand that you currently do not have a truck to tow with, seem quite obvious from your post. I look at max weight of trailer and tongue or pin weight and tow value and payload figures of the truck. If everything fits here, most all other numbers should fall in place.


I owned a 150 with a tow amount of 5700 pounds prior to towing. This limited me to a pop up or hybrid for the most pat. Upgraded to a 150 with a tow figure of 8600 and payload of 1700. With those numbers I bought a trailer with dry weight go 6000 and loaded at 7200. All was good but the trailer ended up not working for us so we upgraded to a trailer that was 6400/8000. I know this pushed our limits big time but this towed great, better than the previous trailer. After a year ungraded to a 350 SRW which can tow up to 12,000 and has a payload of over 3,800. All is real good now.

Good luck in finding something that works for you.

Thanks for clearing that up for me.

I really don't understand the weighing thing myself.. although I certainly have weighed after getting a truck I felt was sufficient. Before buying, the numbers printed on the spec plate should be good enough. If you need to weigh to shave the margin that close, perhaps you need a bigger truck.

I just wish more people paid attention to the specs instead of towing overweight.

Lot of help here thanks.

Dso66 wrote:
I'm not being a smart guy and I'm not normally dense. But I've asked the question and have seen it asked. How do I get the right truck for the rig. The pat answer is. "Take it to a scale and get it weighed." What am I missing? I don't have a truck capable of towing the rv The few friends I have don't have a truck capable of towing the rv. So besides running the numbers listed and leaving leeway what does a guy do?

Thing is we can't help until you tell us what you have. IF you tell us what trailer you have we can look it up and have an idea of the weight. For some trailers a Ranger will do, For other trailers a F450 is needed. You have to help us if we are to help you.

IF you have a new trailer. It has a yellow sticker that will tell you what it weighs unloaded and with no fluids, It will also tell how much carrying capacity it has, and how much weight full tanks will add.
"Some" trailers have a HUGE carrying capacity over 4000lb worth. You would never load it to that. "Some" trailers have a small carrying capacity around 1000lbs. You could very possibly go over that.

All those factors together decide the TV you need. Until you let us in on what you have. We are just blowing in the wind

Here is my version. Someplace and often multiple places on the trailer will be a sticker. It will list weights/tire pressures,and sometimes other figures.
Look for GVW (GROSS VEHICLE WEIGHT), Tongue weight will be 10 to 15% of that figure.
When looking at trucks,look on the drivers side door jamb. there will be a sticker listing tire sizes,pressures and weights.
The figure you want to pay attention to is the one associated with the phrase,Weight of passengers and cargo must not exceed.
Deduct from that figure everything that was not on the truck at final assembly. deduct for everything ,your dog your cooler your kids the McNugget under the seat and the hitch. the remainder is the amount you can place on the tongue.
Very rough rule of thumb is that a 7 or 8k trailer is max for a half ton.
For everybody who is waiting to pounce, yes some halfs are more capable and some are less.
Automatic admonishments to buy a 1 ton are just plain stupid!

Dso66 wrote:
I'm not being a smart guy and I'm not normally dense. But I've asked the question and have seen it asked. How do I get the right truck for the rig. The pat answer is. "Take it to a scale and get it weighed." What am I missing? I don't have a truck capable of towing the rv The few friends I have don't have a truck capable of towing the rv. So besides running the numbers listed and leaving leeway what does a guy do?

That's all you can do.

If your buying from a dealer ask for a tow test, and tow by the scales if you want to.

Just don't be like many folks and assume you won't load it too heavy....

Dennis M M wrote:
Can't you guys give a straight answer to a relatively simple question?

Weighing the whole rig is nice to do and should be done periodically to stay within weight limits. HOWEVER, everybody needs a starting point. Obviously he has the RV already and wants to get the right tow vehicle and he came here for help.

Dso 66: Find the GVWR of the trailer; estimate the tongue or pin weight at 25% of that. Then look for a tow vehicle that can handle two (or four) passengers plus those numbers with a 20% cushion and you should be fine.

X2, you beat me to posting the exact same thing! The only other thing I would add, which is along the same lines but stated a different way, is you will add around 2,000 pounds overall after all your "stuff" is loaded to your TV and RV.

No mention GCWR hmmmm....I see that as the limiting factor more than any other number.....good luck