1500 ram towing

[matches]

MY buddies ram 1500 towing a little more then its supposed to. Nobody was hurt. The trailer started fish tailing and he hit the brakes on the truck and trailer, causing it to continue on its course of destruction.

 

[TBurow]

wow, that sucks. glad no one was hurt. how much did that trailer weigh?

 

[matches]

It was a 23 foot toy hauler with 100 gallons of water, two quads, two bikes and food and gear for five people. I think around 7500lbs. Oh yeah and a bike in the back of the truck.

 

[HBarlow]

That's a sad way to learn a lesson. A 1/2 ton pickup is a poor choice for towing. They have inadequate suspension, soft flexible sidewalls in passenger car tires, and less weight/mass to handle the weight of a trailer. I'll bet he didn't even have a proper weight distributing hitch with a sway control device either.

If your friend had known anything about towing he could have easily recovered from the beginning sway by grabbing the manual trailer brake control on the brake controller or by stabbing the throttle on the truck.

 

[matches]

We grilled him enough that he replaced his tires with LT's and he did have the proper hitch with the sway control. But yes you are correct, his reaction to the problem caused the accident, along with the half ton truck. Now he can buy the real truck he needs!

 

[KKaminski]

And just this morning I was thinking of trading in our '03 2500 for a new 1500 to pull the fiver.



Not gonna entertain that idea.

 

[jgillott]

Unfortunately, if you spend enough time on the road, you will see this happen all too frequently. One of the worst accidents I've ever witnessed was on I-77 south, on that long grade just after you enter NC from Virginia. A family in a Ford Explorer towing what appeared to be a moderate size travel trailer lost control and rolled on a left hand curve just before you get to the bottom. Unfortunately, things didn't work out so good for them. Thankfully, all that is hurt for your buddy is his pride and the vehicles.

 

[AH64ID]

And just this morning I was thinking of trading in our '03 2500 for a new 1500 to pull the fiver.



Not gonna entertain that idea.

Its simply amazing that auto makers are rating 1/2 tons to pull the weight that they do these days... It just seems very unsafe to me.

We grilled him enough that he replaced his tires with LT's and he did have the proper hitch with the sway control. But yes you are correct, his reaction to the problem caused the accident, along with the half ton truck. Now he can buy the real truck he needs!

He will be lucky to have insurance cover it. Even if he has a Hemi the GCWR is only 14,000... With what you described he was probably over that. The Max tow rating is around 8K... I'll bet he was all of that. And payload is ~1300lbs... (Assuming QCSB)... 800lbs of tongue weight, 300lbs of bike, and just the driver puts him there... . So yes he will be lucky to get it covered.



Time for a 3/4 or 1 ton.

 

[KFranco]

Glad to hear your friend is okay. Now maybe he'll listen to ya.

 

[pullya]

I'm glad your friend was not hurt, or anyone else. That said, I am more concerned about the rest of us on the highway when some idiot, that has neither the sense or the knowledge just backs their truck up to something and starts to pull it without regard to the proper weight or equiptment on his vehicle. These people are a danger to not only themselves but to everyone else of the highway!! I've seen people in the boating community use a 1/2 ton to pull a 36' boat and try to justify it by saying that the boat ramp was only a few miles from their house. You might be able to pull it but trying to stop it is something completely different.

"There is no cure for stupid" Rant done---

Jay

 

[matches]

I agree. It was more important for him to purchase the trailer than to get the right truck. In his defense, the Dodge was rated to tow that trailer, just not loaded like he had it. The ratings IMO are completely off. Its a numbers game between automakers to have the most towing capacity. 1500 pickups are nothing but glorified cars, and should not be towing anything bigger than a tent trailer or 19' boat. Buy the real truck, their is a reason why they cost more. More to them than a cool motor and sweet smelling fuel.

 

[AH64ID]

In his defense, the Dodge was rated to tow that trailer, just not loaded like he had it. T

Then it wasn't rated to tow that trailer...

 

[HBarlow]

I'd be surprised if a 1/2 pickup was rated to pull that trailer at all unless it was at the empty/dry weight provided by the manufacturer and with the empty/dry specs on the truck as well. That little 1/2 ton V8 was struggling its guts out revving the engine near redline in second and third gear and constantly shifting back and forth.

 

[AH64ID]

I'd be surprised if a 1/2 pickup was rated to pull that trailer at all unless it was at the empty/dry weight provided by the manufacturer and with the empty/dry specs on the truck as well. That little 1/2 ton V8 was struggling its guts out revving the engine near redline in second and third gear and constantly shifting back and forth.

I have a buddy with a 2500 Hemi. . he has the same TT I have and where I can pull a hill in 5/6 he is in 3rd with his 5speed. So I know a 1/2 ton with a 1/2 ton auto transmission is going to be HURTING... and our TT's are only about 5K loaded. . if that.

 

[Road Dog]

I think the issue is more about poor setup -- not enough trailer brake and too much equalizer. It's not like he broke the frame on the 1500. The big change going to a 2500 is much bigger brakes and drivetrain but that doesn't help with fishtailing. (As an aside -- gassers run near the redline because that's where the power is. There's nothing wrong with that. )

 

[AH64ID]

I think the issue is more about poor setup -- not enough trailer brake and too much equalizer. It's not like he broke the frame on the 1500. The big change going to a 2500 is much bigger brakes and drivetrain but that doesn't help with fishtailing. (As an aside -- gassers run near the redline because that's where the power is. There's nothing wrong with that. )

The suspension is also a HUGE factor.

 

[HBarlow]

I think the issue is more about poor setup -- not enough trailer brake and too much equalizer. It's not like he broke the frame on the 1500. The big change going to a 2500 is much bigger brakes and drivetrain but that doesn't help with fishtailing. (As an aside -- gassers run near the redline because that's where the power is. There's nothing wrong with that. )

Nothing wrong with that? I guess it depends on your perspective.

That old 360 ci gasser V8 in the wrecked truck is not intended to be run continuously at high rpm. It's a crude old pushrod engine. Running it at 4000 rpm on every grade makes it miserable to drive or ride in, fuel economy will be horrible, and both the engine and transmission will be ready for complete rebuilds in 60,000 miles . . . if the owner is lucky and they last that long.

And yes, a 2500 or 3500 WILL help with the fishtail issue over a 1500 because the heavyier trucks have light truck tires vs. passenger car, stiffer suspension, and greater weight and mass for resisting the "tail wagging the dog effect. "

 

[AClayton]

I think the issue is more about poor setup -- not enough trailer brake and too much equalizer. It's not like he broke the frame on the 1500. The big change going to a 2500 is much bigger brakes and drivetrain but that doesn't help with fishtailing. (As an aside -- gassers run near the redline because that's where the power is. There's nothing wrong with that. )

It agree that a 1/2 ton pick-up is capable of handling much more than what most of these guys are speculating,however,because it is a Toyhauler and it was loaded with all the extra weight behind the trailer axle... . I think the accident was caused by both overweight and/or improper load balance. The driver was probably going too fast with the load he was towing and got into trouble..... and once into the sway he slammed on the brakes when he should have slammed on the gas or manually hit the trailer brakes.





As far as power goes... . who cares if a gas motor has to keep the rpm's up to maintain a grade. We are all used to driving with diesels but there was a time before I owned my truck that I had a gasser. And you had to rev it to get the power you needed. Let's see..... 5K is redline for a typical small-block gas V8... . 3. 2K is redline for our CTD's. So a gasser will have to rev to 4K to maintain speed on grade. You mean to tell me that none of you guys ever see 2500rpm's out of your Cummins

 

[RVTRKN]

OK, I feel a argument coming. 2300-2500 RPM is the sweet spot when heavy to keep the EGT down and the HP up when pulling heavy on a grade. The CTD can do this all day long and will thank you for running her like you should. These motors are underworked in a light duty application.

 

[AClayton]

No argument coming at all... . you simply made my point



Alan