1/2 ton towable 5th wheel

[medic868]

I see no problem towing with a 1/2 ton truck, if you do the math and stay below the capacities of the truck.
I triple tow with a 1/2 ton, and yes, I am under all weight requirements; gross, towing capacity, carrying, and even a 60' length limit.

what's the GCVWR of your truck?

 

[sightseers]

What do you think the GCVWR of this pickup was or is ?

Modify your truck into whatever you want...it's not illegal.    ;D

 

[steveblonde]

What do you think the GCVWR of this pickup was or is ?

Modify your truck into whatever you want...it's not illegal.    ;D

Thats a 1/2 truth some states ie Idaho can and will impound your trailer if deemed too heavy and therefore unsafe so will some Provinces actully happened to a Cop friend of mine pulling a too large 5er with an F250 in Idaho and another friend of mine in BC that i had to go rescue and in the event of an accident you may have just voided your insurance

 

[sightseers]

With private use vehicles ...cops typically use the tire weight rating (if they have portable scales) and/or just a visual unsafe load determination... to determine if a non commercial load (typically an RV) is unsafe or illegal.

Cops don't have to weigh anything and you can legally remove all of the DOT GCVW stickers and labels and model emblems from any vehicle.  (but.. you can not tamper with VIN numbers.)  if a cop looks at your vehicle and feels it's unsafe.. (in their opinion) ...it is illegal to drive no mater what it weighs or the GCVW number that is on your door jam stickers.

Only on commercial vehicles is there any DOT weight regulations and roadside weighing of vehicles. (for tax reasons..not safety )  ... and with commercial vehicles it's the weight rating you pay taxes on,  not the door jam GCVW listed weight.

I used to have a 26k commercial truck,.... I had it de-rated to 15k.  (the truck lasted forever and saved money on taxes every year)

It did not mater what the factory GCVW rating was,    it had a small white square sticker on the outside of the door with a 15 on it... so if that truck ever went through scales over the 15k lb. mark,  that truck was illegal to drive.

 

[Hanr3]

No question that the newer 1/2 ton pickup trucks have a lot of horsepower. However, in the video, the pickups were towing a bumper pull trailer and NOT a 10,000 lb fifth wheel. The issue most posters raised is the huge weight difference a fifth wheel places on the TV and rear axle which is not designed for that cargo capacity.

Ah, the TV is designed to carry that capacity. If not, it would have a different capacity listed. I believe my yellow sticker says something to the effect, that I cannot exceed the axle capacities when I stay below the carry capacity.

I remembered I had seen that statement in some of Fords specification brochures and found it. Below is copied and pasted from Fords F150 trailering and towing selector guide for 5th wheels.
Addition of trailer tongue load weight and weight of passengers and cargo cannot cause vehicle weights to exceed rear GAWR or GVWR. These
ratings can be found on the vehicle Safety Compliance Certification Label.

Someone asked the Combined Gross weight rating- for my truck, it's 16,900 pounds. My truck weighs 5,400 pounds curb weight fully loaded, camper weighs a max of 7,000 and my boat weighs 2,300 pounds fully loaded for a grand total of 14,700 pounds.

 

[Wireman134]

Ah, the TV is designed to carry that capacity. If not, it would have a different capacity listed. I believe my yellow sticker says something to the effect, that I cannot exceed the axle capacities when I stay below the carry capacity.

I remembered I had seen that statement in some of Fords specification brochures and found it. Below is copied and pasted from Fords F150 trailering and towing selector guide for 5th wheels.
Addition of trailer tongue load weight and weight of passengers and cargo cannot cause vehicle weights to exceed rear GAWR or GVWR. These
ratings can be found on the vehicle Safety Compliance Certification Label.

Someone asked the Combined Gross weight rating- for my truck, it's 16,900 pounds. My truck weighs 5,400 pounds curb weight fully loaded, camper weighs a max of 7,000 and my boat weighs 2,300 pounds fully loaded for a grand total of 14,700 pounds.

This is a whole other box of worms. Double towing with a 1/2 ton. 2,300lbs of boat with no brakes pushing against a 7,000lb. GVWR trailer that weighs 6,300lbs. Says the owner...SMH

 

[rbrdriver]

My trailer has a pin weight of about 3300 pounds, and a gvwr of 16500. I wonder how many out there would pull that with a 3/4 ton?

 

[Oldgator73]

My trailer has a pin weight of about 3300 pounds, and a gvwr of 16500. I wonder how many out there would pull that with a 3/4 ton?

Actually it?s not about your truck and/trailer. With the right setup a 1/2 ton truck can easily handle a 5th wheel That is within the trucks capabilities. Way back in 1998 when we bought our 5th wheel and truck I purchased a 3/4 ton Dodge, Cummins diesel, long wheel base, single cab, 4x2, Dana 80 rear, 5 speed manual. The cargo cap was 4200 lbs. trailer was 37?, Triple slide, triple axle. Don?t know what it weighed loaded or unloaded. The truck had no problem pulling or stopping the trailer. When I hitched up the truck would squat about an inch. Had a Jake brake installed for those long steep mountain decents.