Towing

[Scgirardi]

Is there a way to increase the amount my truck can tow? My truck is "rated" for 8400lbs

 

[shane1981]

suspension, gears, tune but there is only so much the truck itself can tow till it's unsafe. how much more do you want to tow?

tuned by Jay Greene

 

[Scgirardi]

I mean would 10k be to much? My buddy has a 2500 with a 17,000 towing capacity. I didn't realize it was that drastic of a difference

 

[Scgirardi]

And a boat I was looking at was alright around 8k lbs. would me having a 8400 capacity pull that safely on a consistent basis.

 

[shane1981]

trucks will pull more than they are rated for . I would upgrade the springs or get air bags and see how it does then maybe get a tune if it wasn't good enough as far as power .I wouldn't personally go much over than what it's rated for.

tuned by Jay Greene

 

[14hemiexpress]

From a legal stand point nothing can increase your towing. But as stated gears air bags or replacement coils sure helps. And there is a big difference between a 8000lb truck and a 5000lb truck when it comes to towing. Power isn't everything. Suspension, tires, brakes and cooling systems play a big part in towing capacity.

 

[dexter]

Is there a way to increase the amount my truck can tow? My truck is "rated" for 8400lbs

You can't increase it unless you change the axles and other suspension parts.

You towing is limited by your payload - check the door sticker label for your payload.

You could increase the payload by taking off weight like seats, tailgate, and anything else you don't need in the truck.

 

[bcbouy]

Is there a way to increase the amount my truck can tow? My truck is "rated" for 8400lbs

you're kidding, right?

 

[Scgirardi]

Kidding about what?

 

[Padilen]

Kidding about what?

Because many view this question as a joke. Legally no there isn't any, other than buying a vehicle that meets your needs.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Scgirardi]

Ok so if I was to add air bags, bigger drive shaft, gears that would do nothing?

 

[ColdCase]

It would give you more safety margin, and don't forget about tires. You may want extra load rated.

What kind of gear ratio do you have? Different ratios have a different rating. A long wheelbase 1500 with a V8 and 3.92 gears is rated over 10,000+ pounds (a little more with the 6 speed than 8 speed). So the long wheelbase chassis and suspension can handle 10,000+ pounds, shorter wheel base less. Axle ratios numerically less than 3.92 probably stress the transmission, and thats probably what limits you to 8000+ pounds.

Legally you are limited by the manufacture's spec. You get into an accident and they find you are over the load rating, it could get ugly.

The cleanest way is to trade yours off on a vehicle with a higher capacity. Otherwise, if you have the V8 with a long wheelbase, put 3.92 axles in.

 

[Scgirardi]

A 2010 1500 sport crew cab. 3.55 gears with the 5.7 hemi.

 

[Scgirardi]

My thing is if I tow a boat that's just under 8000lbs will my truck be under a lot of stress. The truck is rated for 8400lbs towing capacity. Id rather have overkill however I can't afford to trade my truck towards something bigger. Wish I would have done the 2500 to begin with

 

[coldfusion73]

Is there a way to increase the amount my truck can tow? My truck is "rated" for 8400lbs

No there isn't


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[shane1981]

My thing is if I tow a boat that's just under 8000lbs will my truck be under a lot of stress. The truck is rated for 8400lbs towing capacity. Id rather have overkill however I can't afford to trade my truck towards something bigger. Wish I would have done the 2500 to begin with

I would get some bags and go with it

tuned by Jay Greene

 

[rsdata]

when towing you have to think about a few things, more than just how much am I towing...

first you need anywhere from 10% to 15% of the total weight of your towed rig pushing down on the rear of the vehicle so it does not fishtail or sway at the rear, as this can cause loss of control.

Second is, does the payload rating of your 1500 make it capable of towing 8000# and how much towing and how far are you going...

Your payload capacity of your 1500 is probably around 1600# so at say 13% to 15% tongue weight of 8000# you will be putting 1040# to 1200# payload, leaving about 560# to 300# for other cargo including your body weight, your passengers weight, and your gear, also subract the weight of a hitch coupling to your boat, which may be another 50#. Putting that much weight on the ass end of the truck may put your front end light, leading to some whiteknuckle and unsafe driving. A weight distribtion hitch would help that problem, unloading some of that tongue weight and puching it to the front, hepling to level your truck. A good WDH rated at 10,000# can be had at Harbor Freight for $200.

IMHO... Pulling 8000# with an 8400# rated vehicle is doable I would think, if your not planning on pulling thru mountains and over distances longer than a couple hundred miles and you watch the payload limits by not loading down the bed of the truck with gear. Boats do not have big frontal areas like a travel trailer that gives big wind loading area to consider also while towing. A boat is rather stremlined.

I pull a 5000# travel trailer with a 650# tongue weight with no problem at all but I do use a weight distribution hitch using my '14 Bighorn 1500 which is only rated at 1360# payload and 7400# towing.

Learn more about towing with some excellany reading and viewing at etrailer dot com.

 

[Scgirardi]

This was extremely helpful. Thanks for taking the time to write all of that too.

 

[DaKing]

Many variables involved in towing. Frame, Axles, suspension, transmission, gearing, power and the most important, brakes.

You can improve your towing by adding air bags, improving cooling, adding lower gears, engine power mods. All that is is good, but it is the brakes or stopping power where most don't think about.

if, for example, your tow rating is ~8000#, then you may be able to peak at ~10,000. But, if you are looking to pull ~10,000 or more with a truck rated at ~8000, that is down right dangerous. please message me if you're doing this. I'll need your route and times, so I CAN avoid being near there. Thanks

 

[rsdata]

I forgot to mention braking... yes braking is important when towing... All trailers rated for over 1500# have to have auxiallary brakes, usually electric brakes installed on the trailer. You will have to add an electric brake controller and splice it into your wiring under your dash. etrailer dot com makes that easy with custom cables made for each make/model of controller they sell. Get the controller installed, ( I am assuming that you do have a 7 pin trailer connector on the back of your RAM) then go thru the controller manual and set the brakeing force properly on the trailer. The trailer brakes should almost pull the truck to a stop without locking up when they are set correctly. My 2014 RAM has a factory installed integral brake controller, so I did not need to purchase a controller. Also look on Amazon and other places for auxiallary tow mirrors that add on to your existing outside mirrors so that you can see down the side of the towed rig without the boat blocking your view of traffic approaching from the sides. **** makes a great line of add-on mirrors.

a boat I was looking at was alright around 8k lbs. would me having a 8400 capacity pull that safely on a consistent basis.

you also mentioned if you could do 10K#... and I would say NO WAY... you would overload your payload capacity with your tongue weight which is different then tow capacity.

People pull overloaded trailers all the time... is it legal? NO... is it safe? possibly not, but can you get away with it for short distances over level terrain, sure.

Pull your 7 pin brake controlled/connected boat trailer on a non-busy street and do some easy braking and some panic stops to see that you can control your trailer by dialing rhe correct settings on the controller. Many people like the Prodigy series. Do NOT load down the boat/trailer with gas or unnecessary gear or load up your truck while pulling, and certainly drive defensively, slowly (trailer tires are only rated for speeds up to 65MPH) and safely...

take this advise as just my opinion mind you.. I'm sure some here will think it is criminal and crazy for telling you that you can do this... but from the numbers you are posting, you are so close... get a WDH and read (youtube) and understand how to set it up properly, and an electric brake controller for sure, then think about LT load range E 10 ply tires with metal valve stems... and don't drive fast or far or often... and then watch your tranny fluid... if it overheats because you have no tranny cooler, it turns brown instead of red... hard to tell without a dipstick on these RAMS... use your head and you can get by doing this. Try posting to a boating or RV forum and read/search those for trailering advise. Good luck to you