JayFlight 28BHBE and new tow vehicle

[klassic]

Originally Posted by Wannabe

I have a Ram 2500 6.4 hemi 4.10. It pulls my 284BHBE (slightly heavier that 28BHBE) very well. I have put on about 700 miles on it towing the trailer mostly flat to hilly so far. A diesel will pull stronger, but I have not been left wanting more so far. It is kind of a pain as a daily driver vs a 1/2 ton, but I only commute to work 10 days a month and parking at work is easy. I always park waaaaay out at the grocery store. I always do with a new vehicle though I get 14 mpg with barely any highway miles... One of the main reasons I wanted a 3/4 ton is that I definitely wanted to be within specs without having to split hairs about what I threw in the back of the truck or in the trailer. I've been getting solid 9-10 mpg towing.

I think your getting such poor mileage because of the 4.10's.
I get way better then you towing.
And from what I hear most Cummins get better then me not towing.

I have 3.42's and have no problem pulling 13500#.
Your motor might end up lasting longer though.

[Wannabe]

Originally Posted by klassic

I think your getting such poor mileage because of the 4.10's.
I get way better then you towing.
And from what I hear most Cummins get better then me not towing.

I have 3.42's and have no problem pulling 13500#.
Your motor might end up lasting longer though.

I was thinking that 9-10 was about par for the course towing my set up. As far as overall, I have gotten way better (closer to solid 20's not towing) on the highway with MDS kicking in, but I rarely drive highway miles...

[NVGun40]

I don't remember where I saw it written, but there was an old rule of thumb mentioned on a truck site which went something like this: if you have a half ton (150/1500) class truck, stick with trailers in the overall length of 24 to 26 feet or shorter; for the 3/4 ton (250/2500) class, stick with overall length of 27 to 32 feet or shorter; and go for a 350/3500 for trailers from 33 to 40 foot or shorter. Of course this was referring to a time before the ultra lite trailers, but it had to with more than just the tongue weight, it also had to do with wheel base lengths and overall lengths to TV weight and lengths. White knuckle events have happened many times when the the trailer tongue weight and total weight are well within the limits of a 1/2 ton class tow vehicle but are simply too long (even with an ultra lite trailer) and you end up with the tail wagging the dog.
With all my ramblings said, I saw some post this earlier and I agree.
I have never heard anyone who tows a trailer or hauls a load with a 3/4 ton or higher class truck say they wish they had a 1/2 ton.

[klassic]

Originally Posted by Wannabe

I was thinking that 9-10 was about par for the course towing my set up. As far as overall, I have gotten way better (closer to solid 20's not towing) on the highway with MDS kicking in, but I rarely drive highway miles...

I dont get near that not towing. But that's what I have heard from other Rammers.

[blderman]

Originally Posted by cekkk

Yeah, but maybe that's because they didn't have a 400K engine in a hundred K truck!

Just joking. Not trying to start a "mine's bigger" war!

I will just say the 3 Fords I have owned have been the most problematic vehicles I have ever owned. The Ram trucks I have owned have all been problem free.

[Country_Mouse]

Originally Posted by BigJohnD

I'd be leaning towards at least a 3/4 ton. We have the same rig, and though we've been accustomed to towing a lot bigger rigs, I won't go any less than what I have. It's a daily driver as well. Fuel mileage depends on how you drive it. Can get 15-20 unloaded, 9-12 loaded. The 28BHBE is not a light rig by any means. I think you'll find pricing between 1/2 and 3/4 tons very close (unless diesel), but you'll get much more peace of mind going with the 3/4 minimum.

What he said. [emoji115]

We towed our X254 (lighter than yours) with our Expedition (1/2 ton like F150) and it wasn't ideal at all. Would never go heavier. We upgraded to a 3/4 ton and it's so much better.

[tmclaren]

WHat king of MPG do you get? We are now looking at 2016 Ram 2500. We also have found a used ram 2500 diesel. This is so tough since we have never owned anything other than a 1500.

[blderman]

Originally Posted by tmclaren

WHat king of MPG do you get? We are now looking at 2016 Ram 2500. We also have found a used ram 2500 diesel. This is so tough since we have never owned anything other than a 1500.

My '15 Ram 2500 6.7 is getting 21-24mpg hwy, 15 city and 13-14 towing my 23mbh.

[Paintinfool3]

My F250 2011 diesel is getting about 15.9 combined .. a little better on highway if you are at 70 or less and about 10 pulling

[ALJO]

tmclaren; we have also a Ram 1500 5.7L Hemi but with a 3.92 rear end, which pulls good with a 8000 lbs. load I am not complaining about the fuel economy. It does 1L on 4.1 km in the mountains. I looked at the Ram 2500 which only gives a couple more horsepower, but OK it has a higher payload. When having Airlift 1000 installed in the Ram 1500 (which will not increase GVWR) it rides nice and level the way I wanted.
I have been looking at the Ram 2500 but thought why waist my money. I drive more without a trailer then with. But your 3.55 rear end is not a good trailer puller.
If I would be full timing I would have the biggest of everything.

[gcloss]

Originally Posted by tmclaren

WHat king of MPG do you get? We are now looking at 2016 Ram 2500. We also have found a used ram 2500 diesel. This is so tough since we have never owned anything other than a 1500.

I've owned two Ram 1500s and now a Ram 2500. Once you start towing with a 250/2500 or a 350/3500, you will wonder why you didn't upgrade sooner.

I have the 5.7 Hemi with 4:10 rear. I get about 17-18 on highway without towing and 8.5 to 10.5 towing my Eagle 284BHBE.

If i have to worry about MPGs, it's time to sell everything.

[Paintinfool3]

Each to his own on brand but from real world mpg with the diesels I think cummins seems to do better all around. I bought the 2011 F250 Diesel because in that year range and money it was the best taken care of and serviced vehicle I saw while looking and the wife loved it. I pull a 24 ft car trailer quite often and my 39 ft pull behind that weighs in around 10000 pounds loaded so I felt better with the diesel and mine is my daily driver

[spoon059]

OP, for a trailer that size a 3/4 ton truck is a great idea. By the time you get it loaded up and your truck loaded up (especially for longer trips) you will be happy to have 2300+ lbs of payload.

Any of the current offerings of the Big 3 will work great for you. Given the options you provided, I would encourage you to look at the diesel Ram. I bought a used 2015 Ram CTD last summer and LOVE it.

On the highway at 75+ mph I can get 22 mpg (mostly level highway).
Mixed driving, mostly around town I get 17. That is a lot of slowing and starting driving.
Towing my 29QBS I get about 12 mpg and usually tow at 68mph. Just finished a 2600 mile round trip to Florida and got 11.4 for the entire trip. We had some serious wind going down and a little more coming up through northern Florida and Georgia. Also from Charleston to home we picked the speed up to 70 because we were ready to get home. My father in law was towing a 28 foot Jayco, same weight, with his Chevy 6.0 and got around 7 mpg at the same speeds and conditions.

[tmclaren]

We have also thought about another RAM 1500 with the 3.92 rear end. So hard to know what to do. $ are also a consideration.

[tmclaren]

I know we aren't going to get great gas mileage, but I just don't want it to be much worse.

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by tmclaren

We have also thought about another RAM 1500 with the 3.92 rear end. So hard to know what to do. $ are also a consideration.

In my experience, the 1/2T trucks are not cheaper than the 3/4T trucks, unless you're talking diesel. This may be especially true if you need it built a certain way.

I got into my Ram 2500 (new off the lot) for about 33K. That was about 10K off MSRP. It's more nicely equipped than my previous truck was, and MUCH more capable. I bought that truck for like 29K in 2012 IIRC. So I stepped up to 3/4T, 4x4, nicer features and 3 years newer for about 3K difference in price. I think I did pretty well.

[Wannabe]

Originally Posted by Camper_bob

In my experience, the 1/2T trucks are not cheaper than the 3/4T trucks, unless you're talking diesel. This may be especially true if you need it built a certain way.

I got into my Ram 2500 (new off the lot) for about 33K. That was about 10K off MSRP. It's more nicely equipped than my previous truck was, and MUCH more capable. I bought that truck for like 29K in 2012 IIRC. So I stepped up to 3/4T, 4x4, nicer features and 3 years newer for about 3K difference in price. I think I did pretty well.

Same thing here. I was shopping for both 1/2 and 3/4 ton trucks and got mine for about 35k new. It is the base model, but had enough options to make it close to what mid range models offer. All of the similarly equipped 1/2 tons I was looking at were within a couple thousand of what I paid.

[tmclaren]

Wow! Those are great deals. If we could get that deal we would do it in a hearbeat. How did you get such a great price? We are working on pricing, but are not coming close to that. Help!

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by tmclaren

Wow! Those are great deals. If we could get that deal we would do it in a hearbeat. How did you get such a great price? We are working on pricing, but are not coming close to that. Help!

shop, shop, shop. I scoured the internet for months (really over a year, but only in earnest for a few months) looking for the truck I wanted. Finally found it (actually 2 in the same city, same dealer group) so it was time to play ball. I went to a dealer close to me who had one I liked and he wouldn't play. I told him the price I was looking for, and could get at another dealer, and he said "if you can find that deal, you should go get it". So I shook his hand and walked out. Made the drive to go get it the following weekend after some online negotiating. It was about an hour away in another city, but well worth it. I almost lost that truck to a dealer transfer, but I was able to put some money (refundable) down to show I was serious so they'd keep it on the lot for me.

A great deal on the truck is a bit like a double-edged sword though. I felt like I got hosed a little on my trade, but I was willing to pay a little to not have to sell it myself, and the only other trade offer I got was only greater by the difference in sales tax (which the dealer knew, they always know).

Anyway, I have mostly the truck I've always wanted (I would love to have a diesel or some more options), so I'm happy. For now.

[Subaru297]

The best negotiating tactic I have discovered is knowing what they paid for the vehicle and what factory incentives are being offered.
In Canada I use this site....
https://carcostcanada.com/

It is a great tool to keep in your back pocket. If you can negotiate down to 5% or less of what they paid for the vehicle you are doing pretty well and you know you aren't leaving extra money on the table. It will also tell you what factory incentives the dealer is getting at the time of the sale.

You must have something similar in the US.

On the daily driver side of things we actually find our F250 nicer to drive than the F150 we came from. The F250 provides more visibility and less blind spots. Yes we spend an extra 3-4 dollars on gas for every 100kms we drive empty but pulling mileage is about the same and our comfort level is much higher.

People always think that 3/4 or 12 tons are a lot larger as well and I don't think they are. Here are the stats for a F150 compared to a F250. Both are crew cab 4x4's with the 6.5 foot box.

F150 vs F250
156.8_______156.2 wheelbase
243.7_______246.8 overall length
77.3________79.7 height
79.9________79.9 width no mirrors
105.9_______104.9 width with towing mirrors

Honestly it is a wash for me unless the height is going to get you and you need to park underground. The F250 is actually narrower than the 150 by 1 inch.

Although if you are coming from a short box half ton the length difference is more significant.