Towing 6,200 lb travel trailer with 3.6 V6 Pentastar?

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yogiyoda

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Hello,

According to RAM, the Quad Cab Pentastar with 3.55 ratio can tow 7,600 lbs; has a GCWR of 12,900 lbs; and payload of 1890 lbs.

https://www.ramtrucks.com/assets/towing_guide/pdf/2016_ram_1500_towing_charts.pdf

So it should be able tow the Arctic Fox 22g with dry weight about 4,700 lbs and loaded weight of about 6,200 lbs. The trailer is tall and 8.5’ wide. So it’ll have a good bit of wind resistance. I’m planning on maybe towing an average of 26 times a year for maybe 4,000 miles a year. There will be a truck cap with some cargo in a the back too. I'm guess a total of 700 lbs payload including passengers. Also the vehicle will be used as my daily driver when not towing.

But I’ve heard mixed reviews on the Pentastar’s towing ability. And yes, I know that the Hemi or Ecodiesel will pull the weight easier. But this post is to anyone with first hand towing experience with the Pentastar.

How do you think it would pull the 6,200 lb 22' Arctic Fox?

Do think there would be any safety issues merging on to highways, going up hills etc? I’m not looking to break any speed records and am happy to tow slowly to save mpg. But I don’t want to have a safety issues with an under-powered vehicle either.

Do you think towing that load frequently would cause premature wear on the engine due to it being underpowered etc?
 

mtofell

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Can't answer your question specifically but what are the HP/torque ratings on the engine?

Also, How are you getting the 6200# from a 4700# dry weight TT? That sound like a lot of stuff. I don't even think my wife could pull that off :)
 
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yogiyoda

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The Pentastar has 305 hp, but only 260 lbs of torque. I’ve heard the 8 speed transmission allows it to tow better than expected though.

I’m padding 1,500 lbs over dry weight based on the following estimates.


46 gallons of water = 384 lbs

60 lbs propane

estimating 300 lbs of upgrades (cargo box, generator, thermal windows, etc)

estimating 850 lbs cargo for extended stay living
 

gofishn

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Yes, it will tow that trailer.

No, you will NOT feel safe doing so and you WILL be extremely frustrated by the rate of acceleration.

Your truck will die, a fairly fast Death, towing that much weight, that often, for that many miles.

Common Sense here.

What is the Maximum you can lift. now, do it all the time, think it will wear your body out, a little faster doing so?

That max towing thing is a numbers game, Chrysler will warranty that motor, for that weight, for 36K miles or 36 months. That;s it.

Playing the odds.

You use this for a daily driver?
Want to keep it for longer time or miles?
Then don;t use it, to its maximum allowance.
 
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yogiyoda

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No, you will NOT feel safe doing so and you WILL be extremely frustrated by the rate of acceleration.

Thanks for the feedback. Are you basing this off of personal experience with the vehicle, or from the vehicle specs?

Your truck will die, a fairly fast Death, towing that much weight, that often, for that many miles.

Is this statement based solely on the analogy below, from experience, or from some other source?

What is the Maximum you can lift. now, do it all the time, think it will wear your body out, a little faster doing so?

Well, I can't lift my maximum every day. But 6,200 lbs is only 80% of the 7,600 lb maximum tow capacity. It's no problem to to lift 80% of my maximum every couple of weeks. In fact, I could do multiple reps and sets every day at 80% and get stronger doing so.

That max towing thing is a numbers game, Chrysler will warranty that motor, for that weight, for 36K miles or 36 months. That;s it.

Wouldn't they be afraid of being sued for putting their customers in an unsafe situation?
 

clh1220

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I have a 13 Durango with the v6 and have the trailer package on it. It's rated at 6200. I've used it to put the pontoon in the lake and it had the power to pull it out fine. I store the boat 2 miles away from the lake, and that's about as far as I want to pull it. It's the wind and the billboard effect. It makes that motor work hard to me. I think 26 times a year towing that trailer a is allot.
 
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yogiyoda

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I have a 13 Durango with the v6 and have the trailer package on it. It's rated at 6200. I've used it to put the pontoon in the lake and it had the power to pull it out fine. I store the boat 2 miles away from the lake, and that's about as far as I want to pull it. It's the wind and the billboard effect. It makes that motor work hard to me. I think 26 times a year towing that trailer a is allot.

Thanks for the info. Any idea what your loaded trailer weighs? And does the Durango have a similar wheelbase, transmission, suspension, and weight as the Ram 1500?
 

clh1220

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:sleepy10:
Thanks for the info. Any idea what your loaded trailer weighs? And does the Durango have a similar wheelbase, transmission, suspension, and weight as the Ram 1500?

The Durango is not light . I don't have the 8 speed but you can just feel it is under powered. It probably weighs around 4k with the trailer. It.does.have the self leveling shocks and it doesn't sag much. I just personally wouldn't want to do what you're talking about doing , even with the 8 speed.
 

14hemiexpress

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I have no experience with the pentastar and towing but I can tell you that I don't think you will be happy. V6's make there torque at very high rpm I believe you will get the job done but it is going to take it's tole on that little engine. And I think your underestamateing your payload are you saying 700 lbs payload total or 700 minus your hitch weight? Because I bet your hitch weight will be every bit of that 700 if not closer to 850,900 at the 10-15% rule.

Will it do it yes, will it like it no.
 

csuder99

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Lots of e-towing in this thread.... :) I can't speak to towing a 6000+ travel trailer either but at least have occasionally towed 4000ish box and utility trailers. The V6 with 3.55 ratio has no problem, obviously the weight is noticeable when driving. It will run at higher revs compared to a bigger displacement engine, but the RAM published tow rating should not cause problems like overheating or premature failure. That's part of the engineering/testing process. Frequent towing will require more attention to maintenance though.

You may not like the way the vehicle sounds/feels running at high RPM for extended times but that's a more subjective aspect.
 

gofishn

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Just typed out 2 rather long answers.

Took a lot of work for a 2 finger typist.
Then, realized neither is what you will want to hear.

Go to a towing forum.
Go to a an Artic whatever your trailer will be forum.
Ask those guys.


Yes, your truck will do it.
No, it will not do it, well,
No, I do not recommend it.

Put it another way.

Have your kids, if there are any, ride in a different vehicle.
They are helpless, in this Folly.
 
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gofishn

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yogiyoda

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:sleepy10:

The Durango is not light . I don't have the 8 speed but you can just feel it is under powered. It probably weighs around 4k with the trailer. It.does.have the self leveling shocks and it doesn't sag much. I just personally wouldn't want to do what you're talking about doing , even with the 8 speed.

Thanks. Appreciate the feed back. The 1500 w/ 8 speed might tow a little better than the Durango, but then I'd be towing another 2,000 lbs. So good feedback.
 
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yogiyoda

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I have no experience with the pentastar and towing but I can tell you that I don't think you will be happy. V6's make there torque at very high rpm I believe you will get the job done but it is going to take it's tole on that little engine. And I think your underestamateing your payload are you saying 700 lbs payload total or 700 minus your hitch weight? Because I bet your hitch weight will be every bit of that 700 if not closer to 850,900 at the 10-15% rule.

Will it do it yes, will it like it no.

Thanks for the feedback. I'm aware of the 15% tongue weight. The 700 lbs cargo is on top of that. I plugged in the numbers into one of the online tow calculators and everything looks good on paper. But based on most of the feedback on this forum it might not be the best idea in the real world.
 
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yogiyoda

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Lots of e-towing in this thread.... :) I can't speak to towing a 6000+ travel trailer either but at least have occasionally towed 4000ish box and utility trailers. The V6 with 3.55 ratio has no problem, obviously the weight is noticeable when driving. It will run at higher revs compared to a bigger displacement engine, but the RAM published tow rating should not cause problems like overheating or premature failure. That's part of the engineering/testing process. Frequent towing will require more attention to maintenance though.

You may not like the way the vehicle sounds/feels running at high RPM for extended times but that's a more subjective aspect.


Thanks. Glad to hear from someone who's actually towed with this configuration! Hopefully, some other 1500 8-speed Pentastar owners will chime in too. ...especially someone who has towed 6,000+.
 
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yogiyoda

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Just typed out 2 rather long answers.

Took a lot of work for a 2 finger typist.
Then, realized neither is what you will want to hear.

Go to a towing forum.
Go to a an Artic whatever your trailer will be forum.
Ask those guys.


Yes, your truck will do it.
No, it will not do it, well,
No, I do not recommend it.

Put it another way.

Have your kids, if there are any, ride in a different vehicle.
They are helpless, in this Folly.

Thanks for feedback. I posted to this forum (as opposed to others) to get responses from people who have actually towed with this Ram configuration. The Pentastar with 8-speed transmission is supposed to perform much better than the V6 trucks of old. But based on feedback so far, it still might not be a great idea to tow the 6,000+ travel trailer with it.
 

xrsman

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While it wasn't the 3.6L v6, I towed that weight with my 2011 4.7L Ram. It did not like the weight. With 7000 lbs the truck would lose speed going up steeper hills, with the petal to the floor.

The truck itself can handle the trailer perfectly fine, it's just the engine that won't get up and go very well. I'd recommend you get a tuner & CAI. Give it some more power to work with, that should help a bit.
 

chris1965

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I agree with xrsman. I just recently sold my good old trusty- 1500 with 4.7L because of this reason and traded up to hemi.
my trailer weight is loaded around 6000 lbs plus you got all that woman stuff in the bed- tables. chairs, grill, ice boxes full of ice, some more camping tables and chairs, just in case somebody wants to visit, etc...- and we have just 2 dogs to take with us- no kids. now add for your situation the kiddy stuff to it.
I can tell you- even though it was a V8- the truck needed always 3000 rpm on every hump to get over and the decision day was, as I had to stop on a hill and the truck was barely get rolling. even my wife understood now- it's time.
do your truck a favor and don't pull this weight. My RAM pulls 10000 lbs but we are planning next year to buy another camper, we will try to stay well below 7000 lbs.
I know it's disappointing to hear, what people write, but for towing, the V6 is the wrong engine for what you want to do with it. Hate to say it, but it ain't helping, when I say what you want to hear.
just see the facts- the 4.7L has more torque than the V6 and if you pull, volume is the key.
it might work- but how somebody already said- you'll kill the engine over time, because you will have only 2 choices- idle and pedal to the metal. and this is death to the engine over time. I didn't want to kill my 4.7 before I sell it- so I did before something happened - even though I just invested over $2000 for upgrades in it the last year. yes- because of the camper. in your case- take the head over your heart.
 
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Jerry1984

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What kind of terrain will you be towing this trailer over? Hills, mountains, flat lands or ?? If mountains I wouldn't say it would be enjoyable. If flat areas to the next freeway koa, maybe you'll be alright. Terrain plays a large factor.
 

clh1220

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Thanks. Appreciate the feed back. The 1500 w/ 8 speed might tow a little better than the Durango, but then I'd be towing another 2,000 lbs. So good feedback.

The Durango tow rating is 6200. So I was under it by couple thousand pounds.
 
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