What do you tow a Cougar 330RBK

[SAlexander]

I currently am looking to purchase a 2012 Cougar 330RBK with a shipping weight of 9,945, carrying capacity of 2,320, and hitch weight of 1,865 at 37' 4". My biggest question is my tow vehicle is a 2005 Chevy 2500HD crew cab short bed with 373gears and the Duramax, is this a safe tow vehicle for this 5th wheel? All the numbers are confusing me, and not sure how much the camping items weigh since we are new to the camping world what would one guess a fully equipped trailer to weigh without water in the tanks? Any input would be appreciated. Thanks.

[SAD]

IMHO, the point at which you need to switch between a SWR and a DRW HD pickup is when you close in on the max weight of your two load range E tires with your ~actual~ loaded pin weight.

A hitch weight (or brochure weight) is always suspect... Some are more accurate than others.. And some are are based upon a base model, while others may include the options...

Assume for a moment the following... Suppose your Chevy has an unloaded rear axle weight of 2,800 lbs....

Two load range E tires have (roughly 3200) capacity per tire at 80 psi... Meaning a total of 6,400 lbs on your rear axle. 95-100% of your pin weight is going to end up your rear axle.

With my given example, you could safely pick a 5er that has a 2,200 lb (loaded) pin weight and stay under the 6,400 (2800 + 2200 = 5000).

Of course those are hypothetical numbers and you'd have to investigate what your actual tire ratings are... And the tricky part is knowing the "loaded" pin weight. Because you're going to load options, water, food, clothes, propane, yada yada... which is ALL going to affect that brochure pin weight.

Remember this... Safety is as safety does... You can have a heavy combo (what you propose is not in my opinion) and be safer than the dummy with a light combo.

[SteveC7010]

You're looking at a trailer with a 12,000# GWR and a manufacturer's quoted hitch weight of 1865#.

You need to check the door sticker on your truck and find out what the actual maximum payload is for your truck. It varies a lot based on model, wheelbase, etc. so we need the number off your particular truck.

Payload is everything you'd load onto the truck which includes driver and passengers, fuel, pin weight of the trailer, and whatever gear and supplies you carry in the truck. These numbers add up fast. Many folks towing with 3/4 ton or 1 ton SRW trucks are really up there in payload. The ones with plenty of experience at this know exactly where they are and how much they can ask of their tow vehicles and trailers.

The big issue with SRW trucks is, as SAD pointed out, the tires. They have a maximum weight rating which is extremely foolish and outright dangerous to exceed, especially pulling a fifth wheeler because of the large pin weights. And those weight ratings change based on inflation pressure. My duallie has an increased payload of several thousand pounds just because of the two extra tires on the rear axle.

Pin weight is provided by the manufacturer based on the empty weight of the trailer. So your 1865# empty will likely increase to above 2,000# long before you have filled the trailer with your camping gear. At full traveling weight, you could easily have a pin weight around 2,400#. I suspect that increase alone may be more than you should expect from your truck.

But the only way to be really sure is to put all your numbers on the table and figure out what you can safely load onto that truck.

[Comptech]

We just bought a 2012 Cougar 330RBK and I am towing it using a 2004 Ford F350 SWD, diesel.... Seems to tow fine.. although this is my first 5ver so I am used to towing TT's. I can tell it is the heaviest thing I have towed before...