ccathey wrote:
We am looking at purchasing a 2003 Damon Daybreak 3285. It has the Workhorse 8.1 liter with the GM 4 speed. I am trying to figure out if we would be able to tow 4,000 lbs with it. It is a P32 chassis. I found the brochure for it online and it shows that it came with a 3500 lb hitch. It also shows that the GVWR is 18,000 and the GCWR is 21,000. The hitch that is actually on the RV is a 5,000 lb hitch.
What weight should I be able to safely tow?
I am attaching the link to the brochure that I found online.
https://thormotorcoach.com/media/documents/2003_daybreak_print.pdf
You'd have to weigh it loaded and subtract that number from 21000 to see where you're at, but if you assume Gross for everything, you're probably still OK. Sounds like it's not very long and doesn't have much of a wheel base, if it's limited to 3500. Usually the tranny will suffer first, on a P30 chassis, if anything.
Now, having said all this, I'm not saying that you should go over on anything, but will say we pulled more than a ton over all over the country, with no real ill effects and just had to watch tranny temps. on long 6% grades. Pulling over and using low gear at 25mph gives a 4L80E tranny 25% more pulling power and things like this aren't taken into consideration when doing the specs. Also keeping your speed down to 55mph for shorter wheel bases aren't considered either. For the most part, we never even knew the toad was back there and until we got into those very long steep grades, I mentioned and all these specs. don't even come into play on the flats and rolling hills.
Now with our present coach, we're a good 10K lbs. under for towing cap, so those days are over, anyway.
