Verdict: Cougar 29RES vs. 2012 Tundra 5.7L V8 Dbl Cab 4x4, Hensley

[chris199]

Stopped at scales..results:

Rig hooked up:
Truck Front Axle: 3420
Truck Rear Axle: 3760
Total Truck: 7180
Trailer Axle. 6740

Truck Ggvwr: 7100.

Rig NOT Hooked Up:
Truck weight: 6220
Trailer Total: 7680

Tongue Weight: 1140..keystone says 755. Note: I did not level trailer....was a little low up front.
Trailer rear axle: 6520. Since trailer was 6740 hooked up...could the not level/low front account for heavier tongue weight? Still over GVWR I realize.
GCW: 13860

Need to add 50 or 60 lbs to truck wgt....2/3 tank of gas at scale. So I am 100-200 over GVWR. Guess I need a 3/4 ton truck.

[f6bits]

Bummer.

What are your front and rear GAWRs?

When I subtract your Trailer Axle from Trailer Total, I get 940, which would be your tongue weight. Subtracting Truck Weight from Total Truck gets 960. Close enough. At least that’s not as far out of the ballpark as 1140.

Still, being over GVWR is enough to give you pause. With 12.5% of the trailer weight on the tongue, there’s not much you can do with loading the trailer to lighten up the tongue.

[chris199]

Front axle. 3420
rear axle. 3760

[smiller]

I don't see 100-200 lbs. over GVWR as being world-ending, in fact I would guess that many who like to shake their fingers are probably doing the same, just in bigger trucks ;). The tongue weight (if it is really that high) would concern me more.

That said you are at maximum and large trailers and 1/2-ton trucks at maximum aren't exactly known for providing pleasant towing experiences. Moving to a 3/4-ton isn't mandatory but if you can do so easily it is probably worth considering.

[chris199]

Towed to dc....3 hrs highway and back roads.....no prob.

Towed 2 hrs west this weekend.....highway and back roads no problem.

Only issue.friday night.....torrential rain...up a gravel slope in campground....wheels spun a bit but made it ok.

[f6bits]

The GAWRs you posted match what you measured on the scale. What does the door sticker say for axle ratings?

[rhagfo]

The GAWRs you posted match what you measured on the scale. What does the door sticker say for axle ratings?

This is the number you never want to exceed!!!

You can sometimes fudge GVW, but to exceed GAWR is a absolute no no!!

[chris199]

GAWR from Toyota....inside driver's door
front. 4000
rear. 4150

from scales
front. 3420
rear. 3760

Looks like I am OK on the axles.

Def 100 to 200 lbs over GVWR

[chris199]

Bummer.

What are your front and rear GAWRs?

When I subtract your Trailer Axle from Trailer Total, I get 940, which would be your tongue weight. Subtracting Truck Weight from Total Truck gets 960. Close enough. At least that’s not as far out of the ballpark as 1140.

Still, being over GVWR is enough to give you pause. With 12.5% of the trailer weight on the tongue, there’s not much you can do with loading the trailer to lighten up the tongue.

I had the trailer rear axle on a scale.....the tongue on another..not level though and got the 1140. I was expecting 940 to 1000....makes sense. Is 940 the tongue wgt not the 1140 from the scale? Either way...when hooked up truk is 7140+50 ffor some missing gas. Adding my granddaughter and her bike will add another 75 lbs to 100 lbs.

Seemed to tow ok..plenty of power etc. Definitely could feel the wgt vs our old 199ML passport.

[chris199]

What if I put one of these cargo carriers/cargo cage...can handle 400 to 450 lb...... on the rear of the Cougar 29rev? I could put the heavy chairs in the front V storage in the rear....put any firewood back there...when I take a canopy..probably weighs 30 to 40 lbs....can put that back there rather than where pillows go on the bed. Could ut the grill Q 120 back there too. That is under the bed....weighs a lot. Perhaps that would offload some tongue weight?

2 propane tanks are already in the rear.



http://m.campingworld.com/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jYW1waW5nd29ybGQuY29tL3Nob3BwaW5nL2 l0ZW0vY2FyZ28tY2Fycmllci1iYXNrZXQvNTg1MTA%3D.

[Ruffus]

Good morning Chris & Patty
Just a question. Does the rig feel to heavy, does your truck feel out of control, are you uncomfortable towing it? These are some questions to think about. I had an 18 foot Bayliner Boat that I towed with Ford Bronco II. It was really squirrily in a wind, wasn't comfortable towing so got a bigger truck. In 1990 I bought my first 5ver. With gas prices going up I wanted something economical so I bought a Ford Ranger 2X4 with a 4 liter V6. The specs. said it would tow the 18 foot Fleetwood Yukon fifth wheel that I was looking at and the fifth wheel said it could be towed with a compact truck. After buying both I found that I needed some air shocks on the truck to level it out but towing it was really nice. I later found out that no one other than trailer life goes out and tries towing these rigs, it's all figured by engineers and there is a large fudge factor because they know that we will push the limits as consumers. I pulled that rig for 189,000 miles before tradeing up and really wish that I had kept it. The main thing I think is are you comfortable towing what you have?:confused:
Just my nickels worth!

[chris199]

Seems to tow fine. Have had no issues with power. Have had no problems with truks/sway. I think the Hensley is doing its job (a pain to hitch up from time to time but there's bad with the good I guess):

Appears I am well within axle ratings. Just 100 to 200 lbs over the GVWR.

Pls see earlier question about whether a cargo add on to the rear of the TT might offfload some tongue weight and thereby reduce total wgt on TV.

Thanks!

[f6bits]

I’ve done some cargo shifting in the past. Getting the weight out of the front is most important. Moving it *all* the way back may cause the back end to sway around. I know you have the Hensley, but the extra leverage back there isn’t going to help. See if moving stuff to the midpoint, right above the trailer axles, is possible and gets the tongue weight down to 11% or so. Just that hundred pounds will certainly help.

Is there something you can do to lighten up the Tundra? Extra junk in there that can be left at home or put in the trailer?

[chris199]

May be able to put some things over TT axles. Will see what we can do there. That Weber Q grill is pretty heavy and is under the bed.

Tundra is bare bones. Two bikes in bed. Front wheels in back seat area. Two bike helmets, etc. My briefcase is robably 30 lbs and DW has bag of stuff we can probably put under the dinette...over the axles.

Will avoid carrying firewood from now on.

What's weird is......our first trip had probably 20 gallons of water in fresh tank. We almost never go dry camping so I drained it. Seemed to handle better when trailer had the water in it.

[f6bits]

It sounds like you have about 100 lbs of gear in the truck, excluding firewood.

My fresh water tank is about ⅔ full right now. I had it 100% full just to see how heavily I could load my truck’s rear axle. It feels fine, but I’m slowly emptying that tank. On the other hand, when I stupidly had 20+ gallons total in my rear holding tanks, handling was horrible with my previous TV.