tow truck

[Bill R H]

I'm planning on buying a Chevy 2500HD Durmax diesel with Allison trany, C/C 4X4 standard bed. Can I pull a Montana3400RL safely or do I need a 3500, I'm new and don't want too little truck, but I would rather have the 2500 if it will do the job.
Thanks Bill

[Delaine and Lindy]

Bill, I haven't owned a 3400RL, but I have owned a Everest 343L and pulled it with a 2500HD and didn't have any issues at all. You will find the Duramax/Allison will pull about anything. But you will probably have, or should I say possible a issue with Pin weight.

I'm a firm believer you can't have two much Truck. But you are going to get comments saying they have pull this and that with no problem and I'm sure they have. But for safety I would go with a 3500HD Duramax/Allison which is a proven Tow vehicle. We just down graded to a Chevy Classic 3500HD, but we have owned the 3500HD in 2005. We were just concerned with the new emission system on the 08's and they are having some problems with the Fords, haven't heard much on the GM and Dodge brand. But I also believe Ford has fixed their problem. Get all the info you can and if someone that owns the 2500HD and are towing the 3400RL I'm sure they can give you a better idea about towing the 3400RL. Good Luck with your choice, the 3400RL Montana is a nice coach for the price. GBY....

P.S. I have only owned GM Trucks and we are driving our
5th Duramax/Allison..... So you know were I'm
comming from.

[sreigle]

Bill, you will get lots of opinions on this and will have to sift through them and decide for yourself. Many of us have successfully and safely towed a 3400RL with a 3/4 ton truck. You will probably be over the GVWR and payload capacity for your truck. The one ton single rear wheel trucks usually have an extra leaf on the rear springs that the 3/4 ton does not have. You may find the tail of the truck squats a little when you are hitched up. In that case you may want to add airbags or other help for the rear suspension.

You will also want to check the axle ratings and the tire ratings. If you are considering the 2500 to stay with a single rear wheel, you can get a 3500 with single rear wheel for very little more money, probably less than the cost of the airbags. The one ton will have a higher payload capacity than the 3/4 ton. From what I've found out from Ford parts people, the reason is the springs. Also, the one ton may offer larger tires with higher ratings.

Until recently I towed a 3400 with a Ford F250 but the Ford has higher gvwr, gcwr and tow ratings than the other brands but the payload is still less than the one tons. Check the numbers and then make your decision. In 85k miles with the Ford and fulltiming for the entire time we had the truck it gave us zero problems related to towing. The brakes, frame, and front suspension are the same as the F350. Many others here tow with the 3/4 ton and I've yet to hear of a failure due to towing. But you will likely be over some of the numbers.

[jsrang]

Bill, We have an 04.5 2500 HD Chevy short-bed D/A SRW pulling an 05 3650RK. It is an awesome combination. We looked hard @ both the 1 T DRW and 3/4 T SRW trucks. In our case, the TV was to be our only vehicle. That input, plus input from other Monty owners and the dealer helped make my decision. And no regrets. In my case I am from 250-500 lb over on the Pin Weight, but under about 500 lb on total GVW - 21,500lb vs 22,000. When loaded the TV sits perfectly level with no air bags required. And I just have the standard 16K Husky Hitch. I've found the handling to be superb. You will hear testimony from both 3/4 T and 1 T owners. Weigh what you get and then make the decision, and I'll bet that it will be the right one. Also IMO, you can't go wrong with the Chevy HD D/A combination. You are in for quite a thrill.

Jim

[Cat320]

I agree with the other posters...the 3/4 will pull fine (as will any diesel), but will be over the cargo capacity of the truck. Find a truck on the lot like you want and check the sticker on the left rear door pillar entitled "Tire and Loading Information." That sticker will list the exact weight of cargo/personnel you can put in that particular truck. A 3/4 D/A with your options will have a cargo capacity of 23/2400 lbs. The empty pw of a 3400RL is 2000 lbs...my actual pw is 2500, plus I have 800 lbs of other 'stuff' in the truck such as cargo, passengers, the hitch, tools, etc...so I have 3300 lbs of 'cargo' in my truck...way over the capacity of any 3/4. Do not believe the salesmen...most don't have a clue. I did lots of research on this subject before I got my truck...PM me if you want more information.

[Ozzie]

I can sure attest to the comment about the salesmen, at least the ones I just dealt with. I asked the question about cargo capacity and all I got was a blank stare. They didn't want to say the wrong thing because they didn't know. If I was so ill prepared at my job I wouldn't have it.