BROUGHT TO YOU BY Mortons on the Move
Any truck adequately equipped with a fifth wheel hitch can pull a fifth wheel. However, the towing and payload capacities often limit the fifth wheel a truck can tow. Fifth wheels come in various sizes, so it’s essential to confirm that a truck’s towing capabilities are sufficient for a specific trailer.
If you’re planning to tow a fifth wheel with a ¾ ton truck, the towing capacities are significant and technically they can pull as much as a 1 ton as they share a similar drivetrain. However, they are going to be limited by their payload capacity.
It should come as no surprise that the big three brands can tow the most. Ford, Chevy, and Ram all have ½ ton trucks that easily haul 10,000+ lbs. Ford and Ram battle back and forth each year, but the Ford F-150 has a maximum towing capacity of 14,000 lbs, and the Ram 1500 maxes out at 12,750 lbs.
Ram 3500 About: Okay, we admit we’re a bit biased on this one. We towed a heavy fifth wheel on a Ram 3500 for over 6 years and it was great. Ours was a 2010 2wd model with the 6.7L Cummins. We made a few modifications to the gear ratios to improve towing, but otherwise, it was a great truck.