Why I would never have a 3/4 ton...

[Tim]

Weigh your loaded truck!!! (and check this out)

Weighed my truck today (loaded). I'm so glad I got the 1 ton. I had nothing inside except a small BBQ grill, two coolers, and some extra oil and other fluids for my offroad truck. My trailer was attached and I was using a weight distributing hitch, as always. My trailer is 20' long and weighs 3,080 lbs empty. Truck is a 3500 SRW, shortbox.



Anyway, here's the weights:



Front axle 4280

Rear axle 4280

Trailer axles 7480



Gross Weight 16040



That was with me in it, and my girlfriend not.



Truck weight 8560. Leave 240 lbs of GVWR if you have a 3/4 ton truck. My girlfriend weighs half that so I'd have enough payload for maybe another woman her size before I'd be overloaded... IF I had a 3/4 ton. 1 ton gives me to 9900 lbs so I'm good to go with the 1 ton.



Keep in mind my gross weight and that this is a regular ball hitch trailer, not a gooseneck or fifth wheel. Those would be even worse.



These trucks are just too heavy to be 3/4 tons in my opinion. I'm nowhere near the GCWR, but if i was in a 3/4 ton truck, I'd be all over the GVWR LONG before I could ever exceed the GCWR.



I just found all this information to be interesting. I've been preaching to 3/4 ton truck owners forever about not using a 3/4 ton truck to pull a 5er over 28 feet. Now, I know that even a ball hitch trailer can easily put you at or over your GVWR. Keep in mind that my truck is a QC shortbox, and that a longbox, even loaded to where I'm at today would likely be overloaded.



Just some food for thought. I figured I'd let everyone know just how easily you get towards those ratings when you're not really paying attention (I knew I had plenty of cushion.



BTW, it appears that my off road truck weighs about 5700 lbs, which I didn't think was bad for a 119" wheelbase fullsize pickup truck with an 8 point roll cage, V8, 4 speed, cast iron transfer case, winch, 1 ton axled, 40" tired beast on steel double beadlocks, etc. and other heavy items.

 

[Nate]

What's the difference between teh 1 ton and 3/4 ton? 1 ton have a D80 rear?

 

[Grizzly]

Weighed my truck today (loaded). I'm so glad I got the 1 ton. I had nothing inside except a small BBQ grill, two coolers, and some extra oil and other fluids for my offroad truck. My trailer was attached and I was using a weight distributing hitch, as always. My trailer is 20' long and weighs 3,080 lbs empty. Truck is a 3500 SRW, shortbox.



SO, what's your point? Why didn't you buy a real truck with a long bed?

 

[KevinK]

I found the same thing when I weighed our truck and trailer (26' Tahoe 5th wheel - 10400GVW) when we were loaded for a cross country trip. The truck was at 9800# and the trailer was around 9000#. I was surprised by the truck's weight and was glad I had a 3500. The trailer has a pretty heafty pin weight.



Kevin

 

[05mxdiesel]

i thought the only difference between a 2500 and a 3500 was an overload spring in the rear anyways, no other differences.

 

[GFritsch]

i thought the only difference between a 2500 and a 3500 was an overload spring in the rear anyways, no other differences.

This is my understanding as well. Add the overloads/airbags and you are good to go.

 

[KevinK]

That may certainly be true of the 3rd gens. It wasn't true of the 2nd gens. The 3500 had a heavier rear axel, bigger brakes, overload springs, and always had dual rear wheels.



Kevin

 

[67guzzler]

i thought the only difference between a 2500 and a 3500 was an overload spring in the rear anyways, no other differences.

That's what I was told also. I toyed with the idea of ordering the 3500 instead of the 2500 but decided even though it was only a small price difference it still wasn't worth it to me for the overload springs that I didn't need.

 

[Hawkeye 04]

The only diffrences between the 2500 and the 3500 is this: the extra helper springs, the factory cab lights, and the lettering. That's it! I couldn't find a 3500 set up the way I wanted when I bought mine, so I added the cab lights, and added airbags. I didn't want helper springs anyway because of the rougher ride at that certain weight when your not quite using them all the way. Plus, Tim, I can actually haul more weight and do it safer with the stability of the airbags. Of course, DOT wouldn't see it like that! But in all seriousness, if weight is an issue, then you should have bought a dually...

 

[Tim]

SO, what's your point? Why didn't you buy a real truck with a long bed?

My point is to show how easy it would be to overload a 2500 truck's GVWR even with a ball hitch trailer that isn't that long... and without being anywhere near the GCWR.



I have no use for a long bed, or even a bed at all. If they made a Diesel SUV with a Diesel engine and a 6 speed, I would have bought that instead. I don't haul, I only tow, and with my trailer in tow I have to go down some pretty nasty looking roads sometimes to get to the backwoods areas that I go four wheeling on. Shorter is better for me.



The reason I was so shocked at the truck's weight is that I don't haul. There wasn't hardly anything in the truck except for our food, coolers, and some extra fluids for the truck. I guess that means I had probably 1200 lbs or so of tongue weight from what I can tell, which is a tad on the heavy side for a 9,000 lb trailer, but still reasonable.

 

[Scrappy]

That may certainly be true of the 3rd gens. It wasn't true of the 2nd gens. The 3500 had a heavier rear axel, bigger brakes, overload springs, and always had dual rear wheels.



Kevin

if you have a manual or an HO the axle is the SAME between the 2500 &3500. the only difference is the axle width and the dual tires.



My '03 pulled 18120 lbs of stuff from AK to FL. I hat the bed full of tools and trailer ramps and 4 wheeler. the trailer was a 16' x 6. 5' equipment trailer with a 2000 Durango on it. the durango was packed full of stuff also. My axle weights were 4850 frt. , 5750 rear (truck total 10400lbs. ) the trailer weighed in @7720#

The truck was overloaded by 500# GVWR. but both axles were well under their limits.

 

[fkovalski]

I chose the 35000 this time because it was not much more than the 2500 with the exception of a few different options



Example of (2) SLT model I was comparing:

I could have gotten a 2500 WITH the light group W/O tow mirrors and stock Michelins... . -or-... . the 1 ton with off road tires and tow mirrors but not extra lights. Same sticker! The color of the 1 ton I chose was more to my liking as well. I can alway add my own "light group. "

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

TIM just learned one of the things I've been preaching for some time - it's easy, and very possible to exceed your Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) *long* before you ever hit the trucks Gross Combined Weigt Rating (GCWR)!



I'm right at my GVWR with a relatively small 24 foot kit 5er - even tho' I still have over 5000 lbs of GCWR left that I can't legally use...



And THAT is a lesson many either don't know, won't accept, or simply ignore!



And NO virginia, you CAN'T legally increase the trucks weight rating by addition of extra springs, airbags or a pair of crutches - it *might* be PHYSICALLY capable of carrying more weight - but the certified legal weight RATING is established by the MAKER, not by how much aftermarket garbage you install later...



The short and proper solution to those owners wanting to legally and safely tow heavier loads with their trucks is not to simply strap on more bandaids - just



GET A BIGGER TRUCK!

 

[brods]

... ... ... ... .

The short and proper solution to those owners wanting to legally and safely tow heavier loads with their trucks is not to simply strap on more bandaids - just



GET A BIGGER TRUCK!

Agreed, crowing about a 900 lb difference in GVWR is silly. Look at the GAWR for both trucks: fronts are the same, rear 2500 = 6010 lbs 3500 = 6200 lb, a whopping 190 lb difference between the two! So hell yeah a 3500 SRW is about 1 billion times better than a 2500, just ask Tim!

 

[Tim]

So hell yeah a 3500 SRW is about 1 billion times better than a 2500, just ask Tim!

Roll your eyes all you want. Ask Chrysler why you can't have four people in the cab, a cooler, and a 20' trailer behind you without busting your GVWR, don't take it out on me.



Remember, this is a ball hitch trailer 20' long and hardly anything inside and we're within a couple hundred pounds of the GVWR. Yes I could move my truck back on the trailer and reduce the tongue weight a hair without compromising stability or overloading the trailer (it's a 14k GVWR trailer) but that still doesn't leave much cushion.



I'm glad I got the 3500.



You're only as strong as your weakest link. Even if front GAWR and rear GAWR add up to a higher number, you're overloaded if you exceed the GVWR at all... . which the point is that it's VERY easy to do so with a 3/4 ton.



Here's a pic of it all loaded up, but not chained down yet... .

 

[BrianJ]

Truck weight 8560. Leave 240 lbs of GVWR if you have a 3/4 ton truck.

Other posters have hit the other issues with this, I just want to correct your math. 3rd Gen 2500's have a GVWR of 9000 lbs, so that would leave 440lbs with your calculations. Small difference, but nonetheless lets be accurate on this.

 

[67guzzler]

Also we can't assume the 2500 will weigh in at 8560 like the 3500 did. So there may be more cushion there still.

 

[DJamrose]

mine weighs in at 7346lbs. full tank of fuel and me.

 

[gsbrockman]

So hell yeah a 3500 SRW is about 1 billion times better than a 2500, just ask Tim!

:-laf :-laf :-laf :-laf :-laf

 

[Tim]

Also we can't assume the 2500 will weigh in at 8560 like the 3500 did. So there may be more cushion there still.

My truck weighs 7,080 empty and full of fuel. I weigh 135 lbs. I'd be willing to bet that although a 2500 weighs slightly less, some of you good ol' boys that are heavier than me would make your truck weigh more than mine with me in it.



I'd further be willing to bet that a 2500 LWB QC would way as much, or more, than mine.



Sorry about the 200 lbs, I had thought 3/4 tons had an 8800 lb GVWR.



Just goes to show you how close I was though, even with the small trailer. A gooseneck or 5th wheel with any kind of pin weight would definitely put me over, or a longer ball hitch trailer.