Selecting a Tow Vehicle

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bardene

bardene

Member
Joined
Nov 18, 2007
Posts
6
Location
MICHIGAN
Hello
This is my first post, but just wanted to say thanks to all the people providing great information.  My wife & I just purchased a 2008 Jayco 29.5 RLS Eagle Super Lite 5th wheel.  The GVWR of the trailer is 10,000 lbs.  I will be purchasing a GM vehicle, new model year & most likely 3/4 ton, but wasnt' sure on the options.  Do I need the 4:10 rear end, or would a 3:73 rear end (obviously the 4:10 would be much worse fuel economy for everyday driving).  I'm leaning toward the 6.0 liter gas engine, since diesel fuel in Michigan is at $4/gallon, plus I figure I can buy a lot of gasoline for the $6,000 duramax/allison option.  Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks alot!
 
Hello and welcome. I'm not really qualified to answer, but until someone comes along that is, if you like, you can click on the "library" button above, select the towing topics, and look at the relevant information.
 
bardene said:
Hello
My wife & I just purchased a 2008 Jayco 29.5 RLS Eagle Super Lite 5th wheel.  The GVWR of the trailer is 10,000 lbs.  I will be purchasing a GM vehicle, new model year & most likely 3/4 ton, but wasnt' sure on the options.  Do I need the 4:10 rear end, or would a 3:73 rear end (obviously the 4:10 would be much worse fuel economy for everyday driving).  I'm leaning toward the 6.0 liter gas engine, since diesel fuel in Michigan is at $4/gallon, plus I figure I can buy a lot of gasoline for the $6,000 duramax/allison option.  Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

A lot depends on where that trailer is going to go.  A 10,000 lb GVWR trailer, allowing a 10% safety margin, wants a truck with a 11,000 lb tow rating.  Hang around Michigan and the flat lands and the gasser with a 4.10 axle will do fine.  (The 3.73 is a no go)  If you ever intend to go to the SW USA, or hit Colorado or Yellowstone and Glacier NP, get the diesel.    The gas engine takes a hit of 3% of rated HP per 1,000 feet of altitude.  At 6000 feet, the height of most canyon country, that is a 18% loss of horsepower.  The diesel being turbo charged, takes a third of that hit.  And then there are the miles of 6% grades or worse you hit in the west. 

 
Thanks for the quick reply.  We plan on heading out of state probably for one 2 week trip each year, most likely hanging around the midwest & southeastern states (KY, TN, etc..).  The rest of our time would be in Michigan.  We're pretty young yet, so that's not to say in the future we won't head out west (I'd love to).  I'll probably go with the gasser w/4:10 rearend for now, then maybe in a few years upgrade to diesel.  Again, thanks alot for the replies.  This forum is really great!

EB
 
Well, I know you said you were looking at the Chevy (or at least GM), but you may want to at least take a look at the Ford F-250 (or 350) also.  You can get the 6.8L V-10 that will give you plenty of power even in the mountains.  It is a much stronger engine and torquewise than the 6.0L GM, and the Tow Command system on the Ford is very highly touted.  You can also get it with an integrated brake controller that has also been talked about with glowing remarks.  2008 saw some very good changes in the look and feel of the Super Duty and the V-10 is a proven engine.  I think you would be doing yourself a disservice if you passed it by just because you might be a "GM Kinda person".  Just my .02
 
That's a good point.  I'm actually not partial to GM.  I looked and priced out at Ford F-250 with the V-10, and in comparison to what I can get a GM for (GM family discounts), the Ford with comparable options would be about $4,000 more than the GM.  With the discounts, it's difficult to purchase anything but GM.  Thanks for the thought though.

Btw

EB
 
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