Durango towing a Jayco

[Marquezfamily]

I own a 2018 Dodge Durango v6 3.6L with a max GTW is 6200. My Durango's GVW is 6500, rear axle is 3900, trailer tongue weight 620lbs, GCWR is 11,600, GTW 6200. I am interested in the 2019 Jayco Jay Feather 20BH, uvw is 4,290, dry hitch weight 505, GVW 5500.
I was wondering if this vehicle can tow that type of trailer safely?
Any tips or help is greatly appreciated.

[Rustic Eagle]

Marquezfamily,

Welcome to JOF

Question, is your Durango's 620lb maximum trailer tongue weight "include" when using a WDH? If 620lbs is the maximum tongue weight when using a WDH then the 20BH may not be an ideal match unless one has very conservative loading habits.

You might consider taking your Durango to a CAT scale ($9 & 3-minutes) for a weigh-in under loaded conditions (full fuel, passengers, cargo, etc.) would confirm your "available" payload capacity....., thus reducing the guess work. Knowing whether you might be well within, approaching, or exceeding your Durango's payload capacity may influence your thinking.

Subtract the CAT weight from your Durango's specified GVWR..., the remaining weight is your "available" payload capacity to support a TT's "loaded" tongue weight and WDH weight. Payload capacity and/or rear axle weight limits tend to be reached prior to a TV's towing capacity.

The 20BH has a published (website, brochure, etc.) UVW of 4,290lbs...., but a as-shipped UVW closer to 4,400lbs based on the yellow sticker on the side of the TT.

Worst case scenario......; Loading the 20BH to its GVWR of 5,500lbs would represent a recommended 715lb - 825lb (13% - 15%) loaded tongue weight range.

Moderate 20BH loaded scenario: (4,400lbs UVW) + (600lbs cargo) + (50lbs RV dealer, battery, etc.) = 5,050lbs......, 656lb - 757lb (13% - 15%) loaded tongue weight range.

Everyones typical loading habits differ..., some tow with full fresh water tanks, loading for a family, etc...., so these conditions may or may not apply.

I don't mean to over complicate the thought process, but rather provide insight into what's really taking place.

The following link is a recent JOF thread on the Durango that also contains a couple older links that may be of interest.

Durango: https://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f...ngo-64849.html

Bob

[Marquezfamily]

Thank you Bob,
I feel I would only loaded to about 4,500 lbs, there is a high probability that the water tank would only have 10-20 gallons, 1/2 to 1/3 the total amount of water we would need. We would top it off once we arrived to our destination.

[Marquezfamily]

This does not include a WDH, the numbers came out of the manual.

[RedHorse1]

Originally Posted by Marquezfamily

This does not include a WDH, the numbers came out of the manual.

Rustic is spot on with his advice.
The CAT Scale is your friend.
I expect you would be at or over your Rear GAWR. The numbers from the manual probably cover all trim lines and options. Your specific configuration will be different but the numbers on the sticker found on the driver door jamb will be accurate.
We towed 4500# and had a TW + hitch of 600#. That put us within 300# of the Rear GAWR. With another couple in the back seat and their gear we were a bit over weight on the rear. It was an Expedition 5.4 with a max tow of 9500#. When researching possible trailers I initially thought as long as I towed something under 9500# I was good. Was a bit of a surprise.

[bono]

OP, there are ways to decrease tongue weight. My trailer has published TW of 680 lbs. When empty the tongue weight is around 700 lbs (with ProPride installed, which weights a lot) and ready for camping is 780-850 lbs.

I installed lithium batteries in the trailer instead of on the tongue and also put everything heavy over the trailer axles. You may or may not like paying attention to how you pack the stuff.

Durango is considered excellent, stable tow vehicle. You may wish visiting airsteam forum. There are a few guys towing large trailer with Durango.

[CampinFred]

Just watch out for o2_silverado, he'll say you need a 2500 to tow that.