Upgrade to 7000lb Axles on 4000 Elite

I am new to this forum and we are in the market for a Toyhauler in 2014. Wife and I really like the 4000 Elite but I am concerned about the 6000lb axles. I would like to know if I could upgrade to the 7K axles. I can not find any information reference this.

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum. Lots of great information here.
I see no reason that you could not upgrade the axles when ordering a new rig.
You should talk to your dealer about doing that. If you do not get the answer you are looking for, call the Cyclone sales team at Heartland. They will tell you for sure.

Peace
Dave

We do offer an upgrade to 7,000lbs axles if you would like, however the larger axles will not increase your carrying cappasity because the tire rating and the hitch pin are both rated for 18,000lbs. If this is something that you would like just get with your dealer and we can get it taken care of.


thanks,

AJ

Thank you for the information. I did not think about the rating of the Hitch pin. I was concerned about the empty weight 0f 14,400 lbs and then you begin loading the coach up. 100 gallon of water at 833lbs, 50 gallons of gas at 305lbs, Harley Electra Glide 800lbs, golf cart 800lbs. I am now at 2700lbs and I have not begun to put and personal items, food or place anything in the front compartment. Easy to add 500-700 lbs, Does not leave me any margin of error. Any recommendations on this. I had looked at the Voltage any they use 7000 lb axles with a weight rating of 21000 lbs.

You might want to ugrade the tires also.

I would recommend the upgrade.

Our 370C had virtually no brakes whatsoever after only two months old. Our dealer tried several different things, I tried a couple of ideas, and Heartland wanted nothing to do with us. We were at wit's end. Finally after our third trip to the dealership, some great folks at Dexter told us there were hearing some reports of the larger toy haulers with inadequate braking on the 6K axles. Dexter sent the 7K braking set-up to install on our 6K axles. It was a night and day difference. Too bad it took over half a year to figure it out.

Several other Cyclone owners have had the same issue. With the 7K axles already installed, problem solved.

Ltfiremedic said:

Thank you for the information. I did not think about the rating of the Hitch pin. I was concerned about the empty weight 0f 14,400 lbs and then you begin loading the coach up. 100 gallon of water at 833lbs, 50 gallons of gas at 305lbs, Harley Electra Glide 800lbs, golf cart 800lbs. I am now at 2700lbs and I have not begun to put and personal items, food or place anything in the front compartment. Easy to add 500-700 lbs, Does not leave me any margin of error. Any recommendations on this. I had looked at the Voltage any they use 7000 lb axles with a weight rating of 21000 lbs.

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Yes, the load carrying capacity is tight. Also, the empty weight of 14.4 you mention does not include any non standard options, like second AC, electric beds in garage, generator etc etc.

Even if your loaded the rig weighs 21K, you are probably not over loading your axles because the truck should be carrying 20 - 25% of the weight. I can guarantee you that I was well over 18K when I pulled out two weeks ago with 2000+ in the garage and full of water and gas. I would love to run it over the scales w & w/o the trailer, but I am always trying to get somewhere when I am hooked up. Spend the money on elctric / hydraulic disk brakes. That is on my short list.

I thank you all for this wealth of information. I will look at the option of 7k axles with the electric of hydraulic brakes. The tires, if I am correct for 7k axles are G rating and will look a Goodyear G rated tire. Anybody have any idea what kind of price range I am looking at for these upgrades. I have found out that with the internet, I do about 2-3 years or research before I purchase. I end up knowing more about the product than the individual I giving my hard earned money to, because they have something I want. I try not leave any stone unturned.

Another question? Where is the sewer hose stored on the 4000 Elite?

You don't need 7Klb axles on these units. I expect my 3950 will weigh 19.5K to 20Klbs and I won't be exceeding axles, tires, or pin max ratings. What are you going to pull this with? A Freightliner? I have a 4500 rated at 30Klbs GVWR. You just need to balance your load. I'm an Industrial Technologist and know the amount of headroom built into components. Heartland can't say this because of liability issues. If you want guaranteed 21Klbs to 25Klbs, there are units made to these specs that run about $125K to $160K+. These units are stout and with proper planning and execution, are more than capable as delivered. As for hydraulic brakes, I know a few folks who have had them fail because the pump burned up while sitting in a traffic jam. Last point...don't just go to Flying J to weigh...weigh each tire individually fully loaded. Costs about $150 to $200 but it is the best money you will spend. I did mine and know how much more head room I have. Just my two cents. Ron

Just FYI, last year at the National rally in Gillette, the weigh-in crew was from RVSEF and they weigh each wheel for $50.

Here's a related question. I recently made an inquiry from a local trailer parts house about disk brakes for my Cyclone. I told them they were 6K Dexter axles with 8 bolt 6.5" or 865 hubs and 16" wheels. He said his catalogue didn't show them, that all he showed were 7K axles with 8 bolts. On the Dexter website, looking at the disk brake replacement parts, it shows the 6K axles to have a 6 bolt 5.5" or 655 pattern and the 7K axles to have a 865 pattern. I can see no other alternatives other than bolt sizes. Am I interpretting that all Dexter axles with 8 bolts are 7K axles?

No worries! I don't see any reason to swap to 7K axles for capacity as others stated....The 7k backing plates fit the 6K axle tube/flanges as they are the same and if you do the disk conversion, the outer wheel bearing will need to be changed for the fit.

If you feel you will want better braking, I would highly recommend the 7K drum backing plates as they make a huge difference. The disk brakes will give you the ability to lock the wheels at almost any speed or load. I can now lock my tires on pavement with 7K drums with 6,500lb on the axles, so I don't feel the need to go disk.

Another thing I would recommend on the disk conversion is to stay away from the Dexter parts. The pads and caliper parts are usually special order, expensive, and could leave you stranded waiting for red label UPS if you have a failure on the road. The Kodiak kit uses common brake components that can be picked up from any parts store as long as you know the correct application.