Type of truck

[salvador5266]

I know I've seen several topics on this but we are still confused:? We are just about to buy our first Fifth wheel but first we need to get a truck. We started out only looking for F350 because we thought that was what we needed but now we are seeing alot of newer F250 that show they have as high or higher Fifth wheel towing capacity. Did Ford revamp the newer truck models? Also is a vin search the best way to determine the towing capacity?

Any input would be great. Thanks everyone.

[garysol]

salvador5266 wrote:
For better or worse we went with a 3/4 ton 6.0 turbo diesel

Wish me luck.:)

Umph...... Good Luck!!

[Ranger_Smith]

Good luck with that 6.0

[salvador5266]

Thanks for all the input guys. For better or worse we went with a 3/4 ton 6.0 turbo diesel 2WD. Here's hoping it does the job we need. It's already outfitted with airbags so maybe that will be helpful(once we figure out how to use them). We picked up a good used cougar 318SAB also.

Wish me luck.:)

[ken_burke]

retispcsi wrote:
You really have to figure out what fiver you want. There are so many variables with regard to weight. One fiver may have a 2k pin weight and another about the same length might have a 3k pin weight. One may have 12k dry weight and the same length might be 16k dry. Remember the advertised weight is unloaded you will weight more once everything gets in the rig. One word of caution you will find dealers lots filled with 3/4 ton trucks and a sales person will tell you that that truck can tow anything. There is a big difference between being able to tow and being able to stop and control. Figure out your trailer needs then go truck shopping. Don't make an expensive mistake and buy the wrong truck only to find out later you need something else. You can never have to much truck. Good luck

. . . .
I agree. It is very important to figure out the size and weight of the 5th wheel you want. The big decision you must first make is do you want or need a diesel? I think that in most cases you will need or want a 3/4 or one ton diesel (unless the 5th wheel is smaller than average and maybe a gas engine will work). We had a 3/4 ton gas truck, and it did not pull our 30 foot travel trailer very well.
As to single wheel diesel vs double rear wheel diesel, we have a single rear wheel ford diesel. It tows our 15,000 pound Cedar Creek with out a problem.
Do NOT BELIEVE what the sales people tell you about weights. We were told our Cedar Creek would weigh about 11,000 pounds empty. It really weighed about 12,000 plus pounds before we put our stuff in it. Good thing we had a diesel.
Traveling in a 5th wheel or travel trailer is not cheap. Maybe your best bet is to buy a 23 foot travel trailer with a slide, and a 3/4 ton gas truck.

[Ranger_Smith]

My new Jayco has a pin weight of 2850 when loaded as weightd at the dealer when we picked it up at the dealer full of our stuff. My truck is good for a 5300 lb pin weight according to my truck being weighted separately

[Cummins12V98]

Bamaman1 wrote:
I bought a new fifth wheel last week, and it weighs 12k lbs. with 2K on the Pin dry. My 2003 F250 7.3 with a 60 hp tow mode on a D-P Tuner pulls it just fine. When the trailer's dropped on the B&W Patriot hitch, the rear drops about 2"--as expected. My new AirRide airbags are kept at a minimum 11 lbs. of air pressure.

But I carefully chose my Grand Design 323BHS as the largest trailer I'd ever tow with single rear wheels. And we're not suffering a bit with our truck. But any truck carrying such weights needs to be properly prepared, and mechanics, brakes, suspension, shocks need to be kept 100% maintained.

All these dry weight numbers are useless.

What is the actual pin weight? Most likely 2,400-3,000#

What does your rear axle on the TV weigh?

You probably have this all under control.

Problem is newbies don't have a clue and by reading some of these posts think they can tow anything with airbags added.

[Bamaman11]

I bought a new fifth wheel last week, and it weighs 12k lbs. with 2K on the Pin dry. My 2003 F250 7.3 with a 60 hp tow mode on a D-P Tuner pulls it just fine. When the trailer's dropped on the B&W Patriot hitch, the rear drops about 2"--as expected. My new AirRide airbags are kept at a minimum 11 lbs. of air pressure.

But I carefully chose my Grand Design 323BHS as the largest trailer I'd ever tow with single rear wheels. And we're not suffering a bit with our truck. But any truck carrying such weights needs to be properly prepared, and mechanics, brakes, suspension, shocks need to be kept 100% maintained.

[avvidclif1]

Dave H M wrote:
Maybe the cart before the horse principle applies here? :h

Yep, gotta know what you are going to tow before you can figure out what to tow with.

OR, you can buy the horse and figure out what it can tow and then buy accordingly.

Either way will work but the choices on trailers are much greater than tow vehicles.

Murphy says you will buy a 3/4T and figure out you can buy up to a 12,000 GVWR trailer and then find the trailer of your dreams and it's GVWR is 14,000. I realize there are all kinds of lite-weight trailers out there with pin weights all over the board but Murphy is not that forgiving.

To the OP. A lot will depend on availability of tracks and trailers. Which is easier to find in the size and price range you have in mind. If used trucks are plentiful get the trailer first and then match the truck. If the other way get the truck first (the biggest you can afford) and figure out the capacity realistically and use that in your trailer search.

[Dave_H_M]

Maybe the cart before the horse principle applies here? :h

[mdamerell]

salvador5266 wrote:
I know I've seen several topics on this but we are still confused:? We are just about to buy our first Fifth wheel but first we need to get a truck. We started out only looking for F350 because we thought that was what we needed but now we are seeing alot of newer F250 that show they have as high or higher Fifth wheel towing capacity. Did Ford revamp the newer truck models? Also is a vin search the best way to determine the towing capacity?

Any input would be great. Thanks everyone.

In 2005 the "tow wars" started and the numbers started to climb. With a 5er it's about carrying the pin weight. About 20% of the 5er's weight is carried on the pin/hitch in the bed of your truck. While a 2014 2500HD truck has a 4,000# cargo capacity most 3/4 ton pickups will not. Depending upon year and spec's it might only be 1,400#. The larger 5er's these days gross out around 16,000# (some hit 18,000#) or 3,200# pin weight or cargo capacity needed in addition to passengers, fuel and gear. If you are buying used, while the F250/2500 is popular the F350/3500 is the better choice. Example the 2014 2500HD has higher capacity than a 2004 F350 dually. All depends upon how new the truck is and how it's spec'd. A Diesel HD pickup 2500 or 3500 full of fuel and family is about 8,000# add 16,000# or so of trailer and you need a GVRW of 11,500# or better and a GCVWR of 24,000# or better. Majority of 2500's are 10,000# GVWR.

Honestly, many people have know idea what their actual weights are and over estimate what their trucks can do. The salesman says they can pull it and that's that. After all the Toyota Tundra pulled the space shuttle (tongue in cheek)

Do yourself a favor and either go big or buy the trailer and then the truck.

[laknox]

d-mac1 wrote:

salvador5266 wrote:
If only i could afford new:(

Get an older but in good shape Dodge (e.g. with a 5.9 Cummins) and don't mess with all the pollution******on the new trucks.

Or an '06 or early '07 Duramax, in 2500 or 3500; no pollution junk on those, either, though =will= have less payload than current trucks.

Lyle

[d-mac1]

salvador5266 wrote:
If only i could afford new:(

Get an older but in good shape Dodge (e.g. with a 5.9 Cummins) and don't mess with all the pollution******on the new trucks.

[Paul_Clancy]

TakingThe5th wrote:

avvidclif1 wrote:

Paul Clancy wrote:

TakingThe5th wrote:
I've owned F150s, F250s, and now an F350 DRW. There is an incremental change between the ½ ton and the ¾ ton but the F350 is truly a beast by comparison. In addition to better weight specs it also has better brakes, more stability, and it pulls like none of the others. I bought a new truck and the 1 ton didn't cost but a few grand more, and I didn't need air bags or a chipped engine or upgraded brakes or anything else. Those upgrades would have eaten up any cost savings on the purchase price.

I would agree with the carry capacity and rear brakes part but argue to my death the extra pulling power statement. A dually 350 will have the same pulling power as the the 250 and maybe less because of the added weight of duals. It is purely about carry capacity. Different manufacturers may offer rear end options that effect pulling but that is not universal so can't be part of the argument.

You might plan your funeral. If he went from a F250 gasser(didn't say) to a 350 diesel(he did) there is a world of difference. You know the 150 is a gasser.

I would hope it would be obvious there is zero relationship between f250 versus f350 and diesel versus gas. They are 2 separate topics completely.

Yes - the 350 is a diesel and the others were gasser, simply because diesels weren't offered at the time in smaller trucks. Admittedly trucks today pull more then before - when I owned my F150 there was no sane talk of lashing up to a 5th wheel. I once towed a GCWR of 12,000 lbs with that F150 and someone almost had to plan my funeral. In less then 50 city traffic miles-on mostly flat roads-my front disk brake pads had cracked from the heat and the rear drums were toast.

[newk]

Many respondents to this post are (apparently) basing the load capacities of the various sizes of pickups on NEWER models, not what the OP may purchase, as he wants a used pickup. My (2000) F250 PSD has a GVWR of 8800 pounds, and I'm right at its capacity with my light weight 26-foot 5th wheel. Some of the new half-tons can probably carry as much weight as mine, if you go by the numbers. So if the OP is buying a 10-year-old pickup, he'd be best to disregard any thoughts of buying a 3/4-ton truck.

OP, even if you buy new, go for at least a one-ton, and if you can manage a dually (garage space, etc.), that'll likely be your best vehicle for towing a 5th wheel, plus you'll be able to purchase almost any 5er you might like with a dually and not be limited to the lighter weight ones. I bought mine in 2000 thinking it could tow any camper I might want. We'd have been in a bigger camper years ago if I'd have initially purchased a dually -- or even a 1-ton srw.

One other thing, OP. I noticed you were asking about "towing capacity". In case you haven't caught on by now, it's "hauling capacity" that you need to be more concerned about when towing a 5th wheel. Most 3/4-ton and 1-ton diesels will "tow" all you'll likely want, but much of that weight must go onto the truck itself. That's where 3/4-ton pickups often fall short.