Unofficial SRW vs DRW road survey

[Superduty123]

Not wanting to start a war. Last summer I drove my son from NorCal to Denver to his school. On the way across Utah, Wyoming, Colorado I saw a ton of 5th wheels, and my unofficial guest is that 85% were being towed with SRW

Today I drove from Nor Cal to just above San Luis Obispo, officially counting this time I came across 14 SRW towing 5th wheels of all sizes and only 2 that were DRW

I know it makes plain common sense to me that 4 wheels on the rear end would have to give you more stability

But it just seems a lot of folks either put up with, get by, or don't seem to have a problem with SRW

As some of you know I am looking for a truck this fall at the end of the model year and it will be my last as I will be retiring in 4 years. I would prefer a short bed 1 ton CC so I am limited to the RAM in either Std CC, Mega CC in SRW or Mega in DRW

The only draw back with the DRW is parking etc

to those of you who towed both ways, is it really that big of a difference. Certainly the numbers I see on the road are overwhelmingly SRW

[steelpony5555]

My trailer comes in at around 12.5k lbs and I have towed it with both a 2500 SRW and a dually 2wd and now a dually 4wd. The 2500 towed it just fine but moving up to a dually made it a more relaxing ride and drive. Like was said if you tow a lot then definitely go with the dually. Lots of folks are afraid of driving duallys full time and feel they are just not good for a daily driver. Here in Texas there are tons of duallys driven as daily drivers, mine included. No they don't fit in bank drive thrus but I do fit in a Sonics. Besides what few times I may have to park further out or have to walk into a bank is good for me health wise lol lol...

[nevadanick]

I have had both. The dually is more stable but its also not necassary. I believe tire rating is the most important thing to consider. My current truck is a dually and you plan where you park instead of just pulling in. Its no harder to drive than a single and in fact my current which is a GMC is easier than the Ram it replaced which was a single because the Ram was a longer wheelbase or at least it felt longer. Both crewcab longbeds.

[jmtandem]

After 125,000 miles of dually driving I can honestly say it is no more difficult than a SRW truck except in drive thrus and parking garages. The fenders are no wider than the mirrors on a SRW so width is not really that big an issue. And, two more tires at tire replacement time. But, what the dually does for driving when towing especially payload and stability is immense. Get what you need to tow especially going into retirement when you will likely be on the road more. I certainly would opt for a dually for any heavy cabover camper and any fifth weighing more than 13-14,000 gross. The stability is comfort in towing and eliminates the white knuckle experience.

[noteven]

edited - We just did a 2800 mi trip to near Vancouver BC hauling the TC. There were lots of RV's on the road for the long week end. I sort of did the same survey as Superduty123 - I didn't actually record the SRW vs DRW numbers, but there were way more SRW towing 5th wheel RVs than DRW - at least the ratio noted by the OP. Trucks hauling big rear overhang campers (ours isn't) and heavy freight or livestock/horse type gooseneck trailers were majority DRW.

Since switching our SRW to 19.5 steel casing tires own our paid for truck have found exactly what Golden_HVAC said - lateral tire sidewall flex is way less = increased "stability". We still enjoy exceptional directional stability and traction in snow and on packed snow or ice, and still able to park in one stall.

on edit - WingedOne's pictures are a great illustration. The SRW has single range E flexiwall tires, and shorter wheelbase. It should feel less stable than the new truck. If the new truck had steel casing 19.5s and SRW, it would not feel a whole lot different than it does now...

[Winged_One]

I have actually towed the same 5th with first a 4x4 SRW and now a 4x2 DRW. Both were supercab long box trucks (wheelbase exactly the same). Both running E rated tires. 18" versus 17" wheels.





Where I notice the biggest difference is going around corners. The 5th would push the rear end of the SRW to the side and make it feel a bit squirrelly. The DRW doesn't have that feel.

But I bought my DRW because I don't kid myself or others. The SRW was overweight with my 15.5 GVWR 5th.

If I had a lighter 5th, I probably would have stayed with a SRW. I would also have gotten a gas motor. Just because they are cheaper. But you buy what you need, not what you hope you can get away with.

[daily_double]

Dogs, I couldn't agree more!

[Dog_Folks]

For the advantages gained by dual rear wheels, the drawbacks are very minor.

If you are going to tow often, as in a full time lifestyle, dual wheels provide an extra stable towing platform.

It depends on your intended use.

[4x4ord]

My 5th wheel weighs in around 15000 lbs. I also haul a fair bit with a 32' gooseneck flat bed. I own and operate various trucks including a couple class 8s and my truck of choice for loads up to 20,000 lbs is definitely the Ford srw. The most unstable truck I have happens to be a class 8 (so tandem dually) with a grain box on the back. This truck is fine until it gets over 30,000 lbs in the box at which point it becomes uncomfortable to drive. In this case the unstable feeling is on account of the suspension, not number of tires.

[greende]

I opted for a DRW only because we intend to get a full timing (heavy) rig soon and will need the extra capacity. If I stayed in the range I have now, would definitely get a SRW.

[searaydave]

Have SRW 3500HD Chebby - Tows great and it fits in drive through car washes too!

[jasult]

SWD wrote:
Towing 10500# 30ft bunkhouse fifth with my F350 SRW. No probs and well under the max weight rating.

Same here, but I just picked up a nice 99 f350 drw and will start towing this year with it and compare both. I am keeping both as I picked up the drw at great price

[SWD]

Towing 10500# 30ft bunkhouse fifth with my F350 SRW. No probs and well under the max weight rating.

[Led_67]

OK as Golden HVAC has stated as well as mtofell1 the technology of these trucks have come a long way in recent years however to a laymans view of SRW vs DRW think of it as Point Of Contact x Surface Area x Payload...

SRW as stated only a single POC and a slightly smaller surface area yet the payload can be high depending on the suspension and tire and wheel combination as ordered and or modified also with a standard profile parking and manuvering will be easier.

DRW POC will be more spread out resulting an a larger surface area which will also result in the payload being more evenly distributed and greater stability from the wider stance of the DRW the payload will be higher also with or without modifications. The disadvantage to most DRW is something that can be overcome once you have adjusted your driving style and habits appropiatly and that is the hips on a DRW.

All said and done it is your choice dependent upon your Trailer,FW,TC or whatever so please do your research and seek the advice of people who have the experience but in the end it will be yours

Good Luck

[mtofell1]

Without knowing what you intend to tow it's tough to know if you need a DRW. I don't think people go get a DRW truck just to get one. Of course, they are a hassle to park live with so there isn't a reason to get one unless you need it. The payload ratings on a lot of the SRW trucks are getting up there pretty high these days. Unless you plan on packing the TV extra heavy you can tow a reasonably big 5th with a SRW truck. Like you say, about 80% of the 5ths you see out there are doing it.

[Golden_HVAC]

Hi,

I have a dual rear wheel motorhome, and it towed my Honda CRV nicely, until I replaced the factory Michelin all steel tires with Goodyear Wranglers. They have a polyester sidewall, and are much more flexible. Going down a long grade that we had taken many times, the rear of the motorhome was wiggling due to the sidewall flex, it was sort of disconcerning. The tiny 3,200 pound CRV was pushing the rear of the 16,000 pound motorhome into the corners - a bit sideways. After changing to all steel sidewall Goodyear tires, the problem went away. So I basically replaced a set of tires with only about 500 miles on them, my expensive lesson that I have tried to pass on as much as possible to others.

So you can buy stable rear tires. You can also mistakenly buy unstable rear tires. I went to a FMCA RV show shortly after installing the Goodyear Wranglers and met with a Goodyear rep. He stated that the all steel tire was much firmer sidewalls, and would bring back the stability that I needed. He showed me a all steel Goodyear and polyester sidewall side by side, and you can tell by pushing on the steel sidewall it is much stiffer.

Back in the 70's tires where not as strong as today. In the 50's you could count on needing to change a tire if you planned a 500 - 1,000 mile trip, and the spare tire was a requirement, tire life over 20,000 miles was almost unheard of. But with radial tires, my dad stated he never had a flat after 1970, because he replaced the tires with still a lot of tread on them, and never wanted to change another tire ever on the side of the road. So if you wanted to carry a really large load, then a dually was a requirement. Tires where typically rated at less than 3,000 pounds each, and the skinny dually tires only about 2,200 pounds each.

In 2005, Ford came out with the higher weight rated trucks. They went to a 17" rim for the F-250 and 18" rim for the F-350 SRW. The DRW 17" tires where rated at 3,000 pounds each, while the 17" F-250 tires are rated at around 3,400 while the 18" rims are higher. So yes it is possible to load up a SRW F-350 with a larger trailer and have strong tires under the back. The 2005 and later F-350 SRW is rated to carry about 4,000 pounds. The DRW is even higher. Now Chevy and Dodge have increased their truck GVWR to keep up, and all RV'ers are the winners. We now have great trucks to pick from.

Have fun with your new truck, it should last a long time, no matter if you have a dually or not. You will have a much stronger truck than what was built as little as 20 years ago.

Fred.