FiverBob

Tony,<br><br>Prodigy is a good controller. Don't overlook the Jordan. I switched after driving my friends with Jordan. I love it. It does exactly what I tell it to do by pushing down the brake pedal. It is a direct connection to the position of the brake pedal. Personal opinion after using both. If I didn't know about Jordan, I would have Prodigy.<br><br>Bob

ladyram

Tony,<br><br>I would suggest you get yourself over to one of the RV Forums and ask this question before you spend a lot of money &quot;trying&quot; to upgrade a truck that is not built to tow or stop those weights. <br><br>I would do &quot;links&quot; for you if I knew how, but two Forums that come to mind are rv.net.com and iRV2.com. There are many knowledgeable people on these forums pulling 5'rs the size you are talking about. Why not let them give you some feedback on their personal experience.<br><br>I'm not knocking the &quot;Mighty Cummins&quot; it is an awesom engine but there is more to it than the engine when towing. The 5'rs you are speaking of are really nice and even nicer when pulled with the right truck. (MDT!!!) Whatever you do be careful about recommedations made by the one selling you the 5'r.<br><br>

RustyJC

Our 5ver has a GVWR of 13,500 lbs. Hitched up and heading down the road, we're running 10,380 lbs GVW (10,500 lbs GVWR) and 21,180 lbs GCW (21,500 lbs GCWR). No way I'd add 2,900 to 3,500 lbs to our 5ver's GVWR without going to a MDT, and my truck is rated higher than yours!<br><br>Rusty

FiverBob

Tony,<br><br>Been mulling over your comments and thinking. I have to agree with Rusty. My unit is rated at just short of 17,000. I hold it to under 16,000. Been pulling it with a 2500 V10. Just does not feel good. It does OK, and if you don't push it, has lots of power, but does not give you that sense of having all under control. The last, lighter unit, no problem. <br><br>I would either go lighter or plan on a change of trucks. Can't wait for the new HO to get here so I can hit the road with some sense of comfort. Hey, maybe today. YEH!!! 8)<br><br>Bob

TPilaske

Yeah... we were mulling over the length actually. 37' sounds like a PITA. I think we might look at the 34 or 35', i'm mostly interested in the king size bed and bigger corner shower! I'm still heading out to massdiesel for my upgrades on the 14th though! Picked up a new digital cam so I can get some good shots of it all! Can't wait! ;D Thanks for all your input! Now can we kill this thread? <br><br>Tony

supr

You might want to also look at Alfa Leisure. They have Aluminun construction &amp; a heavy duty I beam frame, 2-3 slides, some with King. Ours is a 98 Ideal, 11,800 dry, about 15800 gross. The Alfa's seem to come in somewhat lighter than competitors, but the differrence seem to be smaller as others copy constuction tecniques. I think we are at 13k for weight. We usually only pull with 1/3 tank water, which saves a lot of useless weight. The 3500 does nicely. I think long term, the 6 speed manual is a bettre choice, but you have what you have and changing can be expensive.<br>I think going is more important than stopping, by &amp; large. We keep our speed at 55-60 &amp; on interstates &amp; 4 lanes, we normally do not have anyone in front of us for 1/4 mile. True they do not stop quicky, but is you anticipate, you do not need the brakes much, except City stuff. Here too, antcipation &amp; downshifts will help. Keep the tranny cool, as well as the othe add-ons. Keep an eye on the tranny temps, as heat kills the tranny.<br>By the way, you can get a like new rig, 2-3 years old, for half the price of one of these new ones. Usually at least 50% depreciation in 3 years. Let someone else take the hit.<br>Good Luck!

pwabbott

TPilaske, The Holiday Rambler Presedential is the Twin of the Medallion McKenzie, same floor plans and construction except exterior surface. The parent corp. of both is Monaco Corp. of Coburg, OR. When we were we searching for a new fiver it was between the McKenzie/Holiday Rambler and the Keystone Montana.<br><br>Both have all aluminum framing Keystone/Montana has aluminum roof trusses, while Holiday Rambler/McKenzie have high density foam arch over aluminum framing in roof. Montana has aluminum floor joists while Holiday Rambler has steel floor joists. Both have heavy I-beam chassis. Similarly equipped models have competetive prices, however the dry wt of the Montana has a lighter dry wt. We ended up with a Montana as it had the better floor plan. <br><br>Another difference is the Montana uses a hydraulic slide out system, single pump operates all slides.In an emergency the pump has a manual pump feature. <br>The Holiday Rambler/McKenzie uses rack and pinion system, a separate motor for each slide.<br><br>Another thing to consider is that 3 or more slides greatly limit the availabity of RV sites available, length can also be a problem.<br><br>What ever tow vehicle you decide to buy be sure to get a 4.10 rear axle as it gives you max tow capacity. <br> 8)

DPG

Tony,<br>Haulin in Dixie routinely hauls with 28K GCW with a bone stock '99, but with a 5 speed, I believe. And he does it for a living. You might want to PM him.