Towing heavy fiver to much on rear?

[Weatherly]

Got 97 2500 ext cab 5 speed 4 wheel drive towing 36 ft toy hauler. Truck pulls fine after having air bags put on the rear. Went to Flying J scale and found had a bit too much weight on the rear axles. Front 4500, rear 7700, trailer 12000. Options show have the Dana 80 axle so thats probably okay, but have 305/70R16 tires all way around. Was curious what best (cheapest) was to get more capacity on the read axle. Change tires and/or wheels. Going to 3500 not feasible right now. TIA

 

[BigMike]

You are so over weight I don't think there is any feasible option available to you. I'm no expert, but I've learned enough reading TDR to know you can't make a 3500 out of a 2500. Might as well just go buy one.

 

[Shooter]

I'll assume the trailer is a fith wheel.



Next tow rig will be a 450 or550 Ford



TIRE SIZE HAS NO RELATIONSHIP TO LOAD RATING !!!!!!!



I'll bet that the dry pin wt was way over what the truck could handle let alone wet weight.



With the truck and pin wts you have it would still be over weight with a 1 ton.



"Truck pulls fine after having air bags put on the rear"



I guess the salesman was right: " your diesel can pull it". He did not say: " it could support it or stop it".



JMHO

 

[bmoeller]

I have some sales lit for the '97's. According to this you would have to go to a 3500 Cab/Chassis(8000# rear axle weight rating). The 2500HD is rated at 6500# w/ diesel or V-10. The 3500 R/C and C/C is rated at 7500#.

 

[Casey Balvert]

Big Mike is right. You can't make a one ton out of 3/4 ton. Something will eventually break on your axle. I would also be concerned about my safety. If it does let go, you may find that having gone to a one ton would have been a bargain. My two cents.



Casey

 

[RustyJC]

As a certified member of the "weight police", I don't condone towing over the truck's GAWR, GVWR or GCWR ratings. The Dana 80 on my 3500 is only rated for 7500 lbs GAWR. Having said that, however, the first thing I would do (if you already haven't) is get synthetic lubricant into that Dana 80. This is recommended by Dodge for towing applications, but for some reason they don't put it in even if you order the towing package!



I use Royal Purple synthetic 85W-140 in ours. We tow a 13,500 lb 5th wheel and are running 10,380 GVW (10,500 GVWR) and 21,180 GCW (21,500 GCWR). I noticed an immediate reduction in noise and temperature when towing. The Royal Purple has friction modifier in its formulation, so I didn't have to add any supplemental Mopar friction modifier to keep our limited slip happy. Other synthetics may be just as good or better, but the Royal Purple (available at my local NAPA) is working fine for us.



Be careful out there!



Rusty

 

[FParisi]

While it does sound like you are quite overweight you could help your rear axle by lowering the pin wt.

If your truck weighs 6800# then your trailer weighs 12,400, 15% minimum pin wt =2610 for a total truck wt of 9410 --still overweight but much better than 12,000+.

I sure hope you have an exhaust brake, upgraded truck brakes and a good controller!

Frank

 

[roadranger]

The heaviest tire you can get is a Michelin LT265-75R16 load range E tire. Their weight rating is 3415lbs each. That still only gets you 6830lbs tire rating on the rear axle. That's the best your gonna get without going to 19. 5" wheels/tires at about $3000 a pop.



If it was me, I'd try to get the pin weight down by shuffling gear and not running full water in the 5er. Get the weight under the axle rating of 7500lbs (if you really DO have a Dana 80 under it) AND get under the tire weight rating of 6830 for the axle.

 

[Big Best]

Look up Aerocraft conversions.

 

[TBOB]

over weight

Take rig to scales, weigh it all then pull up with trailer only on scales. Do the math and find out why your pin weight is so high. If need be contact trailer manufacterer to help correct the problem. A 12000 lbs 5er should not be over 2600 lbs. TBOB

 

[Texas Diesel]

I saw this once before. The guy in the same bost as you are had the leading axle on the trailer moved forward by PROFESSIONAL trailer company. This may no longer be possible because of hungry lawyers. It also may be possible to have your trailer converted to a triple axle, again have it done by a shop that fabricates trailers. Either way will reduce pin weight.



I think the best thing would be to get a 1 ton (dually!) for safety sake.



You may want to try redistributing weight in the trailer ( move water tanks etc if possible )



Get a MagHytec for the Dana 80 and use syn oil. Get a set of FastCoolers for your 4500. PM me because I know where to get a deal on the FastCoolers.



Because of your CGVW and drum brakes I suggest a Jordan Ultima brake controller.

 

[78repowerwagon]

You wont hurt the Dana 80 with the weight, It is the same axle as the dually flange to flange. Synthetic would be a good idea though. Spent the money on heavy tires.

 

[jbrowne]

Duallys on your 2500

I had the same problem with weight and stopability. I went to our local wrecking yard and bought a DANA 80 that came out of a chasis cab rig. ($1500. 00) Put new brakes on it and installed the one ton springs. Rides rougher but hauls the load really good. I pull a King of The Road 34ft Royalite. I also have a five speed and a compression brake. The comversion only took about three hours. The U joint bolts right up, too. Got the box from a outfit that makes flatbeds. It was already white. Saved $400. 00 there.

jbrowne













96 RAM2500 (one ton) 230HP, #8 plate, Converted to 5 speed, guages, valve springs, duallys.

 

[CrewCabDiesel]

Something sounds a little fishy, Whats the weight of the trailer alone ? How many axles? Check your 5th wheel hitch height, if you are running tongue low you are transferring unnecessary weight and load to your truck, and that will also make things really loose going down the road. Also as everyone else has said balance your load, but don't get crazy and overload the back of the trailer, rear wheels need to be on the ground too . As for tires, if you want to tow anything over 4000lbs, run E rated tires to be safe.