Buying a truck to tow an RV? Watch this first!

42 thoughts on “Buying a truck to tow an RV? Watch this first!”

• nice video straight to the point. although I disagree with the gear ratio most people will benefit from a higher gear ratio although this is experience from my work truck not from an RV aspect. but people don't need to be able to get going from
  0-60 in 10 sec. My 94' dodge 1500 can just as easily pull anything my 2016 chevy 2500 with a tow package can. you're going to see your gear ratio in effect during 1 time that's getting the truck moving. sure you might argue what about going up mountains??? that's why they got slow truck lanes you might not be able to go up that mountain going 75mph. but look if you're buying a huge RV and trying to pull it with a Ranger you're wrong, buy the truck for the job. I road my motorcycle out west but before I did I changed the front and rear sprockets to give me longer gears. much much better gas mileage and going up some mountains I would have to down shift into 4th that's fine. when I was getting was getting 50mpg from 38-40 mph.

  Gas mileage should come before acceleration. if the gas mileage from 1 truck is 22mph hwy vs 16-18mph hwy that 4mph is going to add up. sure you're going to be going 70 before me but I'm going to be going alot longer.

  now if you're going to be pulling your RV off road in the rough country sure go for the lower gear but like most people I see pulling they're campers on the highway parking at an RV park. get the longest gear ratio you can get. that's what I think

• Very useful video. Can you make a video on the different truck models (half ton and 3/4 ton)?

• If you plan on towing in general just get a 3/4 ton or bigger.

• Great video! We are in the process of looking to upgrade our truck for a future 5th wheel trailer. One thing we found the hard way was when we purchased our first camper, no one told us about figuring the hitch weight into the payload of the truck. While we realized very early that our 2020 Tacoma had the TOW capacity to pull the trailer we bought, no one told us about the hitch weight. Looking back, we now know that one of the reasons it seemed to struggle a bit was that the hitch weight combined with our weight basically put us AT/ABOVE the TOTAL limit for payload capacity! Yikes! Lesson learned. We still have the Tacoma, but purchased a used Tundra that made pulling that camper feel like we weren’t pulling anything! We did decide to get a bit bigger of a travel trailer and the Tundra works perfectly with it!

  We want to get a 3/4 or 1 ton diesel (probably a dually) because, down the road, we know we want to get a fifth wheel and need a truck capable of towing it, but also has the payload capacity! Any suggestions/recommendations?

• Corpus😃

• I always swap my pickups over to a 4.10 or a 4.31 gear, but then I’m a GM guy and their factory gears are always way to high.

• I think a dually would only be useful for a very large toy hauler. Otherwise would rather put the money into a Class A and tow a small vehicle.

• If someone wants to go full time, do you think they should buy a 5th wheel first then get a truck that will haul it or buy the truck first then buy a 5th wheel that the truck can haul?

• On this channel according to him if you tow an rv you need a 3/4 ton or 1 ton no matter if it is a trailer that only two people can sleep in. A trailer package should have a transmission cooler and oil cooler. The 7 pin electrical plug in. Make sure you have a trailer brake installed and the fuse is in place to actuate the trailer brake.

• How do i get that in Europe ? Can you look that up ?

• Thanks 🙏🏻 I had to take note of everything you were saying🤣 I am looking for a truck to tow a trailer, never drove anything bigger than a sedan car😅😅 wish me luck🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

• O YEAH

• For solo camping, what RV or travel trailer is best? Great video😊

• Start stalking about Tundras. MADE IN Texas.

• Anyone who watches this prior to buying a truck for towing will certainly reap the benefits.

• Y’all thumbnail a ram but you keep buyin a Ford!

• A couple important points on axle ratios I think you missed: First, most pickup trucks nowadays no longer offer optional axle ratios, it is usually dictated by engine and vehicle configuration. In the case of GM trucks, there are no optional axle ratios anymore (except for one included with the NHT max trailering pack available with 5.3L or 6.2L 1500s).
  Second, with more and more speeds in transmissions, axle ratios are less and less relevant. With new 10 speed transmissions in many trucks today, different axle ratios (if they were available, which they usually aren't per above) would make very little difference. The less transmission speeds, the more difference axle ratios makes, and vice versa. Too many folks still think about axle ratios as they affected trucks back when 3 and 4 speed auto transmissions were most common.
  Next, on the topic of a "trailering package," I think more explanation is needed. For many years the term trailering package generally referred to a receiver hitch, wiring connection, and often more robust cooling. Those features are nowadays standard on almost all HD pickups and on most popular half ton configurations. But there are now other packages which include trailering related equipment, such as the GM max trailering pack mentioned above, 5th wheel/gooseneck hitch, camera systems, trailering integration with infotainment systems, integrated brake controller, etc. Point is, the question isn't "Did you get the trailering package or not," since there are many different trailering packages with different features in each one, And the features which were included in trailering packages 15 years ago are now standard on most pickups.

• Before watching: The answer is F450.
  After watching: There's never too much of a Truck.

  PS, your camera is dying. My reverse cam made those strip graphics before it died.

• 2:43 "A "Tow Package" are mechanical features that give you an advantage while towing" ? ? OMG, a question for the Ages,finally answered.

• I've watched a number of your videos and I notice you have a penchant for the word specific. What a great drinking game everybody take a sip every time JD says specific.

• I have been towing trailers up to 16,000 lbs since the 1970s! There is one thing to consider seldom mentioned! The longer the wheelbase of the tow vehicle the more stability one has!

• Hi JD. We have a 2020 36SSWS Jayco pinnacle and I am shopping for a dually to tow it. Do all F-450's come equipped with the wide track front end or do I have to request that? I also heard a rumor that the 2021 Dodge Ram 3500 may also have the same wide track front end. Can you shed some light on these subjects please? I always look forward to your videos. You were such a great help to Mark and Trish with Keep your daydream. Thank you! We are also willing to travel to another state (from Cali) to make a purchase.

• When you say "gear ratio" I think you mean the rear end differential, I drive a duramax which only offers the 3.73 in their light duty trucks, which I prefer as my truck is my daily driver and I tow maybe
  20% of the time (I am full timing). Therefore my toyhauler weight was considered when buying the truck.

• Thanks for all the awesome info. Still looking for a 5th wheel and a tower. We have run pretty much narrowed down to one of the jayco eagle models. Had a Rv salesmen tell me that payload didn’t include pin weight just because I told him I would like to stay with a 2500 duramax. He didn’t like it much when I showed him that it did. Thanks again for the awesome info.

• Hey there! I’m in the market for a truck. I watched your video on gas or diesel and while both have pros and cons, I just did some pretty in-depth homework on modern diesel exhaust systems and how absurd they are. I’ve never owned a diesel but was seriously considering one. How much of a headache is it to maintain one and specifically a high mileage one (100k miles)? I’m decent with a wrench but am wary of all these EPA imposed systems. Any advice or suggestions?

• Thanks my boyfriend gonna give me a camper

• I have a 1500 Chevy Silverado LS what size camper should I pull

• I have watched a lot of your videos. Torn between 1/2 or 3/4 to tow vehicle for my 6000lb truck. Granted it is light and a have ton will probably tow it fine but long term traveling I wanted a 3/4. Your videos saying not to disregard a gas engine I decided on choosing that. I pitched a brand new 2019 Ram 2500 tradesman edition for under 35k. I could not pass up the deal. Thank you for all your input

• Please consider a video on alternate tow vehicles, specifically full size vans. A recent model full size van 3/4 ton can be bought for $19-25k compared to $25-35k for a pick up. What are their differences towing wise? We are budget driven and are considering a van over a pick up….

• Thank you for your detailed, thorough, extensive and informative presentation. Hmmm, perhaps seperate the RV into 3 categories then match a few different vehicles that would be best to tow small ( under 18ft long under 2000 pounds) , medium 18-26ft and between 2000-6000 pounds) and large anything over 26ft and 6000 pounds. Just an idea, thanks

• Ford has an option called the High capacity trailer towing package. It is for the 6.7L diesel because it weighs so much. It adds useable payload to compensate For the payload stolen by the heavy engine. I was looking through dealer inventory and I saw very few trucks with this worthwhile option in dealer stocks.

• Maybe you should check tire capacity also.

• Should I get a 2020 Ford F-350 power stroke srw or gmc durmax srw for towing a 17,500lbs gvwr gooseneck for hotshot trucking. Because I’m 18 trying to start a non cdl hot shot trucking business

• My trailer is 3400 pounds loaded. I went from a 99 Dodge Ram 1/2 ton with a 5.2 to a 96 Dodge Ram 3/4 ton with a 5.9. Both gas motors and automatic. While the half ton was fine, I prefer the larger V8 for the hills for sure. The better brakes are a big plus, too. The bigger truck does a lot better at overall and lost only 1 mpg towing. I would do a half ton again, but my first choice is for sure the 3/4 ton. I've had a couple of one tons way back when and they are overkill and a fair amount more to fix and maintain. I won't do a one ton unless it truly warrants it. Same with diesel.

• Also, if you are buying used, there is a code on the sticker of the driver side door jamb that tells you the rear axle code. I saw endless descriptions of used trucks online that said it was one ratio when the sticker showed it was another. Verify if you are buying used.

• I have worked on all diesel trucks the ease of working on the Cummins and price of parts I would say Ram. Cummins is a much simpler engine with more room in engine bay to make repairs. Plus you do not need a two post lift as your first tool to make repairs as with a Duramax or Powerstroke.

• Quick question; Will I notice a big difference between a 3:73 ratio and a 4:10? If so, what could I expect to see? I know lower gas mileage, but right now I struggle on grades. No problem on flat terrain. I want to not struggle so much on grades.

• I have a 2017 Nissan Pathfinder with a 2.5 v-6 4wd that has a tow package would have any ideas on what kind of bumper pull camper trailer I might be able to tow I'm just asking

• 2009 f 150 4.6 has a milquetoast 5500# max tow package

• I’ve been watching your channel for a little bit now and I think that you give a good solid advice. My plan was to get a 4 to 5000 pound trailer and do some traveling a travel trailer I was working to get either a Colorado or Tacoma because they would fall into the correct range of weight. After watching channels and doing some reading I figured a little bit of overkill on the truck wouldn’t be that bad. So I went with a half ton tundra yeah V8 4 x 4 I found was in my budget.

• Appreciate your video, I have a Expedition Max with tow package that allows 9000lb tow and 900lb max tongue weight, looking to buy a TT with 6000lb UVW and 7500lb GVWR, with 675lb tongue weight, is it safe doing so with a good weight distribution sway control hitch?

• Smallest truck I've one was a 3/4 ton. Next 2 were f350 SRW LWB truck. Finally got a 1 ton drw diesel flat bed lwb. I will never go less than a 1 ton. I was surprised driving the dually, I was worried I wouldn't like the duals but I now dont notice them plus the rear of my truck is the same width as my small car hauler.

  One of the issues people have when looking for that advertised max towing cap is that you cant get the most optioned 4 door cab 4wd truck. Most the high capacity trucks are 2wd short cab trucks

  Always better to have to much truck rather than too much trailer

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