I had the chance to do some towing that approached the Dak's rated limits this weekend. I towed a Bri-mar CH18-7F car trailer loaded with my Kubota B7800 tractor/loader with a PTO-driven, 3-point hitch mounted wood chipper attached (not shown in attached pic). All told, it was about 6,100 lbs.

My Dakota is a 2006 4.7 H.O AWD (3.92 gears) equipped with rear lowering shackles, Firestone airbags (allows me to increase load capacity and keep the bed lift-over height reasonable) running 50 psi, and Rancho RS5000 shocks. In addition, I used a weight distributing hitch and a Tekonsha P3 proportional brake controller.

I was pleasantly surprised. I could definately tell the weight was there, but stopping and handling were well within the acceptable range. Acceleration was tepid, but more than enough to keep up with traffic. Maintaining 65 mph was not a problem on flat ground, but I wouldn't want to run this setup on a regular basis in a hilly area.

 

Sweet pull man! lol I havent had mine that loaded yet

 

LOL, awesome pic. About a week ago or so I saw a GenIII Dakota towing an F250. I stopped to take a pic and the F250 guy got all upset so I just kept going. Our trucks rock.

 

Great pull! Awesome to hear.

 

Have a similar tractor I pull on occasion using a 16' open aluminum utility trailer. Probably close to 5000 all up. I don't use the overloads or weight distributing gear, but do have the factory class III hitch. I'm carefull not to get the tractor too far forward on the trailer, watching for the truck to squat an inch or so (from unloaded) while spotting the tractor front to rear on the trailer. Similar results for towing. No feeling that the truck is being overworked at any point. '05 Laramie 4x4/4.7/3.92's

 

Do you like the ride with the Firestone airbags? does it change the ride at all when the bags are empty? With 800lb in the box I find the bounce to be a bit much, in your opinion do they make enough of a differece to be worth getting.

 

When I'm not carrying anything in the bed I run the airbags at 10 psi (the minimum recommended by Firestone) and the ride is comparable to stock. I originally installed the airbags because I was carrying around two motocross bikes, tools, gear, 55 gallon water barrel, pressure washer, etc on regular basis. Probably 500+ pounds worth of stuff. The ride was too mushy and the air bags made an immediate difference. I very happy with them - they do exactly what I expected: allow me to reduce the air pressure for normal use and crank it up for heavy duty use. I consider them money well spent if you haul stuff on a regular basis.

They lowering shackles compliment the airbags by allowing a stiffer rear end without raising the rear of the truck too much. After a long day of motocross, pushing a bike up an extra inch or two can make a big difference.

 

do you possibly have a pic of the setup?

 

I tow a 26' Travelaire Trailer with my 2005 4.7 Dakota. GVWR is around 7000 lbs. I did a TON of research to see if this was a good combo. It was. I use a Husky weight distribution hitch which levels the weight between the front and rear wheels and my rig tows like a dream. I F-ing love my Dakota! (Pic of rig in sig)