Tow vehicle

TxGearhead wrote:
Add about 1,000 pounds to the advertised pin weight.

To cover your AZZ take 25% of the GVWR of the RV, that should cover your pin weight.

Add about 1,000 pounds to the advertised pin weight.

Option number 4. Long bed diesel 4x4 works for everything. One ton is similar to a 3/4 ton. Single rear wheels are much more practical. Duals are good for towing and especially hauling a camper, but they do not fit in a modern parking lot.

I think you may have the buggy in front of the horse!!! You really should decide on the 5th wheel you want, get the weight of the unit then decide on the truck best suited to pull and stop it safely.

The size of RV you're talking about really should be towed with a diesel. All three brands have the right size truck for you. You just need to decide which brand.

Good luck

I'll just say....don't do what I did. Had a 2010? GMC 2500 extended cab 4x4 3.73 gears 6.0 gas to pull the boat. We decided to get a trailer...ended up with a 5th wheel Cougar X-Lite 28SGS. That truck worked fine on flat land and small hills. The first time it went east to the Carolinas I hated it. Gas pedal to the floor engine screaming going uphill being passed by 18 wheelers and mini vans. Coasting downhill too fast passing the same trucks that just passed me. It wore me out. Bought a 2014 Ford F-350 diesel 4x4 crewcab long bed single rear wheel. Much better! Decided we needed a bigger trailer...bought the Montana High Country. A year later I weighed the rig packed and ready to go. I was at least 300 pounds over the payload of 3267. Bought the Ram equipped exactly the same with 4018 pound payload. Now we're looking at Alpine and Grand Design 5th wheels that are heavier. Also looking at dually's.
Don't do what I did.

First things first.

Hope you all are having a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

To all who provided great feed back thank you.

The truck purchase will be for a New vehicle.

So from all the responses so far we the replies are pretty much Diesel and 2 or 4 wheel drive is a coin toss

Most of my experience has been with ag trucks, both gas and diesel. They used to rely on gears to get up and down hills. I'm now driving a newer diesel pickup. There is a night vs day difference. I watched my father go from gas to diesel and campers to 5th wheel trailers while travelling all over the country. A newer diesel is much better than gas. It will pull you almost anywhere and most diesels will last a lot longer while getting better fuel mileage. We ended up with Dodge to get the Cummins engine, but I can't say much about other new trucks. My father also had Fords, and I remember him saying that one bought Dodge for the drive train and others for the interior. You didn't specify new or used, just that cost wasn't a concern. Have you actually priced new trucks and trailers? I suffer from sticker shock just hearing about these prices. And it is hard to take the immediate loss in value when a new truck and (especially) trailer is driven off the dealer's lot. You don't need 4-wheel drive to pull a trailer, but it can help when roads are slick and to back up-hill into a parking spot, and the low range that comes with 4WD helps when you want to go really slow. I don't know if this has changed with newer trucks, but there is a difference between 4-wheel drive and all-wheel drive vehicles, and using 4-wheel drive can affect turning radius. One thing that I didn't see mentioned, and may now be standard equipment, is an engine brake. Trailers will push you down-hill, and it really helps the brakes a lot on both the truck and trailer if engine compression can help keep speed under control. One final word about pulling any trailer is that stopping is most important. You don't want to see the trailer sliding by you with the truck brakes locked. So both the trailer brakes and brake controller are very important, and setting the controller so that the trailer brakes work as intended is time well spent.

JRMunn

You do not need 4wd but you will need a locking rear end or limited slip.

I disagree about buying the truck first. That limits your 5er options. Find the trailer you can live in for years and then buy a truck that will carry (NOT pull) it and the next size or two bigger.

It is getting harder and harder to find a LBZ/Allison with decent miles on the clock, but they are still out there and worth the trouble of searching.

JMHO, but the best towing combination around.

Diesel or gas: Easy. Like everyone says, diesel.

Which flavour truck? Mostly flip a coin I guess. My bone stock 2006 Isuzu powered Chevy LT has been flawless, besides routine wear parts, for 200,000 miles. By far the majority of those miles it has had a 12,000# 5er on the back of it.

2WD or 4WD: That depends. If it is going to be used in snow or offroad with any frequency then 4WD. If strictly a fair weather truck to pull the trailer then 2WD is just fine but carry a tow strap just in case you do need some help. Ours is 2WD & only need a tow in soft ground a very few times.

SRW or DRW? An option not mentioned but a very important one. The added stability of DRW cannot be overemphasised. Ask anyone with a heavy trailer who has gone from SRW to DRW. The often cited argument that a DRW is too wide in the carparks does not wash. Park further from the door. Get out & walk. You need the exercise.