Nanner
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,968 
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Post by Nanner on Jul 30, 2018 12:08:44 GMT
I hadn't been camping in about 40 years, but we spent the whole of last week at a beautiful lake, only 6 of us anywhere around, quiet and peaceful. It was fairly rustic, water hook-ups, but no power ones. Outhouses and outdoor shower. DH had never camped in his life.
We loved it!! We came home relaxed and regenerated. And now we're thinking of buying a travel trailer. Such a decision. The only thing holding us back is the very low towing capacity of our truck (never thought we'd ever have to tow anything, so weren't worried about our low capacity Ram.
Is anybody here an expert (or know an expert) on figuring out towing and such? Here's the info:
Our truck:
2016 Ram 1500 3.6L V6, 4X4, 6.4 box Axel ratio - 3.21 GVWR - 6800 payload - 1688 Base weight total - 5100
GCWR - 9850 max trailer weight rating 4400
We like the Geo Pro G19FBS Dry weight - 3108 hitch weight - 360
Occupants in the truck occasionally could weight up to a combined 460 lbs. (people and animals). We will be adding a stabilizer hitch, so added weight there. Also the weight of batteries and propane (2 tanks).
I think it would cut it close if it's even possible, but since we will be in the mountains a lot, need to be sure.
Can anyone help? Thanks!
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Post by mygigiscraps on Jul 30, 2018 12:30:46 GMT
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Post by mellowyellow on Jul 30, 2018 12:35:26 GMT
How exciting! We bought our toy hauler last year and it's been so much fun! You will have a blast!
As far as towing...your salesperson will be able to help you with that. When we bought ours one of the first things they asked us is what we would be towing the RV with. Good luck!
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michellegb
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,915
Location: New England and loving it!
Jun 26, 2014 0:04:59 GMT
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Post by michellegb on Jul 30, 2018 12:45:24 GMT
I hadn't been camping in about 40 years, but we spent the whole of last week at a beautiful lake, only 6 of us anywhere around, quiet and peaceful. It was fairly rustic, water hook-ups, but no power ones. Outhouses and outdoor shower. DH had never camped in his life.
We loved it!! We came home relaxed and regenerated. And now we're thinking of buying a travel trailer. Such a decision. The only thing holding us back is the very low towing capacity of our truck (never thought we'd ever have to tow anything, so weren't worried about our low capacity Ram.
Is anybody here an expert (or know an expert) on figuring out towing and such? Here's the info:
Our truck:
2016 Ram 1500 3.6L V6, 4X4, 6.4 box Axel ratio - 3.21 GVWR - 6800 payload - 1688 Base weight total - 5100
GCWR - 9850 max trailer weight rating 4400
We like the Geo Pro G19FBS Dry weight - 3108 hitch weight - 360
Occupants in the truck occasionally could weight up to a combined 460 lbs. (people and animals). We will be adding a stabilizer hitch, so added weight there. Also the weight of batteries and propane (2 tanks).
I think it would cut it close if it's even possible, but since we will be in the mountains a lot, need to be sure.
Can anyone help? Thanks!
I think might be close but I would check with your travel trailer dealer. And close is OK as long as you weren't planning on lots of mountain terrain and hard towing. Also, check the Forest River (the manufacturer) message boards for specific Geo Pro info - I found LOTS of helpful information there. We just picked up a Geo Pro 16BH two weeks ago. We negotiated that stabilizer hitch into the sale price and that was a big plus (per DH). We have a Ford F150 with a 6 cylinder turbo engine and we have zero issues towing it. I believe the 2019 Geo Pros have dry weights that now include the 2 batteries and full tanks (again, double check with the dealer to confirm the tanks, but I'm sure about the batteries). We are super happy with the camper and all its features. The one we got was fully loaded with the exception of the off-road tire package. We've been watching the solar panel performance while it's parked in the driveway without the battery kill switch on (all the basic things are able to function) and we're glad we got it. We also got the upgraded 12 volt TV and convection/microwave. We plan to not keep the camper heavily stocked with cookware and "stuff", but will keep that in a couple tubs that we can use if we are using the trailer or tenting it. I hope it works out for you and you can get the camper. And I'm glad your DH is onboard with it too! |
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Post by mimi3566 on Jul 30, 2018 12:54:11 GMT
Hi Nancy.....we have a travel trailer and a truck and are avid campers....we plan to go full time in our travel trailer when we retire in 2.5 years so have done a lot of research on this topic which can be very confusing but this video is the most comprehensive explanation I've seen about this subject.
That is this family have an awesome youtube channel about full time living in an RV so can offer lots of tips and tricks.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwFLOBrADBs
The one topic that RV dealers and truck dealers don't talk much about is the payload capacity of the vehicle....to me, the payload is the most important subject and should not be one that is compromised. |
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janeinbama
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,174
Location: Alabama
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Post by janeinbama on Jul 30, 2018 13:00:22 GMT
Talk to a Dodge dealership in addition to the trailer dealership. Trailer dealership wants to sell trailers and my stretch the limits. Campground talk is where my DH learned the most!
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Post by kamper on Jul 30, 2018 14:07:33 GMT
Hi Nancy.....we have a travel trailer and a truck and are avid campers....we plan to go full time in our travel trailer when we retire in 2.5 years so have done a lot of research on this topic which can be very confusing but this video is the most comprehensive explanation I've seen about this subject.
That is this family have an awesome youtube channel about full time living in an RV so can offer lots of tips and tricks.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwFLOBrADBs
The one topic that RV dealers and truck dealers don't talk much about is the payload capacity of the vehicle....to me, the payload is the most important subject and should not be one that is compromised. I follow KYD too! This is what I was going to suggest as well. |
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Post by mimi3566 on Jul 30, 2018 15:18:52 GMT
Hi Nancy.....we have a travel trailer and a truck and are avid campers....we plan to go full time in our travel trailer when we retire in 2.5 years so have done a lot of research on this topic which can be very confusing but this video is the most comprehensive explanation I've seen about this subject.
That is this family have an awesome youtube channel about full time living in an RV so can offer lots of tips and tricks.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwFLOBrADBs
The one topic that RV dealers and truck dealers don't talk much about is the payload capacity of the vehicle....to me, the payload is the most important subject and should not be one that is compromised. I follow KYD too! This is what I was going to suggest as well. I love KYD and LJMJ and CRVL and I could go on and on.... |
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GiantsFan
Prolific Pea
Posts: 8,294
Site Supporter
Jun 27, 2014 14:44:56 GMT
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Post by GiantsFan on Jul 30, 2018 15:33:21 GMT
Talk to your truck mechanic and the trailer dealer. They will know if it's safe or not.
In addition to the Dry Weight and your weights, you need to consider all the stuff you will be bringing - dishes, pans, bedding, food, generator, extension cords, chairs, firewood, towels - it all adds up. Water weighs 8+ lbs a gallon, so if you travel with it filled with water be aware of that too.
We have a truck camper and we add a generous 1000 lbs to our camper's dry weight for all the stuff mentioned above.
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Post by CarefreeSadie on Jul 30, 2018 17:21:50 GMT
For your truck in the 2017 towing chart says:
GVWR 6800#, Payload 1880#, GCWR 9850#, Max. trailer weight rating 4610#
This means that your gross vehicle weight is 6800# (your truck)
The payload-anything you carry in the truck or bed of the truck plus the trailer tongue weight is 1880#
And the max towing is 4610#
The trailer dry weight means exactly that-usually without propane, water, sewer, battery, or anything you load in the trailer.......
So yes you can tow that trailer......you have a higher payload then our 1500....but everything else is lower then ours....
That is about the heaviest you can go for the trailer no matter what the salesman says....they just want to sell trailers they are not towing experts even though one would think they should be.......look on google for the Ram 1500 towing chart.....
Good luck and have fun!
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Post by papersilly on Jul 30, 2018 17:33:51 GMT
i don't have any advice to offer but it just so happens that dh and i were just talking about this last night! years ago we had a trailer we would tow with DH's dad's Ford F-150. well we sold the trailer and now that FIL is gone, his truck is gone too.
we want to get into camping again so DH is looking into getting a Lil Guy or R-Pod trailer. we like the tear drop shape that you can actually stand in. these are smallish trailers and will be fine for just DH and me. the problem is neither of us want to get rid of our cars to get a car that tows so we might have to get a 3rd car just to tow the trailer. i don't want to own a truck so our options might be a Ford Explorer or a Subaru Outback. i'm leaning towards the Outback.
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carhoch
Pearl Clutcher
Be yourself everybody else is already taken
Posts: 2,991
Location: We’re RV’s so It change all the time .
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Post by carhoch on Jul 30, 2018 17:50:43 GMT
We are in the process of buying a class A I cannot wait maybe we will see you on the road .
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Post by manomo on Jul 30, 2018 17:50:47 GMT
Have you considered a 5th wheel? We have towed both and find the 5th wheel to be so much easier to manage.
I agree with those who have suggested talking with your Dodge dealer. RV dealers really overstate which units can be safely towed and you do not want your RV "controlling" your truck.
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Post by Scrappyhappy on Jul 30, 2018 17:57:17 GMT
Talk to a Dodge dealership in addition to the trailer dealership. Trailer dealership wants to sell trailers and my stretch the limits. Campground talk is where my DH learned the most! This a hundred times over! We’ve owned 5 travel trailers, the staff at Dodge will be more helpful than a RV dealership. We’ve have found that RV sales staff over estimate the towing capabilities of the tow vehicle. You need power for hills and mountains. Keep up your research and be an informed buyer. Have you considered a used RV. We’ve gotten some great deals on trailers that are one or two years old. Good luck with your search!  |
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StephDRebel
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,665
Location: Ohio
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Post by StephDRebel on Jul 30, 2018 18:05:06 GMT
My husband said your engine will be fine but you'll blow your trannie with that much weight.
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Post by cannes on Jul 30, 2018 18:05:24 GMT
Talk to a Dodge dealership in addition to the trailer dealership. Trailer dealership wants to sell trailers and my stretch the limits. Campground talk is where my DH learned the most! This. A trailer dealership wanted to sell my FIL a trailer and said his little truck could pull it. It could, but not safely. I’d talk to a dealership or a mechanic, myself. |
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Post by mimi3566 on Jul 30, 2018 18:10:39 GMT
Just remember this....you can never have too much truck. Even if the truck you have or will purchase is capable of towing your current travel trailer, you will in all likelihood want to upgrade at some point down the road. Buy a truck more capable than your current needs and you will have room to grow.
We had an F 150 capable of towing 12,200lbs and 2,061 payload, but purchased a 35' travel trailer with a GCVWR of 9,900 lbs...it towed the trailer just fine but found out we were running out of payload and could not upgrade to a 5th wheel in the future so needless to say we sold our F 150 and purchased a 1 ton, diesel, 4 x 4. Is it too much truck for our current needs....one might argue yes, but I say...you can never have too much truck. Now I have room to upgrade to a 5th wheel and add solar panels and a battery bank so I can live off grid when we go fulltime.
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Nanner
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,968
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Post by Nanner on Jul 30, 2018 18:52:54 GMT
Thanks everyone:
It's a 2016 so the numbers are different than what someone stated above.
We are not going to buy a new truck. If we can't get a trailer we're comfortable towing, we won't get one. I emailed DH to talk to the dodge dealership about it.
The RV dealership is actually a bunch of slimebags. They have horrendous reviews and flat out lie. We looked 2 years ago and the guy tried telling us we could tow over 5,000 pounds. Even we know that's bullshit.
Used are out because there are zero used trailers around here that are the weight we are looking for, with the other things we want. So we are going new.
5th Wheels that I'm finding are all too heavy.
We like the R-Pods, but they come with no air conditioning and no power awning. Those are 2 musts for us. Queen bed, power awning, air conditioning and full bathroom (not the little shit-shave-shower all in one).
The dealership told us the dry weight did not include batteries or filled propane tanks.
Maybe we want too much in a light trailer. I think the Geo Pro would work, but we have to add a stabilizer hitch which is more weight.
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Nanner
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,968
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Post by Nanner on Jul 30, 2018 18:56:00 GMT
Question:
Is the trailer tongue weight the same as the hitch weight? Or are those different numbers?
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Post by mimi3566 on Jul 30, 2018 19:27:29 GMT
Question: Is the trailer tongue weight the same as the hitch weight? Or are those different numbers? When the RV manufacturer refers to hitch weight or tongue weight, they are referring to the same thing. For me personally, I refer to the tongue weight without the actual hitch. There are so many hitches on the market and they all weight between 50 #'s to 200 #'s depending on which one you get.
So the total tongue weight going towards your payload is the hitch weight, the tongue weight, battery, and full propane tanks plus the people, pets and any other cargo added to your truck whether it's in the bed or the cab.
Go look at the yellow sticker on the drivers' side door jamb of the truck....it should tell you your total payload.
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Post by CarefreeSadie on Jul 30, 2018 19:46:17 GMT
Look at the Winnebago Minni Drop or some of the Micro Minnies....most are under the weight you are looking for....these are Winnebago's towable line. They are ultra light and simple trailers. On facebook there is a Winnebag Minnie Towable for sale page. There aren't a lot of trailers for sale but there are a few....sometimes new from factory in the fall is cheaper then used. When a MSRP is listed most likely you can get the dealer down under 75% of MSRP. We purchased a Winnebago Minnie 2201ds and got a brand new last year model in March for less then 70% MSRP. winnebagoind.com/ go to travel trailers and then either the drops or micro minnies.... We have the towing package on our Ram 1500 so it has all the extra coolers and brake package. If you do not have a built in brake controller for the trailer you would need to add that aftermarket. |
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Post by papersilly on Jul 30, 2018 19:56:22 GMT
Thanks everyone: We like the R-Pods, but they come with no air conditioning and no power awning. Those are 2 musts for us. Queen bed, power awning, air conditioning and full bathroom (not the little shit-shave-shower all in one). .  The R-Pods do have AC! I wouldn't even consider it if it didn't. Been there done that. No more. |
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Post by papersilly on Jul 30, 2018 19:58:01 GMT
Look at the Winnebago Minni Drop or some of the Micro Minnies....most are under the weight you are looking for....these are Winnebago's towable line. They are ultra light and simple trailers. On facebook there is a Winnebag Minnie Towable for sale page. There aren't a lot of trailers for sale but there are a few....sometimes new from factory in the fall is cheaper then used. When a MSRP is listed most likely you can get the dealer down under 75% of MSRP. We purchased a Winnebago Minnie 2201ds and got a brand new last year model in March for less then 70% MSRP. winnebagoind.com/ go to travel trailers and then either the drops or micro minnies.... We have the towing package on our Ram 1500 so it has all the extra coolers and brake package. If you do not have a built in brake controller for the trailer you would need to add that aftermarket. I forgot about the Minnie Winnies! they are a little boxier than the R-Pods but at least they are small. we like these too. |
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Nanner
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,968
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Post by Nanner on Jul 31, 2018 0:20:50 GMT
Thanks everyone: We like the R-Pods, but they come with no air conditioning and no power awning. Those are 2 musts for us. Queen bed, power awning, air conditioning and full bathroom (not the little shit-shave-shower all in one). . The R-Pods do have AC! I wouldn't even consider it if it didn't. Been there done that. No more. None here do. There is one dealership in southern Alberta that sells R-Pods. None of theirs include air conditioners. It's $1700 to have one installed.
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Nanner
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,968
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Post by Nanner on Jul 31, 2018 0:25:04 GMT
I have to buy one in Canada, and I want to stay in Alberta because taxes are so much lower. If I was to buy one in the U.S., I'd pay a ton in exchange, plus I'd have to pay duty and taxes when bringing it back. It would probably add more than 50% on to the price. At least.
There are none of the light weight Mini Winnies in Alberta. At least not on google. There are some, but they are heavier ones (over 4000 lbs and over 5000 lbs).
Vikings are light enough but holy hell, there are some bad reviews out there. And reading their section on Forest River forums - lots of problems. Can't get a/c in any R-Pods around here. No power awnings either.
DH is refusing to budge on some of the things we want. So getting one at all might be out.
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Nanner
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,968
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Post by Nanner on Jul 31, 2018 0:27:24 GMT
also forgot to mention. With an R-Pod, Dh would be sleeping with his knees bent. The Geo Pro is 7" wider, so enough room for him to sleep with his legs straight.
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Post by papersilly on Jul 31, 2018 0:39:23 GMT
The R-Pods do have AC! I wouldn't even consider it if it didn't. Been there done that. No more. None here do. There is one dealership in southern Alberta that sells R-Pods. None of theirs include air conditioners. It's $1700 to have one installed.
That's so odd! But I would pay the $1,700 in a heart beat. |
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Nanner
Drama Llama
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Post by Nanner on Jul 31, 2018 0:51:43 GMT
My husband said your engine will be fine but you'll blow your trannie with that much weight. That's a scary thought. We definitely don't want to do that.
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Nanner
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,968
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Post by Nanner on Jul 31, 2018 0:54:03 GMT
None here do. There is one dealership in southern Alberta that sells R-Pods. None of theirs include air conditioners. It's $1700 to have one installed.
That's so odd! But I would pay the $1,700 in a heart beat. It's priced well enough that if it had everything else we really wanted, we would. But DH would have to sleep with his knees bent, and it doesn't have a power awning. No extra space on the counter at all (the 180), either, whereas there's at least something on any of the others we looked at. |
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kadeej
Shy Member
Posts: 14
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Post by kadeej on Jul 31, 2018 1:06:03 GMT
NEVER listen to what the dealer says you can tow. They just want to sell and will tell you anything to make a sale. Don’t forget to figure the weight of everything you put in the trailer, too. Clothes, food, supplies, chairs, bedding, etc. It adds up quickly. Good luck! I love my trailef.
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