Southwind towing capacity

Anyone know what the towing capacity of my  soon to be 98' Southwind Storm should be?


Chuck

Most likely 5k lbs.

My 1997 Bounder is rated at 3500#s. 

Your 1998 Southwind will be somewhere between 3500 and 5000 lbs depending on the chassis.

If it's a ford built on the 1997 F53 chassis it's 3500
If it's a Ford built on the 1999 F53 chassis it could be 5000 (there was no 1998 F53 chassis)
If it's a chevy 454 P30 chassis it's 3500 (that may have been the only option in '98)

Sorry for the previous misstatement.

That would surprise me.  First of all, I doubt that it has a hitch rated that high, or a frame where you could mount a 5000# hitch.  And secondly, the combination gross would probably not allow it.  The motor home should have a rating plate that answers your question but I doubt it is more than 2500-3000# or so.

In those years the hitch receivers themselves were usually 5000 lb  but the mounts to the frame were limited to 3500 lbs. And the GCWR tended to limit it to 3500 or less as well. You can help out the GCWR by loading the chassis lightly and keeping it under the GVWR, but you can't beat the limitation of attachment between the receiver and the frame.

The frame limitation comes from an add-on extension that Fleetwood used to extend the rear of the motorhome body past the end of the actual chassis, whether Ford or Chevy.  That add-on simply wasn't strong enough to handle 5000 lbs.

It's the Chevy 454 chassis. I'm not picking it up till after Christmas and it's not very close so I could go look at the id tag to see the towing capacities.


Chuck

It's getting a little picky but it sounds like you want to make sure you aren't overloading any part of the hitch, or mounts, and the ball itself needs to be a 1" shaft and solid, to be rated for 5000#.  Some are 3/4" and use bushings.  Usually there is a rating plate or sticker on the hitch itself that might tell you how they rated it.

cbeam2 said:

It's the Chevy 454 chassis. I'm not picking it up till after Christmas and it's not very close so I could go look at the id tag to see the towing capacities.Chuck

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If you have no other means of identifying the rating, then count on the lower 3500 lbs figure.  As COMer says, make sure that the remainder of your hitch components are also up to the task.

Comer,

COMer said:

It's getting a little picky but it sounds like you want to make sure you aren't overloading any part of the hitch, or mounts, and the ball itself needs to be a 1" shaft and solid, to be rated for 5000#.  Some are 3/4" and use bushings.  Usually there is a rating plate or sticker on the hitch itself that might tell you how they rated it.

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Just to clarify things, I'm a bit confused with your statement and may not be understanding your description.  Most hitch receivers mounted (welded or screwed) onto the undercarriage of a frame are 2" shaft receivers.  There are 1" shaft receivers, but I doubt they are rated to 5,000 #.  The ball mounts are usually 2" or 2 1/4" size for that weight rating. 

For units like Remco or Blue Ox, there is no ball involved, you just slip the shaft into the hitch receiver.  These tow bars can be purchased to handle different weights.  I'm sure there are other tow bars; but I'm not familiar with them.  There is also a unit that is attached to the front of the towed car, is an "A" frame shape and has a ball mount receiver on the point of the "A" frame.  It folds down and sets on a ball receiver that is already inserted into the hitch receiver shaft.  I don't see those very often. 

Cheam2,

As soon as you have the GVWR (gross vehicle weight rating) of your motorhome and the CGVWR (combined gross vehicle weight rating) we can help figure it out more closely.  It would be good also, if you have a place to weight your RV to be certain of your weight.  It's also better to weight it fully loaded as if you are getting ready to travel in it.

I had a '93 Chevy 454 in a 1 ton truck.  That truck came with a 10,000# hitch receiver.  The CGVWR was 10,000# and the truck itself weighted something like 6800#.  So just as a truck, I only had 3200# to pull or carry.  I greatly over-exceeded that CGVWR by pulling a horse trailer that weighted 8,000# and had a cabover camper that weighted 3,000#.  It's a wonder I didn't have some type of problem over time; but I didn't.

Marsha~

Guess I didn't say that very well.  The shaft of the ball that is fastened to the mount (thing that goes into the receiver) needs to be 1" to be rated at 5000#.  Yes, the receiver would be 2" or more but that wasn't what I was referring to, just the shaft the ball is fastened to.

Ok, I'll correct myself here....

In our library we have a list that clarifies hitches and hitch ratings.  I see that a 1 1/2" hitch can handle 3500 #.    However the 5,000# needs a 2" hitch shaft.

Here is the link to the reference in the library.

Marsha~

I'm still floundering here....

How could you put a 1" shaft from the ball into a 2" receiver? 

Marsha~

  "Shaft from the ball", the threaded part that attaches it to the draw bar which then goes into the receiver. A lighter duty ball will have 3/4" as opposed to 1".

Maybe calling it the threaded "shank" instead of a shaft would eliminate the confusion.

Ahhh, now I understand.

Marsha~

The main point here is that there are several components to the hitch, and assembly.  They all need to be on board to allow 5000# ratings.  The receiver (part that fastens to the frame with a 2" opening in it) and the mount (part that slides in the 2" hole) and the ball (that fastens to the mount).  To be rated for 5000#, the ball must have a 1" shaft that runs from the ball into the hole in the mount.  The mount must be solid, not hollow as many are, and the receiver must be rated for 5000#.  Generally, there is a break down in some part of the assembly and therefore, the capability is reduced to 3500# or there abouts.  Chevy trucks for the past few years come with a 2 1/2" receiver opening which allows a 2 1/2" mount which increases the load they can haul.  Others may have done the same thing but I know Chevy now does.  They include a spacer so you can still use 2" accessories if you like.

COMer said:

Chevy trucks for the past few years come with a 2 1/2" receiver opening which allows a 2 1/2" mount which increases the load they can haul. 

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That, in it self may increase the load that can be towed without hitch failure, but it does nothing to increase the tow/load rating of the truck.

If you are simply saying that chevy trucks with specific tow rating/capabilities are being equipped with larger receivers to accommodate that load, then that's understandable.

Class III hitches are rated for 5000# (when components allow) but they are only rated for a ball weight of 500#.  Class IV hitches are rated for 10,000# and 1200# on the ball.  Quite a difference.  And you are certainly right that this does not allow you to tow more than your truck is rated for.  Mine is a 3/4 ton with 6.0L engine and they probably do not put the larger hitches on 1/2 ton trucks.

Gary made a valid point earlier, that those of us driving older ('80s and '90s) gas motorhomes would be well advised to remember.  That point was that a lot of older mhs are equipped with receivers stamped with a 5000# rating but the frame (and mfg tow rating) is 3500# at best.  That is certainly true for my '97 Bounder.

Knowing what your manual says, and towing within those limits, is what we need to be stressing here.

aka Porky said:

Gary made a valid point earlier, that those of us driving older ('80s and '90s) gas motorhomes would be well advised to remember.  That point was that a lot of older mhs are equipped with receivers stamped with a 5000# rating but the frame (and mfg tow rating) is 3500# at best.  That is certainly true for my '97 Bounder.

Knowing what your manual says, and towing within those limits, is what we need to be stressing here.

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It also works the other way. My 1st coach, a Damon DP, supposedly had a 5k rating, but the hitch had a 3,500# rating. The coach was a take off of the Damon gas model and they didn't change the hitch in production, but changed it for me after I pointed out the discrepancy

The discussion of hitches and balls does not help Chuck with his problem - the coach is far away and he can't look at hitch rating or GVWR sticker.

I found a 98 Southwind Storm for sale online and it claims to have a hitch rated for 3500 lb hitch towing and 350 lbs carrying, which is exactly what I would expect that that chassis and type of coach. I feel pretty confident that he needs to limit himself to a 3500 lb toad and probably as much below that as possible to keep under the GCWR.