Need some advice on a tow vehicle

I'm close to purchasing the BH3610RE and could use some advise on a tow vehicle. Looking at either an F-350 2 WD or Chevy 3500 2 WD. ( Both Diesels ) With the Heartland RVs - Can I also get away with a short bed ?? Also, is a dually necessary ?


Any advise would be appreciated........


Hittheroad

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

Hi Hittheroad,

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum and Family. We have a great bunch of people here with lots of information and all willing to share their knowledge if needed.

You will be fine with the short bed truck. I am moving this to the tow vehicle area where you will get more advice.

Enjoy the forum.

Jim M

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

Our 2011 F350 Lariat crew cab/short bed SRW Diesel does a very good job towing a BH3585. We took delivery last May and we travelled over 8000 miles from Montreal to Key West, and from Montreal around the Maritimes and Maine. It proved very stable on the road and we were within the maximum weights both times we checked at the public scales: our combined weight with one passenger (and 2 cats) plus about 20 gallons of freshwater and a full fuel tank was 22462 vs an allowable 23500. Rear axle weight was 6468 vs allowable of 6730. Actual trailer total weight was 14400. No problems handling the trailer with a short bed. Fuel economy was 12.6 mpg while towing.

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

letourno said:

Our 2011 F350 Lariat crew cab/short bed SRW Diesel does a very good job towing a BH3585. We took delivery last May and we travelled over 8000 miles from Montreal to Key West, and from Montreal around the Maritimes and Maine. It proved very stable on the road and we were within the maximum weights both times we checked at the public scales: our combined weight with one passenger (and 2 cats) plus about 20 gallons of freshwater and a full fuel tank was 22462 vs an allowable 23500. Rear axle weight was 6468 vs allowable of 6730. Actual trailer total weight was 14400. No problems handling the trailer with a short bed. Fuel economy was 12.6 mpg while towing.

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Thanks for the advise. what's your thoughts on a SRW vs a Dually ? Significant difference? I was told Duallys cut down on any swaying that may occur ??

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

Either the Ford or Chevy will work fine, But you should seriously think about 4X4. There are not too many 4X2 trucks around towing Rv's and most wish they had the four wheel drive.

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

We have the 3610RE and love it. We have a 1997 F250 SRW that we pulled our previous 5er with. Then I ran into a great deal on a F550 DRW. The difference is like night and day. The extra rubber on the road makes traveling much less stressful. The SRW would sway when passed by trucks. The dually doesn't budge. The BH is 5000 pounds heavier than the other 5er and you don't even feel the difference.
Suzy

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

jnbhobe said:

Either the Ford or Chevy will work fine, But you should seriously think about 4X4. There are not too many 4X2 trucks around towing Rv's and most wish they had the four wheel drive.

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Problem may be that you lose 400lbs towing capacity with 4x4. If you wish to use your truck for winter driving it may be worth the sacrifice, otherwise I don't see the value. You will sacrifice fuel mileage every day carrying the 400+lbs of transfer case and gears. As far as SRW vs DRW I did not feel uncomfortable so far given the performance of the integrated anti-sway system. The extra width might also be a problem when not towing. All a matter of personal choice...

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

Hey Hittheroad
I had a shortbed GMC 2500HD SRW 4x4, w/slider hitch pulling 2011 Landmark. I thought at the time the truck seemed stable enough. We were ready for a new truck so I got the 3500 dually w/longbed. Coulded be happier, feels much more comfortable on the road. Did'nt see a big difference in mpg. I hated having to switch back and forth with the slider [always seemed to hard to move lever, I even bent it severely} So we also upgraded the hitch. I coulded use my trifold bed cover with fifth wheel connected, new trifold bedcover for 8 foot bed works very well with fifthwheel connected. I also ended up changing the pinbox to the longer TriGlide so I could hook and unhook without messing with the tailgate.

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

letourno said:

Problem may be that you lose 400lbs towing capacity with 4x4. If you wish to use your truck for winter driving it may be worth the sacrifice, otherwise I don't see the value. You will sacrifice fuel mileage every day carrying the 400+lbs of transfer case and gears.

I agree you will loose a few lbs of towing capacity, but I bet a lot of us have pulled a 2WD truck off the wet grass in the middle of the summer.

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Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

Member of the wet grass puller offer club.

Going to just be straight forward and honest with you and use the numbers.

a 3610RE on paper weighs in at 12,483lbs "Dry" and has a pin weight of 2,115 lbs. I think you should be fine but I'm just going to toss you some figures.

2WD or 4WD I'm not concerned about. F250-F350, yes I take into consideration. Why?

Go weigh a new F250 full of fuel, see what the weight is on the rear axle. Add this 2,115lbs to that. Straight from the Ford source book, the F250 rear axle is rated at 6,200 lbs at the ground.
The F350 rear axle is rated at 7,280 lbs at the ground.

I don't have a 250 but my friend weighed his and he told me his numbers were 8,140lbs total for his F250. Not fully fueled.
4,740lbs on steer axle
3,400lbs on drive axle

So just assuming the on paper numbers for the Bighorn are accurate for this. You will have 5,515 lbs on the rear axle. So you have 685 lbs you can play with.
Now add in about 130 lbs for a hitch. 1 gal of diesel is 7lbs x 26 gal so 182lbs for fuel but his truck was at least 1/2 full. Anything else you load into the bed when you go camping + anything you store in the basement all goes to pin weight.

You'd be pushing it but a 250 shorty could do it legally. Going by these numbers. **** I'd go test drive the truck and drive to a CAT scale, if you're using it for towing get some honest to goodness numbers.

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

One major concern about Maximum Weights should be liability in case of accident. Insurance claims adjusters have an easy job blaming you when you run overload (or presumed overload) into an accident. Again, here are the facts: my2011 F-350 CrewCab Diesel, short bed, SRW equipped with factory installed reinforced rear springs and Reese 18k hitch, loaded with a120lbs passenger and a full tank of fuel, pulling a 3585 RL (basically same weights as 3610, +200lbs on pin according to Heartland, mostly due to weight of bedroom slide) , less than 20 gals of freshwater and other tanks empty. Public scale says I carry 6468 lbs on rear axle vs a door sticker stating 6730 lbs. Therefore I would not recommend a F-250 even though it would have the power required. Accidents do happen... and even if you are not objectively at fault, you may end up paying a lot of your money, if not to lawyers then to the guy who got you in trouble.

As for the wet grass club, I will have no problem asking nicely for a tow from one of you guys who paid $2000 more at time of purchase and keeps paying more in fuel consumption throughout the life of the truck. I can offer you a **** of a nice drink for your help!

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

I recommend the GM 3500HD DRW's and you want have a issue with anything Heartland builds today. The issues with the 3/4 Tons is the Pin Weight its always the same issue PIN Weight !!! As for a 4x4 you really want need the 4x4 option unless you do a lot of State Parks or do off roading. I wasn't thinking until I had already summited the order for my 2012 Chevy DRWs 4x4 ?? Now I wished I hadn't order the 4x4 option. I have owned 2 Trucks without the 4x4 option, a 2006 Chevy Kodiak and the 2006 Freightliner and never had a need for the 4x4 option and we travel 8 + months a year. And if I had needed a pull the charge would be much cheaper than owning a 4x4. I have owned several GM Trucks with the 4x4 option and have never used the 4x4 option. I also own a Farm and have several pieces of John Deere equipment Tractors etc. But I want put a $50,000 + Truck in a off road position.. But for resale the 4x4 is a good selling point.. Good Luck with your choice.. Happy Trails .....

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

jnbhobe said:

Either the Ford or Chevy will work fine, But you should seriously think about 4X4. There are not too many 4X2 trucks around towing Rv's and most wish they had the four wheel drive.

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Requiring a 4 wheel drive may be an incorrect statement.

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

If you want to stay with a SRW TV then the F350 CC LB is the way to go. Get the 20 inch tires/wheels as well and you can pull somthing like the Augusta we tow leagaly all day long. You do have to watch how heavy you load the front and keep the tanks low or empty. Much like the poster above stated but you can do it with SRW and avoid having to drive a dually around town. We have duallys but prefer to keep them out of the parking lots unless we are in the mood for a walk.

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

Birchwood said:

Requiring a 4 wheel drive may be an incorrect statement.

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I agree there is no requirement, but where I live there are no dealers of any brand with a 2WD truck on the lot. You would have to special order one. I know whatever you buy You'll enjoy it, there is no better feeling that getting a new toy.

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

Yes you need at least a one ton. If your truck is one of the older ones with the 16" wheels you are better off with the dually because 2600# of tongue weight is alot for 16" tires that are only rated at 3500#- 3750# a piece. I don't know why anybody would mess around with a 3/4 ton or a short bed if they have the choice. It just looks like they like to test the limits.

DO NOT, repeat DO NOT buy simply because someone says a 350 or 3500 or bigger or whatever.......buy what is capable (including modifications) of pulling your rig. A DRW seems to be the wow item.............I pull a 16,000 lb 5er and use a SRW F250 modified and it will outcarry and outpull any stock rig. It has 1050 ft/lbs of torque, oversized tranny coolers, bypass oil systems, Donaldson cold air system, super transmission, diablo chip (65), air bags, load stabalizers, triple guage stack and an array of other add ons. Choice of TV on this site is based on what the poster owns......kind of justifies the expense of its purchase I guess. Keep what you have and make it a puller.

Unless you are a commercial hauler there is no LEGAL weight involved! If there was you would be directed into the weigh stations like the long haulers. Your insurance company is the problem there and some may question, most will not!

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

Getting back on track, either will do the job. I've towed my BH with both a SRW and DRW and prefer the DRW. I gave lots of thought to major mods before buying my new TV and decided that you can spend thousands on and old truck and in the end you still have an old truck. I still like driving my Dodge but it will not tow my BH again. Oh yeah.... barnum was right

Re: Need some advise on a tow vehicle

The BH if equiped with 7K axles and G tires will be able to be towed with any diesel. Mine at 15500 Lbs has been a dream to tow and much easier then the previous 12K unit we had for 13 years.
The F350 SRW will have the same springs as the F250, and without additional spring plies will be a bit unbalanced to pull your large RV. In 2011 the springs are even softer then the previous models. I never would pull my RV with standard springs with my Ford but did have much better springs on my previous GM. They sell trucks not to do work but with soft rides, and airbags do nothing to help with stability while towing.
I passed a GM towing a 5er with the rear jacked up with air bags the other day, and as I was passing I could see he was working hard to keep his unit stable, and my truck has been solid when transports pass me. I would not have like to be in his place. The reason duellies are more stable has nothing to do with the number of wheels on the road but the springs stiffeness. I experienced it with my own truck, by removing the extra ply in order to smooth the ride and observed a very uncomfortable ride with the stock springs, I reinstalled the additional ply and stability was restored. So these soft riding trucks need to be build for the carrying of the 2500 lbs or so and the 15K weight trailers we tow. So to me its nice to tow with a better rear ends on the F350 SRW but the spring package kills the stability and need to be improved. The 4 x 4 F350 sits 2 inches higher so the spring packs can be loaded heavier then the F250 thus allowing more spring travel. No way I would tow our heavier unit without the heavy 4 x 4 trucks, the 4 x 4 are much better equiped to tow heavy then the 2WD and thats for all makes. I am in florida and if I leave the pavement I usualy lock my hubs because I still need the front traction. The 400 extra Lbs or locked hubs will never show on the fuel mileage because I never saw any in all the 18 years of ownership of 4 x 4's. The trading value on a 2WD drops like a stone on a Diesel.

I am not saying one is better then the other, but due to the spring package on the duellies its an advantage. I never tought I would ever admit it but the SRW's need improvements on the spring package in order to pull our heavy trailers. The choice of my F250 has been because of the availability and lower height compared to the F350. If I would have a F350 SRW I would have lowered the rear and added the same spring package I did to mine.