Going to buy a Travel Trailer but have a few quesitons

[acorne]

I hope I'm posting in the right place for this, if not I apologize in advance.

We have been looking at travel trailers but we are not for certain what we can tow. We have a 2000 Dodge Dakota QC 3.9L and we do not have the manual. We have been told a range of weight we can pull, from 3000-almost 4500. The one we are currently looking at is a 18Ft Hybrid with a dry weight of 2,990. How much more of a trailer do you think we could pull?

Thanks so much for your help.
Angela

[2012Coleman]

drsteve wrote:
The limiting factor for towing with most light trucks is not the weight of the trailer, but the cargo capacity of the truck. The trailer you are looking at will have a tongue weight of 500-600 pounds. This is the weight placed on the hitch by the trailer, and carried by the truck. To that, add the weight of you, your husband and kids, and any other cargo in the truck, like campfire wood, bikes, etc. Then look for the sticker inside the driver's door jamb, which will tell you the cargo capacity of your specific truck. You are likely to find that this trailer is too much of a load for the Dakota to carry.

X2. Payload of the tow vechile will most likely be exceeded before reaching tow capacity. Overloading the TV puts the occupants in danger. The sticker provides all this info. If the current tires don't meet or exceed OEM specs, then that needs to be factored in as well. Weight to consider also includes a full tank of gas and the hitch receiver - this gets subtracted from payload too.

[bikendan]

acorne wrote:

old guy wrote:
one thing this forum provides for you is a tow rating guide. if you log into trailer life web site and look around you will find the tow rating guide for trucks for many years and just find your vehicle and it will tell you what you need to know. welcome to the forum, hurry back if you need any thing else.

Ok, according to that chart, the tow rate is 4400 lbs. The camper we are looking at says "Gross Vehicle Wt Rating (GVWR) 3,750 lbs" so I guess that is where I'm confused about if the camper is less than the tow rate, but we still can't pull it? Please help me to understand.
Thanks

no, you can't tow it because you don't have the factory tow package. that 4400lbs. towing capacity is, as i said, IF you have the factory tow package.
as tatest said, without it, it's probably only rated for 2000-2500lbs.

you would need to totally duplicate the factory tow package to get that 4400lbs. towing capacity. plus that's rated with only a 150lb. driver in the truck. anything else in the truck, lowers that number.

[wbwood]

acorne...go to a Dodge dealer and see if they can give you the correct numbers on your truck. Personally, I would play it safe. Someone mentioned a pop up camper (tent trailer). We have owned a couple. It's not a bad choice for you starting out. Yes setting up or taking it down in the rain will not be all that pleasant. You just have to watch the weather and pick the best time to do it. But with a tent trailer, you will get more room inside it than an 18' TT. You won't have a bathroom, but you more than likely will be staying places where they have them. I would recommend one that is in the 2000-2500lb range. No older than your truck. That will give you some room for the weight in the truck for all of you and some gear. That TT only has a 15 gallon gray tank and an 9 gallon black tank. Those two will fill up really quick. You will probably find yourself using campground facilities more than you think. You got to remember that they add weight if there is anything in the tank as well. Water weighs over 8lbs a gallon and can quickly add up. Your truck may run like a top. If it were newer, I would say you might could push the weight a little. But with it's age and especially no tow package, I would definitely go with something lighter. You can find a very nice used pop up in the $2000-5000 range.

BTW, what part of NC are y'all in?

[drsteve]

The limiting factor for towing with most light trucks is not the weight of the trailer, but the cargo capacity of the truck. The trailer you are looking at will have a tongue weight of 500-600 pounds. This is the weight placed on the hitch by the trailer, and carried by the truck. To that, add the weight of you, your husband and kids, and any other cargo in the truck, like campfire wood, bikes, etc. Then look for the sticker inside the driver's door jamb, which will tell you the cargo capacity of your specific truck. You are likely to find that this trailer is too much of a load for the Dakota to carry.

[acorne]

old guy wrote:
one thing this forum provides for you is a tow rating guide. if you log into trailer life web site and look around you will find the tow rating guide for trucks for many years and just find your vehicle and it will tell you what you need to know. welcome to the forum, hurry back if you need any thing else.

Ok, according to that chart, the tow rate is 4400 lbs. The camper we are looking at says "Gross Vehicle Wt Rating (GVWR) 3,750 lbs" so I guess that is where I'm confused about if the camper is less than the tow rate, but we still can't pull it? Please help me to understand.
Thanks

[acorne]

bikendan wrote:
first, need more info on your Dakota.
like which model, SLT, Sport Plus or SLT Plus? what rear end ratio does it have? does it have the factory tow package?

second, what year/brand/model of hybrid are you looking at? and is the dry weight number from the actual sticker on the trailer or is it from a brochure? for a hybrid, you should be using the hybrid's GVWR since hybrids don't typically have huge CCC amounts.

It's an SLT, rear end ratio is 3.55 and no it doesn't have a factory tow package.

The one we are looking at is a 2014 Star Craft AR-One 18FB. Dry weight was from actually sticker.

It's my husband and I and our two kids under the age of 10.

[tatest]

That era Dakota and Durango, tow rating will be in 1500-2500 range without factory tow package, and as listed in the model-engine-gear ratio table in the owner's manual with the package. Learned this when I bought a 2003 Durago to tow, but it didn't have the package, thus couldn't tow anything useful.

For Durango, tow package inckuded HD radiator, cooling for power steering, higher output alternator, and some alternative suspension parts. Under $200 as factory option, about $1600 worth of parts, before R&R labor, back in 2004. May be a bit different for V-6 Dakota, as a Durango used a mix of Dakota and Ram 1500 drivetrain and suspension parts, Dakota is all Dakota.

[rbtglove]

You could probably pull that trailer OK in flat country if you don't carry much water and a lot of gear. Towed a 19' TT with a Sonoma crewcab for two seasons. About the same dry weight but ready to go with just a little water it was over 3500 Lbs. You would need a good trans cooler, brake controller and hitch. It can be done as long as you stay within the limits of your truck and have it probably set up. We even went over the Rockies and back and although we didn't pass anybody on the grades we always made it to the top.

[Emptypockets]

acorne wrote:
I hope I'm posting in the right place for this, if not I apologize in advance.

We have been looking at travel trailers but we are not for certain what we can tow. We have a 2000 Dodge Dakota QC 3.9L and we do not have the manual. We have been told a range of weight we can pull, from 3000-almost 4500. The one we are currently looking at is a 18Ft Hybrid with a dry weight of 2,990. How much more of a trailer do you think we could pull?

Thanks so much for your help.
Angela

Every one has been giving you good advice. I doubt if you will be happy with what you are wanting to try. So my advice would be "Be prepared to buy a larger pickup - something like a Ram 1500 with a V-8."

[naturist]

Welcome to the forum, and yes, you did post this query in the right place.

I'll just agree that the above advice is good. And indeed, nobody drags a totally empty "dry weight" trailer on a camping trip. Food, clothing, cooking & eating utensils, fresh water, it adds up quickly.

[Francesca_Knowl]

downtheroad wrote:

How may people are in your family...kids, dog, gear, etc.
Good luck with you search

I second that question...if not too many people, you may not be limited to a popup.

Also, if it's any help to you, there's a link to a download of the factory service manual for your 2000 Dakota at this link

And towing specs are listed w-a-a-a-y down at the bottom of the page at this link.

[old_guy]

one thing this forum provides for you is a tow rating guide. if you log into trailer life web site and look around you will find the tow rating guide for trucks for many years and just find your vehicle and it will tell you what you need to know. welcome to the forum, hurry back if you need any thing else.

[bikendan]

according to the 2002 Dodge Towing Guide specs,
the 2002 Dakota SLT QC 2WD, with the 3.9 engine and aut trans, the towing amounts are 4400lbs. with the 3.55 rear end and 4800lbs. with the 3.92 rear end.
this is of course IF it has the factory tow package.

Dodge towing specs for 2002 Dakota

[jmtandem]

and we do not have the manual.

Nice place to start would be getting the manual and the towing guides for your vehicle. Then you can take it from there on what you can tow.