Hello Everyone! New Member here

[N8SRV]

My wife and I traded in a Jayco White Hawk and purchased a 2022 Keystone Cougar Half-Ton TT 29RLSWE. I tow this with a 2019 RAM 1500. We love the three slides.

There are more electronics than previously with Jayco -- auto leveling, incommand system, solar flex 400i, so lots of questions coming. I am looking forward to gaining helpful information and getting to the place where I can be a help as well.

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by N8SRV

My wife and I traded in a Jayco White Hawk and purchased a 2022 Keystone Cougar Half-Ton TT 29RLSWE. I tow this with a 2019 RAM 1500. We love the three slides.

There are more electronics than previously with Jayco -- auto leveling, incommand system, solar flex 400i, so lots of questions coming. I am looking forward to gaining helpful information and getting to the place where I can be a help as well.

Welcome to the forum. Unfortunately, the term "Half Ton Towable" is a misnomer for the most part. Problem is, most 1500s don't have the payload to tow a "Half Ton Towable" which is a marketing gimmick that borders on disingenuous. Folks will be along with advice, I am sure. Good luck and enjoy your new camper otherwise... just mentioning as this is a safety issue.

[travelin texans]

Originally Posted by N8SRV

My wife and I traded in a Jayco White Hawk and purchased a 2022 Keystone Cougar Half-Ton TT 29RLSWE. I tow this with a 2019 RAM 1500. We love the three slides.

There are more electronics than previously with Jayco -- auto leveling, incommand system, solar flex 400i, so lots of questions coming. I am looking forward to gaining helpful information and getting to the place where I can be a help as well.

As George mentioned the 1/2 ton towable is merely a sales gimmick that gets lots of 1/2 ton truck owners into an overloaded situation quickly.
That particular 5er with a GVWR of 9500lbs will have a pin weight of 2100+/- lbs (typically 23% of the GVWR) + the weight of the hitch + the weight of everyone & everything you put into the truck all of which comes directly off the posted payload on the yellow/white tag stating "occupants & cargo must not exceed XXXX lbs" on your trucks drivers door jamb.
Your truck should have plenty of power "towing" that rv, but will be on the lightweight side to "carry" that much weight.
Might want to do some calculations to confirm the safety of you & yours along with the rest of us on the highways with you.

[rhagfo]

Originally Posted by travelin texans

As George mentioned the 1/2 ton towable is merely a sales gimmick that gets lots of 1/2 ton truck owners into an overloaded situation quickly.
That particular 5er with a GVWR of 9500lbs will have a pin weight of 2100+/- lbs (typically 23% of the GVWR) + the weight of the hitch + the weight of everyone & everything you put into the truck all of which comes directly off the posted payload on the yellow/white tag stating "occupants & cargo must not exceed XXXX lbs" on your trucks drivers door jamb.
Your truck should have plenty of power "towing" that rv, but will be on the lightweight side to "carry" that much weight.
Might want to do some calculations to confirm the safety of you & yours along with the rest of us on the highways with you.

Danny, the OP’s trailer is a Travel Trailer, 9,500# GVWR and 33’ long.

https://www.keystonerv.com/product/c...rplans/29RLSWE

[markcee]

I have essentially the exact same '1/2 ton' Cougar as you and can vouch that you will be pushing that truck to the extreme, if not over, its payload and rear axle ratings.

I towed mine the first few months with a 2019 F150 with the 'max tow' package. My healthy half ton pickup payload rating of 1873 lbs still had me running right at the limit - without carrying anything of substance in the bed of the truck.

Your 'real world' tongue weight on that trailer will likely be in the 1200 lbs, that what mine CAT scaled at 8400 lbs loaded. Yours may be even higher as Keystone lists your 'dry' hitch weight 130 lbs more than mine at 940.

I changed out the tires on my F150 for LTE and also swapped out the factory shocks for Bilsteins. The ride was a bit better (not as much porpoising) but that of course, did nothing to increase my truck's ability to carry that load. In my case, I ended up trading in for an F350. The 1/2 ton towable tag is marketing hype - perhaps 1% of the 1/2 ton truck population is equipped to tow that trailer safely.

This is not meant to rain on your parade or deter you from enjoying your new trailer, just giving you some real info, as I - and many others here - found themselves in the same boat as you.

Please take a look at the yellow/black/white Tire & Loading Info sticker on the driver's side door pillar of your truck and post a pic. From there, you will be able to get some better input on where exactly you stand with your RAM

[dutchmensport]

Welcome to the forums and Congrats on your new camper! Be patient, it takes time to figure everything out. The more you use your camper, the easier it will get. In a few weeks you'll wonder why you were so unsure of everything.

Again, Congrats! and Happy Camping!

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by N8SRV

My wife and I traded in a Jayco White Hawk and purchased a 2022 Keystone Cougar Half-Ton TT 29RLSWE. I tow this with a 2019 RAM 1500. We love the three slides.

There are more electronics than previously with Jayco -- auto leveling, incommand system, solar flex 400i, so lots of questions coming. I am looking forward to gaining helpful information and getting to the place where I can be a help as well.

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your new trailer. I'm sure the comments are a bit off putting if you thought you had just purchased the perfect combo. I'm sorry but the comments are to make you aware of your situation which can/will be dangerous if not deadly.

The instant comments were generated because a 1/2 ton truck cannot tow a 5th wheel trailer of any size (maybe .1% specially equipped 1/2 tons could). Make it move? Yes. Carry and handle the load? No. Just a comparison; a 33' 9500 lb. BUMPER PULL is more than a 1/2 ton can safely handle. The difference? The bumper pull will only put about 13% of its gvw on the tongue (truck load). A 5th wheel will put about 22-23% of the weight in the truck. Bumper pull; 9500gvw x .13% = 1235 lbs. tongue weight - "load". 5th wheel; 9500lbs. x .23% = 2185lbs. "load". Load equals "carrying/cargo" capacity. Look at the yellow/white sticker inside the driver door that gives you the "cargo capacity" for your specific truck; what's that number? 1500? 17-1800? It won't be enough to handle that 5th wheel and that puts you as well as others in significant peril.

These are not good things to hear. I've heard them before but numbers don't lie. I hope you have a wonderful time with your new trailer but you need to get a truck capable of handling that load if you intend to tow it anywhere.

[markcee]

Originally Posted by sourdough

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your new trailer. I'm sure the comments are a bit off putting if you thought you had just purchased the perfect combo. I'm sorry but the comments are to make you aware of your situation which can/will be dangerous if not deadly.

The instant comments were generated because a 1/2 ton truck cannot tow a 5th wheel trailer of any size (maybe .1% specially equipped 1/2 tons could).

My .01 comment was made relative to this being a TT, not a 5th wheel. OP pretty much has the same TT as me. I only mentioned the .01 as they are the trucks that allow the “1/2 ton” label to be used….they are the “if properly equipped” vehicles mentioned in the fine print.

Is there a 1/2 ton truck with 2500 lbs of payload a long bed and 4800 lb rear axle? Yep….but you definitely have to special order it

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by markcee

My .01 comment was made relative to this being a TT, not a 5th wheel. OP pretty much has the same TT as me. I only mentioned the .01 as they are the trucks that allow the “1/2 ton” label to be used….they are the “if properly equipped” vehicles mentioned in the fine print.

Is there a 1/2 ton truck with 2500 lbs of payload a long bed and 4800 lb rear axle? Yep….but you definitely have to special order it

My comments were not disputing anything you said, in fact I was just repeating/reinforcing and never actually thought about your estimation...which would be mine too.

[wiredgeorge]

I believe the OP logged off about 3 minutes after posting. Hopefully will return and comment.

[spicercars]

Welcome from northern MN.