Is out truck okay to pull TT to Tenessee?

[triciamclaren]

We have a 2013 Dodge Ram 5.7 Hemi and a Jayco JayFlight 28BHBE which weights around 6800 lbs.  We would like to take it to the Smokey Mountains in Tennessee for vacation and them catch our son's baseball tournament on the way home.  I am concerned that it will be too taxing on the truck pulling that heavy of a camper through the mountains.  On paper, it should be fine, but I am nervouse and don't want to cause damage to our truck.  We have pulled it to Wisconsin Dells no problem, but I know the trip to Tennessee would be completely different towing.  Thanks for any advice!

 

[Frizlefrak]

No.  You're marginal at best.

That trailer has a GROSS weight of 9250 lbs and is 33' long.  6540 is the DRY weight.  Have you had it weighed at a commercial scale.....fully loaded and ready to camp?  In lieu of that, use gross weight, not dry weight.  Dry weight may not even include the A/C, awning, propane tanks, or any other added accessory...and it won't include the weight of the hitch.  Plus, any passengers beyond a 154 lbs driver get deducted from the tow rating, as does any cargo (yes, including Fido).  Your RAM truck has, at best, a 9200 lbs tow rating, depending on how it is configured and equipped.

http://www.jayco.com/products/travel-trailers/2016-jay-flight/28bhbe/

You may do fine on flat land....but you're on the ragged edge, and in the mountains, you're overloaded.  Out here in the mountain west, you definitely wouldn't like how that combo behaved.  Your trailer, due to it's length alone, is firmly in 2500 truck territory. 

Sorry....probably not what you wanted to hear.

 

[steveblonde]

use the link its really easy

http://www.towingplanner.com/

it takes out all the guess work and all the opinions(Although Frizle is correct just saying before others chime in) lol, just remember that in the mountains brakes are going to take a beating along with the trans
cheers steve 

 

[Lowell]

If your TT actually weighs 6800 lbs loaded, you should be OK. I pull a 6300 lb 28 ft TT in the mountains out west with a 2009 Dodge hemi 5.7, 1500.  But if you aren't sure of your TT actual weight, get it weighed.  You need to know that weight anyway, even in flat country.

 

[Frizlefrak]

With a dry weight of 6540 per the manufacturer, there is no way it weighs 6800 loaded and ready to camp.  I'm betting it weighed well north of 7000 before it left the dealer's lot brand new.  Having it weighed is the only real way to be sure, but even if it only weighed 7500, it's 33' long.  That's too much trailer for a half ton pickup even under ideal circumstances.

Here's my thing on these "can my truck pull it?" threads;  Most of the people asking don't have a ton of experience towing, which is all the more reason to not tow with a marginal setup.  A person with 20+ years and 100K miles of experience towing travel trailers may be fine doing so....a newbie may find themselves in a dangerous situation with the same setup.  Having "too much truck" is a good thing for those just getting their feet wet.

Use the right tool for the job.  A half ton pickup isn't the right tool for that particular job.

 

[steveblonde]

With a truck payload of 1600 lbs and a DRY HITCH of 700lbs and loaded pin of 1000lbs it only leaves payload of 600 lbs - you,wife,dog, kids, etc,etc etc before its MAXED OUT

http://www.ramtrucks.com/en/towing_guide

can you YES - will you stand a good chance of breaking something on one trip -i doubt it ! was the question asked - i dont want to hurt the truck? Before you do - redo the brakes, trans service, rear end service, transfer case and front diff service. will you brake something? PROBABLY NOT not on one trip over time,  will you tax the truck ABSOLUTELY . If you had an incident a big IF you may have liability issues if proven your over limits. Just saying not judging.

 

[GuyGene]

No. You must have an "in" truck ...heheheheheeee, couldn't resist. I definitely like to be on safe side. If possible, I'd try to get a 3/4 ton truck. You do need a new truck, right?

 

[steveblonde]

No. You must have an "in" truck ...heheheheheeee, couldn't resist. I definitely like to be on safe side. If possible, I'd try to get a 3/4 ton truck. You do need a new truck, right?

d

?

 

[Frizlefrak]

Yeah...you're not going to break anything.  There isn't a magic line in the sand that says...."my truck can pull 9000 lbs.  I'm perfectly fine at 8999, but it will disintegrate into a pile of poo by the side of the road at 9001".  Doesn't work that way.  Lots of people pull well beyond what their truck is rated for, and get away with it for years.  I was in that camp 25 years ago when I first started doing this and didn't know any better. Didn't use a weight distributing hitch.....largely because I didn't know what one was, or that it even existed.  Drop the tongue on the ball, plug in the lights, and go.  And go is exactly what we did....70 MPH plus down the highway.  There were a handful of white knuckle moments that I fortunately lived to tell about....and I always wondered why towing was such a miserable experience for me, and yet others seemed to have no problem doing it.  This was before the interwebs.....so it was largely OJT that I learned from.  It was a period of years, but I finally figured it all out.  Then I bought my first F250 and fifth wheel and I thought I was in heaven.....but I digress.

There is a chasm of difference between surviving the trip and getting there, and actually enjoying the trip.  A big part of that is having enough truck to manhandle the load as opposed to having just enough truck to keep it sort of in a straight line assuming no wind and no other vehicles around you.  Nothing is worse than spending 5 hours fighting the trailer and arriving at your camp sight a nervous wreck...and then spending 4 days there dreading the trip home.  BTDT...and that's why I bought a truck with a lot more capacity than I need.  Hook it up, get out on the road, set the cruise at 55, crank up the tunes, and watch the world go by.  I barely know the trailer is back there....even up and down 10-12% grades or with a 25 mph crosswind.

Based up reviewing the numbers, I highly recommend a modern 2500 to tow that trailer in the mountains.....or really anywhere else.

 

[GuyGene]

d

?

Sorry Steve. I was referring to the word "out", which I'm sure should have been "our". Anyway, OP, I know how you feel about being close to your truck's limit. Pulling our 25' Aerolite with empty weight of 3,200 lbs with my '02 F150 rated to tow 8,200 lbs, I take it very easy. Burned up my last Chevy 1500 transmission pulling it in Florida a few years ago.