1/2 ton towing

[Bkuhl1179]

Just purchased a 2020 Ram 1500 5.7 with the etourqe along with a 3.92 rear. Specs on the truck says it has a 1681lb payload and can tow up to 11500 lbs. Looking into purchasing a 2021 Grand Design 3250BH. Dry weight on the rig is 8450lbs and hitch weight is 850lbs. Am I crazy for trying to tow something this big? The numbers seem to be in line with what the truck is rated for.

[SV_Todd]

richardcoxid wrote:
A long time old friend of mine who was in the independent RV repair business for over 30 years told me.

Nobody but nobody ever complains about to much truck but, a lot of people complain about to little of truck.

He goes on to say that get a little truck go slow get pi** poor fuel mileage, get a big truck go fast get pi** poor fuel mileage.

Seriously often times a large engine “loafing along” will often get very close to the fuel mileage of a small engine screaming at WOT.

That may be true but most part times RV'ers are only pulling a trailer 10 or 20% of the time they drive their truck. Who wants to drive a 3/4 or 1 ton truck with it's terrible unladen fuel mileage 80-90% of the time they own their truck?

Yes if your primary purpose of the truck is towing the trailer a 3/4 or 1 ton would be ideal, but for those whose TV is their primary vehicle the other 80-90% of the time, pushing the limits of a 1/2 ton for relatively short trips is perfectly fine.

[SV_Todd]

If you can live with only 400lbs in your truck, that includes driver and passenger and anything in the bed or cab, then you will be just inside your payload rating. After that you have to consider controlling sway.

Can your truck do it? Most likely, but if you want to avoid white knuckle driving on the highway with wind or big trucks passing, you definetely need to look into a hensely or propride 3p hitch. Any conventional WD hitch with friction sway control is going to be a gamble.

If you want a trailer that big, but don't want to drive a 3/4 ton or larger truck the 80% or more of the rest of the time you own your truck, than the $3K it costs for hensley or propride is well worth it.

[BurbMan]

Go big or go home! LOL! Seriously that is one beautiful trailer!

As noted, that's a lot trailer for a 1500 truck, but the weight is only the beginning. If you're average campers, you'll add 1200-1500 lbs of stuff in a trailer that size, so you'll be up to 10,000 lbs easily.

10% is the absolute minimum you want for hitch weight to have a stable tow, and that's about what they are quoting for hitch weight here (844/8496=9.9%). Note that mfrs are starting to get smart about making their trailers "half ton towable" by using axle placement to manage hitch weight. If you look at the floorplan, you have lots of storage in the bunk and kitchen areas, which are behind the axle. The danger that creates is that every pound loaded rear of the trailer axles decreases hitch weight, so you could actually wind up with less than 10% hitch weight after the trailer is loaded.

Why this matters is that this trailer is 37' long!!! That's a BIG sail area to catch the wind and without enough hitch weight you won't be able to go more than 35 mph.

Bkuhl1179 wrote:
....but if it’s super windy I wouldn’t tow that day.

Nice thought, but we don't control the weather. Say it's checkout day at the campground, you have to leave by noon because someone else has that site booked tonight....you don't have the option of just waiting until the wind dies down.

The coil spring suspension on the 1500 doesn't do a good job resisting sway and roll on big trailers like this. Most think of going to a 2500 to get the 6.4 or Cummins, but it's really about bigger brakes and stiffer suspension...the 5.7 is a strong motor and with 3.90 gears power isn't going to be your biggest issue.

Even with a heavier truck, I would strongly encourage you to consider one of the two hitches on the market that uses the 4-bar linkage, either the Hensley Arrow or ProPride. These hitch designs use geometry to eliminate sway and enable smooth sway-free towing for very long trailers, even if you are borderline on the hitch weight.

Also consider how you plan to travel...if you are going an hour away to stay week at the lake a few times a season, you'll be OK with your truck. If you plan to actually travel with the trailer, towing will not become an exhausting experience.

Note that most if not all state parks will be inaccessible with a trailer that long. You will limited to campgrounds that advertise "big rig friendly". Our trailer was 35' so we lived with that for many years.

As nice of a trailer as this is, I would encourage you to start smaller.

[djsamuel]

My trailer is a 24' trailer with a GVWR of 5,000 pounds. I tow with a 2009 Ram 1500 and it tows great. That said, I don't know if I'd go much above a GVWR of 8,000 pounds; especially if I'm planning on towing in the mountains. A 2500 would be much better with a larger trailer and changing elevations.

[GrandpaKip]

Yep, a little more homework is required. Read all you can on trailer weights, capacities, etc. Same for truck weights and capacities.
That trailer is too much for that truck.
Is the cargo capacity you quoted from the door jamb sticker or a brochure? Every truck has its own cargo capacity depending on options.
There is also a sticker on trailers giving its weight leaving the factory.
Most RV salespeople don’t know squat about weights and don’t care. One guy with “25 years experience” told me that a WDH makes tongue weight just “disappear”.

[Diamond_c]

Since you just got a new truck if it was me I’d put a set of over load springs and heavy duty shocks. I think that you have plenty of motor and transmission, you just need a little more suspension.

[APT]

8500 pounds dry, bunk house to support family. You'll be at 9500-10000 pounds loaded with 1200-1400 pounds TW. You will want a TV with about 2200 pounds of payload, a receiver with at least 1400 pound TW rating. I can't think of any half ton that meet those.

The feedback of people towing with half tons is that 7000 pounds loaded is comfortable, 8000 pounds is much less. I agree with afidel to cut 2000-2500 pounds off dry weight. Or go to 3/4 ton.

[phillyg]

I looked at the trailer specs and I think you'd be maxed out, even if you load lightly. You might want to take a look at a fifthwheel.

[Gdetrailer]

Bkuhl1179 wrote:
Haven’t pulled the trigger yet on the TT. That’s why I’m on here getting opinions.

You need to cross this one off your list, way to heavy to start with.

Never, ever listen to the marketing hype of "up to ??,??? lbs of towing capacity". Those are numbers that are often based on a barebones regular cab short bed 4x2 with basic trim level. The more ginger bread and options added to the vehicle the less you can tow..

Take the vehicles available cargo weight, subtract your passengers and gear and the leftover is what you have to work with for a tongue weight.

Take your calculated available cargo weight, multiply by .15 (15% and the result is the max trailer weight your vehicle will tow when loaded..

Realistically the most I would be comfortable with with 1600 lbs of cargo is a trailer of no more than 7,500 lbs GVWR (loaded) and I suspect it still won't be fun (been there, done that with a heavy half and 7,000 lb GVWR trailer). 7,500 GVWR means tongue weight will max out around 1,125 lbs which isn't going to leave you with much cargo weight left for family, friends or gear in the truck.

That 7,500 lbs GVWR also means you will be looking for dry weights of 4,500-6,000 lbs..

[valhalla360]

The GVWR on that trailer is 10200lb...empty weight is useless as is the empty hitch weight.

Expect a reasonable hitch weight of around 1200-1300lb. So you will be at your limits once you and the misses climb in. That means nothing in the bed of the truck, no running boards, no cap or cover for the bed, etc...

If you want to be in the ratings, go smaller or get a bigger truck.

[wing_zealot]

You need to better understand what all the ratings on your truck mean and how to match a tow vehicle to a trailer. The basics are to cumbersome and nuanced to put in writing here; so start by reading and understanding this: Clicky

[Grit_dog]

More than enough power. Not quite enough @ss for a trailer that size.
Set up with a good equalizer hitch it’s doable but given the option I’d be thinking a bit smaller.
Nice truck though!!

[Sjm9911]

Im in the 2 heavy camp. It will not be fun to drive. Anywhere.

[richardcoxid]

A long time old friend of mine who was in the independent RV repair business for over 30 years told me.

Nobody but nobody ever complains about to much truck but, a lot of people complain about to little of truck.

He goes on to say that get a little truck go slow get pi** poor fuel mileage, get a big truck go fast get pi** poor fuel mileage.

Seriously often times a large engine “loafing along” will often get very close to the fuel mileage of a small engine screaming at WOT.

[camp-n-family]

It may be do-able within the numbers but it won’t be a fun or comfortable experience. That size and weight would be much better suited to a 3/4 ton truck.

Our current trailer is of similar size but significantly lighter. At just under 8k fully loaded it was borderline for most half ton trucks. They could pull it but would usually exceed payload, axle, or receiver ratings even though nowhere near the fictional tow rating.

You’ll be much more comfortable with a trailer under 30’ and 6k dry weight with your Ram.