Newby A Little Puzzled by Hitch Classes

[RUSSELL5000]

I have had my first Cummins truck for a little bit over a year; very much have enjoyed the truck and going places with a travel trailer. In fact, just sold the old travel trailer and got another one (wanted something a little bigger as my two sons are getting bigger).

The good folks here on the TDR forum really helped educate me on towing issues. Here is one I don't understand regarding hitch classes, however.

The new travel trailer has a listed GVWR of 9,500 lbs. I understand that anywhere from 10% to 15% of GVWR should be carried on the tongue of the trailer and transferred to the towing vehicle - I believe this is "tongue weight." So, my tongue weight with this new travel trailer is somewhere between 950 lbs. and 1,450 lbs.

My 2012 2500 has a class IV hitch. I was reading that a class IV hitch is rated for trailer weights up to 12,000 lbs. and tongue weights up to 1,000 lbs. That tells me, at least on paper, that I need to install a class V hitch, as my tongue weight will most likely exceed 1,000 lbs.


Huh?


I was talking to someone who tows all kinds of stuff all the time with his F-350 Furd, and he says he has a class IV hitch and never thinks twice about it regardless of trailer size. He says he pulls several kinds of trailers, anywhere from 6,000 lbs to 18,000 lbs. He says none of these are fifth-wheel or gooseneck.


Huh?


So, I want to be safe, just don't get it. Seems to me the class IV hitch on my truck would be plenty; certainly nowhere near the limit on trailer GVWR. I am confused by the tongue weight issue. Unclear as to whether I should be ordering a class V hitch or not to install on the truck.


Thanks!!

 

[NIsaacs]

The factory class 4 hitch mounted on your 2500 will probably do anything the truck will do. My '01 2500 has a class 4 and I routinely tow 14k with it with about 1500 max hitch weight. Any more than that and I am past truck level, I use that level as a max with my gooseneck (3k hitch weight) and 1500 bumper pull. The class 5 hitches are not all created equal, with gvw's and reciever size not standard. Some are rated 1200/12000 some 1600/16000 and some 2" recievers and some 2.5". The ball has different ratings as does the draw bars. I think the ratings are manufactures liability based, more so than GVW capacity. I know you are gvw rating conscious so I would go with what you are comfortable with, if you have any doubt, go with a class 5. To me a class 5 is more dually territory, but thats just me.

Nick

 

[mpaulson]

One the tongue issue, the weights they state on your hitch are without a weight distribution hitch. The way around the tongue weight is to use a weight distribution hitch which removed the dead weight on the ball and transfers it to the front axle of the truck and the trailer axles. Which I see you have an Equal-I-Zer which is a weight distributing hitch, so you have nothing to worry about with the OEM hitch.

 

[NIsaacs]

One the tongue issue, the weights they state on your hitch are without a weight distribution hitch.

Mine list both, 500/5,000 without w/d hitch and 1,000/10,000 with.

Nick

 

[Kirwin]

Look in your owners manual under trailer towing. It will tell you what your hitch is rated at. My 2003 was rated at 12K Gross Trailer Weight (GTW)and 1200 Max Tongue Weight. I was OK on the travel trailer weight, but my tongue weight was closer to 1800 lbs. I towed that trailer a lot with out any issues. I'd be surprised if they haven't upped the trailer tow ratings some for your 2012. More tongue weight is good to a point. You will start to have sway issues if it gets too high, especially with a 2500 truck since the tire sidewalls flex and this allows the trailer weight to push the rear end of the truck around and you get that squirily feeling. Ken Irwin

 

[JR]

The SAE standards are severely outdated and need to be updated to match the higher tow capacities of todays pickups. FYI, the Class V hitch and it's ratings are not even recognized by SAE at this time. There are a few manufacturers that build them and rate them but as I said everything is so outdated it's best to just go by your trucks ratings. Chrysler would not install a hitch on thousands of trucks that is not adequate.

 

[Kirwin]

I searched the Owners Manual on line and its full of gibberish on this aspect for your truck. However I found this in the 2012 Ram 3500 Body Builders Guide: Class IV hitch is limited to 12,000 gross trailer weight and 1,200 lbs tongue weight. See this link http://www.rambodybuilder.com/ph2012/phdocs/phram/phrammlup3500.pdf

 

[JR]

I just looked at the 2500's specs and interestingly enough the specs are the same as with the 3500....1200lbs/12,000 using the ClassIV receiver with a w/d system. They also note like I mentioned above not to exceed the trucks weight ratings.

 

[RUSSELL5000]

Thanks to you all, especially for pointing out that the SAE has not standardized these.

If 10% to 15% of a trailer is tongue weight then why are hitches not rated as (15% of trailer weight)/(total trailer weight); e.g., I would expect to see a 1,500/10,000 hitch or an 1,800/12,000 hitch. Is it because weight distributing hitches are required over 5,000 lbs.?

I found and saved the pdf of the towing capacity of my truck. It says:

GVWR of 9,660 lb.
GCWR of 20,000 lb.
Payload of 2,390 lb.
GAWR front of 5,500 lb.
Base weight front of 4,435 lb.
GAWR rear of 6,010 lb.
Base weight rear of 2,776 lb.
Truck base weight of 7,190 lb.

GVWR of travel trailer is 9,500 lbs.

Doing some conservative math, I get passenger weight of 1,000 lbs. (two sons, two dogs, one dear wife, myself), another 500 lbs. of "stuff" in the bed of the truck for a total truck weight of roughly 8,700 lbs. and leaving roughly another 900 lbs. of unused payload.

Truck weight of 8,700 lbs. and trailer weight of 9,500 lbs. yields a GCWR of 18,200 lbs., well within the GCWR specification. Actually, I think the GCWR will be much less than that, as I do not foresee ever travelling any significant distance or speed with fluids in the trailer tanks.

My thinking is that if you sell a truck with a hitch in it from the factory then the hitch should be sufficient for anything you can tow with the truck. It looks to me like I am fine to tow this trailer; I just get confused with the hitch ratings.

There is another long thread here on the TDR forum on my initial education on trailer suspension and towing. From that, I have upgraded the trailer suspension: 6,000 lb. axles with 12-inch brake drums rather than 4,400 lb. axles with 10-inch brake drums; 16-inch LT load range E tires rather than 15-inch ST load range D tires; spring eye wet bolts, bronze bushings, thick shackle links, and Mor-Ryde 3000 equalizers. I am using an Equal-I-Zer hitch rated for a 14,000 lb. trailer along with a 14,000 lb. rated hitch ball. When the dear wife gets everything loaded the way she likes in the trailer, I'll be stopping at the scale and dialing in the weight distributing hitch so I don't overdo it with the big spring bars. I am also adding a TPMS so if I do run over something and a tire is leaking then I'll hear about it (hopefully, with enough time to avoid any type of blowout).

That is, I thought I understood what was going on until I came across the hitch ratings. I am taking from your answers, as a whole, that I should just forget about that and move on down the road.


Finally, my type of trailer is quite common on the Jayco forum. I see that the majority of folks on that forum are pulling the same trailer with 1/2 ton pickups and gas engines. I assume they are not doing the same calculation I am, as I don't see any way that are meeting payload and GCWR after they load the family in the truck.

Thanks again to all.

 

[Kirwin]

I searched the Owners Manual on line and its full of gibberish on this aspect for your truck. However I found this in the 2012 Ram 3500 Body Builders Guide: Class IV hitch is limited to 12,000 gross trailer weight and 1,200 lbs tongue weight. See this link http://www.rambodybuilder.com/ph2012/phdocs/phram/phrammlup3500.pdf

Sorry I just realized you had a 2500 truck. Here is the appropriate link for your truck

http://www.rambodybuilder.com/ph2012/phdocs/phram/phrammlup2500.pdf

 

[AH64ID]

Also don't forget that GVWR is the max the trailer should weigh, it could be a couple thousands pounds less.

 

[RUSSELL5000]

Thanks, guys. I saved the chart. Yes, after my wife gets done I'll make a trip to the scale - I think my figuring is conservative, and my understanding is that a scale is the only way to actually know.

It seems to me that I'll be fine.

Thanks!

 

[AH64ID]

When you go to the scale try to find a closed weigh station, it is free and you can spend all the time you want.

When I weigh my truck to get everything as close as possible this is what I do, it's time consuming but accurate.

Leave WDH bars hooked up

Roll the front axle on the scale: Record FAW
Roll the rear axle on the scale with front: Record GVW
Roll front axle off, leave rear on: Record RAW
Roll truck off scale, trailer axles on: Record TAW

Unhook WDH bars
Backup to put front axle on scale: Record FAW
Roll the rear axle on the scale with front: Record GVW
Roll front axle off, leave rear on: Record RAW
Roll truck off scale, trailer axles on: Record TAW

Position truck so trailer tongue is over scale, but axles are not. Unhook trailer, reposition truck off of scale. Level trailer (makes a big difference): Record TW

Move trailer off of scale.

Roll the front axle on the scale: Record FAW
Roll the rear axle on the scale with front: Record GVW
Roll front axle off, leave rear on: Record RAW


Okay, so now you have a bunch of weights. Here is a spreadsheet you can input the weights into and it will give you a readout.

Okay, well I have a spreadsheet that it's not letting me upload even as a .zip which are allowed???

 

[RUSSELL5000]

AH64ID,

I am quite conversant with calculations and spreadsheets. What is the idea in the spreadsheet you can't load? I'll recreate on my end.

Thanks!

 

[AH64ID]

AH64ID,

I am quite conversant with calculations and spreadsheets. What is the idea in the spreadsheet you can't load? I'll recreate on my end.

Thanks!

I am still not sure why I can't upload it, since it says .zip is acceptable. You, or anyone, can PM me your email as well.