Houston, we have a weight problem

ChooChooMan74 wrote:
My EcoD has a payload of just over 1000lbs. Hauled a ton of pellets twice without an issue. I wouldn't keep it on all day, but a little over, I would look the other way. Your GVW is probably 6800 for the hemi while mine is 6950 for the EcoD. You really think the rear suspension is different between ours?

ChooChoo, there IS a big difference from hauling double the cargo in the bed (pellets, wood, gravel, sand) and hauling a trailer which has a tongue weight double the cargo weight.

The load in the back of the vehicle is DEAD weight (IE does not shift, pivot, move) and is placed on the center or slightly AHEAD of the center of the rear axle.. The front will get loaded with more weight than it would with a trailer with WD.

Trailer tongue weight is placed WAY behind the rear axle and is a highly dynamic (IE CHANGING) load.. while towing..

Think of the teeter-totter example on how the correct placement of the weights can allow a 50lb kid to easily move a 200 lb adult into the air.

OP is correct in realizing they will easily overload their vehicle and that would not be a good choice for handling or longevity of their vehicle.

Sadly, they discovered the ugly secret about a lot of "half tons" that have large towing ratings but fall way short on the actual PAYLOAD.

Adding airbags, extra springs and other suspension mods might make the overload "tolerable" but in the end it does nothing for increasing payload rating that the manufacturer has written in the door sticker.. These mods simply bandaid and hide the short comings of the vehicle..

The problem of "bandaiding" is it may hide the problem under normal driving conditions (IE sunshiny day with no wind, little hills or flat terrain) but may fall short on adverse weather, driving conditions (heavy rain, high winds and or curvy mountain driving)..

When towing, Mr Murphy has a terrible sense of humor and timing and often crosses your path in the most inopportune times..

I LOVE having plenty of available cargo weight (3415 lbs on my current tow vehicle) and I don't "need" a bunch of bandaids to haul my current TT which has a empty hitch weight of 625 lbs and loaded weight of 800 lbs..