Newbie here looking for best tow vehicle

[LucasS]

Hey question. So traveling the Grapevine in CA as often as I do my favorite and most used feature on my XC and Denali is the diesel exhaust brake. Do the 1/2 ton diesels have one as well? Heck can you get 1/2 tons in diesel??

[NoNameinNM]

Originally Posted by DC Bruce

Surprisingly, I saw a large number of new 3/4 ton Chevy's without trailer tow mirrors installed. What's up with that? On Chevy/GMC these cannot be retrofitted (at least for '15) because the tow mirrors are attached with 4 bolts, while the regular mirror uses only 3. A truck with regular mirrors from the factory isn't going to be drilled and set up for 4 bolts. So, you're into aftermarket or add-ons.
As for "but-in-seat," the '15 Chevy/GMC has the absolute best seats for this guy's butt.😜

I wonder what factory genius made that decision about the mirrors? That's nuts!

Between the factory and the sales, floor, sometimes they do seem to keep us either shaking our heads or laughing them off. One day we were getting into a truck that a young salesman brought out for us to test drive. As I stepped up into the driver's seat I asked him if this one had the power folding tow mirrors. He told me that there were no power folding tow mirrors and that it wasn't even an option… at which point I located and pressed the button and said "Oh, really?"

[NoNameinNM]

Originally Posted by LucasS

Hey question. So traveling the Grapevine in CA as often as I do my favorite and most used feature on my XC and Denali is the diesel exhaust brake. Do the 1/2 ton diesels have one as well? Heck can you get 1/2 tons in diesel??

Ram currently builds a 1/2-ton ecodiesel. General Motors and Nissan are both supposed to offer a 1/2-ton diesel for the 2016 model year.

I have no idea if they currently have or will have exhaust brakes.

[Thos759]

Hi flash. Just bought the same trailer. I tow with a 2014 Chevy Silverado with the max tow package and a propride hitch. The 5.2 V8 strains a little on hills with AC on but otherwise it toes and handles like a dream. Specs on truck r 11300 max tow and 1200 max tongue Wt.... I'm careful not to overload the truck and I try to distribute wt in the trailer towards the rear. Truck also came with camper mirrors.

[switz]

Nissan announced a "heavy" half ton with a Cummins small V8 diesel supposedly hitting the streets fall of 2015.

[theflash44]

Ok, now that I've had some time to read the entire thread I've come to one conclusion...you're all nuts! But that's okay, I think everyone is crazy, some are just ahead of the curve.

The information I've already received is invaluable even from pre-test drive perspective so many thanks for the contribution and wealth of information!

My quandary now sits at 1/2 vs 3/4 but that is something I will deal with at the dealership in whatever I am comfortable in driving. Whether anyone is willing to admit or not, it's GMC's and Ford's that take the cake in favoritism (in this thread and others) with some RAM sprinkled in.

My situation is wanting a truck that can both serve as a comfortable Bay Area CA daily driver and an "on the safer side than sorry" towing experience since this is my first AS. That's where only a test drive to see my comfort will provide an answer (and I will definitely report back). From what I gather, a 1/2 and 3/4 would both do fine with my 27fb, with other considerations in mind (which, my god, that is what I really need to learn more about).

[BoldAdventure]

Ram 1500 features engine braking or transmission braking (depending on how you look at it) in Tow Haul mode on the Hemi's. Same on the 3/4 ton 6.7 Hemi option.

Ram offers the best bang for dollar in my personal opinion. Plus they don't have square wheel wells, like GM seems to like. (once you see it you can't unsee the squares)

[cwf]

If the Dodge had a better ride we would have bought a pre DEF version.

[tjdonahoe]

Go with the dodge ,in flat calif the hemi will do just fine

[ckottum]

Our Hemi did just fine in not-so-flat Calif during our visit to Yosemite last year as well.

cheryl

[AWCHIEF]

Nothing wrong with square wheel wells, especially with a Hemi under the hood.

[DHart]

Can't really go wrong with any of the big 3 USA truck makers. I think I could probably be happy with any of them. But once you go squares, nothing else will quite do!

[theflash44]

Ok friends, descend upon me your knowledge and I will be forever grateful.

I've narrowed down my TV search to stick with a half ton and am leaning toward a Ram 1500 Ecodiesel and a GMC Sierra 1500 w/ max towing package and EcoTec 5.3 V8. While we can debate back and forth on which is better for the sake of towing, I am currently leaning toward the Ram. Uh, Rambox?! Mind officially blown. And as BoldAdventure pointed out, they serve as a great beer cooler.

What I need help with now is calculations. My AS has a GVWR of 7600 and a tow weight of 770. I want to get one of these ProPride's given that it's so highly recommended by nearly everyone throughout this forum. Does the ProPride factor into the payload of the TV? And, I've seen the numbers vary wildly, so I should assume that the tongue weight should jump to over 1000#'s. So, let's say that the Laramie and Laramie Longhorn have max payloads of 1388 and 1300 (respectively) and the GMC Sierra 1500 I can't find numbers for but I assume it to be over 2000#'s.

Could I get by with the Ecodiesel....reaaaally?

[m.hony]

The ProPride will factor into tow capacity, tongue weight, and payload by its own weight. The part that is attached to the trailer tongue is added tongue weight, which also reduce your payload by its own weight.

[SteveSueMac]

Theflash44 - if you're tongue weight exceeds 1000#, will that exceed the hitch receiver rating on either vehicle?

The difficulty with a single answer is that it depends on what your trailer weighs (and where you out that weight) fully loaded for camping, on the scales, with WD applied. My AS literature said the tongue weight was some 800+ lbs - but in the scenario I outlined above, it's actually 1080# (which isn't a problem for my 1500# receiver, but is 80# over the unclear AS limit of 1,000#, but in no case above the receiver limit...&#128563.

I doubt you'd be at full GVWR with your trailer (unless you can't control yourself with "stuff") so if you assumed 6,000# loaded for camping and 1,000# for tongue - what would that do for your calculations?

[Mrjkq]

Originally Posted by NoNameinNM

Ram currently builds a 1/2-ton ecodiesel. General Motors and Nissan are both supposed to offer a 1/2-ton diesel for the 2016 model year.

I have no idea if they currently have or will have exhaust brakes.

N0 exhaust brake on my RAM 1500 ecodiesel, however, when in tow mode it automatically downshifts through the eight speed transmissions gears when descending a hill. The break pedal pressure applied on a decline causes the tranny to downshift to the correct gear selection for the current speed of decline.

[switz]

The tongue weight issue gets cloudy when looking at the literature number versus reality.

Our 2013 25FB International had a literature tongue weight of 833 pounds. After mounting the Hensley hitch along with street side and rear awnings and a solar panel, the tongue weight blossomed to 1,150 pounds. I had reinforced the hitch on our 2007 Mercedes ML320 CDI diesel and the numbers were all okay at the scales on the way home basically empty. Loaded for camping the tongue weight increased to 1,175 pounds and the axle ratings were exceeded.

Thus we purchased a 2012 Dodge Ram 2500HD with Cummins diesel engine. Their 1,200 pound rated round bar hitch assembly had some reports of weld failure, so I installed a Curt 15049 hitch rated 2,550 pounds tongue weight and a 17,000 pound trailer. We also cut the factory receiver off the truck. Another advantage was the receiver was about 4" lower than the stock one. Coupling all this with a level ride Kelderman air suspension system fronting rear really helped with the softness of the ride for the trailer.

After a major battery/solar conversion, the literature tongue weight of 773 pounds on our Classic mushroomed to 1,375 pounds. We just completed a new battery conversion that will have reduced thereby 300 plus pounds. I plan to weigh this weekend on my individual wheel scales to get actual numbers.

The factory payload number reflects a 150 pound driver (they need to update that number to reality) and a full tank of fuel/gas. So a 1300 pound payload could mean a 1000 pound tongue weight would allow the driver's weight above 150 pounds plus passenger plus very little in the bed of the truck. Then the axle and tire ratings come into play as the rear axle could be overloaded despite a weight distribution hitch.

The turbocharged diesel will perform at altitude just like at sea level where the normally aspirated gas engine will be gasping for air. At 10,000 feet elevation, that gas engine is putting out less than 50% of it's rated power.

[bellastream]

I personally would go for the f150 with the Eco Boost engine. Hate dodge interiors and there climate control system sucks. Last 2 rams my buddy had needed the entire dash removed due to cheap broken blend doors. You have the noisy fan on full blast and feel hardly anything out of the vents.

[SCOTTinNJ]

Originally Posted by theflash44

I've narrowed down my TV search to stick with a half ton and am leaning toward a Ram 1500 Ecodiesel and a GMC Sierra 1500 w/ max towing package and EcoTec 5.3 V8.

Could I get by with the Ecodiesel....reaaaally?

I think you'll find that the answer is no. If you stick to the payload numbers.

[theflash44]

Originally Posted by SCOTTinNJ

I think you'll find that the answer is no. If you stick to the payload numbers.

I guess I'm just trying to make it work. I can see where the numbers may get dicey, but the fuel economy daily driving and towing occasionally is a hard thing to come by and substitute.