Hey, Im going to buy a towing vehicle for my new trailer in the next weeks. Max. load is 7700 lbs. That means trailer + heaviest vehicle I may put in the trailer. 7700 lbs is calculated to put a big Cadillac, Imperial or somthing like that in. In most cases I will transport cars like Corvette, Camaro, Mustang, GS, 55-57 Chevy or race cars. I was thinking about a 2004 Dodge Ram 1500 4x4. The car I was offered has the 5.7l Hemi in and about 40000 miles on it. Fully loaded (leather, cruise, towing mode....) It also has a trailer hitch on it. The price is pretty good for Europe. So my question is: Are there any issiues with the Ram? My dad has a stick shift SRT-10. But he put 2000 "sunshine miles" on it in the past 2 years. So not much info how the 4x4 Hemi works as a daily driver and towing vehicle. I thought that I might put in a HD transmission oil cooler with a thermostat, air bags at the rear and some gauges (motor and trans oil temp). Maybe a nice dual exhaust :laugh: What do you think about this? Good choice? Better towing vehicle I should look for? I cant buy a Cummins. They are not street legal in Europe because of Emission Control. (And I dont like diesel p )
Your tellin me Europe wouldnt enjoy you going down the road in this?:bla: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDJBM9qLRNo&feature=related
That Ram 1500 is a 1/2 ton correct?I would look for a 3/4 ton something to pull any trailer with a car of any size on it.World of difference between the two when your using it as a tow vehicle.My .02, Tom
I had a 2006 Ram 1500 4x4 with the HEMI. Great truck. Basically the same truck you are looking at just a couple of years newer. I had to sell it due to a job loss a few years back, but I would buy one again in a heartbeat. Good pulling rig too as far as gas trucks go.
The half ton trucks are so much better than they were. I traded down a few years (and a few trucks) ago, and they pull a car on a trailer just fine. Some are rated over 10000 Pounds towing! My DD is a 2008 GMC K1500 rated at 9200#... with good electric brakes on the trailer, it tows great!
I would prefer to go with a 1/2 ton because of fuel mileage. Here in austria the sell fuel in litre. But if I calculate from litre to gallon and from euro to us dollar I have to pay 5.40 dollar/gallon:eek2: Diesel is not even cheaper. On some stations a little bit more expensive. But if I understand all the posts here correct: A 1500 Ram is a good truck with no common known problems and is well suited for towing the trailer and car I want to. Correct?
6100lbs towing, the 10,000 lb. is combined wt. and actually I think it's 11,0000 lbs. http://news.pickuptrucks.com/2009/0...-towing-rating-increases-to-10450-pounds.html You have to remember in a panic situation a 3/4 or 1 ton truck can stop better then a 1/2 ton. I pulled a 36 ft. camper with a crew cab dually, I lost my trailer brakes going into Brookville Penn., down a steep grade. If I had a 1/2 ton it would have pushed me through the stop sign at the bottom of the hill, as it was I was standing on the brakes.
:gp: Very interesting. Have to check out the Ram 2500. They are a bit difficult to get here in Austria. BTW: You have a beautiful car. Riviera GS with Sunroof. There are people out there who would kill for this car. (including my self :bglasses: ) Man, youve got everything I would put on my wishlist black/black, sunroof, GS, rally wheels, PW, PDL, 8 Track...... Definitly a dreamcar:beer
Thank you for the compliment, I looked for years.... My post was not to start controversy but safety. I see a lot of people pulling trailers over loaded. In 06 we were in Woodward and a friend lost a rear axle on his 59 Impala convertible. One of our Buick V 8 board members (and friend) was nice enough to back out his GS (with slicks) and drive it back to Ohio in the pouring rain. I volunteered to drive his 3/4 ton F 250 pulling his 26 ft. trailer with the Impala.......little did I know the trailer had no brakes. It was a white knuckle ride even with the proper truck, stopping was a nightmare.
I just thought I should correct the misunderstanding here. Not to start a controversy, just wanna set the info straight. I worked for Dodge for many years so I'm pretty familiar. The tow rating for a 2004 Ram 1500 with a 5.7 HEMI and an auto is 9150 pounds in a 2wd configuration. If it is a 4x4, because of the difference in the ratings of the tires, they rated them at 8800 pounds with 17" wheels, and at 7850 pounds with 20" wheels. If we are talkin about a quad cab, then the respective ratings go down by about 600 pounds due to the extra weight of the larger cab. I hope this helps you. Good luck.
I tow my heavy car long distances, occasionally, and with good electric brakes, the brakes on the trailer are stronger than the truck brakes, if you adjust them that way. If I towed often a 3/4 ton would be a better choice.
OK, to get all the information complete: The trailer I ordered has electric disc brakes and air suspension. I attached a pic how my trailer will look like. The truck Ill look at is a 4x4 quad cab with 20`rims. In Austria we have a very interesting law: You are allowed to tow trailers that are max. as heavy as the towing vehicle. Expt. the towing vehicle has 4WD. In this case you are allowed to pull trailers up to 1.5 * vehicle weight. I think the Ram 1500 4x4 weights about 5200lbs Is that correct? That would mean that I am allowed to tow 7800 lbs with it.
In a perfect world I guess.When you wind up in a ditch and hopefully no one gets hurt refer to this thread.
I'm sorry, but that is just an ignorant statement. If you are going to advise someone, stick to the facts. He is within the factory specified capabilities of the truck, so as long as everything is set up properly, he should have no problems. In the sue-crazy modern world we live in, manufacturer's ratings are if anything a little on the conservitive side. If he is within their ratings, he's fine. There is no reason for him to "overkill" and go to a 3/4 ton truck for the ammount of weight he wants to pull.
What do you want?!! Wanna call me stupid? Im from Austria, so my english wont be as well as yours. Maybe this is a miss understanding. I hope so. If not, stop bugging me. As far as I can see Im not out of any manufacturers capabilities. Maybe its not he best choice to travel mountain roads with this. But for 95% of towing I cant be far off. Instead Dodge would make other ratings for this truck.
