How to Pick Out a Truck for Towing a Fifth Wheel Trailer
Question:
I am looking for a new 3/4 ton to tow a 5th wheel
asked by: John L
Expert Reply:
All three of the companies you mentioned make great trucks that would do a great job towing your 39 foot trailer. I would recommend you go with a dually, long bed, diesel truck to make for the best towing experience.
Dually trucks are safer in the event of a blow out as they have more than one tire per side of the truck. And long beds make turning much easier as a slider hitch would not be required so that you can make 90 degree turns. Slider hitches usually are much noisier than stationary hitches and are a hassle to use every time you need to make a tight turn.
Diesels get better mileage when towing and tend to last forever, especially when compared to gas motors in towing situations.
Now everyone has their opinion about who makes the best truck. Here we have Chevy guys, Dodge guys, and even a Ford guy believe it or not.
What I don't like about the Dodges (or Rams) is their transmissions, their bizzare hitch prep package that only fits a few fifth wheel hitches, and their overall reputation as having poor engineering and low quality standards. The Cummins motor is fantastic though.
In recent years the Ford diesels have been plagued by numerous problems like death wobble (where the front suspension shakes the steering wheel so bad that you lose ability to steer), terrible fuel mileage, run-away diesel problems (where the turbo develops an oil leak and feeds the motor it's own engine oil as fuel till it blows up without any way of shutting the truck off), and just overall reliability issues. Allegedly the most recent Powerstroke engine has gotten away from those problems...
Which last but not least we have Chevy. The older LB7 Duramax is prone to having injector issues on occasion, but aside from that the diesel Chevy's and GMC's are solid trucks. The Duramax motor is solid and reliable. My parents have a Duramax work truck that has been heavily abused for 350,000 miles that is still reliable as can be. The Allison transmission is also very reliable and strong as long as you stay at stock power levels.
With all that being said I think your best option would be a 2001 and up Chevy or GMC with a Duramax diesel. Some say not to get a newer truck than 2008 since you won't have nearly as much emission regulations on the truck and won't have to mess with the exhaust regeneration nonsense, but the trucks after that year are still great trucks.
