I've come here to kick some .... tires!

[NorskieRider]

I'm planning to do more towing in the future and am considering a larger vehicle than my Santa Cruz.
So I'm here to do research on whether a RAM is the right truck for me.

The goal is to pull a small toy-hauler, I figure maybe 7500# tops (~5k# trailer + a motorcycle and other stuff).
Initially I'll be doing that for a few weeks each year until I retire, and then I'll do it a few months each year.
The other months the truck will be my daily driver unless weather allows me to take the sports car or a motorcycle.
I commute about 300 miles a week and live in beautiful Red Wing, MN where winter is a thing.

The turbo Santa Cruz is an excellent vehicle for light towing. It's rated for 5k lbs and I've towed up to 4k lbs with no issues.
I can fit two dirt bikes (one full size, one for the kid) in the bed (gate down).
For daily driving it rides like a premium SUV and gets ~22-24 MPG.
The short length lets it fit in my garage without having to pull out shelves or worry about height.
It has a had a hiccup or two but Hyundai has always stepped up and the warranty is excellent.

But no way is it going to be able to pull a toyhauler.
There are a couple on the market which might come in at 5k lbs, and the engine is strong enough, but the unit-body construction and brakes etc. are the limited factors, hence ... time to consider a full-size.

What drew me to the RAMs are two things:
- Coilover rear suspension, supposedly this is the best riding truck on the market. Since it will be my daily at least half the year and I hate how traditional trucks ride, this is a big plus.
- The inline-6. Based on past experiences with BMW's I've really come to like the inline-6. Perfectly balanced, smooth, torquey, and simple (less heads, less cams, less belts and chains), more main bearings per piston, etc.

However, there are some trepidations, which I'll ask in the specific forums as I do my research.

I haven't owned a Mopar product since .... 1995?
My first car was a 1982 Plymouth Gran Fury. 318 4bbl ex cop car with 175k miles. Being a stupid high school kid I put a short block in it. And then realized the suspension and frame was junk.
Next Mopar was a 1992 Dodge Shadow. It replaced a 1984 Camaro Berlinetta which was costing too much keep running. The Shadow was OK, and it got me through college without much fanfare, but you can bet I traded that on a Mustang GT as soon as I started earning some $$$.
But it didn't take long before the Mustang also started to fall apart, with only 60k miles on it. So I traded it for a 1991 Plymouth Laser RS Turbo.
Yeah OK the Laser is really more of a DSM product but it did have a Plymouth badge on it.
I was close to buying a JGC or Durango SRT but each of the four I test-drove had some sort of problem and I went back to buying fun German things.

And those are the 2.5 Mopar products I've owned.

 

[HSKR R/T]

Welcome. You will get a very mixed bag of opinions here.

If your Sanra Cruz barely fits in your garage, don't expect to get the Ram in. Need at least 19' deep.

The RAM will be more than capable for your needs. I also like the Hurricane, although I haven't owned or driven one yet.

 

[runamuck]

toy haulers tend to be heavy. you would be able to tow the one you mentioned with a 1500 hemi. for best results you may want to stay '19 and newer with the 8hp75 8 speed. you can equip with a good set of heavier duty tires and maybe add airbags and change out the sway bar to a stiffer one. if you have a choice, I would get the 33 gal. gas tank and oem brake controller. get a weight distribution hitch and use "tow haul" when towing. my 1500 ram laramie 4x4 ccsb with 3.92 gears 33 gal. and ORG towed a similar size trailer all over the place with no trouble. If you want plenty of margin, go for a newer model 2500 hemi with an 8 speed.

 

[1923bob]

I think you should look at a 2500, years ago I had a 35 ft toy house pulled with a Ford F 250 with a 460.

 

[CalvinC]

There are very small you haulers, essentially an enclosed trailer with a Murphy bed and a crapper.

Otherwise most you haulers you find are very unfriendly to half tons in general. Not due to the total weight, but rather the weight distribution.

Because they are designed to carry sometimes up to 3k lbs in the rear, the front weight typically far exceeds the normal 10%-13% tongue weight rations of a normal travel trailer, particularly when the garage is empty.

Also Toy Haulers are generally taller, making for an even bigger parachute to drag down the highway.

You can definitely make this work with careful planning of spec on both your truck and trailer purchase. But my advice would be to focus more on the anticipated hitch weight more than the overall weight (though that should definitely be checked to ensure it remains in spec, it’s the hitch weight that is likely to exceed payload limits long before total trailer weight exceeds truck tow capacity).

What will make this a challenge is how wildly that hitch weight can vary on a toy hauler, and how little accurate data you might have available to figure it out.

That’s why HDs are often recommended for Toy Haulers - because they more easily shrug off varying weights without a weight distribution hitch, which would absolutely be needed on a half tons, and require adjustments depending on whether the toy hauler was loaded or not.

 

[LaxDfns15]

Don't focus on towing capacity. 1500's are governed by payload. Whatever truck you intend to get check the yellow payload sticker on the door, subtract your weight from that number, subtract 100 pounds for a weight distribution hitch, and then see if you have weight leftover for ~1100 pounds of tongue weight from the trailer (7500 * 0.15 as an estimate). Guaranteed you're close or over the limit.

My Rebel without E-torque has a 1513 payload. Take out 200 pounds of crap I have in or on the truck (bigger, heavier tires count!), 180 pounds for me, and 100 for a WDH I'm left with around 1000 pounds for trailer and cargo/passengers. Add a wife and 3 little boys to that, and I'm around 700 pounds of payload left. You lose it extremely fast.

 

[NorskieRider]

Thanks all, this is great information!

And no, I don't expect to be able to park a full size in my garage. I'd rather keep the shelving in place. This is a sticking point because it means I'll need to scrape windows in the winter. Would not be an issue if they didn't start requiring me to be in the office 3x a week.

Ok ... did some reading ... I was wondering why they were called "half tons" and now know it refers to the payload. (so .. technically .. the Santa Cruz has 1411 lbs payload makes it a half-ton... right? ... j/k ... the bed size and tongue weights are the main limits). That's a lot of great information on tongue weight etc.

I'm not planning on towing a monster toy-hauler. But if a 7500# trailer really should have a 3/4 ton+ ... is RAM still the one I should be looking at? I see they're either Hemi or Cummins (overkill?) so the appeal of the Hurricane is lost. Do the HD's have the better ride than competitors (Ford/GM) ?

My parents have about a decade of RV'ing in their history, mainly 30ft+ fifth wheels but also a Class C.

We borrowed their ~2003 F350 7.3 TD and the noise and harsh suspension was terrible (didn't help that it was a crew cab and 8-ft bed).
Later they had a ~2005 2500HD Duramax which always needed something until it grenaded @210k miles. Not impressed.
Finally, their 2014 2500HD Duramax+Allison was actually really nice. Pulled their 11,000 lbs 5th wheel like it wasn't even there.

So if y'all think a half-ton is too small, is there an advantage to a HD RAM vs. it's competitors?

 

[go-ram]

Norskie Rider said: "What drew me to the RAMs are two things:
- Coilover rear suspension, supposedly this is the best riding truck on the market. Since it will be my daily at least half the year and I hate how traditional trucks ride, this is a big plus."
.
FWIW, by far the best riding Ram is the four-corner air-suspension 1500. Admittedly, some folks in cold climates have had issues, but I don't know if the second-generation Ram Air Suspension is any more reliable in cold climates than the first-gen air or not. Hopefully so, but caveat emptor in cold climates WRT to Ram four-corner air suspension.
.
But as someone in a warm climate who owns a 5th-Gen Ram with the second-generation four-corner air suspension and recently test-drove a 2025 Rebel with conventional coil-spring suspension, in terms of smooth, quiet ride, the four-corner air is very noticeably better than the stock coil-spring suspension for paved or gravel roads. For serious off-roading, you don't want Ram's four-corner air suspension. But for on-road and gravel-road driving or towing, it's really hard to beat Ram's four-corner air for ride quality and maintaining level while towing.
.
I know you have a lot of other considerations, and as stated above and in your cold climate it may contra-indicate Ram's four-corner air suspension, but since you mentioned ride as the first thing that drew you to the Ram, I thought you might want a bit more info on four-corner air vs stock coil spring suspensions.
.
Best of luck and happy motoring, whatever you choose!

 

[Trooper4]

GVWR will be your determining factor. Look at the door sticker, and the tongue weight that you will be putting on the truck.

 

[rotwiler]

I have a 21 Bighorn with almost max towing available, except the little extra for e-tq. Today returned from week trip to Maupin Oregon, is mountains passes all the way there and towed excellent, zero sway with sidwinds. My trailer is about 7,000 pounds loaded, me, wife, dog. I was very happy how it towed, all I did was bilstein 5100, blue sumo springs in back and hellwig sway bar. Even with truck leveled in front, was great. I added 4 links to weight distribution hitch and even steering felt like I didn't have a trailer connected, way to Oregon had 3 links and steering was too light. Stopped trailer fine at 5.5 on trailer brake. I would feel fine towing 7500, depending on hitch weight. If you look, the highest towing capacity will be tradesman and bighorn. Don't rule out Bighorns, they still have a bunch of features, heated seats/wheel, power mirrors, heated, 8.4 radio, electric adjustable peddles, front and rear auto stop, trailer steering and tpms, etc. I like 3:92 too. I wanted a truck that will last awhile with minimal issues, so opted for less high tech and I didn't want e-tq. My towing capacity shows I think 11,450, I know it is close to 11,500, think max of all the Ram 1500 is around 11,700.

 

[Trooper4]

I have a 21 Bighorn with almost max towing available, except the little extra for e-tq. Today returned from week trip to Maupin Oregon, is mountains passes all the way there and towed excellent, zero sway with sidwinds. My trailer is about 7,000 pounds loaded, me, wife, dog. I was very happy how it towed, all I did was bilstein 5100, blue sumo springs in back and hellwig sway bar. Even with truck leveled in front, was great. I added 4 links to weight distribution hitch and even steering felt like I didn't have a trailer connected, way to Oregon had 3 links and steering was too light. Stopped trailer fine at 5.5 on trailer brake. I would feel fine towing 7500, depending on hitch weight. If you look, the highest towing capacity will be tradesman and bighorn. Don't rule out Bighorns, they still have a bunch of features, heated seats/wheel, power mirrors, heated, 8.4 radio, electric adjustable peddles, front and rear auto stop, trailer steering and tpms, etc. I like 3:92 too. I wanted a truck that will last awhile with minimal issues, so opted for less high tech and I didn't want e-tq. My towing capacity shows I think 11,450, I know it is close to 11,500, think max of all the Ram 1500 is around 11,700.

Sounds like your from the valley. Did you go over 26? Glad you had a good trip.

 

[llando88]

Good advice in this thread.

I've been towing various small travel trailers over the last ten years, including rigs from 23 to 30', 6,500 to 7,700 lbs. Trucks included both 1500 Hemi and 2500 Cummins.

As above, I'd focus on cargo capacity. Add up the weights of you, any passengers, tools, BBQ, propane tank, camping gear, hitch head, bed cover, lead scuba diving weight collection, etc. Subtract that total from the cargo capacity printed on the door jam sticker. This will give you a starting point on what you need for a truck, in terms of the biggest hitch weight you can tow.

So, for example: My '20 1500 Big Horn Crew Cab 4x4 Hemi 5.7 V8 3.92 has a sticker payload of 1,781#. My estimate for passengers and cargo is 516#, leaving me 1,265# available for the trailer. The manufacturer's printed tongue weight of our current trailer (25 foot rear bed) is 960#. So theoretically in my case I have about 300# of margin. My truck tows fine with a Husky Centerline TS W/D hitch, averaging 10 or so mpg. We just got back from our extended summer trip of around 4,000 miles, up to Michigan and back to Florida over a couple months.


For anything bigger than our 25 foot camper, I'd prefer to have my '16 Ram 2500 Laramie with the Diesel. I loved that truck. We did two years extended travel across the US with it when I first retired, with a 30' trailer and ProPride PPP hitch. It was like the trailer wasn't even back there.

One other note, on the new inline 6 engines, I have no experience with them in the new trucks. But I also like BMWs, and have had a few. I understand the new Hurricane motor requires premium gas. So I don't know if that's a consideration or not, as opposed to say picking up a nice clean off-lease 5th gen Ram, which takes regular. (this is the 5th gen forum after all lol)

When we are not on the road, my truck is my daily driver. Mrs. llando88 has a small SUV, but I drive the truck most every day. It is a very comfortable ride. I have the standard suspension, no air.

Good luck with your choice.