Hey guys. I have a 2011 RAM 1500 5.7L V8 and I'm looking to buy a travel trailer to pull behind. My truck has the tow package with everything including trailer brakes integrated stock. I'm just looking for info from people who pull trailers with this same style truck. Looking for info on comfortable lengths and GVWR for trailers for long cross country trips.

 

I have a 2010, 5.7, 1500, CC, 4x4, 2.5" lift with 3:55 gearing.


My trailer is 26' and 5,500 lbs. loaded for camping. Tongue is 700 lbs.


I have pulled it cross country 2 times, north-south. Both times I had no problems at all.


Of course we have looked at bigger trailers...and I have decided that my 1500 would not be able to handle anything larger or heavier while traveling any type of distance.


I always use the tow / haul button and 4th gear. At 62 mph this runs the engine at 2,200 RPM's while getting about 10 mpg. Most of the time was spent with the cruise control on.


I tried going faster and slower -- 62 was the sweet spot.


The ride was superb, uneven pavement not an issue, plenty of motor, I don't remember ever running under 55 going uphill.


No problems with sway or stopping.


The back of the truck does sag a little. This doesn't bother me considering how smooth the suspension rides. I've never bottomed out.

 

Awesome thanks for the info. I'm looking at a few 26 to 28 ft travel trailers (total length) with 7000 lbs max weight to pull. Not sure what my gearing is in the truck. If your diff is stock then I'm assuming it's the same as yours. I don't have a lift, but I'm going to install airbags on the rear and get the anti-sway/ weight distribution setup for the hitch. Do you think 7000 lbs is asking too much from my 1500? I've got two kids and a dog, so Im looking to get the bunk beds in my trailer. Most of them, even the "light weight" trailers with the layout I'm wanting are between 7000 and 7500 lbs GVWR. I'll be driving from Kodiak, AK to most likely NC region in two years when I'm due to transfer. So will be in mountainous regions of the Yukon in Canada.

 

Forgot to mention that my empty trailer weight is 4,800 lbs. and 7,000 is max. We travel light with very little water on board.

I'm speculating here: at 7,000 lbs your trailers tongue could be near 900 lbs. or 13% of gross trailer weight.

Find out what your trucks gross is. Subtract curb weight listed on the yellow sticker on the door post. This number gives you a cargo carrying capacity. Start subtracting the wife, kids, dogs & all the comfort articles in the truck cab plus anything in the truck bed. Whatever is left over is how much tongue weight you have available.

For the trip you are planning, personally I would add some safety factor of 5% or so.

So. don't focus on the trailer weight. Think about tongue weight. That's what is going to be throwing your truck around as you are motoring over hill and dale. Lol

Another consideration is the wind hitting a high wall trailer. Headwinds are the worst so you might consider size here.

The modern 1500 is a solid platform compared to 1/2 tons from the last decades. Just make sure you have enough truck for the trailer you choose. Your kids will have a great time with or without bunk beds. As adults we see bigger and think must be better. Sitting in a campground on a rainy day in 30' trailer is perfect because everyone has living space. Driving all day getting thrown around by a high wall trailer and then trying to find someplace to park day after day is whole different story.

My recommendation is to get the smallest trailer possible that everyone gets their own bed in. I say this because we usually are outside or busy doing things all day long and only need a place to sleep off the ground with our own bathroom.

Keep us posted on what you get.

 

That's actually a really good point. My kids will be six and three or seven and four depending on when we transfer when we make this trip. Your trailer is exactly the parameters we are looking at to pull behind the truck. The unloaded (dry) weight of the trailers I'm looking at are around 5000 lbs and have 2000 lbs of cargo carrying capacity. I don't plan on loading that much weight into the trailer. Maybe 1000 at best. But I also want to get a trailer I like that is towable and comfortable enough to want to use for its entire life span. But I have to stay within the confindes of my trucks capacity. The tongue weights they were listing were still around 500 lbs, but is that the tongue weight of the trailer unloaded or full?



QUOTE=biggcrisp;3287056]Forgot to mention that my empty trailer weight is 4,800 lbs. and 7,000 is max. We travel light with very little water on board.

I'm speculating here: at 7,000 lbs your trailers tongue could be near 900 lbs. or 13% of gross trailer weight.

Find out what your trucks gross is. Subtract curb weight listed on the yellow sticker on the door post. This number gives you a cargo carrying capacity. Start subtracting the wife, kids, dogs & all the comfort articles in the truck cab plus anything in the truck bed. Whatever is left over is how much tongue weight you have available.

For the trip you are planning, personally I would add some safety factor of 5% or so.

So. don't focus on the trailer weight. Think about tongue weight. That's what is going to be throwing your truck around as you are motoring over hill and dale. Lol

Another consideration is the wind hitting a high wall trailer. Headwinds are the worst so you might consider size here.

The modern 1500 is a solid platform compared to 1/2 tons from the last decades. Just make sure you have enough truck for the trailer you choose. Your kids will have a great time with or without bunk beds. As adults we see bigger and think must be better. Sitting in a campground on a rainy day in 30' trailer is perfect because everyone has living space. Driving all day getting thrown around by a high wall trailer and then trying to find someplace to park day after day is whole different story.

My recommendation is to get the smallest trailer possible that everyone gets their own bed in. I say this because we usually are outside or busy doing things all day long and only need a place to sleep off the ground with our own bathroom.

Keep us posted on what you get.[/QUOTE]

 

That 500 lbs. is the empty unloaded weight.

My personal opinion is that you are looking at a good weight range for our trucks.

My trailer is a Coacmen Catalina 261RLS. Wife kids & dogs all fit no problem.

I grew up tent camping & boating back in the 60's & 70's. Started tent camping with my family in the 80's and got my first travel trailer in the 90's. I'm sure that I had broken every law of physics and the weight police at some point in time back then. In 2000 I thought I needed a motor home to travel and be comfortable. It was fun, at first, then all of the headaches of maintaining it, along with having to constantly break camp, had me looking at trailers again. We bought a small 19' no slide model in 2010. It was too small so we traded up in 2012. I'm sure I'm not the first person to make that mistake (buying a trailer that was to small).

 

Got ya. I've been looking at a few coachmens I like. At the length you have as well. This will be my first travel trailer, or really first time pulling a trailer in general other than u haul trailers. I'm just wanting to get a feel from people on what they tow and what our trucks are capable to pull with no issues. I'm looking at a few 23 footers as well to save some weight. thank you for your help and input. And that's exactly what I don't want to do, buy a trailer im going to regret later on. So I'm still looking for a while. And thinking I'm gonna stay right around the 25 foot class trailers.

 

25' sounds like a good plan.

The truck will pull more than it is rated for, (not recommended but doable)

So power won't be a problem.

It's control you want, so as mentioned, tongue weight is the critical factor.


Items add up fast, as does the weight! Kids bikes, water in the tank, propane, etc.

I occasionally pull my 24' 12K deck over with the 1500 (usually use the 2500HD)

If it's just my Jeep or a car on the back, no problems, except in high winds.

Bags in the rear and an equalizer hitch will help a lot, especially when encountering high winds.


Good luck and enjoy the new trailer when you get it!

HB

 

verify your axle ratio, if you have the 3.21 you shouldn't pull that much trailer.

 

I pull this. 6200 dry weight, 29', quad bunks