Comfortable Towing Capacity

[Quentin Flack]

Hey all, I’m new to the forums and new to owning a dodge. From my understanding dodges seem to have some issues with the drive train. So I know the actual max towing capacity for my truck, what I’d like to know is what it can actual tow without wearing out thing super prematurely and what would be comfortable to tow. Including graded towing like inclines and such going through mountain roads.

I have a 2017 4x4 with 5.7 v8 and 6speed auto. It has 3.55 gears and 6.6ft box. I have a tow package which includes the factory trailer brake, heavy duty engine cooling and heavy duty tranny cooling and class IV hitch (according to options sheet). What would your general consensus be on comfortable ranges for this truck? I just don’t want to put a tranny in it in 2-3 years... Thanks in advance.
Attached is my options sheet.

 

[MADDOG]

Stay under your payload rating and your Gross Combined Vehicle Weight Rating at all times. Combine that with regular maintenance in accordance with the published maintenance schedule and you'll be good.

Not sure what drivetrain issues you are referring to. All of my Ram trucks worked hard and performed well while doing so.

 

[caulk04]

I had no idea that the RFE trans was available in 2017 in a 1500. Is this a Canada only thing?

 

[Quentin Flack]

I had no idea that the RFE trans was available in 2017 in a 1500. Is this a Canada only thing?

No idea, I know from previous vehicles there are many specs that are a Canada only thing. So it’s possible.

 

[Quentin Flack]

Stay under your payload rating and your Gross Combined Vehicle Weight Rating at all times. Combine that with regular maintenance in accordance with the published maintenance schedule and you'll be good.

Not sure what drivetrain issues you are referring to. All of my Ram trucks worked hard and performed well while doing so.

I’m just speaking from experience through friends and family. I had a 2nd gen Cummins and had issues with my auto trans. I have a buddy who has a brand new 3500 and it’s been in the shop for trannys issues already. I’m not sure why, just seems that to my knowledge the auto trannys from dodge could be better. ‍
I’m glad you haven’t had problems. That’s good to know. Maybe these are isolated incidents.
Because of these incidents I would never tow to the max capacity ever. Just not worth it. I’m just curious what some of your experiences are with different set ups and such. What seems to be a “sweet spot” so to speak.

 

[engineering]

My general experience across various brands is that above 60-70% of any given capacity - the truck starts to get less and less comfortable/stable. Not necessarily unsafe - but a lot less confidence especially in wind, up-down hills, etc.


As for longevity - that is a guess at best since we don't really know what factor of safety the engineers designed for or what liberties the marketing department took to sell more trucks. You also don't know if your particular trans has any flaws that predispose it to a shorter life. There are tolerances on every part and if yours just barely squeaked through inspection - it will fail sooner than others. Maintenance is obviously key here - if you tow a lot, the typical maintenance intervals should be advanced. You can also use premium fluids and filters as well. Not a whole lot of options on the tranny though that will have any impact on lifespan.

My strategy is mainly to drive rather gently all the time and keep an eye on the trans temps. If you stay in the 60-70% loaded range, I believe it will have a huge benefit in longevity but that is not always a practical option. My truck is regularly right at 100% max on at least one thing - so I added Air Lift 1000HD bags, LT tires, and a Blue Ox WD hitch to make it more comfortable/stable. On top of that, I drive it quite gentle.

 

[GTyankee]

I see that your 2017 Ram 4x4 has the Express trim

The chart that i am looking at reads

Towing Capacity 4,810 lbs.
Payload Capacity 1,580 lbs

Those capacities are with the Ram having a full tank of fuel & just the driver in the Ram

If the driver has a cup of coffee, the weight of the coffee has to be subtracted from the 1,580

This particular chart does not happen to say the weight of the driver, but i think that it would be 150 pounds

 

[Quentin Flack]

I see that your 2017 Ram 4x4 has the Express trim

The chart that i am looking at reads

Towing Capacity 4,810 lbs.
Payload Capacity 1,580 lbs

Those capacities are with the Ram having a full tank of fuel & just the driver in the Ram

If the driver has a cup of coffee, the weight of the coffee has to be subtracted from the 1,580

This particular chart does not happen to say the weight of the driver, but i think that it would be 150 pounds

From what I was told I think it’s just over 8000lbs capacity. On the options it does have express trim but there are some other options that increase the capacity.

 

[Quentin Flack]

My general experience across various brands is that above 60-70% of any given capacity - the truck starts to get less and less comfortable/stable. Not necessarily unsafe - but a lot less confidence especially in wind, up-down hills, etc.


As for longevity - that is a guess at best since we don't really know what factor of safety the engineers designed for or what liberties the marketing department took to sell more trucks. You also don't know if your particular trans has any flaws that predispose it to a shorter life. There are tolerances on every part and if yours just barely squeaked through inspection - it will fail sooner than others. Maintenance is obviously key here - if you tow a lot, the typical maintenance intervals should be advanced. You can also use premium fluids and filters as well. Not a whole lot of options on the tranny though that will have any impact on lifespan.

My strategy is mainly to drive rather gently all the time and keep an eye on the trans temps. If you stay in the 60-70% loaded range, I believe it will have a huge benefit in longevity but that is not always a practical option. My truck is regularly right at 100% max on at least one thing - so I added Air Lift 1000HD bags, LT tires, and a Blue Ox WD hitch to make it more comfortable/stable. On top of that, I drive it quite gentle.

This is a great response. Thank you.
I would consider putting airbags and better load rated tires for sure as well.

 

[GTyankee]

Can you take a picture of the drivers door post sticker
I believe that has the capacities on it

 

[Quentin Flack]

Can you take a picture of the drivers door post sticker
I believe that has the capacities on it

Yes I can, in a few hours I’ll post one here when I have a spare minute

 

[Quentin Flack]

Can you take a picture of the drivers door post sticker
I believe that has the capacities on it

See the highlighted selection at the bottom of the sheet attached. That’s my truck. This is from the dealership. I haven’t had a chance to get a picture of the door yet.

 

[pacofortacos]

IMO, if towing even semi near capacity or in hills/mountains with the 6 speed transmission, I would highly rec. a big additional transmission oil cooler and change the fluid/filter every few years if towing often.

That trans is good in a light stock used config, but needs some help if stressing it often or increasing power. The best thing that you can do is keep the fluid cool and use a good ATF4 - mopar stuff works well actually.

 

[Quentin Flack]

IMO, if towing even semi near capacity or in hills/mountains with the 6 speed transmission, I would highly rec. a big additional transmission oil cooler and change the fluid/filter every few years if towing often.

That trans is good in a light stock used config, but needs some help if stressing it often or increasing power. The best thing that you can do is keep the fluid cool and use a good ATF4 - mopar stuff works well actually.

So in addition to the “heavy duty” tranny fluid cooler that I have from factory, add another large good quality one. Also this would be mostly for camping. So maybe less then 10 tows per year.

 

[OC455]

Go to here: Ram Towing Capacity | Towing & Payload Capacity Guide (ramtrucks.com)

Enter your VIN and it will show you exactly what your trucks cargo capacity and towing capacity is.

Then look at you driver's side door jamb sticker (yellow top boarder) and match it up and see if it is the same.

The charts will give you a basic idea of what it might be. Not the actual capacities. Most salespersons at the dealers don't know this. So they reference the chart.

 

[OC455]

The sticker looks like this:

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

 

[OC455]

Better view here

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

 

[dhay13]

Your max towing should be around the 8500lbs range. I had a 2013 1500 3.55s Express and my max tow was 8650-ish. Payload was about 1350lbs. I'd stay at about 70% of max and you should be fine. Payload will probably be closer to 90%.

Between me, step-son, son, and step-father we have had 11 Rams ranging from 2007 to 2019 (2 were 2500 6.4's and the rest were 1500's) and we probably racked up about 500,000 miles (at least) and none of them ever had any type of mechanical issues. Every one of them towed some type of trailer too. Worst issues were bad rotors on a couple and worn tie rods all replaced under warranty.

 

[pacofortacos]

So in addition to the “heavy duty” tranny fluid cooler that I have from factory, add another large good quality one. Also this would be mostly for camping. So maybe less then 10 tows per year.

I'm sorry, I was thinking of the older setups - you have an external cooler already.
I would just keep an eye on the trans temps and if you need more cooling capacity, then add another.

Another simple thing that you can do to lower temps IF you have the shutters in front of the condenser and radiator, is to remove a few of the upper shutters (you do need to keep the upper row in though) - the stock trans cooler is the top part of the condenser unit.
I am guessing that the shutters are stock on all the trucks but don't know for sure - they are on my 16.

What are your trans fluid temps normally?

 

[GTyankee]

You could never have a payload of 6,292 pounds
That has to also have the weight of the Ram added in,
Your Rams empty weight is
Curb Weight
5640.00,

This is your Ram, check it out

Sorry about the text size below

2018 Ram 1500 Express 4x4 Crew Cab 6'4" Box Features And Specs

https://www.caranddriver.com/ram/1500/specs/2018/ram_1500_ram-1500_2018