Using Ram as a TOAD behind Motorhome

BossHogg said:

Nonsense.

Look in the RAM's owners' manual under "recreational towing". The reason the transfer case can be put in a neutral state is for four down towing.

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Yes, and this is why it is working out perfectly for them right?

Look I didn't say it was not possible but it is far from an ideal tow behind vehicle for several factors. There is a reason a Jeep Wrangler is a preferred town behind vehicle by most RVers. I used to own a 31 ft class A myself and a wrangler or small manual pickup would have been the only things I would have considered.

Thank you for all the replies . I'll be going to the Dodge dealer here and have them check it out. Will post next week about the outcome.
As far as towing vehicles - the Wrangler with manual transmission is indeed a very popular tow vehicle, especially for RVs that are limited to 5,000 lbs or less for towing. We had a Honda CRV one of the most popular tow vehicles, we needed to upgrade for reasons I won't go into here. However, starting in 2015 they cannot be towed 4 down. I can't drive a shift, the Army did a job on my knees and clutching is one of the things that really bothers them. So I need an automatic to drive.

pickupman66 said:

Actually, it is a good one. Mainly because the Transfer case can be put into complete Neutral. plus the steering does not lock so it turns properly. as for the weight, after driving my Parents coach with a 360 Cat, you cannot tell the TOAD is back there. the weight is minuscule.

When they were looking at replacing their Jeep, they did alot of research and MOST SUV dont have the full disconnect. you have to install a special valve in the trans to allow it to be put into neutral that will circulate the trans fluid. plus you have to start them every 500 to 1000 miles. With the RAM, transfercase in Full Neutral, the trans is in Park the whole time. nothing turning in there. Transfer case has its own fluids inside as with the Differentials. once you have that, wire that baby up with secondary lights, add in the Air actuated Brake pedal piston (so it stops too), and you are good to go!

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Thanks, pickupman66. The Ram is supposed to be a great towed vehicle; and I think it will be for us. We have installed the Air Force 1 breaking system, which uses the air system from the DP to actuate the breaks. I, personally, would never tow a vehicle like this without a breaking system.

Dr. Righteous said:

Yes, and this is why it is working out perfectly for them right?

Look I didn't say it was not possible but it is far from an ideal tow behind vehicle for several factors. There is a reason a Jeep Wrangler is a preferred town behind vehicle by most RVers. I used to own a 31 ft class A myself and a wrangler or small manual pickup would have been the only things I would have considered.

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Don't fab up an issue. They have an issue with a vehicle. This isn't a common issue seen across the RAM line. They are going to a dealer to have it addresses.

I know, because you use to own something, it is the only workable solution. Look, with a 31 foot Class A you were driving a gasser which isn't going to pull much more than itself. There are bigger Class A diesel pushers designed to pull 10K and 15K tow weights, which the OP owns.

Well, dealer has never heard of this. When we took it in we could not replicate the problem. We will see what happens. I did learn that I don't have to go through the procedures of placing back into 2wd and into park when we stop for the night when travelling. Thanks for all the replies and help.

2013 Ram 1500 Longhorn Laramie

We have a 2013 Winnebago Vista (30T) with a Ford Chassis (F53) and V10 Triton and we pull a 2013 Ram 1500 Longhorn Laramie. We were pulling a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland for a while, but I wanted to get back into a truck. Yes I agree that a Jeep Wrangler is easier to shift the transfer case into neutral (pull lever into nutral), but the rest of the hhok up is the same wether it's a Wrangler, Grand Cherokee or Ram 1500, (you got the tow bar, towcables, wiring harness plug, break away cable, Brake buddy setup and checks). I can do any of theses in about the same amount of time, have done them all (98 TJ, 93, 95, 98 ZJ's, 2014 WK2 and now Ram 1500) all have their differences and all have a different level of comfort. My 2014 Grand and 2013 Longhorn are almost the same in trim level (Loaded) and that's what I like. No you do not have to change your setup at night when you stop, as long as your not using the vehicle (do due a walk around in the morning and check lights, pins and Brake Buddy system) as we had someone remove a pin one night while we slept (some worthless piece of dung). Yes you need to follow the Recreational towing in the owners manual, start the vehicle, transmission to neutral take your ball point pen and press the little button on the transfer case neutral switch till it flashes red, then stays red, shift into drive on transmission and truck shouldn't move with foot of brake and parking brake off. Let the engine and drive line slow down before attempting to shift the transmission into Park or you will hear a clicking or grinding sound. After trip start engine **** transmission into neutral and press 2wd on transfer switch, shift into drive and your off, always remember that when the transfer case is in neutral the vehicle could roll freely so use your Park Brake (Emergency Brake) for safety. Yes I know I would get better gas milage with a smaller vehicle, but I Don't want a smaller vehicle. My RV is short 30 foot with 3 slides, plenty of room for the wife and I and 2 small dogs. I can pull into just about anywhere without issues because of its shortness. I could fly and then rent a car and stay with family or friends, I could drive and stay in hotels and pay every night or I can take my RV and my Toad and go where I want when I want and stop wherever I want. So happy trails to you.

I thought I would post here since this will get to at least some RAM owners who are towing them behind motorhomes. I tow our RAM 1500 behind our MH sometimes (and our Jeep other times). Recently I have been hearing that Jeep Grand Cherokees built since 2016 have been experiencing severe wobble under certain rare occasions. This has been noted on some of the RV forums. I'm talking about the "WK2" Grand Cherokee not the "KL" Cherokee, the latter having had a known wobble issue, and a fix, for years.

I learned that in 2016, WK2 Grand Cherokees were changed from an Electric-Hydraulic power steering system to an All-Electric one, similar to the KL Cherokee with servo type motors to provide the assist. For reasons I cannot get into it appears the cause of the wobble condition on the WK2 may be due to the differences between the older Electric-Hydraulic system and the newer All-Electric; both of these steering systems are referred to as "EPS".

So the question for us RAM 1500 owners is, which type of EPS do we have? I see references to EPS for the RAMs going back to MY 2013, so for us its important to know.

My thought is that the Grand Cherokee, unlike the Cherokee shares many components with the RAM 1500, the V6 and V8 engines and 8-speed ZF transmission for example. Are we in for the same problem?