Tow weight

[Ejraste]

Im new to the rv trailer world. I am currently in the market for my 1st travel trailer. The idea is to eventually find a full time/seasonal campground that has full amenities. I have small children and thought it would be a good time to start the process. I currently drive a 2018 f150 xlt supercrew 4x4. The max towing capacity is 7400 lbs and max payload is 1990 lbs. I do want a nice size trailer that we won’t put outgrow anytime soon, so my question it’s what is my max trailer weight? Would it be the 7400 lbs? So ideally, I would want my dry weight to be around 5000 to 6000 lbs? Thanks

[GrandpaKip]

Ejraste wrote:

I tend to think I could easily keep a 6000 lb trailer under 8000lbs when loading it.
If it actually weighs 6000# dry. Mine was around 300# more than stated dry weight. I scaled it on the way home from the dealer. On a trailer that size, I wouldn’t be surprised to see 500# or more.

That’s understood which I’ll keep into consideration. I gave myself wiggle room with the weight numbers I stated above.

Sounds good. I have the same truck you are looking at and I doubt if you would have any problem toting a 7000# trailer.

[Ejraste]

I tend to think I could easily keep a 6000 lb trailer under 8000lbs when loading it.
If it actually weighs 6000# dry. Mine was around 300# more than stated dry weight. I scaled it on the way home from the dealer. On a trailer that size, I wouldn’t be surprised to see 500# or more.

That’s understood which I’ll keep into consideration. I gave myself wiggle room with the weight numbers I stated above.

[GrandpaKip]

Ejraste wrote:

APT wrote:
6k dry weight for that Silverado is good! Happy Camping!

Yeah I’m just trying to decipher numbers correctly.

2060 lbs payload
- 450 family
- 100 hitch
- 300 miscellaneous
= 1210 lbs

1210 lbs/ 15% = 8066 lbs fully loaded

I tend to think I could easily keep a 6000 lb trailer under 8000lbs when loading it.

If it actually weighs 6000# dry. Mine was around 300# more than stated dry weight. I scaled it on the way home from the dealer. On a trailer that size, I wouldn’t be surprised to see 500# or more.

[Ejraste]

APT wrote:
6k dry weight for that Silverado is good! Happy Camping!

Yeah I’m just trying to decipher numbers correctly.

2060 lbs payload
- 450 family
- 100 hitch
- 300 miscellaneous
= 1210 lbs

1210 lbs/ 15% = 8066 lbs fully loaded

I tend to think I could easily keep a 6000 lb trailer under 8000lbs when loading it.

[APT]

6k dry weight for that Silverado is good! Happy Camping!

[Ejraste]

JIMNLIN wrote:
Depends on how the 2020 Silverado is configured.
If it has the NHT tow package and the 6.2 v8 420 hp/460 torque engine/10 speed tranny then your good to go.

The NHT package comes with a higher gvwr/rawr

No, it’s the 5.3v8 6 speed with 3.42 gear ratio. I researched old posts and it seems like it’s 50/50 on people towing with the 1/2 ton trucks. I’m not going to be an every weekend type of tower. The goal is to get on a seasonal site for the first couple years so the young kids can enjoy the summer with the amenities of the campground. Eventually, we may take longer trips but the most miles we will pull during the first couple years might be a max of like 150 miles one way.

[JIMNLIN]

Depends on how the 2020 Silverado is configured.
If it has the NHT tow package and the 6.2 v8 420 hp/460 torque engine/10 speed tranny then your good to go.

The NHT package comes with a higher gvwr/rawr

[Ejraste]

Ok. If I went to a 2020 Silverado would that help me much? Towing capacity is 9500 lbs with gvwr 7100 lbs and gvcwr at 15000 lbs. the curb weight is approximately 5100 lbs. so my final question is , would I have issues pulling a 30ft trailer with 6000 dry weight.

[GrandpaKip]

31k sounds good, but I would never give up payload unless I was going to downsize the camper. All the 1500 Rams I looked at, both diesel and gas, had payloads that were barely more than the Frontier I was replacing.
Unless you get a camper that has a really large cargo capacity, I believe that just putting any additional stuff in the camper to keep within payload specs is going to be problematic. I don’t know anyone who has lightened the load in either truck or camper as time goes on. Sorta like people, the weight just magically grows 😉

[Jebby14]

and the blue oval 🙂

[wing_zealot]

Ejraste wrote:

Jebby14 wrote:
so 1400 lbs payload? thought you wanted more truck?

I essentially want more pull without having issues with transmission or engine. I’m not sure if that will be much of an upgrade from my f150 that’s why I was asking for feedback. From what people have said and what I have read, the payload isn’t really a deciding factor as you can just load up the trailer with cargo and it will only affect tongue weight minimally. So that 200 lbs I lose on payload, I can throw in trailer and only add 30 lbs to the payload.

Get an F150 w/3.5 ecoboost, you get more horsepower and more payload then the diesel.

[Jebby14]

i can't tell you what will work for you. I can tell you with absolute certainty i wouldnt spend money on that truck swap. Me, i would be going 3/4 ton of your preference likely with the gasser. My choice would be the ford. If i was staying with a half ton (which i wouldnt be) I would be looking for an f150 with the 3.5 eco boost and towing goodies that upgrade the rear end.

[Ejraste]

Jebby14 wrote:
so 1400 lbs payload? thought you wanted more truck?

I essentially want more pull without having issues with transmission or engine. I’m not sure if that will be much of an upgrade from my f150 that’s why I was asking for feedback. From what people have said and what I have read, the payload isn’t really a deciding factor as you can just load up the trailer with cargo and it will only affect tongue weight minimally. So that 200 lbs I lose on payload, I can throw in trailer and only add 30 lbs to the payload.

[Jebby14]

so 1400 lbs payload? thought you wanted more truck?

[Ejraste]

240 HP 420 lbs -ft torque

Curb Weight - Front (lbs): 3114
Curb Weight - Rear (lbs): 2284
Gross Axle Wt Rating - Front (lbs): 3900
Gross Axle Wt Rating - Rear (lbs): 3900
Gross Combined Wt Rating (lbs): 13750
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating Cap (lbs): 6800