Irony

[Dog Hauler]

My new 1500 Limited should have its picture in the dictionary next to Irony.

I tow a trailer quite a bit. Many short tows under 100 miles and numerous longer tows between 200 - 2000 miles round trip. Trailer is 7500 pounds loaded and likes 1100 pounds tongue weight to be nice and stable. No weight distributor, at least not yet.

My former tow vehicle was a Mercedes GL350 (diesel) with air suspension:

- Max trailer weight allowed: 7500 pounds.​

- Max tongue weight allowed: 600 pounds. Yes, you read that right, 600 pounds.​

- Max cargo weight allowed: 1179 lbs.​

When I bought the Merc, I didn't pay attention to any of the weight limits except the 7500 max trailer weight limit. Okay, fine. My fault. And my trailer ended up being heavier than I thought and right at the Mercedes' limit towing capacity. Regardless, it's the trailer I had and the tow vehicle I had. It wasn't feasible to change out either one so I used the Merc to tow the trailer for maybe 15,000 miles, all the while being at nearly 2x the tongue weight limit and 400 lbs over the max cargo weight.

Here's the thing: the Merc cheerfully soldiered on through every single mile with not even a hint of complaint from the air suspension*. I could adjust it at will up or down and it never had a mechanical issue. But I always had it in the back of my mind that I'm over the tongue weight limit by 2x. Sure, a large safety margin is always engineered into stuff like that but 2x? I never considered the cargo weight limit until reading about it on this forum after getting my Limited or I would have had that nagging little voice in the back of my head, as well.

So, when it came time for a new tow vehicle, I thought I'd step up to a "real" tow vehicle...you know, something manly...and not have to suppress the little voices. Oh, happy days! The Ram 1500 seemed like just the ticket. Great ride (for a pickup truck), looks great, luxurious interior and a bed rather than the enclosed back of an SUV would generally be an advantage in my application. And it cost a whole lot less than another Merc, to boot.

As with the Merc, I looked at max trailer weight. 11,xxx pounds for the new Ram with eTorque and 3.92s. Yay! Plenty and then some. Unlike the Merc, I also looked at max tongue weight. Again, yay! 1200 lbs for the RAM (that's my recollection of tongue weight, although a search just now failed to find a tongue weight for the 1500 eTorque). Plenty and then some once again. Life was about to get really good, towing-wise. Okay, fine, once again my fault for not looking at the cargo weight limit.

Here are the numbers on the Ram:

- Max trailer weight 11,xxx pounds.​

- Max tongue weight 1200 pounds.​

- Max cargo weight 1284 lbs.​

But no. Life pretty much sucks towing-wise with the Ram. My limited really doesn't like 1100 pounds of tongue weight. Hates it, in fact. At that number, my cargo weight is around 1600 lbs. More if you tack on fuel and vehicle options, which as I understand it count as cargo weight. While the air suspension will level thusly loaded, it won't adjust up or down with the dashboard switch. If I try, I get an error message to the effect "Payload exceeded" or some such.

Let me see if I have this straight: Max cargo weight is 1284 according the sticker on the door jam and allowable tongue weight is 1200 pounds? So that means if I tow with the max tongue weight of 1200 pounds, I must slim down to 84 pounds, drive a completely unoptioned Limited, run on fumes so the fuel doesn't add to cargo weight and don't have even a cup of coffee on board to stay within the max cargo weight? That can't be right. Going with my 1100 lbs tongue weight, I at least don't have to lose weight to concentration camp levels, but I still have to run on fumes and can't have a cup of coffee on board my completely unoptioned Limited.

That can't be. Someone please tell me that my arithmetic is wrong.

Unless I goofed somewhere in my calculations, and the error message I get about my cargo weight exceeding max tells me I didn't, the bottom line is that (irony alert) my manly-man pick up truck is in practical terms far less capable than my girly Merc SUV. Double irony alert: At least I get only 9 mpg while towing with my Ram compared to 14 with the Merc**

I expect all manner of haters out there will jump on me for overloading the Ram, not to mention the Merc. But stow it. Okay, fine. I'm overloading the vehicles, risking my life. Risking your life and being a general menace to society. I should be locked up forever, have my knee caps broken then drawn and quartered. That's not the point. The point is that the wimpy Merc tows better than the He-man Ram truck and the Merc is overloaded more than the Ram. Who would have thought?

*Stopping distances fully loaded were fine, as were handling characteristics despite the tongue weight and cargo capacity overload.
**Although the total fuel expense is usually but not always partially offset by the less expensive price of mid-grade gas compared to diesel.

 

[Johnvan]

With the exception of the "payload exceeded" message, how does it tow?
I didn't see any other negatives in your post.

Maybe in a way this proves that the RAM is a better tow vehicle. The Merc allowed you to seriously overload it, possibly close to the breaking point, without a message. You may have been one good sized pothole from an expensive failure.

I think a weight distribution hitch will completely solve the problem. I read a post from a guy with a 4th gen experimenting with water jugs to see when the "payload exceeded" message would come on. He needed to be in the 600-800 lb overweight range to get it. You don't seem to be anywhere near that.
I think the difference is that the water jugs were in the bed so the weight was better distributed. Your weight was as far aft as possible.

 

[Cannonball]

Although I agree face value here is ironic (my wife actually has a gas GLE350!), I think the real irony here is you thinking a luxury midsize suv is more capable at towing just because the German's didn't put in overload safety measures. Take the safety limit off the Ram and I'm certain it'll drive itself until the wheels come off!

More irony is the idea that you seem surprised a 450ftlb deisel gets better gas mileage towing with a 3.47 gear ratio vs the gas 3.92 Ram.

 

[Lil Miss Always Wrong]

...... And it cost a whole lot less than another Merc, to boot.....

if your Limited costs less then it doesn't qualify for "irony"...right?! that would only truly apply if along with the other things you mentioned, it cost MORE $$$ & towed LESS : )

But i sooo get ur point, many purchases i have made in recent times were hawked as "new, improved, better" come to find out my weathered shabby 5 year old item performed MUCH better...it can be frustrating being a consumer in 2019, i get it, (can we say "Sirius/Guardian?! grrrrrr : ) But look at it this way, at least your menacing society "in style" : )

 

[BmoreStew]

I'm surprised you've had any issues. That tongue weight is high, especially for the total weight of the trailer, but it's not crazy.... Have you tried adding some weight to the back of the trailer to help balance it out bit? You're well under the tow capacity.

All I know for sure is that you're doing something wrong

 

[Cmerkert]

Trailer weight 7500 but it's tongue weight is 1100?!! What do you have loaded up front in the trailer? Is it cargo or a travel trailer? Your tongue weight is running over 15% of trailer weight. My TT is 7200 dry and 8000 loaded and tongue weight is not even 950 lbs. Can n you reconfigure it or displace weight behind the axles more?

 

[Dog Hauler]

With the exception of the "payload exceeded" message, how does it tow?
I didn't see any other negatives in your post.

Maybe in a way this proves that the RAM is a better tow vehicle. The Merc allowed you to seriously overload it, possibly close to the breaking point, without a message. You may have been one good sized pothole from an expensive failure.

I think a weight distribution hitch will completely solve the problem. I read a post from a guy with a 4th gen experimenting with water jugs to see when the "payload exceeded" message would come on. He needed to be in the 600-800 lb overweight range to get it. You don't seem to be anywhere near that.
I think the difference is that the water jugs were in the bed so the weight was better distributed. Your weight was as far aft as possible.

It tows okay, though the engine seems to struggle a bit on even very modest inclines which causes the trans to hunt gears.

Re: the early intervention program of the Ram nannies. They are just too aggressive. And besides, see the rest of my post on the 1200 pound tongue weight max compared to max cargo weight limits. Use the available tongue weight and there is essentially no room left for even a driver.

Re: weight distributing hitch: Weight distributors by themselves don't do sway control as I understand it. But there are marvelous sway control hitches out there such as this: https://andersenhitches.com/Catalog/andersen-nosway-weight-distribution-hitch.aspx

and this: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjb7PnZqJvhAhWynOAKHa1wCnIQwqsBMAF6BAgHEAQ&url=https://www.hensleymfg.com/hensley-hitch-video/&usg=AOvVaw3BPAkqfmIVOjOgsU5IebFI

I'm looking into them now.

Although I agree face value here is ironic (my wife actually has a gas GLE350!), I think the real irony here is you thinking a luxury midsize suv is more capable at towing just because the German's didn't put in overload safety measures. Take the safety limit off the Ram and I'm certain it'll drive itself until the wheels come off!

More irony is the idea that you seem surprised a 450ftlb deisel gets better gas mileage towing with a 3.47 gear ratio vs the gas 3.92 Ram.

Then relax the payload nanny.

Re: 450ftlb of torque for the GL: it's 455 and it's "diesel." It's also 240hp. The Ram has 410ftlbs so it's not giving up much. And then there's the 390hp and the eTorque which I think may add to the torque equation. So the Ram hardly seems at a disadvantage power-wise. And different gear ratios? Sure, but that and power output isn't relevant anyway.

For purposes of this discussion, the only point being made is that my Merc towed more without incident or nanny intervention and got better fuel mileage doing it. That's ironic.

if your Limited costs less then it doesn't qualify for "irony"...right?! that would only truly apply if along with the other things you mentioned, it cost MORE $$$ & towed LESS : )

But i sooo get ur point, many purchases i have made in recent times were hawked as "new, improved, better" come to find out my weathered shabby 5 year old item performed MUCH better...it can be frustrating being a consumer in 2019, i get it, (can we say "Sirius/Guardian?! grrrrrr : ) But look at it this way, at least your menacing society "in style" : )

Cost has nothing to do with it except that I figured getting a better tow vehicle for less money was a bonus on top of getting a good tow vehicle. Again, the point is that my girly-man Merc towed more without incident or nanny intervention and got better fuel mileage doing it than a rough and rugged, do it all, tow a house, haul god-awful heavy loads, be a Marlboro Man, good 'ol American pickup truck. If you don't see the irony in that, you must be trying hard to overlook it just so you can say something negative.

I'm surprised you've had any issues. That tongue weight is high, especially for the total weight of the trailer, but it's not crazy.... Have you tried adding some weight to the back of the trailer to help balance it out bit? You're well under the tow capacity.

All I know for sure is that you're doing something wrong

The standard recommendation for tongue weight is 10-15%. 7500lbs x 15% is 1125lbs. You must not be familiar with standard recommendations.

I can manipulate the load to get much less weight on the tongue. But I need the 15% to keep the trailer stable. Any less and it wants to sway.

So given that I'm within standard recommended tongue weight and I've loaded my trailer enough different ways to know how much tongue weight keeps it from swaying, just why are you so sure I'm doing something wrong?

Trailer weight 7500 but it's tongue weight is 1100?!! What do you have loaded up front in the trailer? Is it cargo or a travel trailer? Your tongue weight is running over 15% of trailer weight. My TT is 7200 dry and 8000 loaded and tongue weight is not even 950 lbs. Can n you reconfigure it or displace weight behind the axles more?

You might want to check your arithmetic. And see above response to BmoreStew.

 

[Cmerkert]

It tows okay, though the engine seems to struggle a bit on even very modest inclines which causes the trans to hunt gears.

Re: the early intervention program of the Ram nannies. They are just too aggressive. And besides, see the rest of my post on the 1200 pound tongue weight max compared to max cargo weight limits. Use the available tongue weight and there is essentially no room left for even a driver.

Re: weight distributing hitch: Weight distributors by themselves don't do sway control as I understand it. But there are marvelous sway control hitches out there such as this: https://andersenhitches.com/Catalog/andersen-nosway-weight-distribution-hitch.aspx

and this: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjb7PnZqJvhAhWynOAKHa1wCnIQwqsBMAF6BAgHEAQ&url=https://www.hensleymfg.com/hensley-hitch-video/&usg=AOvVaw3BPAkqfmIVOjOgsU5IebFI

I'm looking into them now.



Then relax the payload nanny.

Re: 450ftlb of torque for the GL: it's 455 and it's "diesel." It's also 240hp. The Ram has 410ftlbs so it's not giving up much. And then there's the 390hp and the eTorque which I think may add to the torque equation. So the Ram hardly seems at a disadvantage power-wise. And different gear ratios? Sure, but that and power output isn't relevant anyway.

For purposes of this discussion, the only point being made is that my Merc towed more without incident or nanny intervention and got better fuel mileage doing it. That's ironic.



Cost has nothing to do with it except that I figured getting a better tow vehicle for less money was a bonus on top of getting a good tow vehicle. Again, the point is that my girly-man Merc towed more without incident or nanny intervention and got better fuel mileage doing it than a rough and rugged, do it all, tow a house, haul god-awful heavy loads, be a Marlboro Man, good 'ol American pickup truck. If you don't see the irony in that, you must be trying hard to overlook it just so you can say something negative.



The standard recommendation for tongue weight is 10-15%. 7500lbs x 15% is 1125lbs. You must not be familiar with standard recommendations.

I can manipulate the load to get much less weight on the tongue. But I need the 15% to keep the trailer stable. Any less and it wants to sway.

So given that I'm within standard recommended tongue weight and I've loaded my trailer enough different ways to know how much tongue weight keeps it from swaying, just why are you so sure I'm doing something wrong?



You might want to check your arithmetic. And see above response to BmoreStew.

Wow... Well, if your truck tows half as aggressive as your responses to everyone you'll be fine. Have a nice day Sir. Lol

And yes, my math was off. By a full 0.0034 on the percentage. My bad. My mental math is deficient to the ten-thousaandth's place. Woops!!!

 

[Lil Miss Always Wrong]

Lil Miss Always Wrong said:
if your Limited costs less then it doesn't qualify for "irony"...right?! that would only truly apply if along with the other things you mentioned, it cost MORE $$$ & towed LESS : )

But i sooo get ur point, many purchases i have made in recent times were hawked as "new, improved, better" come to find out my weathered shabby 5 year old item performed MUCH better...it can be frustrating being a consumer in 2019, i get it, (can we say "Sirius/Guardian?! grrrrrr : ) But look at it this way, at least your menacing society "in style" : )

...... If you don't see the irony in that, you must be trying hard to overlook it just so you can say something negative.

Nope, honest i wasn't. And you brought up the cost just to keep record straight (and i know the Forum G*ds keep track of this stuff somewhere : ) i was sincerely saying i didn't think it was that ironic due to it not costing MORE and performing LESS, then i would've thought so. And i wasn't trying to be negative at all, i was truly empathizing witcha when i was saying how hard it is in 2019 to find 2014 quality. IN ANYTHING. I mean, if you look at staples, paper clips (just to name a few) from just a few years ago, everything was just stronger, built better... EVERYTHING is so freakiin' flimsy today, its sad...all's i'm sayin' : )

 

[BmoreStew]

The standard recommendation for tongue weight is 10-15%. 7500lbs x 15% is 1125lbs. You must not be familiar with standard recommendations.

I’m no marine biologist, but I’m certain that 10% of 7500 is about exactly 750... and a smarter person than I would probably recognize that if 15% is pushing the limits of his rig he’d redistribute the weight a bit. But I’m just a simple man trying to make his way through a complicated and scary world.

 

[BmoreStew]

Didn’t mean for my first post to be so snarky. My smiley face from the iOS keyboard didn’t post. The second post though... fully intentional snark.

 

[Dog Hauler]

I’m no marine biologist, but I’m certain that 10% of 7500 is about exactly 750... and a smarter person than I would probably recognize that if 15% is pushing the limits of his rig he’d redistribute the weight a bit. But I’m just a simple man trying to make his way through a complicated and scary world.

Bmore, 'ol buddy, your math is spot on and that smarter person you mention would figure that if it takes nearly 15% (1100lbs) on the tongue to keep the trailer stable, as I mentioned earlier in this thread, that's probably a pretty good number to use.

But back to the entire point of my original post. Who out there would have guessed the Merc could handle a tow job that the Ram stumbles on? It's undeniable that as overloaded as my Merc may have been, it did just fine with no nannies kicking in to screw up the job. My Ram, on the other hand, struggles. I may have been a bit sharp in my responses but that is a result of my just not believing that anyone would fail to find that situation pretty bizarre...ironic, really. On the other hand, it is the internet so there are all kinds out there.

 

[BmoreStew]

Bmore, 'ol buddy, your math is spot on and that smarter person you mention would figure that if it takes nearly 15% (1100lbs) on the tongue to keep the trailer stable, as I mentioned earlier in this thread, that's probably a pretty good number to use.

But back to the entire point of my original post. Who out there would have guessed the Merc could handle a tow job that the Ram stumbles on? It's undeniable that as overloaded as my Merc may have been, it did just fine with no nannies kicking in to screw up the job. My Ram, on the other hand, struggles. I may have been a bit sharp in my responses but that is a result of my just not believing that anyone would fail to find that situation pretty bizarre...ironic, really. On the other hand, it is the internet so there are all kinds out there.

I guess I can’t get to the irony through the unlikelihood... but i’ll trust your judgement.

...the trailer is level? Joking... kinda.

 

[banditsc]

You have to be over 1100 lbs on the hitch or you also have a lot in the bed. The air suspension overload message doesn't come on till 2k lbs or so.

 

[Cannonball]

@Dog Hauler

You're right. Next time I tow, I'll use my wife's Mercedes GLE instead of my RAM. You totally justified that. Wait. Hold on.. Robert Mueller just called. He says it's German conspiracy not Russian..... Omg I'm confused now! What do I choose to tow with!!!!! C'mon man, if you prefer your wife's gle that's cool, but go to a Mercedes forum.

 

[Lil Miss Always Wrong]

....I may have been a bit sharp in my responses but that is a result of my just not believing that anyone would fail to find that situation pretty bizarre...ironic, really. On the other hand, it is the internet so there are all kinds out there.

you are right, for sure, about "out there"...but IN here ppl are generally very helpful and friendly, present company excl....whoops, not gonna go there...lol j/k...

i feel ya tho, when i wound up WITHOUT Nav in my new 2019 after not realizing for 2019 Model Year that Guardian & Sirius split into TWO separate entities, and previous versions CAME WITH NAV if you got the 8.4 display, i couldn't get a, "H*LL yeah" from a soul! Everyone just saying, ""shoulda done your homework" or "why do you need that when you have your iphone"... Seriously, i was like, "Come ON Y'all, i researched this new one to death, but not "the radio" why would i? I had 10 Rams previous.... i felt a radical change like that should have been written about EVERYWHERE, yet it was "crickets" till ink was dry on contract Couldn't impress upon ppl enuf how that was such a "gotcha"... i think i got one person to see it vs a hundred who didn't...lol

To me, i was so disappointed becuz starting my truck with Uconnect or unlocking on the many occasions i wanted/needed to was now a feature i didn't have, and man did i miss "my themes"....But, like i said, i just give my radio, "the finger" every morning when i get in, it helps... She's starting to fight back tho, for past few days i get green squiggly lines when i put truck in reverse...lol

 

[jeffmc306]

My new 1500 Limited should have its picture in the dictionary next to Irony.

I tow a trailer quite a bit. Many short tows under 100 miles and numerous longer tows between 200 - 2000 miles round trip. Trailer is 7500 pounds loaded and likes 1100 pounds tongue weight to be nice and stable. No weight distributor, at least not yet.

My former tow vehicle was a Mercedes GL350 (diesel) with air suspension:

- Max trailer weight allowed: 7500 pounds.​

- Max tongue weight allowed: 600 pounds. Yes, you read that right, 600 pounds.​

- Max cargo weight allowed: 1179 lbs.​

When I bought the Merc, I didn't pay attention to any of the weight limits except the 7500 max trailer weight limit. Okay, fine. My fault. And my trailer ended up being heavier than I thought and right at the Mercedes' limit towing capacity. Regardless, it's the trailer I had and the tow vehicle I had. It wasn't feasible to change out either one so I used the Merc to tow the trailer for maybe 15,000 miles, all the while being at nearly 2x the tongue weight limit and 400 lbs over the max cargo weight.

Here's the thing: the Merc cheerfully soldiered on through every single mile with not even a hint of complaint from the air suspension*. I could adjust it at will up or down and it never had a mechanical issue. But I always had it in the back of my mind that I'm over the tongue weight limit by 2x. Sure, a large safety margin is always engineered into stuff like that but 2x? I never considered the cargo weight limit until reading about it on this forum after getting my Limited or I would have had that nagging little voice in the back of my head, as well.

So, when it came time for a new tow vehicle, I thought I'd step up to a "real" tow vehicle...you know, something manly...and not have to suppress the little voices. Oh, happy days! The Ram 1500 seemed like just the ticket. Great ride (for a pickup truck), looks great, luxurious interior and a bed rather than the enclosed back of an SUV would generally be an advantage in my application. And it cost a whole lot less than another Merc, to boot.

As with the Merc, I looked at max trailer weight. 11,xxx pounds for the new Ram with eTorque and 3.92s. Yay! Plenty and then some. Unlike the Merc, I also looked at max tongue weight. Again, yay! 1200 lbs for the RAM (that's my recollection of tongue weight, although a search just now failed to find a tongue weight for the 1500 eTorque). Plenty and then some once again. Life was about to get really good, towing-wise. Okay, fine, once again my fault for not looking at the cargo weight limit.

Here are the numbers on the Ram:

- Max trailer weight 11,xxx pounds.​

- Max tongue weight 1200 pounds.​

- Max cargo weight 1284 lbs.​

But no. Life pretty much sucks towing-wise with the Ram. My limited really doesn't like 1100 pounds of tongue weight. Hates it, in fact. At that number, my cargo weight is around 1600 lbs. More if you tack on fuel and vehicle options, which as I understand it count as cargo weight. While the air suspension will level thusly loaded, it won't adjust up or down with the dashboard switch. If I try, I get an error message to the effect "Payload exceeded" or some such.

Let me see if I have this straight: Max cargo weight is 1284 according the sticker on the door jam and allowable tongue weight is 1200 pounds? So that means if I tow with the max tongue weight of 1200 pounds, I must slim down to 84 pounds, drive a completely unoptioned Limited, run on fumes so the fuel doesn't add to cargo weight and don't have even a cup of coffee on board to stay within the max cargo weight? That can't be right. Going with my 1100 lbs tongue weight, I at least don't have to lose weight to concentration camp levels, but I still have to run on fumes and can't have a cup of coffee on board my completely unoptioned Limited.

That can't be. Someone please tell me that my arithmetic is wrong.

Unless I goofed somewhere in my calculations, and the error message I get about my cargo weight exceeding max tells me I didn't, the bottom line is that (irony alert) my manly-man pick up truck is in practical terms far less capable than my girly Merc SUV. Double irony alert: At least I get only 9 mpg while towing with my Ram compared to 14 with the Merc**

I expect all manner of haters out there will jump on me for overloading the Ram, not to mention the Merc. But stow it. Okay, fine. I'm overloading the vehicles, risking my life. Risking your life and being a general menace to society. I should be locked up forever, have my knee caps broken then drawn and quartered. That's not the point. The point is that the wimpy Merc tows better than the He-man Ram truck and the Merc is overloaded more than the Ram. Who would have thought?

*Stopping distances fully loaded were fine, as were handling characteristics despite the tongue weight and cargo capacity overload.
**Although the total fuel expense is usually but not always partially offset by the less expensive price of mid-grade gas compared to diesel.

I feel your pain! We were in the same situation with a 2016 VW Touareg TDI and an 23’ Airstream travel trailer with 700# tongue weight. It pulled like a dream using Blue OX Sway Pro 1000# bars and got 16 MPG loaded and 26 without the trailer.

In December we decided to trade up to a 27’ Airstream and 1000# tongue weight. There are guys towing this setup with Mercs, VW and Cayennes with modifications like Can AM RV in Canada. Andy up there has made a business of setting up all kinds of vehicles to tow safely. I considered that option then, like you, decided to go the truck route.

I spent an afternoon with the Ram salesperson sharing the new trailer’s specs and our need for 1800# min.payload. No problem, he showed me our truck’s numbers were 1840# and 11,340# tow limit. The truck was at another dealer so we didn’t have a chance to inspect it prior to agreeing on the deal. Money wasn’t a question - finding the right vehicle was.

Shame on me - I trusted the guy. A few weeks later I posted my new ride on an Airstream forum when a guy sent me a private message - he also had a new ‘19 RAM 1500 and said to check the door sticker. Holy cr@p - 1220#! That’s less than 50# more than my Touareg. He’s got the same trailer as we’re getting and took it to the CAT scales. He’s 400# over the rear axle limit with weight distribution hitch.

You’re on the right track - get a good WDH for your trailer and try it again. Hope it works out for you!

 

[Dog Hauler]

You have to be over 1100 lbs on the hitch or you also have a lot in the bed. The air suspension overload message doesn't come on till 2k lbs or so.

I don't know where you get your information, but I have next to nothing in the truck except for me for the very reason of trying to avoid upsetting the wimpy little Ram nannies. My weight (a bit under 200) and the weight of fuel and whatever extra my options weigh overwhelmed the poor truck.

@Dog Hauler

You're right. Next time I tow, I'll use my wife's Mercedes GLE instead of my RAM. You totally justified that. Wait. Hold on.. Robert Mueller just called. He says it's German conspiracy not Russian..... Omg I'm confused now! What do I choose to tow with!!!!! C'mon man, if you prefer your wife's gle that's cool, but go to a Mercedes forum.

First off, my Merc is the prior gen GLS., a size up from the GLE. Second, I don't prefer the Merc. I bought the damned Ram because I wanted a real tow vehicle instead of the girly-man Merc with it's ridiculous 600 pound tongue weight limit only to discover that my Ram can't man up and gets whipped soundly by the Merc. How any sentient being can fail to see the irony in that is beyond me.

 

[banditsc]

Look in the owner's manual, it will explain the air suspension message. I have gotten the message as well with 2k~lb of sod in the back.

 

[Cannonball]

Sentient? Nice. You and your trailer are tongue heavy

The RAM you bought is doing exactly what it is designed to do. If you need a truck that won't prevent you from making bad/dangerous loading decisions, then you should have got the spring suspension, bought a truck less optioned (my limited is 1417 cargo capacity), better load distribute your trailer, or get another Mercedes that doesn't (apparently) care how much you load on her.

But again, the irony you present here really is misdirected from the real irony of you persisting that the ability to overload a vehicle is what determines it's capability.