Recommended 5th Wheel and Clearance Necessary for 2016 Chevrolet Silverado 3500 Flat Bed

Question:

Hello I have just bought a 2016 Chevy 3500HD crew cab flatbed truck to pull a 5th wheel. The bed is a Knapheide PGNC 96B. It has dovetail corners. My rotation clearance from center pin is 70. I am planning on buying a 2017 Jayco north point 377RLBH. Do I have enough clearance not to hit the RV? How much clearance should I have? What hitch do you recommend?

asked by: BobL

Expert Reply:

I did some research on the Knapheide PGNC 96B Flat Bed on your 2016 Chevrolet 3500 and it appears that it should already have a gooseneck hitch installed. However, looking into it further, it does not appear that a standard gooseneck adapter will be compatible because of the mounting space they require.

The best option for a 5th-Wheel Trailer Hitch on your 2016 Chevrolet 3500HD Flatbed is the Reese Low-Profile # RP30054. The low profile on this hitch is specifically designed for cab-and-chassis-style trucks because flatbeds tend to sit much higher than those on a typical pickup truck. The hitch has a 3 inch height adjustment, a weight capacity of 30,000 pounds and will be bolted directly to the frame of your truck. Some welding or fabrication may be required for installation.

In order to determine if you are going to have enough turning clearance with your 5th wheel, you will just need to follow a simple formula. First you will take a measurement of the distance from the center of the fifth wheel hitch (you can just measure from the center of the installed gooseneck ball if you do not already have a 5th wheel installed) to the truck cab or headache rack. Then you will take the width of your trailer and divide it by 2 to get half. You will subtract this number from the first measurement you took. In order for you to have enough clearance to make a 90 degree turn with your 5th-wheel, the number will need to be at least 4. If your hitch to cab measurement is not at least 4 inches more than half of your trailer width, you will not be able to complete a 90 degree turn without the trailer hitting the cab.

If you are also concerned about clearance at the rear of the truck, there are some additional measurements you can look at. If the rear clearance from the center of the truck's gooseneck hitch to the furthest point on the truck bed when turning measures 70 inches, when you look at the 5th wheel trailer you're interested in, you will want to make sure you have at least 74 inches of clearance from the center of the king pin to the closest point on the trailer. Just like the cab clearance equation above, you want at least 4 inches difference at the back for the necessary turning clearance.

expert reply by: Chris R