looking to buy a 3rd Gen for a work tow truck

[General-Confusion]

Hi my name is Steve , I am an English guy and live in Sw France for the last 8 years. I run my own business where I rent out and operate a 58 foot tracked cherry picker doing all sorts of work at height . The trailer and the machine weigh a total of 6200 lbs on a trailer with a gross weight of 7700 lbs (the maximum allowable in europe without using an actual truck)
I currently tow (don't laugh) with an Audi Q7 4.2 tdi , this car has been brilliant, 340 bhp and 590 lb ft of torque the max gross weight of the car and trailer can be up to 14,400 lbs and I run at 12,350. Sadly the Audi is now 14 years old and starting to go wrong so I want to change to a less complicated vehicle (No dpf , no air suspension , no adaptive headlights , all of which have/ are going wrong with the Audi.)
Now come the hard part....registering American trucks in France is a difficult, time consuming and expensive thing to do , read 6-8 months and easily 10,000 dollars by the time import taxes , registration test costs and the actual reg document tax are included. That said the French (and I ) love these trucks and they continue to be imported and sold . BUT the 1500's are common the 2500's are like unicorns and the 3500 unregisterable (maybe as an actual truck but not a regular vehicle)
I would really like a 3rd Gen 2500 but there are none correctly registered in France for sale at the moment, there was one an 03 Hemi 2500 quad cab but the guy took down the advert and won't tell me if he sold it.
Sorry for the waffle , but my question is should I wait for another 2500 or can an upgraded 1500 do the job , bearing in mind it will be towing everytime I drive it doing about 20,000 miles a year.
One last thing the european trailers are set up very differently regarding tongue weight

 

[Smokeybear01]

I'm not overly familiar with the Audi so I did some internet research here on it. You might want to do the same on a 1/2 ton truck since as you stated, tongue weights on trailers over there are set up differently. To me it would seem that if you can safely haul something with a SUV no matter its size, a 1500 or 1/2T truck should be sufficient. But you'll have to do your own research on that. Sorry I can't really help. Good luck, Smokey

 

[General-Confusion]

Thanks Smokey , I am thinking the same , but it is surprising how different Ram 1500's have such different towing capacities when registered here in France , being registered to tow a 6600 lb trailer seems hard to find. Some would be overweight when empty with such a trailer here. I know the can haul 8500 lbs + in the USA but the French seem to downrate most of them

 

[tron67j]

The most important part of your equation is the actual tongue weight. On average a 1500 has around 1,800 payload capacity. With yourself and in truck (I always calculate people at 200 pounds each. Just easier) you are down to 1,600 pounds payload capacity. If the cherry picker is balanced your tongue weight is about (6,600 x . 15 =) 1000 pounds rounded. This means your available capacity for additional gear in truck like hitch, tools, aftermarket add ons is maybe 600 pounds

However, those units are seldom balanced and it is important to know your tongue weight. While a 1500 may be enough truck you living overseas means more risk on everything from if something breaks to trying to get a replacement part. I personally would go with a 2500 but not saying you have to. Maybe just check your tongue wait and see where that's at. Good luck!

 

[General-Confusion]

Hi Tron67j , trailers are set up very different here in Europe. The axles are much more central and the trailer much more balanced. I have a tongue weight scale as most cars here can only cope with a tongue weight of up to 300 lbs. Mine is measured at 260 lbs and tows beautifully although the Audi have full air suspension and never squats . I will add a picture of my current tow setup

 

[tron67j]

I was wondering what that looked like under tow, very cool! 1500 should do just fine.

 

[ethov8]

hi steve i read with interest your post. I spend approx half the year in brittany france. i also have a 2003 dodge ram 3500. I have the luxury of a uk address so keep it registered there. I was speaking to a french control technique man and he told me there is no category that this truck would fit into in france. I am not sure how it would apply to 1500 and 2500 models!! To answer your question i would not entertain a 1500 for heavy hauling, this is essentially a light weight truck, i speak in particular about their axles, the rear not being fully floating, essentially its not a lorry axle like the 3500. Ideally you want a 3500, the only solution to this being register it in the uk i think. I tow a 24 foot tabbert all up about 5600 lbs. It does this effortlessly. I also tow a flatbed, on one occasion that came in at about 8000 maybe 8500 lbs. Ditto. It is also a 6 speed new venture manual box. Again I wouldnt entertain an auto box, in my experience they dont stand the racket. I hope you get your problem sorted. Remember the bigger the better!!! Marcus

 

[General-Confusion]

Hi Marcus , thanks for your reply . I am still running the Audi , now having towed the cherry picker and trailer for 74,000 miles with it. It would be so easy to run a Uk registered vehicle BUT sadly as my principle residence is in France I have to have a French reg vehicle. I am still looking for a Ram and the 2500's might be possible , but are expensive (28000 euros) for the last 2003 diesel that I saw . I have no idea how a 2003 2500 drives though compared to a normal car. Well used to driving trucks as have a HGV class 1

 

[ethov8]

hi steve 3rd generation trucks are getting more expensive i think. They seem to be the best option of all the dodges. A 2500 is not over the top. Its pretty much the same as a 3500 except its not a dually. Mine is nearly 8 foot wide on the rear, a 2500 is less. Someone use to driving trucks would find it a piece of ****. Why not try to import direct from the states?? marcus