Towing These 5th Wheels???

[dmatt]

Well, after a trip to the California RV show this weekend, our sights moved a little larger and we ventured into the 5er land!!!

We saw these two smaller 5t wheels (Cougar 244RLSWE and 278RKSWE) that claim to be towable by a 1/2 ton truck. I'm not sure my math is agreeing with this claim.

Anyone have either of these two models? If so, what are you towing with.

Also, any insights, warnings, heads up, etc? Thanks

[Festus2]

Moderator's Note to dmatt: Sorry, but I deleted the name of the two models when I moved your post. Can you edit it and include the name/model of those two 5th wheels?? Thanks and my apologies)

We have an '08 Cougar (5th) 278RKS and would never consider towing it with a 1/2 ton. Your math is right. I have towed it with 2 different 3/4 tons --- one gas and one diesel. You might be able to get away with the 1/2 for the 244RLSWE but check all the weights and capacity of both those RV's and a 1/2 ton truck and make your decision based on those figures. We can't give you any accurate advice without knowing all the necessary weights of the RV and the towing capacity of the 1/2 truck.
With a 3/4 ton, you will not have to worry about towing either of those two RV's and if you might like to look at larger RV down the road, you would be ok with most RV's with a 3/4T but not a 1/2T.
Save yourself crunching a bunch of numbers - get a 3/4 ton of whatever make you like - Dodge, GMC, Ford, or Toyota (for the smaller 244RLSWE).

[JRTJH]

The two trailers in question are: Cougar 244RLSWE and 278RKSWE

I tow with a 1/2 ton truck so I feel I'm fairly well qualified to address your question. It is possible, but not with "just any half ton" !!!!!

There are some models, the two you are looking at are possibilities, but you'd have to get the increased GVW truck to be in the numbers. Ford has an increased payload with the heavy duty tow package which would give you about 2000 lbs of payload and 11,200 lbs max trailer weight. I'd suggest if you are buying a new truck specifically for that trailer, a 3/4 ton would be a better choice.

We tow a Springdale that weighs 6200 empty with an 1100 lb pin weight. When loaded, we are really at the max payload for the truck. We've made some compromises to stay within the limits, some things we'd like to have along get left at home, we always look at weight, tow carefully with judicious loading and always make a list of what we need and what we'd like to have on a trip and then pare that down before we start loading.

It would be nice to just "cavilerely" load and go and sometimes we've compromised on things we'd really rather have onboard.

I don't think the trailers you're looking at are manageable without compromising and certainly not towable with the standard half ton truck.

I agree with Festus, if you're going to start over from scratch get a 3/4 ton and be done with it.

[SAABDOCTOR]

HI THERE I'LL THROW IN MY 2 CENTS. "BIGGER BETTER FASTER MORE" CLOSE ONLY COUNTS IN HORSESHOES AND HANGRINAIDS. I HATE BEING BLOWN UP GO THE 3/4 TON ROUTE YES IT WILL COST A LITTLE MORE. BUT SWAY AND HILS SAYING I THINK I CAN ARE NO FUN. AND THE OTHER THING IS WHAT IF YOU WANT TO TRADE UP? NOW YOU NEED YET ANOTHER NEW TRUCK.NEVER SAY YOU WON'T TRADE UP. IF YOU LET YOUR WIFE LOOSE IN THE DEALER LOT SHE MAY SURPRIZE YOU... MINE DID GLAD I HAD THE BIGGER TRUCK. ENJOY YOUR NEW 5ER GOOD LUCK.

[SteveC7010]

Originally Posted by dmatt

We saw these to smaller 5t wheels that claim to be towable by a 1/2 ton truck. I'm not sure my math is agreeing with this claim.

If you feel that the math doesn't add up very well, then your instinct is working well. )

Pin weight is a real issue. 1/2 ton pickups aren't really built for the pin weights of many fivers. 3/4 and 1 ton trucks are much better suited to deal with this. My '02 Dodge is rated to carry 4,700# in the bed. There is a whole bunch of piece of mind knowing that my truck can handle three times the pin weight of my trailer which is 1,565#.

I just looked up Chevy's rating for a 1500 ton long bed. They rate the payload at 1,600#. For a 2500, the payload jumps to 3,400#.

'Nuff said.

[Phil/Shirl805]

Beware of payload cap. We have 2010 f-250 crewcab, 6.4 diesel. GVWR 10000 lbs. Tow 2011 Montana High country 323. Dry hitch 1870 lbs. DW and I made a trip to scrap yard to weigh truck, full fuel tank, hitch in back, weigh in at 8485 lbs. OOPs 8485 + 1870 = 10355 , thats 355 lbs over GVWR dry. I would guess after loading it really about 1000 - 1200 lbs over. On a good note the GCWR is 23000 lbs. Have about 9 trips with no problems. Just weighed truck yesterday.

[dmatt]

Thanks everyone for verifying what I was thinking. The funny (sad) thing is that there was a Keystone rep present and I was talking trucks and their 1/2 series. I asked him about the Tundra and he said these are towed by the Tundra all over the country

After looking at the Toyota website, the best payload capacity I could find is in the Double Cab, 5.7 without/with Tow Package (lb.) 1745/1530.

So I could get 1745lb payload buying one without towing package, since for a 5er you won't need the trailer hitch. But then it would seem you loose the other things in the package like the oil cooler, aux tranny cooler, etc. OR, I would have to get the Limited Edition and get a 1720 package but now I'm shelling out money for options I don't want and a price I don't care for either!!! Heck, for over $40K, I might as well get a 3/4 ton or bigger

Seems more realistic that people have the tow package and have a payload of only 1530. With a hitch weight of 1270, I just can't see not being over weight without even talking about water, propane, battery, etc.

Guess I wasn't expecting a factory rep to try and sell me the bull like a dealer salesman did. The worse thing is that how many people bought these without having the info available from sites like this and have overloaded, etc.

[Ayotte]

We bought a Cougar x-lite 26sab last spring. We pull it with a 2008 Dodge 1500 qc 4wd 5.7 hemi. Handles it very well. No sway. Don't pull in the mountains but some hills. It will run in overdrive most of the time unless climbing hills of strong wind. Average between 9.5 and 13 miles/gal.

[SteveC7010]

Originally Posted by dmatt

Guess I wasn't expecting a factory rep to try and sell me the bull like a dealer salesman did. The worse thing is that how many people bought these without having the info available from sites like this and have overloaded, etc.

I had a salesman tell me that they only look at a TT's dry weight when considering a tow vehicle. Doesn't anybody in the RV industry understand that none of us tow empty trailers around? We all carry stuff!

And we should consider our holding tanks. I know a lot of folks promise never to travel with fluids in the tanks, but the reality is somewhat different. Most folks want a little water in the fresh water tank in case it is needed while traveling. I like mine to be at least 1/4 to 1/3 full. We all get caught once in a while having to travel with full gray and black tanks.

Seems to me that not taking things like this into consideration when calculating a TT/TV combination is sooner or later going to cause a problem.

IMHO, the GVWR of the TT should be the number to consider, not the dry weight.

[JRTJH]

We almost always travel back from camping with full gray and black tanks. We routinely dry camp in remote areas, fishing and hunting, to do this, we have to take our water in and carry our waste out. Granted, we almost always stop at the nearest town for the evening on the way out, camp with full hookups and clean the tanks, ourselves and the dog, but quite often, that nearest campground with full hookups is 100 or more miles from where we "filled the tanks"

So, yes, travelling in, we're full with supplies and water, travelling out, we're as full or maybe even heavier than when we started out. I often wonder if RV manufacturers ever use these things they make for us or if it's just "put em together, somebody will buy it"

[mhs4771]

Here's an example of weights: Our pin weight is listed as 1715 on the sales brochure. Was just weighed at the Montana Rally, pin weight in camping trim: 2600 lbs. We have a 1 ton Diesel Dually, so no problems. As they say "Almost any truck can tow any trailer, BUT the big question, can it stop it!!" Save your self a lot of headache and get a bigger truck because sooner of later you'll upgrade/upsize. We went thru 2 tents, 2 pop-ups, 2 TT and finally a 5er. Luckly we had already upgraded to the 1 ton Diesel Dually before the 5er, so we were not looking at upgrading both at the same time and had a truck that could handle all but the biggest 5ers. Best of luck