New Member

[rvbubba]

joined today after finding out the forum was avilable for Montana owners. Wife and I will be going to full time soon. We want any information anyone would share about the Montana 3400RL and what you tow it with. Look forward to visiting with many of you in the future.

[Imp]

Welcome Floyd. We also have a 3400 and have been fulltiming since june of last year. It works very well. We tow with an F350. If you do a search about towing a 3400, you will find lots of information.
Safe travels,
Myrna

[H. John Kohl]

Welcome to the MOC family both on the WEB and with your trailer. The tow vehicle topic is a big one by itself. You will need at least a 3/4 to 1 ton truck. Most are Diesel although there are a few gasser out there. Dual wheels or single is again a topic of its own. Any of the three GM, Ford or Dodge will do the job because they are all pulling Montanas.
Do not be afraid to ask your question and use the search. Lots of good information out here.
Cheers,

[RC and Samantha]

quote:Originally posted by rvbubba

joined today after finding out the forum was avilable for Montana owners. Wife and I will be going to full time soon. We want any information anyone would share about the Montana 3400RL and what you tow it with. Look forward to visiting with many of you in the future.

A big welcome to MOC.

Full timers, that will be so nice. I am envying your right now as you will be living my dream.

As John said prior to my reply, all the pick ups he mentioned will do the job. Whether it's a dually or single wheel is without a doubt another discussion as well with what is called a 3/4 ton or 1 ton.

My sister has a 3400RL and it has one of the lightest pin weights, or at least it did when she purchased hers. They tow it with a GMC 2500 HD, Duramax with an Alison trans, Crew Cab, Long Bed (I believe it's a long bed?) and have no problems.

She also tows horses and she uses a Dodge Dually for that. Her reasoning seems like a sound one. She needs the extra stability even though it may impair a bit of her maneuverability because the horses throw their weight around while in the trailer which is also a fifth wheel.

As you can tell from our Signature Line we have a 2500HD, Duramax with and an Alison trans. We tow a 3295RK Big Sky that is pretty heavy. We were over on our pin weight slightly for the rear axle until we added a hitch and bike rack. Now it's lowered the pin weight. Still we would like to beef up the rear axle's weight rating.

If we were able to we'd buy a 3500 HD, Duramax with Alison trans but in a single wheel option and a short bed. That was not an available option when we bought ours, nor was the short bed as it is now.

My husband works at one of the factories that makes the GMC/Chevy trucks and there is a brand new one coming out. It's still a bit secret but the tow ratings are suppose to be higher. I'd like to buy one but it's not in our future because of financial constraints. Dick tells me that buying a vehicle that debuts the first year is not smart as there are often bugs to work out.

Which ever truck you end up with you'll find others who tow with it and are very happy. The 3400RL is a beautiful unit and I venture is one of the most popular now.

Again welcome to MOC, you will find the most wonderful people here and a wealth of information.

Patty

[Wordsmith]

Welcome to the forum! If you are looking for information about Montanas as well as tow vehicles, you have found a good place to ask. The others have said it well about the tow vehicles as any of the “big three” 3/4 and one ton trucks equipped with a diesel will do the job, though obviously the one tons will compensate for the higher pin weights without adding air bags or such.

I would also suggest that if you opt for a short bed truck, that you consider a slider hitch to keep the nose of the Montana off the truck cab. I have the PullRite SuperGlide, which is automatic as opposed to manual. Though more expensive, it is the best hitch on the market and truly gives you piece of mind. You might want to do some research on it. If you purchase a long bed truck, there will not be a need, but PullRite also makes excellent hitches without the sliding option.

[stiles watson]

Well, Tomball, Texas ain't bad country. We spent 30 years around Houston ending up in Clear Lake. I really think you will have a great time fulltiming. You will get enough differing opinions on trucks to confuse you. Just go with what you like. If money is no object, get a Volvo hauler, then you won't even get into the 3/4-ton/1-ton debate because you can pull a city block with it. Keep checking in, it is lots of fun. Happy RVing......