Tow Capacity Comparisons For 2015 Trucks

It's interesting to read some of the statements thus far.

It really goes to show just how many people have never studied their owner's manual nor have they read towing information like the four pages devoted to towing calculations in the annual Trailer Life Towing Guide.

From reading the RV Tow Check instructions and FAQs, it appears that it was built on manufacturers requirements and supports their written owner’s manual statements that reads with the words "never" and "must not" and "cannot".

It’s no wonder why years of RVSEF data reveals that 60% of the trucks exceed some ratings. ("Many of these trucks exceed all of their ratings." Walter Cannon, RVSEF Video, @14 minutes, 50 seconds)

JIMNLIN is concerned about the lack of GAWR. Apparently, he’s never noticed that under normal load conditions, GVWR will be exceeded before the combined GAWRs.

BenK asked: “Will the producers of these charts, calculators, etc stand behind their products and cover warranty denied issues for folks who use these products?”

As for the charts, all that can easily be verified if one reads the manufacturers published towing specifications. And for the calculator, probably no more than one could try to sue Walmart or the calculator manufacturer because the IRS is on their butt and it was all caused by making a calculator entry error. Here again, the calculator can be verified if one actually took the time to do the math long form. The math functions are explained.

Dr. Wayne Dyer once said “The ultimate ignorance is the rejection of something you know nothing about yet refuse to investigate.”

The issue with the shuttle. Reality us, that HW SUV IIRC as to what it was, may very well could be certified by an engineer to d that day in and out. While some may say hog wash, reality is, moving said shuttle at 1-3 mph day.in and out has a different spec than towing at 60 mph!

Same with the tires on my bobcat 10.5-16.5 tires in an LR d can Cary 4500 lbs. It if you read the teeny tiny fine print, the limit is 3000 lbs if speeds over 25 mph are ran. Same as a typical truck tire in the same size.

Specs can vary based on usage.

Just as for MY use, the said towing specs are a crock of smelly stuff out the rear of a bull!

blt2ski wrote:
I have to buy a registered gvw tag equal to 1.5 times the tare of my truck, to the next highest ton! if I have a 7500 lb empty from the manufacture truck, with a 9900 door sticker......I need 7500 times 1.5 = 11250 or a 12K license. By the way, you are LEGAL to that 12K limit. But you may lose your warranty if something fails at that weight!

You can photograph your GVWR tag off your truck and pay only to the next highest 2000 lb increment. My 7250 lb F250 was rated for 9800 lbs GVW and plated for 10,000 lbs although the 1.5x measure would have me purchasing the 12,000 lb plate fee. What is bad is if your GVWR showed 10,001 lbs - You would have to pay for 12,000 lbs. My 5500 has a GVWR of 19,000 lbs, but the tare weight allows you to register 14,000 lbs or higher due to their formula.

Forgot to touch on: will the producers of these charts, calculators, etc stand
behind their products and cover warranty denied issues for folks who use these
products?

Continual astonishing how folks will NOT weigh their setups...nor accept the
OEM ratings system

Can understand not owning one or either TV or trailer, but then use the OEM ratings
maximum's as the target and back off if you load light

They need a chart of 'approximations' of what they 'might' be able...on that...is
it a 'can' vs 'rated for' chart?

Plus all there (risk decision...AKA gambling) in the comments in
regards to purchasing a used TV

Everyone knows to get a good one that hasn't been over loaded, taken care of and
not driven harshly....but for new..."GO FOR IT...IT IS GOOD FOR IT"
seems to be the norm...because a 'half ton' "CAN" tow the Shuttle... :R

What is missing on that Shuttle 'can do' is "for how long" and "how well"

IMO fairly useless since almost nobody buys such a base model truck

What RV Tow Check ignores, which is pretty dumb,

UGH! Another pile of garbage sold as snake-oil help..

The website calculator is useless.

I just configured 2500 RAM with the 6.4 Hemi with a 10k GVWR and a 6000 RAWR.......and it says it can tow a 16000 lb 5th wheel or a TT.
Nothing was asked about the trucks GAWRs/tire rating that I saw. Guess to some the RAWR/tire rating isn't important

Its ok for a 2500 truck to pull/carry a 16000 lb 5th wheel 'cause the website says so.

I think I'll stick with the conventional method of figuring how much weight my trucks can carry.

Agree with the above opinions.

2003silverado wrote:
LOL some people on this forum can't be satisfied. Every day it seems like there is a post of someone wanting to pull a heavy fifth wheel with a 3/4 ton and the responses are "sure you can tow it, but you will be way over your gvwr, you need more truck". Then this tow guide comes out and gives probably some of the most accurate ratings because they take into account all the numbers, most importantly gvwr and the people here are balking that the numbers are way too low because "the manufacturers say it can tow xxxx lbs".

A 25 series truck can probably pull safely no less MORE than what the manufacture says, including staying with in gvwr depending upon numurous items.

ISSUE I HAVE with any tow rating, is what is the true specification being used? Does it match up with MY specification I NEED to tow a trailer to where I NEED to tow a trailer too! That includes grades into the mid and upper 20% range. If you look at the new spec, the engineers have only speced a 12% grade. So said rig will pull using there specs, question is, how does one change deduct or equal, their spec to work in MY situation! Payload weight capacity is easy, but the actual performance spec part is the hard one!

The other spec, is a max 80 sq ft trailer! How many of you with front bedroom slide rigs have 100-120 sqft trailers? quite a few. So with no deduct for over sized sq footage, you could have warranty denial issues. For ea 3-4 sq ft over base, is an approx equal to adding 1000 lbs of hp needed to move an equal unit. So with 120 sq ft of trailer vs the spec of 80, that is upwards of an additional 10-15K lbs of trailer equal!

More to pulling a trailer than meets the eye than just the wt specs than the engineers in Detroit or equal have given you!

Marty

Marty

LOL some people on this forum can't be satisfied. Every day it seems like there is a post of someone wanting to pull a heavy fifth wheel with a 3/4 ton and the responses are "sure you can tow it, but you will be way over your gvwr, you need more truck". Then this tow guide comes out and gives probably some of the most accurate ratings because they take into account all the numbers, most importantly gvwr and the people here are balking that the numbers are way too low because "the manufacturers say it can tow xxxx lbs".

Lets see, GCWR is the ability to go up a 12% grade at that umber.....if you pull 18-24% grades, will I make it up to fetch a pail of water?!?!?! probably not. BUT, I will overheat and toast an auto tranny trying to go up the 18% grade in front of my sisters house. Or the 24.5% grade in a one block section of queen anne ave in seattle!, much less the 18% grade on James in down town seattle, or james in Kent was which is 15%! Do they tell me the deduct I need if I want to pull a gcw up these grade. NO! Oh, along with the manufacture WILL NOT warranty the tranny, as I was going up too steep a grade with the weight I was at!!!!!!!!

If I pull per the min sae tow specs gcwr, I will be going no slower than 40 with most single wheel pickups, and 35 with a dual wheel rig......They have not bothered to tell you at these speeds, In Michigan, IIRC Keith saying the minimum speed is 45mph! Here in Wa st it is 40 mph. IF you go SLOWER than these speeds, you get a ticket for going too slow, along with getting escorted off the interstate freeway to a side road......WHAT is the deduct for either rig, so I know I will be going faster than the minimum speed limit in the states I am towing thru?

The R in GCWR, GVWR, GAWR should be reccomendation, and the W Max Warranty amount, ie go over, your warranty is shot! IE you have none. Just like all the folks with fords that are not getting warranty if ANY amount of water is in the fuel system. Does not matter how it got there, you have water in the system, your rig is not covered under warranty!

Here in wa state, If I am driving down the road at 8001+ lbs in my door tagged 8600 gvwr C2500, I am over weight, and can get ticketed as such. As I only have purchased an 8000 lb plate. If I want to drive down the road at 8600, I would need the next higher plate which is 10K lbs. I WOULD BE LEGAL to 10k lbs too! I do not know of one LEO/CVEO that enforces the manufacture ratings! They all follow the what license weight I have paid for, up to a max of 20K per axel, 34.5K per tandem, and 80K total, these numbers can be limited to a min of 500 lbs per inch width of tire. THIS is the "engineers" max load limit of the road bed itself! THIS is the max weight LEO/CVEO's enforce! NOT the manufactures warranty/performance limits!

I have to buy a registered gvw tag equal to 1.5 times the tare of my truck, to the next highest ton! if I have a 7500 lb empty from the manufacture truck, with a 9900 door sticker......I need 7500 times 1.5 = 11250 or a 12K license. By the way, you are LEGAL to that 12K limit. But you may lose your warranty if something fails at that weight!

I've been pulled over too many times to count, over a manufactures limit, weighed, and NOT gotten an overweight ticket! as I have always been under my paid for license, and the Federal Bridge Law limits of the road bed design engineer specs. I can probably get Ben or Keith to design an axel to handle a million pounds. The MAX they could load this axel, drive down the road legally, would be 20K lbs! Those two's engineer stamps are worthless at this point, to the LEO/CVEO that pulls them over and weighs that axel at a million lbs. The asphalt, concrete, would be cracking under the weight of that axel. Bridges would collapse etc etc. THIS is what the weight laws enforce! NOT a manufacture performance warranty number!

Your insurance company will insure you as long as you are legal! even if illegal that will cover you to a point. After that, it is up to you!

Marty

I just go by their 'RATINGS'...which is the 'R' in these: GVWR, GAWR, GCWR

I'll not say 'sure you can' stuff, but provide them info back to the above RATINGS
plus tell them to go out and actually weigh their set

Plus, always recommend that they decide on their 'risk management' decisions
AKA...gambling

Whether they belive in the 'RATINGS SYSTEM' or not

If not, then do whatever, but know that they have taken the liability away from
their OEM. Both warranty and general liability

BUT...do say that the OEM's marketing sets a confusing position with
their 'MTWR'...which is based on the 'curb'...or 'stripper'.

So many refuse to accept that this is the case...maybe not all OEMs
but the majority of them.

If yes, then bone up on how that RATINGS system works and follow their TV's
'RATINGS' as published

Too many are just looking to hear what they want to hear...or to find a chart
saying what they want to read...without taking the time and effort to go out
and weigh their setup