There may be a couple of 1/2 ton configurations that would work with but I feel a 3/4 ton would give much better towing satisfaction. The lack of payload rules out most 1/2 ton PU's. The Ford can be ordered in a HD payload pkg.
the 1500 could very well do it but it wouldn't be a lot of fun, you'd be just about maxing out the veh when towing....a 2500 even with a hemi would be much more easier to live with and well within it's capacities with that type of weight...
Is it too late to back out of the 1500 deal? I learned the hard way about half tons and towing. Yes, a half-ton *can* tow 7000-9000 pounds of stuff. However, doing so isn't fun, and can make for a white-knuckle ride sometimes. If it isn't totally out of the question, I'd at least take a look at something along the 3/4 ton range.
Oh, and dry weight is a joke. RV makers have gotten better, but as a rule of thumb, I add 1000 pounds to that, then I add the estimated weight of propane, water, and goodies.
To boot, 3/4 tons also give you some more options, such as towing a fifth wheel or using a truck camper.
I wouldn't just factor in the truck for the first trailer. Give some wiggle room, because the first rig won't be your last. You might want bigger because the kids bring friends, or you end up with a lot of stuff coming along.
This isn't to say the Dodge 1500 is a bad truck. It just isn't suited for this job.
All of these folks poo pooing the 1500 have not tried the newer models. Yesterday we gave ours a good work out with a 500+ mile trip from Boise at 2500' elevation, to Wells NV over a 6300'+ summit and back. The tow was 10000# with a 1100# hitch. I used the tow/haul mode, which locks it out of 6th gear and I was super satisfied with the truck and its ability to do what the factory said it could and would do.
Bob & Betsy(FishNFanatic) - USN Aviation Ret'd '78 & LEO Ret'd '03 & "Oath Keeper Forever" '05 HR Endeavor 40PRQ, 400 Cummins-Pulling our '11 Silverado LT, Ex Cab 6.2L NHT 4x4, w/2010 Rzr or 01 V Star in back. Where the wheels are stopped today
txdutt wrote: the 1500 could very well do it but it wouldn't be a lot of fun, you'd be just about maxing out the veh when towing....a 2500 even with a hemi would be much more easier to live with and well within it's capacities with that type of weight...
And the truck is headed to an early grave. The power train will be working at about max.
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Log off and go camping!
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I guess I do not understand how the truck, running at 2600 RPM with a 5t tow, is going to an early grave and working at max... Would you explain that to this dummy?
1100 pounds dry TW that only goes up. The strongest receiver for half tons is only rated for 1250 or 1200 pounds. And payload is low for the half ton Rams.
Plenty strong enough engine/trans ot move the weight, just not carry it.
A & A parents of DD 2005, DS1 2007, DS2 2009 2011 Suburban 2500 6.0L 3.73 pulling 2011 Heartland North Trail 28BRS 2012 VW Passat TDI
With light duty trucks and SUV's the manufacturers expect that users will carry the maximum payload or tow the maximum trailer load 10% of the time. If that is all you will be doing the truck may be fine. More than that and it should not be expected to hold together. The key word is "maximum" and it is different than "normal" or "average" for the purposes of towing.
Check the specs on a 1/2 ton and compare it to a 3/4 ton. Big difference in frame, drive train, differential, axle, and wheel bearings. The GM 3/4 ton is 99% the same as the 1-ton and vastly different from the 1/2 ton trucks in every way.
wintersun wrote: The GM 3/4 ton is 99% the same as the 1-ton and vastly different from the 1/2 ton trucks in every way.
This is where I am getting very conflicting information from the naysayers here on the board and EVERY GM shop and mechanic I talk to about the late model GM 1500 max tow package. I have been told and shown in print where the max tow package is very similar to the ¾t, with the same extra stiff box frame, same diff, same brakes and in their mind a better engine with the 6.2L than the 6.0L. What I am trying to figure out is where everyone here on the board is getting their information, or are they basing it on trucks from the last decade, not current facts.......As I have said, the GM service department showed me the facts I have posted, in writing from their manuals.
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Would you explain that to this dummy?
