NikNak
Member
I was finally lucky enough to flee the state of CA for greener pastures in the free state of TN. I made two trips towing an 6X12 UHaul trailer with 6,150 weight while the truck weighed 5,900. Total GVWR was 12,050 (CAT scale verified).
My haul:
Ram 1500 Hemi 4X2 3.21 gears.
Factory Hitch w/tow-haul button.
Weigh-Safe Hitch (6” stem but only used 2-3” variation).
Trailer had hydraulic surge breaks so I couldn’t use the factory electric brake controller.
Air bag spring assist - AirLift HD1000s (single line w/fill valve in gas cap area) Loaded to 44pounds - max is 50pounds in the HDs.
K&N Cold Air Intake (63 model?)
Borla Cat-Back S exhaust upgrade.
Premium fuel 91/93 Octane.
Summary:
The Weigh-Safe hitch combined with the Air-Lift HD1000s made this trip possible. The extra support of the airbags plus the variable hitch height helped me to manage/balance the load. I had a little “squat” since my front axle weight was only 2,570 when loaded vs 2,750 when empty.
After 100miles on my first trip, I only had 650 pounds of tongue weight showing on the hitch. That made the trailer wag too much at 65mph so I took mass from the rear of the trailer & added it to my buddy’s. This gave me 800 pounds of hitch/tongue weight and it allowed me to run 75-80mph and still feel in control.
Due to the lighter front axle load, I did have to slow down to 60mph in downhill corners, or it started pushing me a little wide.
My MPG averaged 11.5-12.5 for the entire trip (with 91/93 octane).
If knew I was to be towing so much, I woulda gotten the 3.55 gears to haul more weight, or have a better safety factor but that 8 speed transmission is pretty good(IMO).
We had a pretty good couple of trips & now I hang my hat in Tennessee.
Pic is of my Ram 1500 & buddy’s Ram 3500(2005) with his 24ft race trailer packed to the gills. We moved the 5Br/3Ba house plus one car/motorcycle and hauled the Ram 1500 back to CA in the trailer for the second trip.
It’s nice to have GOOD friends...
As I said above, the only thing I woulda done differently was to have ordered the Ram with 3.55 gears but I didn’t know I’d be moving/hauling this much in 2yrs.
https://www.weigh-safe.com/product/cerakote-black-weigh-safe-drop-hitch/
My haul:
Ram 1500 Hemi 4X2 3.21 gears.
Factory Hitch w/tow-haul button.
Weigh-Safe Hitch (6” stem but only used 2-3” variation).
Trailer had hydraulic surge breaks so I couldn’t use the factory electric brake controller.
Air bag spring assist - AirLift HD1000s (single line w/fill valve in gas cap area) Loaded to 44pounds - max is 50pounds in the HDs.
K&N Cold Air Intake (63 model?)
Borla Cat-Back S exhaust upgrade.
Premium fuel 91/93 Octane.
Summary:
The Weigh-Safe hitch combined with the Air-Lift HD1000s made this trip possible. The extra support of the airbags plus the variable hitch height helped me to manage/balance the load. I had a little “squat” since my front axle weight was only 2,570 when loaded vs 2,750 when empty.
After 100miles on my first trip, I only had 650 pounds of tongue weight showing on the hitch. That made the trailer wag too much at 65mph so I took mass from the rear of the trailer & added it to my buddy’s. This gave me 800 pounds of hitch/tongue weight and it allowed me to run 75-80mph and still feel in control.
Due to the lighter front axle load, I did have to slow down to 60mph in downhill corners, or it started pushing me a little wide.
My MPG averaged 11.5-12.5 for the entire trip (with 91/93 octane).
If knew I was to be towing so much, I woulda gotten the 3.55 gears to haul more weight, or have a better safety factor but that 8 speed transmission is pretty good(IMO).
We had a pretty good couple of trips & now I hang my hat in Tennessee.
Pic is of my Ram 1500 & buddy’s Ram 3500(2005) with his 24ft race trailer packed to the gills. We moved the 5Br/3Ba house plus one car/motorcycle and hauled the Ram 1500 back to CA in the trailer for the second trip.
It’s nice to have GOOD friends...
As I said above, the only thing I woulda done differently was to have ordered the Ram with 3.55 gears but I didn’t know I’d be moving/hauling this much in 2yrs.
https://www.weigh-safe.com/product/cerakote-black-weigh-safe-drop-hitch/
