Rookie towing question guys - Since the rated towing on my truck is 12,000 lbs., does that mean that any 5th wheel I purchase needs to have a loaded weight of 12K or less? I have been looking at a "ToyBox" style 5th wheel but the nicer ones weigh more than that. Does length play into the question? I know the salesman will tell me my truck will pull "anything", but I want to approach this with a little knowledge. Thanks for replying!

 

No, not necessarily... the key weight is the combined gross vehicle weight rating for your truck. The weight of the truck (and contents, to include passengers) and the weight of the 5th wheel, combined, should not exceed the combined gross vehicle weight rating for your truck.

Without knowing what truck you have, or how much it weighs, it is difficult to give you a ballpark weight range for a 5th wheel.

Of course, there are other factors to consider such as pin weight as well as axle weight. Would need more truck information before someone could start pointing you toward the right direction.

 

you have GVWR for you truck. GROSS VEHICLE WEIGHT RATING, this will tell you what your capability is. It is my opinion that the wieght rating is lower then actual capability to protect FORD. I have a 2003 f250 crewcab 4x4 6.0L, I think the rating is 12700lb. I tow a 38 ft forest river sierra at 11700lb empty dry weight. I go over the recommended limit when I put toys in it. It is not how much weight you can pull, it is how much weight you can stop. I have allowed myself to do this because I tow with safety number one and I dont get stupid on the road. I have the prodigy brake controller, I run good air pressure, I dont tailgate. Yes, you need to pay attention to the rating. I made adjustments based on my style of driving and the equipment i use.

Good Luck

 

You are correct. You will need to be at or under you trucks GCVW. And that is with you 5th wheel fully loaded. 20000# conbined . Each state is diffent at to Length but I do not think you would have a problem with just a 5th wheel only if you what to double pull. Then thats a whole nother ballgame.

The salesman as you stated will tell you can pull anything on the lot (which is true with these trucks) but you will be over you GVCW.

Also there is a very good site for 5th wheel info. rv.net check it out.

 

Thread moved

 

Duh, I guess it would help if you knew what truck I have? Anyway, 2004 F250 4X4 crewcab H-D edition PS.

 

Yes to your question of 12K - you need to stay under 12K total combined weight of trailer, stuff in trailer, passengers in truck, stuff in truck. The higher the trailer is the more front wind area you will be pushing cutting down fuel mileage. Length of trailer - local laws mandate this. But you can get a lot in a 30 ft trailer. In our 30 ft my wife adds about 1500 lbs of stuff from dry weight. (food, clothes, etc.) i add camping stuff wood chairs lights etc.

 

I have a 32' fifth wheel that weighs in at 10400#. On a cross country trip I weighed the trailer before leaving home and all of our stuff added another 2100 lbs. Total weight of our trailer was 12500 lbs. with a 32 foot trailer by Newmar. So you should be OK with a similar size or less trailer, just check the weights of your trailer closely, as the manufacturers usually don't tell you the exact weights with all the options, some do though. The brochures usually lie a bit, mine was supposed to weigh empty at 9,789 lbs. but came in at 10,400 lbs. The hitch weight was off by several hundred pounds also, so after the trailer came in I took it to a CAT scale and weighed it to be sure. Just thought it would be a good idea to know how the truck was loaded.

 

This weight is not set in stone as some make it out to be because some vehicle can not effectively tow theur "rated" amount and some can tow it and more. What you realy need to watch and be concerned about is vehicle performance with the load and the load limits on the trailer axles and its tires as well as the tire limits on rear of tow vehicle. Exceed those and you will likely have problems down the road but being 200lb or 1000 punds over your "tow rating" is not going to break anything and a sturdy 3/4 or 1 ton truck contray to popular belief. You should use factory tow rating as a guide line and little more because how the vehicle handles the load is what determines its true towing capacity, not what marking decides to do for sales because factory tow ratings do not factor, terrain, altitude or frontal area. You can pull a 14k loaded flat bed trailer with a low profile and LOT easier than a 12k travel trailer with a lot of frontal area. Aslo what you can pull on flat lands vs hilly terrain is a differnt matter too. Detriot needs to start more "truth in advertising" with tow capacities because some models of all brands are greatly over rated.

 

You need to re-evaluate what you take with you if your wife loads 1500# of stuff. According to studies done the average couple only loads 500-600# of food, clothes, dishes etc. On the other hand if you make your wife load the Harley's than I can understand the 1500#.

Toyman

 

I agree; weight is like an apple and load would be like and orange, can't compare apples to oranges. The weight of the trailer is only one factor, yes it maybe under the mfg gvwr, but wind load also adds in dramatically.

 

I don't know where you got the info on the 500-600 pounds at but it seems a bit off. From a totally empty trailer to a fully loaded trailer readied for our trip across the US, we added a total of 2100 pounds. That's full LP, water and everyday things that were essentials. We left the grill and bikes at home as we figured we wouldn't have time for them and still had 2100# of gear. I wish that I had weighed it when we got back home again, it would have been interesting to see if we actually gained or lost some of the pounds after 3 months on the road.

 

Geez I carry almost 500 lbs of tools alone. That sure wouldn't leave much to eat on the road if we only took 600 lbs total from an empty trailer.

Can't have too many tools with you when your 1,000 miles away from home

 

Man, aint that the truth. I've given thought to even taking my Ready Welder, what's another 8 lbs between friends.

Dorf