tow ratings from trl life mag

[rparlaman]

Recieved new trailer lfe magazine yesterday,it had the tow ratings for 04. It came to my suprise that with all the tech. DC has they can`t make a auto pull as much as the 6 speed. The same CTD truck came in 2500 pds less with the automatic. Know i know why i bought the CTD with the 6 speed.





















92 CTD 160,000miles, 01 CTD Banks Power Pack, Jacobs Ebrake 50 gal trans flow. 30 ft forest river 5th.

 

[Mopar_Mudder]

I am not sure what you are saying but both the Auto and 6 speed have the same GCVW rating, or they did in 2003. I don't think I have ever seen any of those mags actually get specs right on anything.

 

[Moterhead]

dodge.com says my truck has the same tow rating with either the six speed or 48RE. Where do mags get their info?

 

[Mopar_Mudder]

Most of the time I think they grab it out of the thin air.

 

[zari]

Maybe (they don't know) they're talking about the 3. 73 vs. 4. 1 rear end? That accounts for a 2000# difference in GCWR... .

 

[Mopar_Mudder]

Originally posted by zari

Maybe (they don't know) they're talking about the 3. 73 vs. 4. 1 rear end? That accounts for a 2000# difference in GCWR... .

Maybe they don't know, but that is their job to know and that is what people pay for their mags for is because they "asume" that these experts know what they are talking about.



The resources are their and the numbers are easy to find, so their is no need for mistakes. Mistakes are made but their are way to many "incorrect" numbers that I have seen in all kinds of different mags.



Kinda like you would think that the sales people at the dealer would know everything about the trucks they are selling, yea right, I knew more then mine did. LOL

 

[RustyJC]

I can't believe how much digging is required for the layman to find out accurate GVWR and GCWR data on a truck. Before ordering my current truck I was looking at an F-350 4x4 dually crew cab Lariat PSD (yeah, I know, it was a weak moment ) on a Sunday afternoon when the dealership was closed and called the dealer 3 times on Monday trying to find out the GVWR and GCWR on this particular truck - never did get the GCWR!



Rusty

 

[Rams-n-Hogs]

I don't know why, (or when), they stopped doing this, but when I bought my 96, the weight ratings were on the window stickers.



Jim

 

[Moterhead]

I always know more about the product I'm buying than the salesman. Heck, they should just be called order takers as far as I'm concerned.



Re, the comment about 3. 73 vs 4. 10, if you look at the towing guide on Dodge. com, QC SB 2500 automatic, both axles are rated to pull 13,550 pounds. Same truck with a Long Bed, 13,400. If you go to a 3500 HO automatic, then you get the 2,000 pound difference between axle ratios. 14,350 for the 3. 73, 16,350 for the 4. 10.

So, it looks like the 2,000 pound difference is in the 3500 series, not the 2500.

 

[RustyJC]

Originally posted by Rams-n-Hogs

I don't know why, (or when), they stopped doing this, but when I bought my 96, the weight ratings were on the window stickers.

Jim,



Yep, the GCWR was on the sticker of my 2002 as well. Of course, we ordered our truck specifically to get the 21,500 lb GCWR that was only available with the 3500 Cummins HO, 6-speed and 4. 10 axle. My point was, how is someone going to know that a truck so equipped is good for 21,500 GCWR if they've never seen one on a dealer's lot? Where do they go to find that out? It's not that easy, unfortunately, especially with some other brands.



Rusty

 

[Moterhead]

Originally posted by RustyJC

Jim,



Yep, the GCWR was on the sticker of my 2002 as well. Of course, we ordered our truck specifically to get the 21,500 lb GCWR that was only available with the 3500 Cummins HO, 6-speed and 4. 10 axle. My point was, how is someone going to know that a truck so equipped is good for 21,500 GCWR if they've never seen one on a dealer's lot? Where do they go to find that out? It's not that easy, unfortunately, especially with some other brands.



Rusty

Where do you go to find that out? dodge.com if it's a Ram you are interested in. The towing guide there allows you to put in a weight an it'll give you vehicles that will pull that or you can put in the vehicle with different option packages and find the GCWR.

 

[Bill Stockard]

Speaking of "Trailer Life", have you ever noticed how the featured RV or tow vehicle coincides with the size and frequency of that particular RV's or tow vehicle's advertisement in the magazine?



If they are testing the tow trucks, they never get similarly equipped test vehicles or tow identical trailers with them. Makes you wonder about the accuracy of the so called "tests".



I'm not surprised at the inaccuracies in their tow ratings and don't put much faith in what they say. As others have posted here, check it out yourself... it's your money!



Bill

 

[Dean Upson]

Originally posted by Bill Stockard

Speaking of "Trailer Life", have you ever noticed how the featured RV or tow vehicle coincides with the size and frequency of that particular RV's or tow vehicle's advertisement in the magazine?

Bill

Not only Trailer Life, Bill. All of the magazines with the exception of Consumer Reports (I doubt that they will ever test HD Diesel trucks) seem to pander to the advertisers. Forums like this are the best source of information that I have found. When was the last time that you ever read a bad review in a magazine?



Dean

 

[Bill Stockard]

Dean,



Yep, sadly you are right. I wasn't just picking on "Trailer Life". They were the topic so I mentioned them. As they say, "follow the money"... where does most of the revenue come from? Advertising or subscriptions?



In our lawsuit crazy society, if they did make a bad report, the magazine would be covered up in lawsuits. Even Consumer Reports isn't immune from that!



Bill

 

[Dean Upson]

Bill,



I got ticked off at TL last year when they said that Reese was the way to go with for '03 fiver hitch issue (no drill/weld) on the hydro-formed frames. PullRite was, to my knowledge, the only company to actually come out with the hitch made especially for our trucks with the no drill/weld brackets. They worked very hard for us and they got no mention in Trailer Life.

I have nothing against a Reese, I used them for years with no problems, the point is that the biggest names and advertisers get the most press.

I have no business affiliation with PullRite or anyone else (I haven't earned a dime in the 7 years I've been retired), I just think the magazines only give the part of the story that will sell their biggest advertisers product. They are more slanted than the CBS Evening News .



Dean

 

[Peter Campbell]

If consumers reports rated out trucks they would be unacceptable!-- They are not at all like a car- bad mileage compared to a pirius, bad handling compared to a crossfire, bad brakes when compared to a lexus( car). Harsh ride and noisy interior. They forget they are rating trucks. To make it fair put a cube of cement blocks in each of the aforementioned vehicles and repeat the test!

 

[Bill Stockard]

Peter.



Yep. They have no idea how to test our trucks!! After the cube of blocks test, do another one with a 10,000 lb. trailer behind them!



Bill