Ram 3500 Diesel SRW - North Point 377 RLBH

[zorr59]

I too bought a Northpoint 377RLBH at the Tampa show last week. But I already have a Duramax 3500 DRW.

[Bill2e]

Originally Posted by zorr59

I too bought a Northpoint 377RLBH at the Tampa show last week. But I already have a Duramax 3500 DRW.

Nice! Sending you a PM

[JetTech]

You have a phenomenal truck with the only issue likely being that you’ll be over your payload numbers. Sure, plenty of people do it, and some fail because of it. The absolute first call I’d make is to your insurance agent to see what they’ll cover in the event of a catastrophe, whether you caused it or not. It’s a litigation-happy world we drive through, so imagine the lawyers going over your towing numbers; not their lawyers, but your own insurance company’s lawyers trying to get out from under paying for your $150k rig, plus any other damage.

That thought alone is why I upgraded Bill! Not because 2500/SRW trucks can’t tow it, but because that label tells us we shouldn’t!

[Bill2e]

UPDATE -

So I took my Truck to the Scaled today.

Just me in the cab, 3/4 Fuel and my normal tool load in the bed

Steer Axle 5140
Drive Axle 3660
Total - 8800 LB

That leaves 3K for Pin weight, Wife, Kid & Dogs.

Looks like I'm keeping my pull behind.

What really has me upset is that it is impossible to get to the full tow capacity of this truck while staying under the payload limits.

Really more marketing from Ram. Then there is also the Jayco Factory rep that assured me I'll be fine with my truck. Now I have to cancel the order and fight for my $2,000 deposit back.

Thanks for all the helpful and even the sarcastic responses. I now know more about Ram capacities than the average sales person.

At the end of the day I am not willing to run above weight, but it does appear now that I was in my previous Ram 1500 and didn't even know it.

[Bill2e]

Another crazy thing is I could pull the 12000 LB Bumper Pull 340DROK with a 1500 LB hitch weight, but not a fiver.

[spoon059]

Mine wasn't sarcastic, it was meant to be helpful. I'm just not the guy that's gonna hold your hand and tell you everything is going to be okay. Its a pet peeve to call it a CumminGs, which is why I corrected you. If you can afford over $150K worth of truck and trailer, I'm of the impression you should know the engine in your truck and do your research BEFORE you buy.

You say you didn't buy on a whim, yet you clearly didn't understand the capabilities and limitations of your truck. Buying the highest trim truck means its the heaviest. The heaviest truck will inevitably have the lowest payload.

A salesman will tell you anything you need to hear to get you to buy. You should hesitate to trust anyone that stands to make a profit from the advice they give you. No reason you can't pull a 5th wheel with your truck, it just needs to be substantially lighter. Hopefully you don't lose too much on the deal, but they say education costs money...

[ALJO]

Bill: I assume the sales rep. didn't put it in writing that you could pull it with your RAM 3500?
If the 5er is what you like the best, then go for it, as it is a much better situation than pulling a TT over 35 ft. and a lot safer too.
By adjusting the load properly in the 5er you still might be able to stay within your load capacities on your rear axle - it will depend on the storage capacity behind the 5er axles.
Forum engineers are scary at times.

[Bill2e]

Originally Posted by spoon059

Mine wasn't sarcastic, it was meant to be helpful. I'm just not the guy that's gonna hold your hand and tell you everything is going to be okay. Its a pet peeve to call it a CumminGs, which is why I corrected you. If you can afford over $150K worth of truck and trailer, I'm of the impression you should know the engine in your truck and do your research BEFORE you buy.

You say you didn't buy on a whim, yet you clearly didn't understand the capabilities and limitations of your truck. Buying the highest trim truck means its the heaviest. The heaviest truck will inevitably have the lowest payload.

A salesman will tell you anything you need to hear to get you to buy. You should hesitate to trust anyone that stands to make a profit from the advice they give you. No reason you can't pull a 5th wheel with your truck, it just needs to be substantially lighter. Hopefully you don't lose too much on the deal, but they say education costs money...

It's all good! I knew I spelled Aisin wrong when I wrote the post, I didn't even realize I typed Cummings instead of Cummins. Lesson learned there.

Everything else was in fact helpful, Thank you!

To your point, I thought I did all my homework. However after the research I've done the past 3 days I realize I did not do enough.

I still believe this truck can "handle" the load, just not legally. That is not a risk I am willing to take.

Good news is I absolutely love the truck, I now just have to buy a bigger tow behind in leu of a Fifth Wheel or a Smaller 5th wheel. No big deal, It will save me money and aggravation in the long run.

Could have been much worse, I could have taken delivery on the 377 RLBH.

Thanks again for the honest feedback!

[Bill2e]

Originally Posted by ALJO

Bill: I assume the sales rep. didn't put it in writing that you could pull it with your RAM 3500?
If the 5er is what you like the best, then go for it, as it is a much better situation than pulling a TT over 35 ft. and a lot safer too.
By adjusting the load properly in the 5er you still might be able to stay within your load capacities on your rear axle - it will depend on the storage capacity behind the 5er axles.
Forum engineers are scary at times.

Of course they didn't put that in writing. If I lose 2K so be it.

With only 3K of payload left I will have to buy a smaller 5er.

Yes, I could pull the bigger one with just me, but that is not realistic.

[Lake Huron]

It's a tough call, but...
My first 5th was an 04 Montana Mountaineer. I pulled it with a 99 Dodge 2500 Quad cab (extend cab with opening doors on both sides) 4x4 long bed and a Cummins. The max 5th towing capacity on it was 9800#. That trailer was 9400# dry. We had WAY more than 400# of bullcrap in that trailer. The trailer wasn't overloaded by any means but the capacity of the truck was. I pulled that thing all over the place and had no issues. I'd pull it home from a camping trip and 2 days later it's at the track sled pulling a 100k# sled and taking home a payout place. The truck has more than enough engineering in it to pull that trailer, you just drive a little more smart that's all.
If it's the legality side of it, I get it. Today's day and age people will come after you because your toddler looked at them the wrong way. Honestly, a $14k hit on a brand new truck, IMO, is a bit extreme. Especially when the used truck market is fetching top dollar and above, and more so for diesels. I can't imagine your truck having too many miles on it already and your selling dealer SHOULD work with you on it. If they dont, shame on them, and I'd try to sell it outright and buy the DRW, AND from a different dealer. Tell your dealer you'll take a $12k hit on it and have them weasel you an employee discount on a new DRW. Then you'll be $6-$7k in the ditch. That's a lot easier to.swallow than $14k.

[TxLoser]

Before you cancel all your fun for numbers sake, I’d really consider an Eagle FW vs the higher end and heavier models. A compromise. Could you be a little over on payload? Sure, but towing a longer TT will not be as comfortable as a FW slightly over on weight. On a total package weighing 20K lbs or more, +/- 500lbs is negligible. There’s so much fear spread on these forums over payload. This is a hobby. We are, or at least most of us are not commercial drivers. Sure, a 1/2 ton pulling an Eagle FW should not happen, but to have a 1 ton diesel and decide you can’t pull a nice FW seems like a shame. Maybe not a Pinnacle or North Point, but an Eagle would surely work within a few pounds. Add some mods to get the features you miss from higher end models.

[Radar57]

Bill2e,

I got my new truck in February 2019, a 2019 Ford F350 SRW with 6.7L diesel thinking it would pull anything I would ever want to pull. It has payload of 3530 lbs. But in August of that same year the wife fell in love with a Pinnacle 36FBTS. GVWR of 16500 lbs with a pin weight of around 2900 lbs. The truck tows this 5er like there's nothing behind it. But, as I began to crunch the numbers I realized that when we load it up with stuff for longer trips (month or longer) that I would quickly exceed the truck payload. I have no doubt my truck can pull it but the question in my mind was should i?

In December 2020 we put in an order for a 21 F350 DRW with 6.7L diesel, a truck I had originally argued with the wife we needed in 2019 and a battle I lost. It hurts a bit but in this day an age where everyone wants to sue I felt it best to have a truck I knew would have not only the capability to tow what is behind me but also the capacity. In my situation it was a hit I was willing to take. Since we are not retired yet we have used it for our weekend outings because we load it light and didn't travel very far from home. You gotta choose what risks you are willing to take in life.

Good luck and hope it all turns out for the best.

[Bill2e]

Thanks Radar - those Pinnacles sure are nice, my wife wanted one too... I’ve canceled the order on the North Point and am completely at price with my decision. I just hope I get my deposit back.

One day I‘ll find a deal on a dully and we will get the big 5th. For now our pull behind will suffice.

[Bookemdanno]

It's all good Bill! We've all been there! I had a '14 TT towed with the DW's '11 SUV and it sucked! I sold my '08 Mustang Shelby GT500 convertible and purchased a '14 Ram 2500 to tow the TT. Then we wanted to upgrade to the '16 NP 377 and I (like u) was told that we'd have no problem towing with the Ram 2500, so we purchased the 377. It "pulled" it great, but there was a little to much wiggle in the back end that I didn't feel comfortable. The Ram 2500 was a Limited model, so my payload was really low. So ultimately I purchased a left over '16 Ram 3500 dually Laramie longhorn in February of '17. I spent a buttload of money in a short amount of time, but I never regretted it! All I can say is do what you think is best for your family so that ya'll feel safe traveling down the road.

[spoon059]

Originally Posted by Bill2e

I still believe this truck can "handle" the load, just not legally. That is not a risk I am willing to take.

I addressed the "legality" of it. As long as you register your vehicle for the higher GVWR, you are perfectly LEGAL. You can register that truck for 14,000 lbs GVWR and be perfectly LEGAL to drive down the road loaded to 14,000 lbs. If you wanted to, you could register it for 20K lbs and be perfectly LEGAL to drive down the road.

The actual issue that you appear to be concerned with is SAFETY. Safety is an issue only you can decide how you want to handle. Some people don't feel safe at GVWR ratings, others feel safe at axle ratings, others feel safe up to the point of breaking components.

Hopefully you get your deposit back. A good dealer will refund that, or at least apply it towards another camper they sell you. You have a heck of a truck, it is really robust. I have a Tradesman 2015 3/4 ton with the standard output Cummins. It pulls great, your HO Cummins and more stout transmission should pull even better. Drive safe, camp happy.

[Nickeagle]

I have a 387RDFS north point. I had a 2020 Ram high output 3500 SRW. Crew cab long bed. Door sticker payload was 4080 pounds. I had to timbrens bump stops. I did not have the factory air suspension. I will say the best thing you can do is get rid of the factory tires. The sidewalls was horribly soft. I put nitro ridge grapplers in the 12 ply load range F on. That made a world of difference towing.

PS I now tow this with a dually for the increased stability and my new truck not having the junk CP4 injection pump.

[JetTech]

Ram straight up says you cannot exceed the payload capacity of the truck. In fact, they go further to say the weight of any upfits to the truck is to be removed from the payload capacity. Anybody saying that YOU will be fine because THEY haven’t had an issue are ignoring what’s in plain view, written to ensure we lose any legal challenge presented if we ignore it. It’s on the placard for a reason, and it’s not a guesstimate, it’s a DO NOT EXCEED. It says MAX PAYLOAD. A little over or a lot, you’ve lost that fight in court. Sure, the trucks are plenty capable. Just because they don’t appear to be overloaded doesn’t mean we are free of law enforcement. The DOT can pull you over at any time and run you across a mobile scale. How the heck do you explain it if your numbers don’t work out? And Heaven forbid someone pulls out in front of you and you rear end them. If you’re overloaded, you lose. Simple as that. Bill, I applaud your decision. It’s a tough one to make, and one far too many refuse to acknowledge. You’d swear by their logic you could tow a semi trailer with a 3/4 ton.

[Bill2e]

Originally Posted by JetTech

Bill, I applaud your decision. It’s a tough one to make, and one far too many refuse to acknowledge. You’d swear by their logic you could tow a semi trailer with a 3/4 ton.

Thank you! Now I just need to dealer to see it my way and return my deposit

[ShotgunZ71]

The North Point and Pinnacle are quite hefty lines. We've got an Eagle 355 and pull it with a GMC Sierra 2500HD. Any larger or heavier of a trailer and we'd step up to a 3500. Our longest trips are normally less than a week, so we don't have to pack but so much. Last time I put it on the scales, it was around 14,500 lbs loaded to go. I also have the Reese Goose Box and have enjoyed that as well.

[Bill2e]

I looked at Denali, nice trucks. I ended up going with my Ram because it was a 3500 and I liked the stereo and 12 inch console better.

The one we looked at had a Bluetooth stereo built into the flip down tailgate. Pretty cool features