Tongue Weight Rating
Hello, We are buying a trailer for our daughter and son-in-law. They now have a Ford Expedition with 8,900# tow rating. 80% of that is 7,120#, but they should stay below 7,000# loaded (5,500 to 6...
Forum Discussion
First I have to clarify something I said that while it’s not technically wrong, it’s not technically correct either. I said;
“Before I started reading this thread I was under the impression if I use a WDH with my class V hitch (2.5” receiver/1,500 lb. TW) I could increase the allowable TW. Wrong. I did the unthinkable and actually read the manual. For my TV and receiver 1,500 lb. TW is it—with or without a WDH. On my truck with my receiver, a WDH does NOT increase the allowable TW. Granted, 1,500 lbs is not too shaggy but this sort of came as a surprise. Guess I should have read it earlier.”
This is what the manual says about the listed TW on my receiver, so in that sense it’s correct. However, technically, if I added a WDH, say the 1,700/17,000 lb. Reese Strait-Line Trunnion Bar DC hitch the tongue weight would increase to the 1,700 lbs. The problem is, if I needed that much TW, I would likely be exceeding (or real close to exceeding) the GCVWR for the truck. Again…checking a little deeper I found this click. Because I have a class V receiver it’s already rated close to the truck’s capability which makes sense. I suppose I could go with a bigger WDH to give myself a little extra cushion on the TW as long as I don’t exceed the other limits of the truck, but I have a feeling that’s going to be overkill. Like I said before, I’m still getting used to having this much truck to work with.
Crespro, as far as your encounter with the salesman you probably did the right thing. I don’t want to disparage all sales people, but it seems like a lot of them try to set their hooks pretty quick. I had one try to tell me I could pull that Jayco 33RLDS comfortably with my ½ ton. But, like you, I knew my truck’s limits and my own limits.
“Before I started reading this thread I was under the impression if I use a WDH with my class V hitch (2.5” receiver/1,500 lb. TW) I could increase the allowable TW. Wrong. I did the unthinkable and actually read the manual. For my TV and receiver 1,500 lb. TW is it—with or without a WDH. On my truck with my receiver, a WDH does NOT increase the allowable TW. Granted, 1,500 lbs is not too shaggy but this sort of came as a surprise. Guess I should have read it earlier.”
This is what the manual says about the listed TW on my receiver, so in that sense it’s correct. However, technically, if I added a WDH, say the 1,700/17,000 lb. Reese Strait-Line Trunnion Bar DC hitch the tongue weight would increase to the 1,700 lbs. The problem is, if I needed that much TW, I would likely be exceeding (or real close to exceeding) the GCVWR for the truck. Again…checking a little deeper I found this click. Because I have a class V receiver it’s already rated close to the truck’s capability which makes sense. I suppose I could go with a bigger WDH to give myself a little extra cushion on the TW as long as I don’t exceed the other limits of the truck, but I have a feeling that’s going to be overkill. Like I said before, I’m still getting used to having this much truck to work with.
Crespro, as far as your encounter with the salesman you probably did the right thing. I don’t want to disparage all sales people, but it seems like a lot of them try to set their hooks pretty quick. I had one try to tell me I could pull that Jayco 33RLDS comfortably with my ½ ton. But, like you, I knew my truck’s limits and my own limits.
