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Old 01-31-2010, 02:39 PM   #1
FlashG
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Truck Big Enough for the 3400

Our favorite Montana plan is the 3400.

We have a 2008 Chevrolet 3500 Duramax/Allison ext cab long box.

Do we have enough truck to comfortably haul the 3400?
 
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Old 01-31-2010, 02:53 PM   #2
Clemson1881
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Yes. You have plenty of truck to tow any Montana floor plan.
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Old 01-31-2010, 02:53 PM   #3
Emmel
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Absolutely.
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Old 01-31-2010, 03:13 PM   #4
bncinwv
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You will have no problems, see signature below.
Bingo
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Bingo and Cathy - Our adventures begin in the hills of WV. We are blessed by our 2014 3850FL Big Sky (previous 2011 3750FL and 2007 3400RL) that we pull with a 2007 Chevy Silverado Classic DRW CC dually.
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Old 01-31-2010, 04:35 PM   #5
firetrucker
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Nothing less than an HDT is the most capable, comfortable, and safest tow vehicle for the 3400. Check out the HDT forum for more information.

Bob
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Old 02-01-2010, 12:39 AM   #6
HamRad
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FlashG,
Your 3500 will certainly tow the 3400. But as Bob, FireTrucker, indicated if you want the most capable, comfortable, and safest tow vehicle for the 3400 you would need to get an HDT.

Wish I had one but cannot talk the DW into getting one. But I'll keep dreaming.

Good luck.
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Old 02-01-2010, 01:40 AM   #7
Mudchief
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I don't have any problem with my truck towing the 3400 and you have more truck than I do.
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Old 02-01-2010, 03:07 AM   #8
richfaa
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Well.. The numbers are the numbers... The 2010 3400 has a GVWR of 15,640lbs. That is OVER the tow limits of my 08 F-350 Ford with the 4:10 diff
The 4:30 diff would be OK.... Check the ratings a spec's for your Truck.. They keep making these things heavier without consideration of what it take to tow one.. This is why we can not ungrade to a newer Montana. (not happy about that)
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Old 02-01-2010, 04:08 AM   #9
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We have no problem with our 3500 dually pulling our 3400. Up mountains, down mountains, across the desert and plains. There we go.
Happy trails.......................
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Old 02-01-2010, 05:10 AM   #10
Delaine and Lindy
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We had several GM 3500HDs and never had a problem with HP or Torq or stopping the load. However most all were over the Gross tow rating but never over pin weight. Haven't owned a Montana per say but did own a Cambridge which was much heavier that any Montana.. Actual weight of Cambridge was 17,040 and GM 3500HD was 8,560 for a total of 25,600 lbs we were full timing at the time. We did have Disk Brakes on the Cambridge. That being say if you stay within the numbers you will need to watch what you travel with. You really don't need a lot of things that people haul around. Its a choice you will have to make. All of our GM 3500HDs have had DRWs. GBY.....

P.S. Don't think you can have to much Truck but you can have to much 5th wheel.
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Old 02-01-2010, 06:24 AM   #11
Art-n-Marge
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FlashG,

If your 3500 is a dually I don't think you will have any issue, however...

To know if your Chevy 3500 will be able to tow a 3400RL you need to check a few things, then decide what you want to do. Most of the information below is for SRW which would be more of a concern than a dually.

Check the door pillar on the driver's side for the certification label to know your truck's GVWR, FAWR, and RAWR. For example, I have seen a 2008 3500 SRW with a GVWR of 11,400, but do not remember the other ratings. The engine type, SRW versus DRW, and the differential ratios will affect the ratings of your vehicle, which are covered by the pillar label.

The next thing you need to know about your TV is its 5th wheel towing capacity which will be different but probably higher than the bumper tow capacity. I know that for Ford the 2006 F-350 & F-250 have a 15,200 lbs of capacity but on an F-250 it needs about 900 lbs less RAW and 1,500 less GVW.

You don't mention the year of the 3400RL you desire. The GVWR (aka GTWR for a trailer) of a 3400RL has increased over the years. For example, starting in 2006 and ending with 2010 here are the web-posted weights for a 3400RL in the Format of Year=GTWR/PW/%: 2006=13,975/1,975/14%, 2007=15,500/2,000/12.9%, 2008=15,500/2,045/13.1%, 2009=15,500/2,140/13.8%, 2010=15,640/2,140/13.6%. The website does not post earlier years' shipping weight so those can only be estimated.

Looking closely you will find that the listed PW (pin weight) is 14% or less of the web-posted Gross weight (Shipping weight + Cargo Capacity). Most RV experts state that 15% is the MINIMUM after loading up the rig for calculating pin weight of a 5er, and 18%-22% is typical, but 25% is probably the maximum. The only way to truly know is weigh your rig combination.

But since you want to know BEFORE you buy, use the percentages to anticipate what you'd be carrying. First weigh your truck with cargo, front axle, rear axle and both axles, to know the actual RAW and GVW you have to spare. Then calculate the 5er pin weight, for example, on a 2010 3400RL with a GTWR of 15,640, the pin weights will be 2,346 (15%), 2,815 to 3,440 (18% to 22%) or worse case of 3,910lbs (25%). Then compare this to your TV's actual RAW, the weight of the 5th wheel hitch and the cargo you plan to carry.

What you find out is what you can decide as an owner to be comfortable. It has been documented in many RV articles that about 45% of RV owners tow over their rated capacities. I was one of them until recently. I had no issues with the tow, until I weighed my rig and found I was overweight, but I only have a Ford F-250 and my rigs' GTWR is 14,020 lbs. The GTW is now less than 13,000 lbs.

The choice is yours, but again if you have a dually, I doubt you will have an issue.
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Old 02-01-2010, 07:11 AM   #12
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One correction on the above post...11,400 GVWR is for the dually, the SRW 3500 has a GVWR of 9,900. GM's diesel trucks are pretty easy to understand. ALL trucks have the same engine, rear end and transmission...6.6L Duramax, 3.73, and six speed Allison, there are no options. Also, all 3500 series trucks, both DRW and SRW, come in a long bed only, again, no options.

If you have a dually, you are okay, if you have a SRW you'll be marginal at best.
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Old 02-01-2010, 07:36 AM   #13
richfaa
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IF I am reading the 2008 Tow guide for the 08 Chevy right 3500 Ext cab LB 4X4, DRW the 5th wheel tow capacity is 16K so you are OK.. please check my numbers..
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Old 02-01-2010, 08:15 AM   #14
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The rating for my 2007 classic DRW is 16,000 as Rich states.
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Bingo and Cathy - Our adventures begin in the hills of WV. We are blessed by our 2014 3850FL Big Sky (previous 2011 3750FL and 2007 3400RL) that we pull with a 2007 Chevy Silverado Classic DRW CC dually.
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Old 02-01-2010, 09:05 AM   #15
Delaine and Lindy
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Don't know how accurate the 2010 Trailer Guide from Trailer Guide is but for a GM 3500 DRWs 4x4 is 15,900 and for a GM 3500 SRW 4x4 is 14,800 again this is just a guide. GM also says it 15,900 also, with a 3.73 rear gear, which is the only available options for the Duramax/Allison. The towing weight will increase with the 2 Wheel drive option. GBY.....
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Old 02-01-2010, 09:10 AM   #16
FlashG
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My truck is the single rear wheel version.

I am now leaning toward the Montana 3150 instead.
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Old 02-01-2010, 10:54 AM   #17
richfaa
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Just my opinion. Since you have a choice go with safety.
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Old 02-01-2010, 11:01 AM   #18
TLightning
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Except for the information on what you need to tow...engine/trans/coolers/hitches, etc, TL's Trailer Guide is pretty much a waste of time.

ALL those tow capacity numbers are based on an EMPTY truck...and therefore not much help.

As noted before, the true tow capacity is the GCWR minus the TV's weight when ready to tow.

For example, an earlier poster mentioned a tow capacity from the chart of 16,000. Fine, if you do the numbers in reverse here's what you get: GCWR is 23,500 minus 16,000 = the weight of the truck...7,500.
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Old 02-01-2010, 01:18 PM   #19
Clemson1881
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Everyone has an opinion, but a HDT is not necessary to tow a Montana. I'm sure a HDT handles a Monty well, and my dually would handle a 1500 lb. boat well too. But you could tow the 1500 lb. boat with a mini van and do just as well. Point is overkill is overkill, but to each his own.
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Old 02-01-2010, 01:48 PM   #20
richfaa
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Tom.."For example, an earlier poster mentioned a tow capacity from the chart of 16,000. Fine, if you do the numbers in reverse here's what you get: GCWR is 23,500 minus 16,000 = the weight of the truck...7,500." You are absolutly correct about the numbers and that 7,500lbs number is what the total weight of the truck can be..ready to tow. These are numbers one needs to know. My Ford ready to tow weighed in at 9250. GCWR is 23,500lbs. Although the GVWR on our Montana is 15,500lbs and the tow rating of the Ford is 15,300lbs. My 3400 can only weigh 14,250lbs and I had to ditch a bunch of stuff to get it there after being weighed and nearly having a heart attack.
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