Feedback wanted re towing a 5th wheel with Dodge Diesel
RamRider2000
I'm new to this group and it looks like a wonderful resource for good rv info.
My question is this... I have a model 2500 3/4 ton 1999 Dodge 4x4 5.9L diesel
with club cab and 8ft bed. The axle ratio is 3.54. I tow a light travel
trailer, but I'm thinking about getting a 5th wheel and doing some "full
timing". I figure we'd get something between 30 and 33 feet. Unfortuneatly,
rigs this size that can stand up to full time use put you right at the weight
limit of what the owner's manual say's you can tow. The book limits my Ram to
a trailer weighing no more than 9400 pound. However, the book also say's that
my same vehicle, with a axle ratio of 4.10 can tow 11,400 pounds. Should I
change my axle ratio to 4.10?... or would I probably be ok towing about 10,000
pounds with my Ram as it is now? Comments from people with similar situations
will be greatly appreciated.
Ken - Long Island, N.Y.
W F Sill
> . . . . would I probably be ok towing about 10,000
>pounds with my Ram as it is now?
Someone wrote:
>I believe the [name of vehicle] is quite safe pulling its rated loads.
This view has a certain amount of support, in that a lot of people
believe it. I think there is pretty general agreement that it is
unwise and possible dangerous to EXCEED maximum ratings, but many of
us feel strongly that "quite safe" is misleading. Recognizing that
safety is always relative and not absolute, I offer the following
reasons for disagreeing:
1. The tow rating is ALWAYS a maximum figure, and is as large as the
manufacturer dares make it. They hope you will buy their stuff for
towing. Their rating may or may not be right for you. Every maker
has his own methods of setting tow ratings. Some are quite
conservative and some are ludicrously over-stated (many Jeep
Cherokees are rated at 5,000 lbs, and IMO are hopelessly overloaded
at that figure).
2. MOST tow ratings (nothing personal or specific vs your brand)
do not allow for long steep grades - up or (especially) down.
3. Most tow ratings make no allowance for bad road conditions.
4. Most tow ratings are accompanied by asterisks that call attention
to special equipment "required". Your rig may not have those features.
5. Most tow ratings make no allowance whatever for emergency
maneuvers. I assure you your vehcile WILL NOT turn or stop as
fast or as safely with the maximum load as it will with a lot less.
Don't believe me? Try a few tactics in a large parking lot.
6. Vehicle tow ratings make no allowance for the DRIVER'S "tow
rating". No insult intended, but if you have to ask how much your
rig will tow, you have neither the experience or the knowledge to
handle the maximum load safely. IMO.
7. One of the most-overlooked factors in safe towing is a COMBINED
maximum (GCWR) that very often dictates a much lighter-than-maximum
TOWED load. Much of the weight of cargo & passengers in the tow
vehicle must be deducted from the permissible towed load to find the
true rating.
8. What is reasonably safe and comfortable at 45 mph may well be a
lethal weapon at 75. Tow ratings, IMO, do NOT reflect any respect for
this hazard.
9. One party wrote to say "I live at 6200 feet above sea level and
since an internal combustion engine loses about 2 1/2 to 3% efficiency
per thousand feet I'm losing 15-18 % of my performance unless I have a
turbocharger or supercharger. I would not dream of loading past 75%
of capacity regardless of what the engineer says."
BOTTOM LINE: IF you trust the experienced trailerists who have been
there and done that and don't want to go back, you will not exceed
about 75% of the rated maximum. The number is of course not writ by
the finger of God on a stone tablet - it is merely an indication that
you should stay well below the manufacturer's maximum allowance if you
want a safe, comfortable trip. Some say the figure ought to be as low
as 50 or 60%. But except for Frederick Young and a few macho
braggarts, most experienced folks agree in principle if not detail
with these concerns.
----------the end. Class dismissed. ------------
Make up your own mind who to believe. I don't have a nickel invested
in your rig, so you can do as you please.
Will KD3XR
Will KD3XR ---- the Curmudgeon of Sill Hill
"Everyone is entitled to his own views. No one
is entitled to his own facts." J. Schlesinger
Jamie Town
news:20000623232907...@ng-fg1.aol.com...
> Hi folks,
> I'm new to this group and it looks like a wonderful resource for good rv
info.
> My question is this... I have a model 2500 3/4 ton 1999 Dodge 4x4 5.9L
diesel
> with club cab and 8ft bed. The axle ratio is 3.54. I tow a light travel
> trailer, but I'm thinking about getting a 5th wheel and doing some "full
> timing". I figure we'd get something between 30 and 33 feet.
Unfortuneatly,
> rigs this size that can stand up to full time use put you right at the
weight
> limit of what the owner's manual say's you can tow. The book limits my
Ram to
> a trailer weighing no more than 9400 pound. However, the book also say's
that
> my same vehicle, with a axle ratio of 4.10 can tow 11,400 pounds. Should I
10,000
> pounds with my Ram as it is now? Comments from people with similar
situations
> will be greatly appreciated.
> Ken - Long Island, N.Y.
With a 5th wheel, I believe the most important figures are the GCVW and your
available payload. Payload is important because, unlike a travel trailer,
the weight is carried over the axle, not on the hitch. 5th wheels are (or
should be) set up with 20% or so of the vehicle's weight on the truck. i.e.
if you've got a 10,000 pound trailer, 2,000 to 2,500 pounds will be sitting
on the truck. This is a lot more weight than any TT. You'd need a minimum
payload of 2,500-3,000 pounds (remember you have to leave room for the
passengers, fuel, gear, etc.) and a GCVW of 16,000 pounds (give or take,
depending on the weight of the truck) just to keep things under the maximum
weight ratings. Going to a ratio of 4.10 will increase your GCVW a bit but
it won't do anything to increase your payload.
Also, many (if not most) seasoned travellers will say, "keep it below 75% of
the maximum load". Definately good advice if you're going to do more than
haul the RV up to the lake for the weekend.
Jamie
Ed J
automatic is the weak link in the Dodge diesel truck. I just looked
at the book for '99 Dodges and the manual 5-spd is listed at 13700 lbs
with either rear end. The automatic with the 3.54 is listed at 9800
lbs (3.54) and 11800 lbs (4.10).
My tow rating is at least 14400. I have the '99 diesel with 3.54 and
6-spd manual. The 14400 rating listed is for the 5-spd and the
6-spd is even more heavy duty.
RamRider2000 wrote:
>
> Hi folks,
> I'm new to this group and it looks like a wonderful resource for good rv info.
> My question is this... I have a model 2500 3/4 ton 1999 Dodge 4x4 5.9L diesel
> with club cab and 8ft bed. The axle ratio is 3.54. I tow a light travel
> trailer, but I'm thinking about getting a 5th wheel and doing some "full
> timing". I figure we'd get something between 30 and 33 feet. Unfortuneatly,
> rigs this size that can stand up to full time use put you right at the weight
> limit of what the owner's manual say's you can tow. The book limits my Ram to
> a trailer weighing no more than 9400 pound. However, the book also say's that
> my same vehicle, with a axle ratio of 4.10 can tow 11,400 pounds. Should I
> change my axle ratio to 4.10?... or would I probably be ok towing about 10,000
> pounds with my Ram as it is now? Comments from people with similar situations
> will be greatly appreciated.
> Ken - Long Island, N.Y.
--
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Ed J e...@attglobal.net
On my retirement adventure from the rolling hills of
the Southern Tier in New York State..... Traveling in my
1999 Dodge 2500 6-spd diesel, 1999 Sunnybrook 27RKFS 5th-wheel
RamRider2000
I replied to the first message I saw listed in the newsgroup and then scanned
down to other messages and found that you had already commented on my Dodge
towing capability. Yes,... unfortunately I have an automatic in my 2500 Dodge
diesel. I've been thinking about getting the 3.54 axle ratio changed to a
4.10. If everything else is the same, maybe I can get myself 2000lbs of extra
towing capability with that change.
Will R
wrote:
I would also look at some of the modifications guys have been doing to
the auto transmissions. There are several that seam to be making the
Dodge Auto last longer
Mods range from a simple shift kit, replacement torque converters all
the way up to additional hard parts installed inside them. A good
place to look (and search) is
http://www.turbodieselregister.com/cgi-bin/Ultimate.cgi?action=intro
and search on Auto Transmissions
Will R
98 Dodge Ram Cummins, with a 5 speed