Tow behind VS Fifth wheelers
Hello fellow RVers: I am in the process of transitioning from a Class A motor home to either a tow behind trailer or a fifth wheeler. Reason is both my wife and I are retired and empty-nesters, so we ...
Forum Discussion
For the moment, ignoring the fifth wheel option, your truck has a gross weight rating of 6700 lbs. That means the weight of the truck + the weight of the passengers + the weight in/on the bed + the weight of the trailer tongue should not exceed 6700 lbs. (If you weighed your truck, you might be shocked to learn you probably only have 400 or 500 lbs left for the tongue weight of the trailer.)
In order for a travel trailer to be towed safely, it's tongue weight needs to 10% - 15% of the total trailer weight. Likely closer to 12% or higher in most cases. So, if you towed a 10,000 lb trailer, your tongue weight would be between 1000 - 1500 lbs. That 1500 lbs would count against your truck's gross vehicle weight rating.
If you exceed that GVWR by a couple hundred pounds, you'll likely be just fine, but you should already see that you are pushing the envelope.
If you chose a fifth wheel, it's pretty typical for about 20% of it's total weight to be resting on the hitch in the bed of your truck. Fifth wheels always weigh more than similar trailers simply because of their beefed up and more complex frames.
Sorry for the bad news, but it's best to find out now before you buy something you can't tow.
In order for a travel trailer to be towed safely, it's tongue weight needs to 10% - 15% of the total trailer weight. Likely closer to 12% or higher in most cases. So, if you towed a 10,000 lb trailer, your tongue weight would be between 1000 - 1500 lbs. That 1500 lbs would count against your truck's gross vehicle weight rating.
If you exceed that GVWR by a couple hundred pounds, you'll likely be just fine, but you should already see that you are pushing the envelope.
If you chose a fifth wheel, it's pretty typical for about 20% of it's total weight to be resting on the hitch in the bed of your truck. Fifth wheels always weigh more than similar trailers simply because of their beefed up and more complex frames.
Sorry for the bad news, but it's best to find out now before you buy something you can't tow.
