Dodge truck 2500 5.7 Hemi "gas" Towing 5er Questions!???

[VAGirl24]

Hi I've been reading a lot of post I am almost too embarrassed to ask this question last year we bought a 1995 Coachmen Catalina 27 foot fifth wheel from a RV dealership in Connecticut. We own a 04 Dodge ram 2500 4x4 short bed 5.7 Hemi, the salesman said oh yeah I checked the books and you're truck is fully capable of pulling this 5th wheel. We only took 2 trips last summer both trips were in state CT. I'm thinking that we definitely need a bigger truck! "Diesel" Has anyone else ever pulled a 5th wheel with a truck like ours??? Any tips answers suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
2 youngons 1st time 5er's
Vagirl24

[Cumminsfan]

What does your 5th wheel weigh? I tow a 27'10" 5th wheel that weighs 9000 lbs loaded. I tow with a 12 Ram CTD and it's great as far as power goes. With that being said had the 6.4 Hemi been out I would've went that route with the 4.10 gears. I do tow in the mtns a lot but when you think about it I'm only really working it on the 6% grades for a very short period of time. 5-10 mins at most. the other times I'm just cruising with everyone else.
Have you looked at the new gassers from Ford and Ram? A lot has changed since 2004.

[Mr_D]

Well, there's the problem; "the salesman said"!

[KHBama]

I tow a 10,000lb GVWR 5th wheel with my 2017 Ram 2500 5.7. It’s fine for what we do, weekend warriors for the most part. Also, we are in Alabama so it’s mostly flat terrain where we travel. My next truck will likely be a 6.4 or possibly a diesel because we I’ll eventually like to travel to the Smokey mountains one day, not sure how the 5.7 will do in the mountains

[Firewall]

If you go diesel go 3500. A diesel in a 2500 actually decreases your payload capacity due to the weight of the engine.

[chasmatt]

We have a 2015 2500 5.7. We tow a 31 foot fifth wheel that weighs 9500 to 9700 depending on how much water we have on board. No problems with the passes here in Washington State. We keep the RPMs at 2500 to 3000.

[VAGirl24]

Our 5er 6,950lbs"dry weight?" then it also says GVWR 8,950lbs

[VAGirl24]

Thanks so much for your help. We feel better ��!

[VAGirl24]

Interesting I definitely would not have thought that! Thanks��

[VAGirl24]

Same here! one day we'll own a diesel next truck ��

[khuffmanjr]

I'm guessing with that GVWR on the trailer that you're fine, but pin weight is really what matters. The 2500 will definitely be able to "pull" that trailer, but can the truck hold up that much pin weight? Best idea is to weigh at the cat scales at a truck stop with the trailer hooked up and loaded to what you would carry on the road. Then look at the axle ratings on your truck and compare with the weights you get at the scales. Good luck! If you need more info, come back and ask.

Also, don't neglect your tires. Properly inflated tires for the weight you're carrying is critical to safe towing.

Ken

[JIMNLIN]

One of my trucks is a '03 2500 Dodge/Cummins quad cab 2wd short bed. It tows a 11200-11400 lb 5th wheel trailer with ease. No over weight issues.

With a full floating rear axle and a 6000 rawr your truck won't have any issue carrying the pin weight/other gear in the bed from that small 5th wheel trailer.

The 2500 5.7 Hemi came with a 3.73 or 4.10 gears. The 4.10 gears are best for towing duties.
Also the '04 5.7 hemi is down on power compared to the new gen 5.7 engines so don't expect it to keep up with a Diesel or new gen truck.

My 1st 5th wheel trailer was a '84 26' 8600 gvwr ...actual loaded weight was in the 7200-7600 lbs range.
Pulled it with a '90 model 2500 chevy 5.7 engine 4.10 gears with a whoppin' 295 hp and 300 lb torque. Sure it was slow but I pulled it all over southern CO and norther NM including all the 10k-11k passes for several summers. We even towed doubles (5th wheel trailer/boat for 8 years) with the truck .

[khuffmanjr]

Originally Posted by JIMNLIN

One of my trucks is a '03 2500 Dodge/Cummins quad cab 2wd short bed. It tows a 11200-11400 lb 5th wheel trailer with ease. No over weight issues.

With a full floating rear axle and a 6000 rawr your truck won't have any issue carrying the pin weight/other gear in the bed from that small 5th wheel trailer.

The 2500 5.7 Hemi came with a 3.73 or 4.10 gears. The 4.10 gears are best for towing duties.
Also the '04 5.7 hemi is down on power compared to the new gen 5.7 engines so don't expect it to keep up with a Diesel or new gen truck.

My 1st 5th wheel trailer was a '84 26' 8600 gvwr ...actual loaded weight was in the 7200-7600 lbs range.
Pulled it with a '90 model 2500 chevy 5.7 engine 4.10 gears with a whoppin' 295 hp and 300 lb torque. Sure it was slow but I pulled it all over southern CO and norther NM including all the 10k-11k passes for several summers. We even towed doubles (5th wheel trailer/boat for 8 years) with the truck .

I think categorically denying that overloading is possible is irresponsible. If you were not overweight with your system then that's great but it is something that this OP should take seriously. I think she should put the truck/trailer combo on the scales and verify, imho.

Thanks!
Ken

P.S. no hostility intended. Just my 2 cents!!

[KD4UPL]

Your truck should tow that trailer just fine. However, towing a heavy trailer, especially with a gas engine, isn't like "normal" driving.
When going up a steep hill or mountain you may end up with the accelerator pedal flat on the floor, sometimes for several miles. You will find your transmission down several gears from the top allowing the engine to spin at 4,000 or 5,000 RPMs. This is normal and how the engine is designed to run. When going down a steep grade you need to be in a lower gear so you don't use your brake pedal so much. This will also have your engine turning a significant RPM on the decent.
This is all normal and the proper way to drive when towing a heavy trailer.
In all cases, yes, a more powerful engine makes the towing task easier.