I need your advice please! Towing Capacity Exceeded

[Retread68]

Not wanting to sound like the "weight police", but this discussion is exactly why I ended up with a Reflection 303 vs a Solitude 369, plus the fact I'm pulling with a gasser vs diesel. The dealer told me he wouldn't be concerned about the weight since my truck has airbags. My response was something like, "of course you wouldn't be concerned, because you're not the one paying for truck repairs." I've had more than my share of trucks, mainly GM and can say that 3500 SRWs have the same axle as 2500 SRWs with one additional leaf in the spring. The payload capacity is not increased much due to the axle and tire capacity. The extra leaf in the spring only limits the amount of compression (noticed by bed drop) and maintains a better drive shaft alignment. The same vector forces on the axle and tires are the same.

The payload increase comes with the 3500 DRW because the axle is different, hub difference, and wheel/tire capacity increases.

All the major branded trucks have engines that will tow almost all RVs, but tranny / rear end and suspension parts have a tendency to fail prematurely when overloaded. The best thing (IMO) is to weigh your truck (with full tank of fuel), then weigh truck & trailer, so you have no doubt how much weight is on the axles, both truck & trailer. Then if possible, you can shift some weight aft if necessary. I have even carried water in the fresh water tank for ballast ! (different 5er than GD 303)

Some folks will get different mileage from this post. No offense toward anyone is intended. Your comfort level may be different from mine. Be safe and enjoy the RV experience.

[WhittleBurner]

One more thing you never hear mentioned are the brakes. like you said most trucks are built to tow a lot but what about stopping. just because you can tow it the most important thing is can you stop it without white knuckles when something happens suddenly in front of you.

[thompsons 369rl]

True. Stopping ability is very important. 3/4 and 1 ton trucks usually come with pretty hefty brakes to start with but they can only do so much when trying to stop an extra 10 to 14 thousand lbs. Diesels have an advantage over gas when braking simply because of higher compression and in some cases additional exhaust brakes. Trucks with a tow/haul setting (which automatically downshifts the transmission under braking) also help. Setting up the trailer brake "gain" properly can also make a world of difference.