Can a Half-Ton Truck Tow a Fifth Wheel RV?

Fifth wheel RVs provide many benefits due to their distinctive towable design. The fifth wheel hitch offers RVers with further floorplans, facilities, total size, and way more. However there may be one evident barrier to entry with fifth wheel RVs — most require a heavy-duty pickup truck.

Heavy-duty pickups are massive and highly effective machines. They’re additionally costly, which dissuades many potential fifth wheel house owners. Many patrons merely can’t afford to purchase a heavy-duty truck, akin to a Ford F-350 or a Chevrolet Silverado 3500, along with the price of a fifth wheel (even for those who purchase a used fifth wheel).

Can You Tow a Fifth Wheel RV With a Half-Ton Truck?

Luckily, fifth wheels are designed to be towed by sure light-duty half-ton pickups, like an F-150 or a Toyota Tundra. For those who already personal a half-ton truck, you don’t need to accept a conventional journey trailer for those who’re set on a fifth wheel floorplan.

Not all half-ton vans can or ought to tow all fifth wheel fashions. Use a software like Tenting World’s Towing Information to calculate your truck’s towing and payload capacities. Understanding weight scores is significant to deciding on the correct journey trailer or fifth wheel your truck can tow safely.

A base-level half-ton pickup might not have the ability to tow all fifth wheels. However half-ton vans with excessive sufficient towing and payload scores have the power to tow many. With that in thoughts, let’s have a look at half-ton fifth wheels and the vans that pull them.

The Half-Ton Payload Drawback

Relating to fifth wheel towing, half-ton pickup vans have limitations that heavy-duty vans don’t have. It normally isn’t simply towing capability — it’s payload capability.

Merely put, payload capability is how a lot the truck can carry. This refers back to the quantity of weight the cab and mattress of the truck can deal with. By way of fifth wheel RVs, many half-ton vans can’t or can simply barely deal with the hitch or pin weight of a fifth wheel RV.

That is true even with lots of the fifth wheels marketed as half-ton fashions. At all times examine your automobile’s tow scores. We’ve made this simple with an instantaneous Towing Information Calculator.

Widespread Half-Ton Payload Capacities

Precise specs will differ relying on trim degree, packages, and different tools. However these are some payload ranges for widespread half-ton pickup vans:

• 2022 Ford F-150: 1,310 to 2,238 kilos
• 2022 Chevy Silverado 1500: 1,480 to 2,300 kilos
• 2022 Toyota Tundra: 1,575 to 1,940 kilos
• 2022 RAM 1500: 1,225 to 2,325 kilos
• 2022 GMC Sierra 1500: 1,360 to 2,270 kilos
• 2022 Nissan Titan: 1,311 to 1,711 kilos

Remember that these payload scores are for newer vans. An older mannequin might not have as excessive of payload capability.

Hitch Weight

When buying a fifth wheel, it’s essential to take into account the hitch weight — how a lot weight the fifth wheel will exert in your automobile’s body the place it connects to your truck (within the mattress). Producers disclose this of their specs for the mannequin. 

Please observe: the listed hitch weight is a dry ranking which suggests the trailer just isn’t loaded. As you load your trailer, your hitch weight will improve which it’s worthwhile to account for.

For instance, in response to the corporate web site, the Jayco Eagle 27.5RLTS has a hitch weight of 1,560 kilos. This is among the lightest fifth wheel fashions on the market.

In case your truck’s payload far exceeds the loaded hitch weight, you have to be superb to tow the fifth wheel. Keep in mind to make sure the tow ranking additionally aligns with the trailer’s weight. Nevertheless, if the fifth wheel RV hitch weight is correct on the truck’s payload capability or barely beneath it, you shouldn’t push it proper as much as the capability restrict.

If you function your truck at or close to the max payload capability for lengthy durations, you set extreme pressure on the drivetrain, suspension, brakes, and all different truck areas. You’re asking for issues over time.

Technician Tip: The load of your self and your passengers and cargo inside the truck should be factored into payload capability. For those who solely have 200 kilos to spare between hitch weight and payload capability, you’ll go over as soon as everybody piles within the automobile.

What About Half-Ton Truck Fifth Wheel Towing?

Fashionable half-ton vans can normally tow someplace round 9,000 to 10,000 kilos. Not all of them can do this, however many come geared up for severe towing duties.

Listed below are the listed towing capacities for widespread half-ton vans. At all times examine your particular make, mannequin, and 12 months in our Towing Information Calculator to make certain:

• 2022 Ford F-150: 5,000 to 11,300 kilos
• 2022 Chevrolet Silverado 1500: 8,900 to 11,000 kilos
• 2022 Toyota Tundra: 8,300 to 12,000 kilos
• 2022 RAM 1500: 6,120 to eight,280 kilos
• 2022 GMC Sierra 1500: 8,800 to 9,400 kilos
• 2022 Nissan Titan: 9,040 to 9,320 kilos

Once more, the precise towing capability of your truck might differ primarily based on the engine, tow bundle, and many others. Earlier than you head out and purchase simply any fifth wheel that claims it’s designed for half-ton pickup vans, do not forget that the automobile’s tow ranking should be larger than the RV’s gross automobile weight ranking (GVWR).

The Jayco Eagle 27.5RLTS fifth wheel has a GVWR of 9,995 kilos. Meaning if in case you have a half-ton truck with a towing capability of 12,000 kilos and a payload capability of two,000 kilos, you possibly can technically tow this Jayco Eagle mannequin along with your truck.

Nevertheless, we are able to’t overstate the significance of avoiding towing at or close to your truck’s max towing and payload capacities. Going that near the road will put a variety of stress in your tow automobile and certain go away you with costly repairs down the street.

So, Can a Half-Ton Tow a Fifth-Wheel RV?

The brief reply is sure however with the right quantity of warning and analysis. Generally, a fifth wheel and half-ton pickup truck might not go collectively.

There are exceptions the place a half-ton pickup truck’s payload and towing capacities can simply deal with tow automobile duties for light-weight fifth wheel fashions. Nonetheless, most half-ton vans will probably be higher off towing a special RV sort. Loads of RV towing equipment will outfit your automobile as wanted. Contemplate including suspension enhancements for those who plan to tow at or close to the truck’s capability.

For those who solely have a half-ton truck and may’t or don’t desire a heavy-duty full-size pickup (like a Ford F-250 or F-350, a Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD or 3500HD), then you might be probably higher off with a journey trailer RV. Small vans and SUVs may even tow a number of the most light-weight journey trailers.

A lighter trailer often is the good RV for you as a result of it places much less stress in your truck, permitting your tow automobile to last more and permitting you to haul your RV on longer journeys safely. For those who do plan to tow at or close to the truck’s capability, take into account including suspension enhancements to assist enhance the journey.

Light-weight Fifth Wheel RVs

Listed below are a number of lighter fifth wheels that your truck might be able to tow. Once more, examine the specs to your truck and the particular mannequin you’re interested by, and seek the advice of our Towing Information to make sure you can safely tow your fifth wheel of alternative.

Jayco Eagle HT 27RL

Fifth Wheel Specs

• Dry Weight: 8,610 kilos
• Hitch Weight: 1,520 kilos
• Size: 31’7″

Store Tenting World’s number of Jayco Eagle fifth wheels.

Forest River Arctic Wolf 261RK

Fifth Wheel Specs

• Dry Weight: 7,773 kilos
• Hitch Weight: 1,325 kilos
• Size: 30’7″

Store Tenting World’s number of Forest River Arctic Wolf fifth wheels.

KZ RV Durango 230RKD

Fifth Wheel Specs

• Dry Weight: 7,110 kilos
• Hitch Weight: 1,090 kilos
• Size: 26’9″

Store Tenting World’s number of KZ RV Durango fifth wheels.

As at all times, your native Tenting World is accessible if you wish to promote or trade-in your present RV for a brand new motorhome or a fifth wheel.

Which fifth wheel RV are you contemplating, and what truck do you propose to tow it with? Depart a remark under!