I have a 1997 F250HD 4x4 7.3L Diesel 3.55 rear ext cab long bed with a 70 LB winch on the front. I am looking to buy a 39' Sandpiper 5th wheel RV Hitch weight of 2154 LBS GVW 14154 LBS. The dealer claims that my truck will handle this 5th wheel. My owners manual the best I can determine says max GCVW 16000 LBS. Does anyone know if my truck will handle this 5th wheel on a regular basis?
Now I have pulled a backhoe on a gooseneck trailer approx. 500 miles from Maryland to the hills of West Virginia and on some of the mountians I did loose speed from 65mph to 45mph no other problems But this was a one time thing.

 

The GCWR of the truck is the max weight of vehicle and trailer that it can tow, and since your truck itself has a curb weight of at least 6000lbs(you'll have to weigh it to know exactly) that means the heaviest trailer you can legally tow will weigh about 10000lbs fully loaded.

 

That's probably a little much to be pulling with that truck. Not sure what the weight was of the backhoe you pulled, but a travel trailer is going to have much more wind resistance. The truck would pull it, but a truck that's already 14 years old probably wouldn't do well with that kind of wear and tear. Also keep in mind that if you were to get in an accident (your fault or not) you could be in some serious trouble if you are running over your GCWR.

 

It would do it, but how many times you pull, the hills, and the distance would start to stack up against your truck. I've seen ungodly loads on trucks like these, and folks do well with them. However, most guys that seriously pull with a truck like yours do it for a living, and if the truck goes, then it goes. they run hard and buy new trucks frequently. Maybe try looking at something closer to 30 feet and see what bed weight those would have

 

Thanks all for the advice!! does anyone think that if I installed a airlift kit that it could handle this 5th wheel? Yes the truck is 14 years old but only has 80k miles on it and a factory rebuilt tranny was just installed I brought the truck new in 97 and have taken very good care of it. The backhoe I pulled was a Case CK580 and it was on an old Ferr solid steel trailer so I know it weighed lot more that a fith wheel RV.

 

Wow, that's a pretty heavy machine at 14k lbs. So we know that your truck will pull it, and let's face it, almost everyone (in my neck of the woods) hauls over their truck's rating from time to time...or everyday. Maybe the next question you should ask yourself is where am I going and what is the terrain like? I'm guessing you have an automatic trans, so maybe if you're headed into the mountains another trans cooler would help. As far as springs go, if your truck didn't sag with the backhoe too much i wouldn't worry about it. Maybe a helper spring?(cheaper than an air lift)

 

Thanks bigred!!! right now my plans are to travel the country!!! not going all at one time.. planning on going to Florida for the winter then travelling to other places but staying 6 months or more before travelling on so thats why we are looking for something confortable. I am retired and drawing a pension so can't affort a new rv and truck to!!! Actually I don't think the weight is the factor its that 3.55 rear that has me because according to my owners manual I have 16k GCWR but if I had the 4.10 rear it would be 20k

 

Well...I'm just one of those 'dumb kids' you hear about, so it's not like I'm an expert or anything, but I come from a rather agrarian area, and some of my friends were born with a peterbuilt shifter in their hand. In this area, trucks like yours are used hard without mercy, and the prevailing thought process behind that is that these trucks have the same engine as a 1 ton, the same axle(HD) as a 1 ton, same suspension half the time, and a pretty stout frame. So therefore they are run as hard as 1tons, and do surprisingly well. As long as you take care of it, are careful on the road, maybe do a few small things (coolers, helper springs, maybe step up to a 3.73 or 4.10???) you should be a-o-k. Well, at least that's this dumb kid's opinion.

 

Can you say powerstroke, key word power he he

 

youll run outta steam with a stock powerstroke, in other words you wont be able to tow like ya wanna tow it. throw an extra 2 wheels back there via an f3 dually rear and springs, and at least youll have the stability taken care of.

 

The problem is that there is more to towing capacity than just being able to pull the load. It has everything to do with the truck's ability to maintain control of the trailer. I don't think anyone doubts that the truck is capable of pulling the trailer, but what happens when it comes time to stop or turn a corner? This is when Newton's Law takes over and if you don't have enough truck to control the trailer, it's going to go wherever it wants to.

From what I can find, the highest towing capacity for a 97 F-250/350 is 12,500 lbs. You can have a GCWR up to 20,000 lbs, but we are talling about a truck that weighs probably close to 7000 lbs empty. That doesn't leave much room for passengers and other cargo. Put 14,000+ lbs of trailer back there and you are already well over your 20K GCWR before you even add your passengers and cargo. You could get away with this if it was something you were just hauling across town, but not traveling around the country.

 

I obviously didn't emphasize the 'careful on the road' part enough. Duh these things don't stop on a dime. That's why you have to leave waaaay more room for stopping and slow waaaay down on corners(think about how a train stops). Or, if you're silly enough not to realize that, have headaches with trailer breaks. As far as stability goes, your load isn't going to shift at all hardly. I'm pretty sure that if single rear wheel trucks can make it 30 miles to the sale barn with 20-30 head of nervous cattle then a 5th wheel RV would be a cake walk.
Also, the whole point of a trailer is so that you don't have to put all that junk in the bed. That is why he has listed the hitch weight (you know, the part that actually sits in the truck) as aprx 2k, which is well within the trucks capabilities.
So, that being said, IF YOU'RE CAREFUL ON THE ROAD, you'll be fine.
DISCLAIMER: I don't know it all, this is only my opinion. So don't get all huffy puffy

 

He He He Yes rangergirl I know the power is there!!! No doubt in my mind the powerstroke will handle the load with ease.

 

I'm not getting "huffy puffy".

The OP asked for advice, and I'm giving mine. I wouldn't pull that large of a trailer with that truck. It's just not safe.

Of course, you get the answers like, "The Powerstroke has more than enough power to pull it". While this is true, it doesn't mean the truck can safely control the trailer going down the road. That's the biggest factor in figuring out towing capacity, not how much pulling power you have.

Also, things like air bags and helper springs do NOTHING to increase payload or towing capacity. They simply keep the truck sitting level.

There are 2 options here.

1. Buy a truck that has the towing capacity for that large of a trailer.

2. Go with a smaller trailer that doesn't exceed the towing capacity of your current truck.

 

based on what you'll be doing with the truck,id suggest the f350 DRW.
you'll be much,happier.
the HD f250 is the same truck as the f350 minus the front straight axle.
the brakes and everything.
the RV has the brakes guys.it's not like the trucks going to be stopping a 39' RV hahaha.
she'd handle that RV with no issues at all.
but the DRW will make it so much more comfortable.do yourself the favor and look for the f350 7.3l DRW w/ 4.10 gearing and don't look back.

as to the laws of towing the RV.you can get away with the f150 in a lot of states because they are exempt.this is why you see this a lot.they have their own brakes,so you just need to pull it.not stop it.
with the DRW you gain so much stability,it just takes the chore right out of towing.you would really enjoy cruising around the country so much more and the 4.10's would make it less struggle.

research the RV towing laws where you'll be registering the truck.call your DMV.
here is more info for you:
http://changingears.com/rv-sec-tow-v...derstand.shtml

then ask yourself about the f350 w/DRW and 4.10's anyway.not because the truck your looking at,wouldn't do the job no problem.just because your going to be doing this a lot now that your retired.why not make it as enjoyable as possible and take a lot of effort out of driving while doing so with the DRW and towing gears? i know what id pick.
the 250's can be converted to DRW too sure,but i doubt you want to get into this.you want the truck to be turn key and go.save these conversions to us young fellers lol.

a lot of people in this section are used to the light duty trucks.
id suggest going over here and asking,reading around about the hd diesel trucks with RV's too:
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/forum170/