Towing Camping Trailer

[Doug Ram]

Have a 2019 Ram 1500 Big Horn, 5.7 Hemi, 3.21 rear, 7100lb GVW, Class IV Receiver Hitch, 8 speed trans. Looking at a Grand Design camping trailer 29'10" length, Hitch weight 581, UVW 5857, GVRW 7850. Is my truck capable of safely towing this throughout the US? Want to possible pull out to AK. Concerned about wear and tear on truck. Have weight distribution system. Do I need anything else?

No.
More directly: Heck no. Not comfortably. Not really safe. Not for long distances.
Please note that all the ratings you cite are empty trailer, with the exception of the GVRW of 7850. Which is probably right at what your truck can tow with the 3.21 ratio gears. When fully loaded, with a weight distribution hitch, that 581 hitch weight will be at least half way to 1000 lbs. Maybe at 900 lbs. Your truck can probably carry, at most, 1500. That hitch, plus you, your stuff in the bed, and your family will take you over 1500 lbs. I'd bet serious money on it.

I've got a Grand Design Imagine XLS 18RBE pulled by a 3.0 EcoDiesel. It has better gear ratio of 3.9 which means its tow rating is 10,000+. The trailer weighs about 2/3 of what yours does. Thats as much as I'd want to pull/carry across country for a safe and comfortable ride. And I'm even considering stiffer shocks.

 

[Tulecreeper]

I drive a 2019 Ram 1500 LTD 5.7 3.92 axle 4X4 and pull a Imagine 2150 Trailer 28 ft long and an Andersen WDH. I have travel all over the Western USA, including Bryce Canyon Utah which is up at 8000 feet. I have enjoyed every minute of (I don't remember any White Knuckles while driving). I do recommend the Andersen WDH, it is a third of the weight of spring bar WDH's, easier to hook up, makes no noise, and you don't get dirty from grease. My Trailer specs are about the same as the ones you have. I have attached some pictures for your perusal. I am only speaking of my own experience and truck and trailer setup.

Drive Slow, You are pulling a sail.

I'll 2nd the Anderson hitch.

 

[Scherm]

I agree with most of the comments. I towed our Mesa Ridge. TT 29’ for a yr with a Chevy 1500 Silverado 6.2
A standard WD hitch was worthless, moved on to an Anderson anti sway WD with adjustable chains which helped a lot but still far from a fun experience. Upgraded to a Ram 2500 Cummins and I don’t know it’s even there.
my tung weight is 1100 lbs, thats overweight for Chevy 1500. Not that the truck won’t pull it but you will wear out stuff (trainy, diffs, brakes) super fast. Ditch the stock tires too. You’ll want airbags to. Bottom line, go for it with the 1/2 ton for a year while your stashing cash away for a 3/4 ton diesel.
you‘ll love that setup.

 

[Jane S]

I agree with most of the comments. I towed our Mesa Ridge. TT 29’ for a yr with a Chevy 1500 Silverado 6.2
A standard WD hitch was worthless, moved on to an Anderson anti sway WD with adjustable chains which helped a lot but still far from a fun experience. Upgraded to a Ram 2500 Cummins and I don’t know it’s even there.
my tung weight is 1100 lbs, thats overweight for Chevy 1500. Not that the truck won’t pull it but you will wear out stuff (trainy, diffs, brakes) super fast. Ditch the stock tires too. You’ll want airbags to. Bottom line, go for it with the 1/2 ton for a year while your stashing cash away for a 3/4 ton diesel.
you‘ll love that setup.

The reason is probably the way you drove it - too fast for the road.

Most people think the towing experience should be no differenct from when not towing.

 

[StNick]

There is one possible problem I see with this combination. First the good - having the load-leveling is a great idea since it will shift some of the axle weight to the front. Without it the front would feel very light and could result in driving problems. Your half ton setup should be ok since there are lots of people with SUV's towing similar setups. Just remember how long you are and allow extra turning room and extra stopping room. The one problem I see has to do with tongue/hitch weight. The normal recommendation is 10% to 15% of the total weight. As you are configured now, you are right at 10% but remember, as has been said, that weight is dry weight. When you add, say, 100 gallons of water (fresh, gray water, black water) plus whatever else you (and the wife) add to the trailer then you will be under the 10% rule. Tongue weight is very important as it can lead to more sway if it is too low. You may need to read up on how to measure tongue weight (there are hitch balls with built-in tongue weight scales). You may need to look into how you load the trailer and maybe spend some time at a truck scale. One important addition is a good brake controller that lets you apply the trailer brakes without using the truck brakes. Doing that is a good way to stop trailer sway.

 

[Panduh]

Just another set of stats FYI. I tow a 29 ft. toy hauler with my 2016 1500 and have never felt unstable or under powered. 18 wheelers pass me with no disturbance and I pass economy cars going up hills. Here's some specs:
Truck is 5.7L RWD with 3:92 axle and 8 speed, itself weighs only 5720 lbs.
TT is 2020 Forest River XLR, 6360 lbs fully loaded.
980 lbs. tongue weight
3080 lbs. on the front axle, 3620 on the rear when set up with TT
Husky Centerline WDH with integrated anti-sway, no air bags or suspension mods.
Prodigy brake controller.
About 9 mpg at 70 mph cruising speed.
There's a little porpoising over bumps and dips.
BTW, cheap Chinese rearview camera from Amazon is a godsend, even moreso while driving than backing up (you can see cars right behind you that no mirrors can see).

 

[Tulecreeper]

Just another set of stats FYI. I tow a 29 ft. toy hauler with my 2016 1500 and have never felt unstable or under powered. 18 wheelers pass me with no disturbance and I pass economy cars going up hills. Here's some specs:
Truck is 5.7L RWD with 3:92 axle and 8 speed, itself weighs only 5720 lbs.
TT is 2020 Forest River XLR, 6360 lbs fully loaded.
980 lbs. tongue weight
3080 lbs. on the front axle, 3620 on the rear when set up with TT
Husky Centerline WDH with integrated anti-sway, no air bags or suspension mods.
Prodigy brake controller.
About 9 mpg at 70 mph cruising speed.
There's a little porpoising over bumps and dips.
BTW, cheap Chinese rearview camera from Amazon is a godsend, even moreso while driving than backing up (you can see cars right behind you that no mirrors can see).

That's a good set-up...except for the "About 9 mpg at 70 mph cruising speed" comment. 70 MPH is "burning up the asphalt" speed while towing anything...IMO, of course.

 

[Tunaman]

Have a 2019 Ram 1500 Big Horn, 5.7 Hemi, 3.21 rear, 7100lb GVW, Class IV Receiver Hitch, 8 speed trans. Looking at a Grand Design camping trailer 29'10" length, Hitch weight 581, UVW 5857, GVRW 7850. Is my truck capable of safely towing this throughout the US? Want to possible pull out to AK. Concerned about wear and tear on truck. Have weight distribution system. Do I need anything else?

Yes, in my opinion. I had a 2018, RAM, identical set up. Towed a Passport TT. 7100lbs. empty. About a ton loaded!! Had a load leveler hitch set up so the trailer sat level, truck dropped maybe a couple inches max! This it the trick..get that trailer level and truck just barely drop in rear, and I mean level is good drop not over an inch or two max. Properly adjusted trailer brakes....it will be fine!! Where people get in trouble is not properly set up. Now having said that it WILL sway in the wind and around other vehicles. Also fuel mileage will stink. I traded for a 3/4 ton truck and traded trailer for a 36' 5th wheel that weighs over 2000 lbs more. Hauled trailer 8 hrs to dealer with 3/4 ton, it still swayed. Hauled 5th wheel home, 1 MPG BETTER fuel mileage and absolutely zero sway!!! I couldn't believe it.

 

[steveTS]

I went thru the exact same thing. Started with a 21-foot grand design (7800 lbs pull along) with a Bighorn gas 1500. it worked great! then upgraded to 150 series 26 ft 5th wheel. I added airbags at a cost of $1,000.00. This allowed the truck to pull it, but the truck wasn't too happy. I was just below Max weight in nearly every category. Also, mileage went in the toilet. 13mpg down to 8-9!!! I traded in for a 2500 Tradesman with a Cummins engine. That did the trick! Then I traded up again to a Reflection 337RLS (nearly 12k lbs.) The truck is a beast but now my mileage is down to 10-11mpg. I'm well under max weights but as you can see there are growing pains... Get a diesel 2500! You won't regret it...

 

[MMiller]

I have a Grand Design Imagine 2800BH, which is just longer than the rig you’re talking about. No way would I want to tow it with a 1500. Like others have said, your 1500 could do the job, but it wouldn’t be a good experience. Especially if you’re talking cross country road trips. Our 2500 (6.4 Hemi) has pulled our camper over 9,000 miles all over the country and we’ve never had a problem with power, sway, etc… you’ll never regret upgrading to a 2500 for what you’re planning. Hope that helps.