Typical Towing Capacity for Diesel Class A

[ugh]

What is the typical towing capacity for diesel class A? I am going to look at 2002 Bounder that has 300 HP Cummins engine in it. I know it is more complicated than that as we have to consider another factors like GCWR, tongue weight and other stuff. I just need to know what is the typical towing capacity to determine if it is worth 3 hours drive to check it out. I know typical towing capacity for gas class A is 3500 to 5000 pounds. But, what is typical towing capacity for diesel class A.

Thanks.

[WillTy3]

Passin Thru wrote:
I'd put it on an aluminum trailer. too much hassle with 4 down. Always putting miles on it.

I don't think this is good advice. F250 on a trailer would be 9000lbs.

[Passin_Thru]

I'd put it on an aluminum trailer. too much hassle with 4 down. Always putting miles on it.

[prstlk]

Whatever you do, do not over load your total weight.
Very general rule most A gassers 500 and 5000
Larger dps 38+ 700 and 10,000
there should be a tag on the hitch
if you can't find one take it to hitch shop (not uhaul) and they can tell you.
My 10K hitch is built and braced like a bridge, however given my coach total capacity 7k is my max
2 cent from the road

[ferndaleflyer]

Some good info + a lot of BS provided here....Tongue weight towing with a tow bar is minimal because the tow bar don't weigh much and it is the only weight on the hitch----the weight of the towed vehicle is carried on its own wheels. Although that Bounder will pull your truck it may slow you down some going up hill. I tow a bit over 10,000lb trailer with a 8.3 325hp Cummins and it won't go over 55 up a long grade. Other than that I have no trouble towing that weight......

[tatest]

A 300 HP B-series Cummins is not "typical" of DPs iit is minimal. A Freightliner 26,000 pound chassis with a B-series will usually be rated to tow 5000 pounds. That's what you'll have on a diesel Bounder or many other entry level DPs.

What is typical for diesel pushers is a powertrain rated for 50-100% more torque, a heavier Allison transmission, and a tow rating of 8,000 to 10,000 pounds, or at least that much difference between GVWR and GCWR.

Some entry model DP lines would have an engine/transmission upgrade option to get more chassis capacity (usually to a 7 liter Cat or a MBE) but Fleetwood did not do this with the diesel Bounder.

Actually, while A gassers are usually rated at 3500-5000 based on the hitch installed, the smallest motorhomes on Ford's F-53 chassis might have more than 10,000 pounds towing capacity, because all chassis from 14,700 to 22,000 GVWR shared a 26,000 GCWR.

[Executive45]

Typical for DPs is 5-10000#. With a 300 my guess is you'll find max towing capacity is 5k. Anymore than that and you'll be going backwards...if you want to be sure, call the owner and ask. He should be able to send you a picture of the hitch. The weight will be stamped in/on the hitch. The hitch is but one factor in safe towing. Other considerations are GCWR, hitch and tow bar....Dennis

[John_S_]

I had a 99 super duty and it did not weigh in 9000 but a bit over 7200. Mine was an extended cab but that is not much different.

[J_R2]

I would weight your pickup. We have a 03 ford E350 club wagon with 7.3 diesel. It scales at 7100lbs.

[Ranger_Smith]

ugh wrote:

Corkey05 wrote:
You might want to rephrase your question ... as asked it's kinda like asking how much water does a water glass hold. Water glasses come in all sizes, but they're all glasses.

How much do you need?

My coach is, tongue - 500#, towing - 10,000#

Great idea. Ideally, I need something that can tow my truck. My truck weights close to 9000 pounds. Its paid off, so I don't want a new car payment because class A cannot tow it. I rather have higher payment on class A that can tow my truck. Make sense? My truck is 2001 F250 Crew Cab short bed.

A 9000 pound F250 crew cab??? Do you have it loaded with tools???

[msturtz]

The tow rating is fairly complex on a DP MH (or for that matter a Super C diesel MH). The factors you have to consider over and above the "hitch" rating is the CCWR (Gross Combination Weight Rating). For flat towing you generally don't need to worry about tongue weight. However you do still need to deal with the issue of GCWR. Many DP A motorhomes have 10K hitches as does my Thor Palazzo 33.3 however in my case the GVWR is 26K and the GCWR is 30K. I would not be able to flat tow more than 4K if I am loaded at my max GVWR. This means I need to carefully watch my GVWR ensure I don't exceed my GCWR either. You in some cases can get a DP unit with a GCWR of 33K with a GVWR of 28K but a dry weight of about 22K which can give you a lot of room. There are units from Thor, Winnebago, and Fleetwood and potentially Berkshire that meet this. The other way to go is to a Tiffin, Newmar or Prevost that meet the requirement however those units are much more expensive than the lower end DP units. Think of it this way. A well equipped Thor Palazzo can be had for $139 - $150K whereas a Phaeton runs about $300K - $350K and Newmar and Prevost units are even more expensive. I would ask the seller the following:
GCWR (get a picture of the sticker)
GVWR (get a picture of the sticker)
NCC (Net cargo carrying capacity) which will tell you the UWV (unloaded vehicle weight) (Again get a picture of the sticker)
Hitch rating (sticker on the hitch)
Transmission model
Engine model

With this information you can determine how much headroom you have to tow your F350. It is tough work but can be done. The higher end DP tag axle coaches have large engines and large transmissions so in general they have more available headroom depending on the UWV of the vehicle. It took me a long time to find a suitable unit that would tow my Tahoe within the weight ratings. I really wish I had an Allison MH2500 rather than the Allison MH2100 because that would get me a 33K GCWR and 28K GVWR. According to Freightliner and the number plate the XCS chassis is made to 28K and de-rated due to the transmission selection by Thor.

[ugh]

rv2go wrote:
I assume that you have confirmed that your 2001 F250 can be towed 4 down.

From my 2001 Dingy towing guide.
"Super Duty F-250/350 4x4: Manual transfer case only (not electronic shift-on-the-fly 4x4). 5500 Lbs."

Yes with drive shaft disconnect.

[rv2go]

I assume that you have confirmed that your 2001 F250 can be towed 4 down.

From my 2001 Dingy towing guide.
"Super Duty F-250/350 4x4: Manual transfer case only (not electronic shift-on-the-fly 4x4). 5500 Lbs."

[ugh]

Corkey05 wrote:
You might want to rephrase your question ... as asked it's kinda like asking how much water does a water glass hold. Water glasses come in all sizes, but they're all glasses.

How much do you need?

My coach is, tongue - 500#, towing - 10,000#

Great idea. Ideally, I need something that can tow my truck. My truck weights close to 9000 pounds. Its paid off, so I don't want a new car payment because class A cannot tow it. I rather have higher payment on class A that can tow my truck. Make sense? My truck is 2001 F250 Crew Cab short bed.

[Corkey05]

You might want to rephrase your question ... as asked it's kinda like asking how much water does a water glass hold. Water glasses come in all sizes, but they're all glasses.

How much do you need?

My coach is, tongue - 500#, towing - 10,000#