More truck- my best option?

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BarbinLA

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I’m a 70 yr old female volunteer who hauls an 8900 lb bumper pull camper with my Ram 1500 (3.92 rear end with towing package). I’m about to trade and the new engine with eTorque has a towing capacity of 11,200. I’m wondering if I can continue with the 1500 ( great mileage when I’m not hauling) or should I move up to the 2500 with a 6.4 engine? I know I’m on the higher end but I’ve been pulling with 1500’s for six years with no issues. I’m wondering if I’m okay or I’ve just been lucky. Your advice is appreciated.
 

NJMOPAR

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Stay with the 3:92 gears on the new 1500 and you should be fine. The 2500 is a different beast and you're already comfortable in the 1500.
 

Different Drummer

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I'll see if I can get myself in trouble here.
I spent over seven years on the road in RV's with all of my time on BLM land. 100% boon docking. I run into a ton of RV'rs. What I saw was that if people are spending much time on the road they are loading their equipment to the Max and more often waaaay beyond. Often combined GVWR is never considered. And then there is the issue of braking. Another area that seems to take a back seat behind power considerations.
Obviously I cannot speak to your specific needs.
In case you have not got the drift yet, my vote is 2500.
I cannot help but wonder how close our paths may have come over the years.
Travel safe,
DD
 

Travelin Ram

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The only thing to be cognizant of is that the configuration and trim level of the truck significantly affects the cargo capacity. So if your old truck is a basic model and you upgraded to a loaded 4 door truck you might have a loss of capacity.

The point is all manufacturers advertise the maximum towing using a stripped down base truck optimally configured. That’s not what most buyers want. Make sure the specific truck you’re considering purchasing has the tow rating you need and the cargo capacity for your hitch weight plus all the items and passengers in the truck.
 

OC455

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I would move up to a 2500. A lot more wiggle room with capacity and towing if you are going to stay with that camper. As was posted before, an 11k lbs towing capacity is based off of a base model truck (Tradesman). There are other posts here as well that point out a lot of the "numbers" that are given for weights/capacities are just a numbers game. If you check here, you'll see that different trim levels have less cargo/towing ability than the advertised numbers.

My 2018 Bighorn crew cab, short bed, had a cargo capacity of 1310lbs and 7990lbs towing with 3.21 gears. A Limited version of my truck had less cargo/towing capacity. I was towing my camper loaded at about 5600lbs., and I was about maxed out on cargo capacity with three kids, wife and the dog with tongue weight being 710lbs., actual weight. Manufacture spec'd tongue weight was 645lbs for my camper. You probably will end up loosing a lot of your cargo capacity just with the tongue weight alone with an 8900lbs camper. Figuring in tongue weight for your camper would probably be in the 890-1100lbs range keeping it between 10%-12% of the tongue weight, you may only have a few hundred pounds for yourself and any extra you bring with you.

Not saying it isn't capable of doing if you already are, you could do it more comfortably with a 2500. My $0.02 cents.

Good info here, read the last few pages: https://www.ramforum.com/threads/another-request-for-help-on-choosing-a-tow-vehicle.167230/
 
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BarbinLA

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I appreciate everyone’s very kind responses. This thread has me clearly leaning toward the 2500. I’m wondering if anyone has any feedback on the mileage I can expect from a 2500 4x4?
 

White six four

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I usually get around 16mpg during the summer and 14 in the winter with my 2016 2500 4x4. We've only had our camper for this past summer but I've never bothered to see what I was getting pulling it since none of our camping trips were over an hour away. If you do get a 2500 I recommend getting one with the 8 speed transmission. Im not too impressed with the 6 speed in mine.
 

huntergreen

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The 8 speed trans may up the mpg a bit.
 

tron67j

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Welcome to the forum. There are a couple good discussion threads on this subject, definitely worth a walk through them. The best way to know your exact towing capacity is to enter the VIN of the vehicle into RAM's towing site. Note this is for factory set up and includes fuel, but if there are any non-factory options, that impacts final numbers. Just a generic look at your option above it would appear your set up in 1500 would have a payload capacity of 1800, and running a 8900# trailer with average of 15% tongue weight would leave 465 pounds for people, hitch, and other incidentals.

Among many issues, putting too much weight on back may not be able to be resolved by a weight distribution hitch, which then takes weight off front. You may read about airbags but they have no impact on weight distribution, they only level the ride. Your front wheels provide all steering and a majority of vehicle braking. So you want to have your rig properly weighted per axle and overall have the right tow vehicle. 2500 or even 3500 single rear wheel can be a great option for you, I have read the 3500 rides a bit better due to rear set up but I never noticed it in my experience and I just replaced a 2500 with a new 2500, ride is great. Gas mileage, I was 15-17 in old one, new one is a little less but I have not really driven enough to get a true comparison yet.

Good luck in your purchase and travels.
 

Pricejh

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I appreciate everyone’s very kind responses. This thread has me clearly leaning toward the 2500. I’m wondering if anyone has any feedback on the mileage I can expect from a 2500 4x4?

Barb,

I pull a 289RK Denali with my 2500. It has a 6.7 Cumins diesel. In unloaded I get about 19 highway and 12 city. Pulling the trailer I get about 10 to 11 mpg.

The trailer is about the same weight as yours. This truck hauls the trailer so much better than my 1500 ever did. Plus, the larger fuel tank means greater distance between fuel ups.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 

KenR 955

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First and foremost, Welcome to the forum!

Now FWIW, I have spent 19 years towing either my toy hauler or my enclosed trailer to every racetrack up and down the east coast teaching motorcycle safety. The trailer was always loaded with 2 (sometimes 3 or 4) motorcycles, gear for all the riders, supplies and normal crap needed for the schools. My towing rig is a 98.5 second gen Dodge 2500 QC long bed with the 5.9 24 valve Cummins. This truck will pull this load anywhere, but stopping it was sometimes a handful. 2nd gen brakes ain't that good.
This year I bought a 2014 Ram 1500 quad cab as my daily driver. Having put 10K miles on it this year, I feel confident saying I would not use this truck to haul my trailers. It sure would stop better, but hauling, pulling and handling that load in adverse conditions, I feel like the 1500 is not heavy duty enough to make ME feel safe if conditions were not perfect. Too close to the maximum CGVW for my taste.

My two cents, YMMV.

KenR 955
 

Quint

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I'm with most of the guys. Fuel mileage should not be your major concern. Braking and safety should be the number one consideration. Are you towing through mountains with that big load? Definitely want something beefier. It's not whether you can pull the trailer, it's whether you can stop the trailer when doing 70mph and a deer runs out or an accident happens in front of you.

BTW - is it Barb in LA or Barbi 'n LA? :D
 

GsRAM

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If your trailer is 8900lbs, loaded, cat scale confirmed weight, your in 2500 territory in my opinion, even with an optimal set up. Weight and mass come into play the heavier and longer you go with travel trailer weights. I'd opt for a 2019 or newer with the 8 speed trans as mentioned

You will most certainly pay a fuel mileage penalty, especially unloaded, but you have to pay to play with the big trailer your towing. The 2500 will be more difficult to park in most cases and they have a much taller entry height so if you go 2500 invest in some good side steps. I love mine. One of the best decisions I've made was to go 2500. I won't own another 1500 series truck unless I can't afford or manage the 2500.

Just my .02.
 
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