Tow Vehicle Question for 27RL

[JBGHEAT]

My wife and I have decided on a 27RL. One of the two models in the super light line.
8000 pounds dry
1500 pound hitch weight
10,000 pound GVWR
I just sold my 1/2 ton truck and will soon purchase a 3/4 ton. Here's my question and I would appreciate any input: I'm leaning toward a 2015 Chevrolet 2500. 4wd, short bed, 4.10 rear. 6.0l gas engine. The towing capacity in that configuration is 13,000 pounds. I'm thinking I'll probably be ok with that truck but I'm losing sleep with the gas v diesel question. The truck with the gas engine is approx. $10,000 to $15,000 less than the diesel. I know the diesel would be advantageous down the road if we were to go to a larger unit but we're committing to the 27RL for the next several years .
I have to believe there are some other folks who have been down this road before and I'd love to hear with someone who is towing a lighter fifth with a 3/4 ton truck with a gas engine. Thanks

 

[TucsonJim]

First of all, I've owned both gas and diesel engine trucks, and you'll be fine with either one up to the towing capacity. You'll get more torque and fuel milage with the diesel, but with modern gas engines and transmissions, you won't have an issue either way. For me, it made sense to go with the diesel engine. We tow more than 8K miles per year, and we do a lot of serious mountain towing, so the extra torque and milage made sense for us.

The real limiting factor if you go with a bigger rig will be the payload capacity of the truck. If you put two 2500 trucks side by side, the gas powered truck will usually have a higher payload capacity! This is because the gasoline powered drive train weighs less than the diesel equivalent. For most folks towing a fifth wheel, it's not the towing capacity of the truck that limits them, it's the payload capacity. For example, lets say you purchase a truck that has 2500 pounds of payload capacity. You list the 1500 pounds of hitch weight, but that is for an empty trailer. By the time you load it up, it will likely be around 1800-2000. So let's say it's 1900 pounds fully loaded. Take the original 2500 pounds of payload of the truck, and subtract 1900 pounds. Then subtract the weight of the FW hitch which is usually around 100#, passengers, cargo and anything else you put in the truck. You can see that it's very easy to exceed the payload capacity of the truck. If it were me, I'd worry much more about purchasing a truck with excess payload capacity vs. the difference between diesel and gasoline.

Jim

 

[JBGHEAT]

Thanks Jim for that info. I did a little more digging on truck specs.
6525 curb weight
3152 max payload
20,500 GCWR
So if my math is correct with a 1500 dry hitch weight that leaves me 1600 pounds before I hit the max payload. Also, adding the 6525 curb weight of the truck and 10,000 total trailer (loaded) that leaves me right around 4000 pounds before I hit the max GCWR. If all that is correct, I think I'll be ok with the gas version.

 

[steve gravelle]

JBG, definitely a great choice, any GD fifth wheel! We are interested in how you plan to use the 27RL. Are you planning to do weekend outings, 1 or 2 week vacations, or more extended journeys? What kind of terrain, hills, mountains? It's good you are looking down the road to a larger unit, more than likely you will need to upgrade the tow vehicle also, but it's only money! I think your idea of a 4.10 gear will help the relatively less torque from the 6.0. Man, it sounds like a huge difference in price to step up to a Duramax, my foggy memory is $6-$7,000 for the diesel upgrade, possibly a fairly big option price for the Allison transmission. The upside would be that you might be able to go down to a gear like a 3.73 to keep the RPMs down. I know it's apples and oranges, but our 2008 Ram gets about 20 mpg not towing, I think GM would do at least as good! I know it's current politics, but diesel fuel is 20 to 40 cents less than gasoline. My research on kbb.com shows diesel trucks return about 100% of the option price as a used vehicle. I'm prejudiced but I am very happy with our Dodge, about 105,000 miles with not a lot of repairs, mostly maintenance. I also think that the diesel properly maintained will deliver more miles than the gas engine, so it could be the right time to buy the right truck for now and the future. Best to you, I know I am not the guy who is responding to your primary concern, but maybe some thoughts and opinions you can factor in!

 

[JBGHEAT]

Thanks for that info Steve. We are in Grand Junction. We recently sold a bumper pull camper and a 1/2 ton truck to take this leap into the fifth wheel world. We wanted to stay small enough to camp ( 3 or 4 nights) around Colorado, light enough to do some traveling around the west, but large enough to go to AZ for a month or so in the winter and Gunnison for a month in the summer. We feel that the 27RL will meet those needs.

As far as the truck quest goes, I originally started the search for a low mileage, late model 3/4 ton diesel and I'm still looking! Those trucks are hard to find over here on the western slope. I would be happy with either a Dodge, Ford, or Chevy. The used diesels are more money than the new gas trucks so that is why I started looking at going gas and new for warranty, etc. I'm not going to end the search for that late model, low mileage diesel just yet but I'm trying to research the 3/4 gas just in case I go that direction. Go Broncos!

 

[Cate&Rob]

Keep an eye on that max payload number. As you add the diesel engine, 4x4 drivetrain, bigger cab, etc . . . that number can go down quickly. There are a lot of fully loaded diesel 3/4 ton trucks running around with payload capability not much over 2000 lbs.

Rob

 

[steve gravelle]

JBG, I would visit with you about our 2008 Dodge Ram 2500 in our signature. Currently has 105,000 miles, bright metallic blue, typical option package. We are original owners. It may be too old or too many miles, but I have been toying with getting a Ram 2500 dually for our next possible step up. Feel free to PM me either way! Currently we are in Pagosa Springs camp hosting, will be in castle Rock by Friday or Saturday.

 

[Centurion]

My choice was F350, diesel, short bed, crew cab, single rear wheel 4x4. There is never going to be question on payload or towing capacity. The diesel has the torque to pull the hills and an engine break to slow you on the downside which is important. It should give you better fuel economy over a gas model and piece of mind while towing. A diesel 350 is going to cost more up front but retains its value over a similar model gasser. I settled for a one year old used F350 diesel with 14K miles on it and still in warranty. I saved a bundle over buying new. Because of all the electronics on it, I chose to purchase an extended warranty from Ford and not from some post office box discount warranty company in Florida.
Most importantly, you have to do your homework when selecting a tow vehicle. Check the manufacturers website for fifth wheel towing capacity according to how your vehicle is configured. (Crew Cab, Axle Ratio, 4x4, etc) Check the gray sticker on the drivers side door post. It will give you the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and Front and Rear Gross Axle Weight Rating. Find out how much the truck weighs (GVW) and subtract that from the GVWR and you will get your payload capacity. Make sure your payload, which includes passengers, truck cargo, fifth wheel, fuel, and trailer king pin weight, does not exceed your Gross Axle Weight Ratings and your tire ratings. Look up your vehicle's Gross Combined Vehicle Weight Rating and your trailer's GVWR. Does the weight of your truck plus the weight of the trailer fall within the GCVWR? Above all, some salespeople are knowledgeable. Others are "convincing", to be polite. Hopefully you can smell the difference.

 

[TucsonJim]

I posted this quite a while ago, but it's a good visual aid pairing a truck and trailer:

 

[Sirsea]

IMHO....if you are going to buy a 3/4 ton truck it should be a diesel...any of the Big 3. Never heard of anyone trading down from the diesel to a gas engine. I towed a 8500# TT with a 381HP gas Tundra and it struggled with it and 7.5 MPG. Got the Dodge with 350 HP diesel, no problems and 14.5 MPG. Again, IMHO....look at a diesel truck even if it is in the 2008-20012 range (Dodge in those years don't use DEF) if you need to compensate for $$.

 

[Devinh2]

I went through 6 months of research before I bought my truck. I decided on diesel first and foremost because I never wanted to 'wonder' if I had the proper power or torque for any 5th I buy now or 5 years from now. I ended up with a dually because of stability and, again, I'll never have to upgrade!!

Now the whole Ford, Chevy, Dodge argument. Well, I'll let you decide that on your own. As you can tell from my signature, I went with the Dodge. My advice would be to buy the biggest truck you would ever need to pull anything you bought now, or upgraded to in a few years. Having to buy a new truck every time you wanted to upgrade your trailer would get expensive. Just my $.02!! Good luck!!

 

[dloase]

Personal story time, but it may apply.

Back in '98 I bought a 1500 which was fine with my then current colman popup. In 2003 I upgraded my trailer to a 30' bumper pull with a front kitchen. The 1000 lb tounge weight was just at what that truck would handle. I fulltimed in that rig for two years. Right before I retired out of the militaryin 2005 I upgraded my truck to a 2500HD, with a 6.0L gas engine and the 4.10 rear end, and short bed. Man what a difference!

That served fine unit 2010 when I upgraded my bumper pull to a 5er. Once again I found myself right on the edge of what my TV was rated for, but I pulled, stopped and traveled fine. Just had to watch loading and such things. In '13 I had the change to step up to my current TV. Again what a difference. Then following that I had the chance to upgrade my 5er to my current 369. Other than needing to change out my hitch (my old slider was 16K), the change over was flawless. It is nice not having to watch my weights everytime I go out. I know there are others out there towing the 369 with 3/4 ton trucks, but for my peace of mind, the 1 ton deisel dully is the way to go.

Like Devinh said above, pick the maker you are comfortable with and can afford. It is kind of like I used to tell customers when I was selling guitars "Pick your budget and play everything that price and below". Pick your budget point and test drive every truck at that point and below you can find. You will find the one that works for you.

 

[smkunder]

I pull my 27RL with a 2015 Chevy Silverado 2500 HD 6.0 4.10 axle. I am well within its capabilities, and specs. Have had no concerns other than the fuel economy is poor, between 8.5 to 10 depending on terrain. Stopping and torque are all fine. Would I want to pull any bigger , I think maybe the 303 would be my personal max in my mind. At this point I am very happy with my combination of the 27RL and the truck. I really struggle that they say you can use a 1/2 ton to pull this unit, I would not be very comfortable doing that.

 

[WhittleBurner]

When shopping for a new truck earlier this year we knew that any of the big three are capable of towing our trailer. We just wanted to make sure to get one that exceeded the ratings needed to tow our 303. We also wanted one that if we decide to upgrade the trailer we wouldn't have to get a new truck at the same time, that brought us to the 3500. It all came down to a personal preference. Two of the reasons for our decision was 1 the layout of the interior, Marcy does most of the driving and she can reach the controls without having to stretch. Number 2 is comfort. With the amount of time we spend in it this was important to us. We have already put 17,000 miles on it since January. After driving all three we felt Chevy had the best ride by far. We have been very happy with our decision and Really like everything about our truck.

 

[TahoeTrekker]

Pull my 303 with a 2014 Dodge 2500 Hemi 410HP 426 lbs of torque...... does the job fantastic and I live in the Sierras at 7000' . I will say at over 8000' I do notice the drop in torque but still easily make the pull at 45mph. I sacrafice the torque for the 90% of my driving without the trailer...... average 12mph on the flats and about 8mph in the steep hills, not towing I can get anywhwere from 18 to 24mph cruising the freeways...Just my two cents......

 

[JBGHEAT]

We bought a new 2015 F250 XLT, shortbed, 6.7L diesel this past Friday. Thanks for all the info.