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  1. #1
    New Member
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    Need advice on new tt and towing

    NEED ADVICE
    New travel trailer after looking at following specs do I need to upgrade to a Ram 2500? If so would you get Turbo Diesel or 6.4 gas? Any advice would help me out.

    Thanks
    Karen Baker

    2021 Ram 1500 5.7 hemi Etorque Axle Ratio 3.92
    GVWR – 6900
    Payload – 1760
    Base weight -total – 5136
    Front – 2983
    Rear – 2153
    GAWR –
    Front – 3700
    Rear - 4100
    CTCWR – 17000
    MAX TRAILER WEIGHT – 11,370

    2021 Grand Design 2970RL
    Length = 34 feet
    Dry Weight – 7397
    Payload – 1598
    GVWR – 8995
    Hitch Weight - 751

    Equalizer sway/distribution hitch

  2. #2
    Site Team Second Chance's Avatar
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    Just looking at the numbers you've posted, you should be OK. If you do trade up on trucks, bypass the 3/4-ton diesel and get either a 3/4-ton gasser or a 1-ton diesel. The diesel power trains are heavy and really eat into the payload of a 3/4-ton truck. But, again, I think you're OK with your current truck.

    Rob
    U.S. Army Retired
    2012 F350 DRW CC LB Lariat PS 6.7
    2020 Solitude 310GK-R, MORryde IS, disc brakes,
    Sailun LRG tires, solar, DP windows, W/D
    (Previously in a Reflection 337RLS)
    Full time since 08/2015

  3. #3
    Fireside Member suber81083's Avatar
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    Your truck will tow it well, but if you want to upgrade to a 2500 it will tow it better with the hemi or the Cummins. Your weights look within the limits of your truck. Just see how well it tows before going and buying another truck.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

  4. #4
    Long Hauler bertschb's Avatar
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    Regardless of which engine you get, skip the 2500 and get a 3500. You won't really "need" a 3500 to tow the 2970RL but you may need it in the future if (like many people) you upgrade to a larger RV. The 3500 will give you 1,000lbs more available payload and payload is what you need for towing RV's.

    As for gas vs diesel- If you want a big smile on your face while towing and you have the extra money up front, get a diesel. If your truck will be your daily driver and your commute is just a few miles a day in city traffic, consider a gas engine. You don't "need" a diesel to tow an 8,995lb RV but again, you may need it later if you get a new 13,000lb RV.

    If this is your first RV, the odds of you upgrading to a larger one later are pretty good.
    Brian & Kellie
    2020 Solitude 310GK-R, FBP, 1,460w solar, 540ah BBGC3, MORryde IS w/disc brakes
    2020 F-350 Platinum SRW Powerstroke Tremor, 60g TF fuel tank, Hensley BD3-F air bag hitch

    Previous setups:
    2019 Solitude 373FB-R, 2019 F-350 Platinum DRW Powerstroke, Hensley BD5 air bag hitch
    2016 Reflection 318RST, 2016 GMC 3500 Denali SRW Duramax, Hensley BD3 air bag hitch

  5. #5
    Rolling Along
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    If you upgrade to the 2500, do NOT get the diesel as your payload won't improve much at all, if any at all, depending on trim package you select. Get the Hemi, or get a 3500 with a diesel.

    Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk

  6. #6
    Paid my dues 😁 FT4NOW's Avatar
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    I had a similar combo and it was fine towing, the TT was actually longer than what you are considering. I would look at the numbers stamped on your truck's hitch and see what the max tongue weight is with a WDH. If loaded to capacity, your tongue weight will be just shy of 1000lbs or a little over, plus the weight of the WDH itself.

    Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
    Last edited by FT4NOW; 04-18-2021 at 08:38 AM.
    2023 Momentum 398M-R
    2023 Ford F-450

    SOLD - 2021 Reflection 311BHS
    SOLD - 2017 Momentum 399TH

  7. #7
    Site Sponsor NB Canada's Avatar
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    IMO your current truck is not at all adequate to tow that trailer
    Maybe someone with a 2970 can chime in but I am sure the spec sheet from GD will have a TW of 820 lbs
    Loaded with a hitch to camp you will easily be over 1200 lbs in order to keep it safe
    Rear living trailers are notorious for being difficult to tow because of the amount of weight behind the axles. You need to keep a lot of weight on the tongue to compensate
    Guaranteed your truck has less than 1600lbs payload after options have been added as well

    IMO you are not even close
    A 2500 gas would be the answer here or a different trailer
    Like others have said if diesel go 3500 but only you can decide that. Is it your daily driver? Registration costs?
    Good luck but I would never consider a trailer that large for your current truck


    2021 Imagine 2400 BH
    2018 GMC Sierra 4x4 crew
    2021 Imagine 2400 BH
    2018 GMC Sierra 4x4 Crew 1840lb payload

  8. #8
    Rolling Along jleonard's Avatar
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    I just went from ma Ram 1500 to a Ram 2500 diesel. I was overloaded payload and combined with a 2600 RB and not much cargo in the trailer and almost nothing in the truck.
    Yes the 5.7 had plenty of power and it was stopping fine, but the difference is night and day with the 2500. The truck/TT combination is much more stable.
    I think the diesel is actually quieter than the hemi especially on any kind of hill. The hemi needs rpm to maintain speed so it was constantly shifting.
    The diesel just purrs along at 1600 rpm.
    Jay Leonard
    New Port Richey, Fl
    2022 Imagine 2600 RB, 2021 Ram 2500 CC Bighorn 6.7L Cummins

  9. #9
    Fireside Member
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    Well...............I have that trailer and pull it with a (gasp) F150. Eq4 hitch max tow package etc. Just got back from a trip to Camp Verde Az from the four corners of Colo. Pulled it great, no problems, one of the smoothest pulling trailers I have ever pulled. Properly adjusted wdh makes a huge difference. If this is your first time pulling a trailer, please practice locally before hitting the highway. That is a long trailer for a newbie.
    2019 F150 4x4 screw sb with max towing
    2021 Imagine 2970RL
    2 many former rigs to list.

  10. #10
    Site Sponsor BeerBrewer's Avatar
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    If I were you I'd go with a larger truck. We tow our 32 ft Transcend 26RLS with a 2018 RAM 2500 CTD and have no regrets. We absolutely love the diesel engine even though it does rob us of 850 lbs of payload. The payload on my truck is about 2450 lbs, if it had the 6.4L gas the payload would have been 3300 lbs. Since our tongue weight is just over 900 lbs we've got plenty of payload left for the odds and end that we carry in the truck (which isn't much). We did considered going up to a 3500, but didn't for a few reasons. The ride seemed better on the 2500, there weren't many 3500's available at the time, they were a tad more expensive and we had no plans to ever upgrade to a 5th wheel. So the 2500 suited our needs just fine. Having said all that, if you have thoughts of getting a 5th wheel someday, then I think that you'd be better served getting at least a 3500 truck.

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