> However... I found that there is a sticker on the hitch that talks
> about the hitch rating.
Damn those ratings anyway. <g> Looks like you've already received
some good info on weight distributing hitches. If you want a good web
page for lots of RV/Trailer info go to www.irv2.com. I think you'll be
able to keep yourself busy on it for a while.
>Weight distributing says max weight 6500 lbs, tongue weight 750 lbs.
>Weight carrying says 3500 / 350 lbs.
You can see that you will be over without the weight distributing
setup. And you will be real close with one. Do you know what your GCWR
is? That would be the maximum gross combined weight of both units
without exceeding the max for either unit.
Quite a few people believe that you should not tow over 75% of max
rating just to have a safety margin in case something happens.
> > Sure hope you don't plan on pulling that with the V6. <g>
>
> Why not? My '95 is rated at 5100 lbs trailer weight with the V6,
That unfortunately would be in a perfect world. While the V6 may be
able to pull it it will really put a strain on it. Hope there are no
hills in your travel plans. I pulled an enclosed motorcycle trailer
behind my 97 V6 auto 3.55. It weighed less than 2000 pounds loaded and
the best I could get on flat land was 12 mpg. In the hills of WV it
was 10 mpg at best. And believe me it strained going up some of the
hills here.
Another thing you may want to consider is adding some airbags in the
rear.
> Apparently he's had a lot of people pull this trailer with
> 6-cyl Windstars, S-10 Blazers and the like.
They may have, but they didn't do it in a safe manner. Short wheelbase
vehicles regardless of their tow rating do not make a good platform
for pulling a trailer. At speed it's like the tail wagging the dog.
>But I figure that if they can get away with a little piece of junk
>like that (safety margin or not), we should be in good shape with
>our Real Trucks :-).
That's why I bought a Ram 2500 diesel. <g>
-- Steve
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Fri Feb 06 2004 - 11:45:57 EST