Short vs. Long bed

[Wertles]

Probably a very stupid question, but I've been wondering over the last few days if my thinking has been wrong. I hear a lot of debate of short bed vs. long bed debates here in relation to towing stability. To make things fair, obviously these need to be SRW vs. SRW vehicles. I am not looking to get into the SRW vs. DRW debate as most of us would agree that DRW is much more stable than the SRW in stock configuration. For the 3G trucks, a regular cab long bed and quad cab short bed both have a WB of 140 inches. A quad cab long bed and Mega Cab short bed both have a WB of 160 inches. I always thought that it was the length of WB that determined the towing stability of the vehicle, not the bed size, but I have never heard anyone say that a regular cab long bed didn't have enough truck to pull a trailer. I am going to assume that this is that most that pull with a regular cab have a DRW. But again, comparing a SRW to SRW, will a quad cab short bed pull as well as a reg cab long bed and will a Mega Cab short pull as well as the quad cab long bed?

 

[CumminsBu]

I think the longer the wb the less sway the truck will produce to the trailer and short wb will zig zag in the lanes more.

 

[HBarlow]

A longer wheelbase always provides improved longitudinal stability ie towing stability. I don't remember seeing a comparison discussion between regular cab and other trucks because the regular cabs are so rare now.

 

[goodguys75]

I have a short bed mega, and pulling is never an issue... . but if you tow all the time, then I would go with a long bed... . I dont tow too often so it is not a huge issue..... but get the 3500

 

[Gonzo 1066]

Goose neck or 5th wheel hitch really work best with a long box, More room to turn and not have the trailer hit the cab, better stability and weight distribution. Lots of guys claim that the hitch extender in a short box doesn't make any difference, this is very untrue. The hitch pin should be slightly ahead of the rear axle so you get some load on the front tires.

 

[EricBu12]

If you tow a bumper pull. . a short bed SRW is good. . .
. A slide in camper?. . A Dually longbed.
A 5th wheel trailer? longbed for sure and dually if you want. .

If you tow a heavy 5th wheel, use heavier tires if you use SRW. I have 245/ 70R-19. 5" 12 ply "F" rated.

Weight list below is for my 2009 truck

 

[SVick]

You could always try the Mega cab with longbed! Coversion that is. Now that is a long one.

 

[Jim W]

I have towed two different 5er's with my Mega Cab and have never hit the cab in any on highway turns. The camper and the cab of the truck have plenty of clearance when turning. I have never felt any sway or loss of stability with my Mega Cab. To me the Mega Cab is the same as a Quad Cab long bed truck, as they have the same wheel base between them. The bed length of a pick-up truck to me has nothing to do with the stability in towing. It is the wheel base of the truck that will determine the stability.



I do have to release the hitch to the maneuver position when we are in the camp grounds to allow me to back in to the camp site without hitting the cab. This is because of the long cab and the short bed when you have Mega Cab truck.

Jim W.

 

[Wertles]

I guess I was pretty was pretty correct in my thinking that wheel base is the major determining factor in stability. I am well aware of the inconveniences of the short bed as I've been towing for 5+ years with it but that's all I ever thought it was, an inconvenience. I just happen to see a few commercial drivers out there in regular cabs and just wanted to know if there was some inherent safety that those trucks has over the quad cab short bed.
Gonzo brings out a good point about the mounting position of the hitch. That could really be the only difference in safety that I can see.

 

[ed9824v]

Thorn in the thread, how much difference in the 4x4 versus the 4x2?????

I was having difficulty reading the chart that was in the post even after blowing it up.

 

[mhsmith57]

We tend to forget, quad cab short beds are basically the same wheel base as a regular cab 8 ft bed. I tow a 5er with my QC short bed and have no problem using a slider hitch when driving in and around in town. If I was towing fulltime, yes, a long bed would be most beneficial.

Mark