Travel Trailer Towing

[NH RAM]

We tow an ePro 19FD which is a smaller, light weight trailer. With the Husky WDH on there the trailer pulls really nicely and power wise, the truck doesn't even know it's back there.
I do want to switch out the stock tires on the trailer with something decent, but haven't had the budget to do that yet. Last weekend we were towing through the central valley and it was 104 and the thought of overheating and blowing a tire at highway speeds was never far from my thoughts.

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I've run the stock "china bombs" on my last two trailers and had no issues with them. My trips would include 8-10 hour days of driving through all the trash roads that the NY, PA, and plenty of other better maintained interstates had to offer. I didn't notice any excessive heat buildup or unusual wear. I've heard people say that the stock tires should be ditched asap, but I'm not made of money, so I run what I have and make sure I have a spare.

That's a nice trailer, I like the ease of towing a small trailer and finding a place to camp almost anywhere. Enjoy!

 

[Eric Troup]

What you said is true and that is the problem. The real world present day configuration of the truck is not the same as when it left the factory. Therefore, the numbers you get back by inputting the VIN are academic and no longer valid.

I do have another question regarding a 2020 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel ratings. Front GAWR is 3900lbs. Rear GAWR is 4100lbs. This adds up to 8000lbs. However, the GVWR is 7200lbs. The truck has Load Range E tires.

This article however, strongly suggests that it is ok to exceed the Tow Vehicle GVWR as long as you do not exceed either of the GAWR or the tire ratings.

https://rvlifemag.com/towing-half-ton-three-quarter-ton/

According to this article this 1500 could handle 800lbs more than its GVWR.

I'm not convinced this is correct.

 

[Eric Troup]

Have a 2019 Cougar 29bhs. As currently configured in storage, the tongue weight measures 1000lbs. Loaded for a trip it weight 1100-1200lbs.

Can tow with 2020 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel. With LDH can keep front axle under 3900 GAWR and rear under 4100 GAWR. The problem is staying under the 7200lbs GVWR.

 

[Meagan Brantley]

We are supposed to be purchasing a 27K2D travel trailer tomorrow. My husband drives a 2019 Dodge ram 5.7 V8 Hemi. The dealer says he could pull it with no problems, however my dad is thinking otherwise. It will have the WDH installed by the dealer as well. I have a hard time understanding all these numbers, so really looking for a straight forward answer to help us understand if we can tow it. Let me know if you need any other information that I am missing. The first picture is the truck and the second pic is the trailer specs. Thank you!

 

[14hemiexpress]

We are supposed to be purchasing a 27K2D travel trailer tomorrow. My husband drives a 2019 Dodge ram 5.7 V8 Hemi. The dealer says he could pull it with no problems, however my dad is thinking otherwise. It will have the WDH installed by the dealer as well. I have a hard time understanding all these numbers, so really looking for a straight forward answer to help us understand if we can tow it. Let me know if you need any other information that I am missing. The first picture is the truck and the second pic is the trailer specs. Thank you!

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You may want to start your own thread to discuss this. But I have a 28krd with similar specs according to the brochure mine is 6800 with 780 hitch weight and just over 34ft so almost identical specs and I would not want to pull that with a 1500 its alot of trailer loaded up I'm 8200lbs and 1000 lbs hitch weight.

 

[dhay13]

^ agreed. You will be very close, if not over, max tow capacity loaded. Dry weight at 6835 lbs will be closer to at least 7500 empty then loaded up you will likely be closer to 8000 lbs. Tongue weight would likely be closer to at least 1000lbs but I think your payload will be about 1500ish (that 1800 listed above is the highest with a 2WD regular cab stripped down model). My step-son had a 2019 1500 Big Horn and his payload was around 1500lbs. Either way you should 'probably' be ok on payload depending on how much more you put in the truck, including kids, dogs, bikes, firewood, etc. The bigger issue will be the trailer length. That big of a trailer will move around and sway quite a bit with wind or passing semi's. Long trips will be exhausting and not fun.

So yeah, you will 'probably' be legal and able to do it but it won't be fun.

 

[Mustangmike66]

https://www.ramtrucks.com/towing-guide.html use this and enter your VIN. That trailer is too big for your RAM. You both would hate towing that around.

 

[Firetruck41]

Never ever take what the dealer says as the truth, good job on checking for yourself. You need to know what the towing capacity and payload for your specific truck is, as mentioned it is probably quite a bit lower than on that chart.

Trailer manufacturers weights are notoriously low, take them with a big grain of salt.

One other thing to realize, is that you will never be able to tow a trailer near the max tow capacity, as you will run out of payload first. The tongue weight/hitch weight of the trailer as well as the weight of the driver and passenger, and everything in the truck, counts as payload. So for instance if the hitch weight is 1000lbs, and it's just your husband and you in the truck and your combined weight is 350lbs, you have used 1350 lbs of payload, which may very well exceed your payload capacity.

 

[runamuck]

exactly. the max payload on mine is 1324#. me and wife and full fuel= 224+118+230=572#..then hook up trailer..600# tongue wt. I am at 1172# leaving only a cpl. hundred # for gear in the truck bed..everything else about the truck is great..

 

[RAM DRVR]

I completely understand. We have owned both C class and A Class motorhomes, and although they are nice, I didn't want to buy another vehicle just to have a toad. I will be able to use my truck for both work and towing, and having towed with half tons in the past (my 04 Hemi) I just didn't want to revisit that.

Same here. Several motorhomes in the past C and A. First TT. Actually towed my Ram behind our last MH a couple of times. It worked but not ideal. Our best toad was a 2005 Jeep TJ, it was great.

 

[runamuck]

that chart does not look like for the 19's..I think they would have 7100# gvwr..so a cpl. hundred more pounds to deal with..still going to be a 7500# + trailer when loaded..

 

[392DevilDog]

exactly. the max payload on mine is 1324#. me and wife and full fuel= 224+118+230=572#..then hook up trailer..600# tongue wt. I am at 1172# leaving only a cpl. hundred # for gear in the truck bed..everything else about the truck is great..

Maybe I read your wording wrong...but full fuel is included in base weight. The full tank of gas does not come off the 1324 lbs you have.

You are at 224 + 118 + 600 = 942 lbs.

So essentially as you use the gas...your capacity goes up.

 

[runamuck]

another way to look at it..my laramie weighs 5960# with me and 1/2 tank of gas. If I add the wife and trailer and fill up the tank, I am at 6774# leaving..7100-6774= 326# for gear.

 

[OBXDave]

We’re celebrating retirement by plunking down a deposit on a 2021 Rockwood MiniLite 2204S today. 4800# dry. I figure about 5400-5700# loaded. ~600# tongue. Probably won’t see it till Jan with the current situation.

My 2020 Bighorn; 5.7, 3.21, sticker payload 1620#.

Just the wifey and I, 170# +109# (retiring at our high school weight, how friggin rare is that!), your typical camping stuff, some Inflatable paddle boards, bikes, kitefoiling gear. Mostly flattish east coast driving

Gonna pickup a WDH, sway control, mirror extenders from etrailer and factory brake controller off eBay. Still deciding if air bags will be necessary with the WDH.

My one sorta controversial idea is to carry an extra 10 gal of gas in the truck bed (well secured in a heavy duty cans) to deal with the limited range. 27 gal*10mpg= 270 miles.

 

[runamuck]

nice...congrats on the trailer

 

[Skajaquada77]

Good info here. Thanks for all suggestions and advice. I have a 2018 1500 Laramie 4x2 with 3.21 axle. I am trying to find out how adding a Tuftruck HD variable rate rear coil (manufacturer says it adds 35% capacity) and AirLift 1000 Air adjustable air springs will affect the towing capacity for my Ram. Does it increase the tongue weight allowed? I’m guessing the GVWR would still be the same... thoughts? It might make enought difference between tight quarters and a little extra room in a slightly bigger trailer!

 

[Stephen Taylor]

We have a 2016 1500 5.7 3.21 transmission 6.6ft. bed-towing 26 ft Transcend TT. Just returned from trip thru Smokies from Louisville to Myrtle Beach. I love my truck but with total weight at 14040 lbs oil temps got to 260 F. twice and coming down mountain passes my brakes got hot one time. For level ground towing no problem. We’re hoping to go out west next yr. so I’m thinking I need to move up to 2500. I have a good E4 hitch set up
and did install Timbren bump stops- they are great and very easy to install. Probably with oil cooler and heavier brakes this truck would pull fine out west but for piece of mind if I can trade into 2500 Will do that. Unloaded I ave. 17-21 mpg have gotten up to 22 mpg. Fully liaddd with TT we ave. 8 on hills and 9-10 on flat. Great track- purrs and climbs hills loaded but those temps and some wind affect, not sway but can feel winds think heavier truck is better. Hope this helps. We have 83 k miles on truck using synthetic oil.

 

[392DevilDog]

Your Gross Combined Weight rating is 13800.

So your 14040 combined weight was outside of the capacity of the truck.

I am guessing you were well over gross for the truck too.

Glad you made it safe. When you see how the numbers add up you see quickly it isn't just the power of the motor that matters.

 

[Elkman]

I find the first limiting factor when towing with a half ton is payload. Remember, everything you put in the truck eats into that number. Your weight, wife's weight, dog weight, any personal items and tools in the bed.... What ever is left after that is all you have for tongue weight. My family of 3 and a 4500# TT gets within a couple hundred lbs of the max pay load. WDH with sway control is a must. If you can spare the time, load up like you're planning to travel and hit the CAT scale. The numbers will probably surprise you.
Good Luck, safe travels.

Payload applies only to what is placed in the bed of the truck. All the pickup truck manufacturers adjust the "payload" rating down by 150 lbs for each passenger set in the cab, which is why the regular cab trucks have the highest payload rating.

Of equal concern with a light duty pickup truck is the Gross Combined Weight Rating for the weight of the truck and its contents along with the weigh of the trailer with its contents. If in doubt pay the small amount to get the rigged weighed at a CAT scale before heading out.

Most of the horsepower and gasoline combustion is used to overcome air drag and the drag is 4 times as great at 80 mph as it is at 40 mph so how fast you drive greatly affects the amount of fuel that is burned.

Travel and tractor trailers get blown over when there are high winds but this is from fools pushing on even when there are wind advisories. It is not a problem with the trailers but with the idiots pulling them.

 

[Mustangmike66]

Payload applies only to what is placed in the bed of the truck. All the pickup truck manufacturers adjust the "payload" rating down by 150 lbs for each passenger set in the cab, which is why the regular cab trucks have the highest payload rating.

This is not true. Regular cabs have more payload because they weigh less. It’s only 150 lbs for the driver that is accounted for.


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