Tow Vehicle Feedback Appreciated

tscholz1 wrote:
We just bought the Coachmen Freedom Express Liberty Edition 320BHDS in October. Base Weight is 7,374 and the sticker on the camper says GVWR is 7,900. I have a 2006 Dodge Ram 1500 4WD 5.7l Hemi Quad Cab that is paid off. I would like to not have to buy a different truck if I don't have to. I only use the truck for camping or hauling other things. Can this truck do the job?

Not a good match for your truck. I expect you will be something around 8500-9000 pounds loaded for an 800-mile/week+ long trip. That's 1100-1300 pounds of TW. And the bed will be full of travel and camping gear, plus people. Do you have 2000 pounds of payload? I doubt it. Is your receiver capable of handling 1100 pounds? Better check.

$14 at a CAT scale with 3 passes should tell you exactly where you stand with respect to all your truck's ratings. From that you can determine how comfortable you are with the combo.

Since your truck is only used for work, the compromised benefits of a half ton are none. Your truck has value, $10-15k maybe. There are plenty of similar vintage more capable trucks out there in similar condition. Find a Ford V10 or GM 8.1L. You'll be a lot happier.