ramtd02

I am thinking of buying a 5th wheel...and the one that really caught my eye was the Newmar Kountry Aire. I know it is expensive but i plan on having it for awhile. The model i want is the 38SDTS. It is 41', and it is 17000 dry, and hitch is 3400. I am wondering if anyone has seen o0ne or owns one to give me some input as to whether or not these are well built units, thanks.

Tiny

Have no experience, but isn't that awful big for a 3/4?

ramtd02

thats what ppl tell me, but hey whats the diff between my 3/4 and a single wheel 1 ton? Other than a little beefier suspension.....nothing is really different.

ramtd02

BTW, I have pulled 30K with it with no problems....so i see nothing wrong with it.

Buzz

FWIW. That 5er will put you way over your payload weight. As a matter of fact, it's more than a 3500 can legally handle. I wouldn't feel safe pulling that kind of weight with a 2500.

The difference between a 2500 and a 3500 SRW is 1100# GVW...8800 vs. 9900...still not enough.

A 3500 SRW: The max. towing cap. is 15,700#, payload is right at 2300, and combined Vehicle weight rating is 23,000#. Truck weighs approx. 7,000#.

A 2500: Max. towing is approx. 13,000#, payload is about 2700#, and combined vehicle weight rating is 20,000#. Truck weighs a little over 6,000#.

Just a little info for you...from the Dodge web site.

ramtd02

yes i admit, it may LEGALLY put me over weight, But my rear axle empty weighs 3000#. My tires are rated for 3600#/tire at 80psi. That gives me 4200 pounds of trailer hitch weight too play with. So Therefore, safely i can do this!

Buzz

Man, I feel your pain. But tires are not the only consideration in the equation.

When I bought my 5er (see signature) I had a 2500 6 speed. It would easily pull it, but I sure felt overpowered by it's weight. All loaded up my 5er is about 12,500#. I feel much safer towing with my current truck.

Plus, you have an auto. and won't be able to install an exhaust brake. I think you will be surprised at how hard it will be to stop that 41 footer. It'll have you sucking the upholstery off the seat!

I'm not trying to be a pain. I would hate to see anyone have problems that can be avoided. Hey, it's a good justification for a new dually! Good luck.

BTW. If you put 4200# in the back of your truck, you'd be doin' wheelies or you'd break something.

Patrick Campbell

If you have 265 tires rated to 3415# EACH and inflate them to 80 PSI you will be close but barely under your rear tire rating.

If the tires are rated to 6830 - 3400 for the trailer - 3000 for your truck, you have about 400 pounds of play. Not really a heck of alot.

Are you running 4.10 gears in the auto?

ramtd02

yeah i have the 4.10 and i forgot too update my sig, but my auto is a full DTT now, as of last week and now is broken in nicely

The Domie

That 41 footer will be wagging you anywhere it wants you to go. Way too much to stop and control with a 2500 or a 3500 drw. It really calls for a MDT.

Buzz

...ditto!

ramtd02

Well actually i was contemplating buying the new international CXT.....but it doesnt come with the cummins.....if i could get it in there i would buy the thing, but i love my dodge too much. BTW I have pulled much larger and heavier loads than this 5er and have had NO PROBLEMS with wagging, or the like. As for braking dont plan on much of that either, this is highway territory, i dont plan on stop and go traffic, and if the highway is stop and go, then there are more problems then me pulling a 5er!!!

Casey Balvert

Even my dinky 36 foot Mountain Aire is over the rating of my one ton. No way you can pull that Kountry Aire safely with your truck. You are in MDT territory. What is your life worth?

thecatsfan

Exactly!

Consider that your truck also has to be able to stop both the tow vehicle and the trailer in the event of a brake failure. A simple electrical failure and you could lose your trailer brakes. The brakes on that truck were not designed to stop 25K lbs. of weight. In an emergency situation, that truck does not have the size and weight necessary to keep that trailer under control. Like Domie said, that trailer will take the truck wherever it wants to go.

I know you can tow that trailer. But I disagree that it is safe. Have you ever seen a Ford Ranger tow a fifth wheel? I have. So yes, it can be done. But being possible has nothing to do with being safe.

I would like to see what the actual scale tags would be on that combination. I think you might be surprised on what the weights would actually be - expecially loaded. Because that trailer will squat the rear end of the truck, additional curb weight will shift from the front axle to the rear axle before you even add the 3,400 lbs. of pin weight. (Don't forget that 3,400 lbs. pin weight is a facotry estimate of the base model with no accessories, batteries, propane, etc.) The pin weight will be even higher when you load the trailer. Fully loaded, your pin weight will be closer to 4K lbs. You could very quickly reach that 7,200 lb. limit of your tires.

Fully loaded and ready to go, you are looking at a combination with a combined weight that will probably exceed 26,000 lbs. You will have over 4,000 lbs. of pin plus cargo (with fuel and passengers). This means your GVWR will exceed 11,000 lbs. on a vehicle rated for 8,800. This isn't a little over weight. This is 25% over GVWR.

Ramtd02, Please don't take this personally, but if this were a commercial trailer rather than an RV, you would not be allowed on the roads. So why should an RV be allowed to do it? I can't wait until they start enforcing weght laws on RVs. I fully support it. In my opinion, if you know you are legally over weight, then you shouldn't be on the road.

But that's just my $.02.

67HotRod

The truck might pull it, but no way to safely stop it under anything but perfect conditions. The truck's life expectancy will be greatly shortend, just not smart.
Talk to some folks who MDTs, some have learned how fast these light duty trucks are not for pulling that much weight.

A good friend of mine works for MODOT, they are shutting down folks running over loaded, to many deaths.