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Old 11-12-2011, 03:09 PM   #1
dgkrivoski
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Question First time towing - weight issue

We motorhomed for thirty years, but decided to change to towing. I am looking at the GVCW factor. I have 2006 Dodge Durango 4.7 engine, 3.55 gear ratio with 11K# combined towing. Vehicle curb is 5000#. I have been looking at the Bullet 246RBS and trying to determine if this is an acceptable weight for towing or do I need to reduce to a lighter trailer. We usually traveled dry in the motorhome, with maybe 10-15 gallons in fresh tank. There are two of us but on occassion there maybe six with grkids.
Any ideas appreciated.

Former vehicle (yes for thirty years and still have both)
1982 28' Shasta Motorhome/ Ford - pulling 1993 Geo Storm
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Old 11-12-2011, 03:20 PM   #2
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Thumbs down Looks like its two heavy

It looks like your TV has max two weight of 5500lb the trailer is almost that weight empty. The max weight of that trailer is almost 7000. If it was me i would find a lighter trailer or a bigger Tv.
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Old 11-12-2011, 03:21 PM   #3
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And welcome to the forum.
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Old 11-12-2011, 03:37 PM   #4
dgkrivoski
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Question So 4000 on trailer dry??

Just as I thought but best to ask.. ty
Im going to try for trailer dry around 4K dry. Does that sound right?? My math is Ram with passengers (2) plus junk = 6000#.
Trailer dry plus 1000# junk = 5000#.
Total =11,000#

I can always adjust Junk value as I know the total must be 11K or less?? Right??
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Old 11-12-2011, 03:48 PM   #5
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Talking

Others will be able to answer that better than me as i'm new at the as well. I was told never to pull more than 80% of your max tow weight. So we upgraded to the 2500 when we had engine issue with our old f150. The made relacing the track a little bit easier to swollow. I'm very glad with the decison that we made braking is vast.improvment over the F150 and we have extra power on hills.
Good luck.
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Old 11-12-2011, 03:52 PM   #6
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Welcome to the forum!

Could you pull some numbers off the sticker on the driver's door post and perhaps the owners manual, please?

I am particularly concerned to see the GVWR and front and rear axle load limits, and if you have it somewhere, the maximum allowable payload for the Durango.

My concern is two fold. First, the as Englishman has already advised, the GVWR of the trailer is roughly 1,500# over the max towing weight of your Durango.

Second, while Keystone rates the hitch weight for 246RBS at 495#, the tow vehicle needs to be able to handle at least a hitch weight of 12% of GVWR or 840# in this case. True hitch weights need to be determined by weighing the rig, and typically, they run higher, a lot higher, than spec for an empty trailer.

Payload has to include all the gear in the tow vehicle plus the driver and passengers, plus hitch weight.

Full half ton pickups, properly equipped, have payload ratings in the 1,500-1,700# range. My concern is that SUV's typically have payloads less than comparable pickups. In this case, your Durango is based on a chassis that is a bit less than a full sized 1/2 ton, ie. the Dakota, so the payload will likely be less than 1,500#. Typical SUV payloads rarely exceed 1,000#, even when based on pickup platforms.

There is another thread currently going on comparing 1/2 and 3/4 ton pickups as tow vehicles. While some of the talk about 3500 and larger chassis doesn't apply to your case, the detailed info about 1500 and 2500 trucks certainly does. In particular, the info about axles, springs, and drive trains is very important to your question. I would urge you to study that thread carefully to learn more.

There are some older threads under Towing and Tow Vehicles that contain even more information.
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Old 11-12-2011, 05:58 PM   #7
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2006 Durango vehicle info

The gvrw is 6700. Curb is 5000. Gear is 3.55 with a combined value of 11,000, with 3600 front and 3900 rear. Hitch max is 1200.

http://tinyurl.com/7nj7md5

That is a link to the vehicle info from Dodge.

I hope that helps.
ty
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Old 11-13-2011, 05:29 AM   #8
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i have pulled trailers with a dakota right around the same spec's as your durango, and from my experiance, you wont be happy with it. i would think about upgrading your tow vehical to a nice 1/2 ton ram, if you are concerned about a nice ride, or to be safe run up to a 3/4 ton. never hurts to have a little more then you need. i ran a 3/4 chevy newer style for a while and it rode great with out a load. not real bumpy at all. i think your trailer and tow vehical are a little close for comfort, you could end up tearing up the truck in the long run.
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Old 11-13-2011, 06:54 PM   #9
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Cool Sandwich family

We are in a situation where we have 6 of us, 2 gr kids, son and wife ( who is ill) and the two of us. Vehicle change is NOT an option. So what other ideas do people have for us. Please... and ty.
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Old 11-13-2011, 08:49 PM   #10
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I have a 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4x4 with the 4.7 with a 3.73 ratio. I pull a 2590BH with similar weight specs and it’s usually fairly lightly loaded/dry. I have an equalizer hitch and it handles well, but pulling it up moderately steep hills is a challenge. I can think of some long hills I’d never want to try.

If all six of you and your gear are loaded into your rig, I can’t imagine it’d be a pleasant experience on anything steeper than a bunny hill.
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Old 11-14-2011, 06:41 AM   #11
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well I.M.O. it sounds like you have two choices, up grade to a larger suv, like an excursion or they make larger vans too like and E250 or chevy 2500 van, but then you lose the 4wheel drive option. also the Passport Model 238MLWE is almost a 1000# lighter then the bullet. you will lose the slide, but it might be a better trade then finding a new tow truck. its up to you, but i don't think that it is a good idea to run your numbers that close, they are there for a reason.
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Old 11-30-2011, 08:51 AM   #12
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I have a 2010 Outback 230RS, towed with a 2005 Chevy Silverado 1500 4x4 Z71 5.3 liter. The Outback weighs a stated 5241 pounds "DRY". Just filling the fresh water tank adds like 400+ pounds to it, then add all the food, and camping stuff, it really adds UP! With my 5.3 liter it is a REAL HARD pull for my truck to get over the mtn.s that are everywhere from where I live. It WILL do it, but it shifts down into 1st gear sometimes, 2nd very often, sometimes going as slow as 35 mph over the real serious 5-6000 feet high mtn. passes. (I just did "Walker pass" on Hwy 178 2 weeks ago, it was in first gear for at least the last mile of that pass winding out the engine, at 35 MPH, and slowing traffic). So when the manufacturer says it will tow _______ amount of weight, figure that is on FLAT GROUND!!! Those towing weights are what the structure can handle and really are a spec war between manufacturers like horse power use to be back in the day, but worse. YES it CAN "tow ____________ pounds" but at what speed? At how much stress to the engine and drive line? How LONG can it tow that weight without damage to the overall vehicle? They NEVER tell you that! Sure it will tow _____ pounds, but you will be replacing the tow vehicle ever 2 -3 years, as you have flat worn it out, but that is another good thing for the manufactures. So I agree with what others say, tow less than 80% of what the manufactures say it can tow, and that is a "wet" fully loaded trailer weight 80%, not the "dry" weight that the trailer manufactures use to sell you the trailer, that can "so easily" be towed behind your vehicle. (Yea, on FLAT GROUND)!!! The trailer dealers want to sell you the maximum trailer, using sometimes underrated "Dry" weights to sell it, as it is better profit, while the vehicle manufactures want to sell you that their vehicle will tow __________ amount of pounds, to beat the other manufactures out of their claims! Add those two together, and you end up with way to much trailer, for a way under powered vehicle, that will break in a short time trying to tow that much, lets not even TALK about stopping all the weight safely....

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Old 12-13-2011, 04:26 PM   #13
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Problem with towing is

The difference between "it will do it" and whether you want it to "do it". A lot of people are talking gears and nothing is more uncomfortable that to have a truck constantly shifting. Wear and tear is an issue as well as driver fatigue. As a rule of thumb I like to have 2K in reserve so I'm not running the guts out of my truck and myself when towing. My opinion.
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