I have an 09 f350 4x4 v10 I picked up in Dec, I have a weekend warrior 30' triple axle fs3000 toyhauler, aluminum sided. Its usually around 9500-11k loaded and tounge wieght ranges from 1100 to 1400 and usually never 1400 except empty, I tow it 260 miles to Parker AZ and back twice a year so 530 miles a year, I have a good WD hitch I used on my previous truck, Do I need a hitch upgrade? My last truck was a duramax 2500 2wd and I upgraded the hitch, this one is a bit better but since I once and a while exceed the rating should I upgrade?

 

If you have a WD hitch you are all set. The standard rating on the hitch (if it's factory) is 10,000lbs but with WD its 12,000. (Maybe 15k...hmm).

 

Hitch on the truck is a 12.5 hitch. As long as your WD system is able to handle the weight you are fine.

Should be a sticker on the hitch.

It is also in the manual that should have come with the truck.

 

You are over the WD hitch rating by a fair bit. The factory receiver has a maximum tongue weight rating of 1,250 lbs, you are at 1,400 lbs. Even with a WD hitch correctly sized you are over, so it's your call if you care or not. Since you are only over if the toyhauler is empty, and you say the gross weight is under the 12,500 limit of the hitch (it's rated for 12,500 of gross trailer weight and 1.250 of tongue weight) you can just never tow it without cargo in it to balance it out.

I don't know why everyone else thinks being almost 15% over the rating on tongue weight makes you good to go, but there you go. I personally wouldn't put 1400 lbs of tongue weight on that hitch, but others might. In that situation in the past I installed a Reese Towbeast 2.5" receiver which was rated to something like 1800 lbs.

Brian

 

In the past I've exceeded the maximum tongue weight specs by a lot more than 150 lbs and never had an issue. I wouldn't repeat that at the weights I was carrying, but I really don't see an issue in the case of the OP's situation.

If you're nervous about it you should probably upgrade just for the peace of mind. with a 2,550 lb tongue weight rating.

 

I hate to admit it, but i agree ....

I'm not one to usually worry about such things, but in this case where you KNOW you are exceeding the rated hitch weight, i think an upgrade is the right thing to do.

I don't real worked up about exceeding the 12,000 lbs rating, but the tongue weight is a little different. You can run into problems with exeeding the clamping force of the fasteners used to bolt the hitch to the frame. The idea is that the tension in the fasteners will always be greater than the force imparted on the bolts by the weight on the hitch. Once the clamping force of the bolts is exceeded, the load is carried by the bolts directly, and they can stretch. Once they stretch, it can be a vicious cycle of reduced clamping force, bolt stretch, and loose hardware.

Hitches with higher load ratings should come with either more bolts, bolts of higher strength, larger hardware, or all three -- thus allowing you to safely carry more load.

If you decide not to upgrade the hitch, at the very minimum, get under the truck and check the bolts that hold the hitch to the frame once and a while. if they are loose, replace them with higher grade harware. If they are loose it is because they have stretched, retightening them will not fix the problem.

look into grade 8 hardware at a minimum, and consider the next size up if there is room (but there won't be room without enlarging the holes on the current hitch -- and i'm not going to be the one to tell you to drill them out)

i'm far from being the safety police ... you should see some of the stuff i've done .. but when you KNOW you are exceeding a rated capacity, and plan to do so on a regular basis, then proper action is clearly warranted.

JMO

 

does the hitch come with a ball? I stopped someone from trying to pull a 10000+ pound trailer with his 2 5/16 ball which clearly had stamped on it max was 6000lbz. I lent him my 2 5/16 ball which was clear stamped rated at 16000 pounds.

none of this is worth the risk of guess work. aside from the damage to your vehicle, loss of your trailer, think about the poor family drivng behind you having to try to duck a trailer flying at them at 50 mile per hour.

spring the bucks, do it right.

 

Very good point, I had to upgrade my hitch ball for the same reasons. Here's the one I got:

B&W Trailer Hitches HB94002 Specialty and Heat Treated Hitch Ball : Amazon.com : Automotive

 

I went ahead and ordered this one......Curt 15410 Trailer Hitch Receiver Class 5 2" Receiver Tube Inch - Free Shipping

1700tw, 17K towing, my 2 5/16 ball is rated to 15k.