Just got back from my first trip over the Sierra's towing the big 5er. She did well. Thought I would have to re-do my gears after putting the larger tires on but, after last weekend I think I'm fine.

Coolant temps got a little warm on the Attitude display (217 to maybe 225 max). I think the Attitude alarms at 215. I think I'll raise the alarm point to 220. Dummy lights on the dash aren't near the red when the Attitude alarm sounds.

Anyone else change the alarm point on the Attitude display for Engine Temp?

I've got the EGT max at 1350. I'ld hit that on some of the big hills. Backed out of it until I was just under it. . . was suprised to find out how much I had to back ouf to it on one hill. Makes me wonder how much more I could get if I was able to continue to push it.

Bottom line is it was fast enough for me.

Thanks for the report. Just curious... what highway were you travelling over in the Sierras? I thought most of the big ones were closed until it gets a little warmer. I went to Yosemite last year in mid-June, and they weren't expecting to have Tioga Pass cleared until 4th of July! :( But all that extra snow they got that winter made for some roaring waterfalls! :)

--Paul.

What was your edge/attitude set too?

I am also curious if you have weighed your 5er? My guess is it would be very easy to get it over 14,000 lbs

Hwy 80 - they keep it open pretty much all the time except for the real big storms and as soon as it clears just a little they have it plowed.

Edge / Attitude set on 2. . . don't want to hurt anything.

Haven't put the trailer on the scale. . . not sure I want to know the loaded weight. Didn't go with the slides to save a few lbs. but, she's still a big trailer.

I towed my 31 TT cruising speed 75 :eek: on the turnpike and bucking a good headwind. My attitude wore me out so i cranked it up and never heard another beep out of it:exactly:All that to say i bought crapped my pants first time i heard it. After that i just watch the dummy gauge. But i really was more concerned with the egts and had to back out on some hills occationally.

What temperature did you set it at?

Interstate 80 stays open year round, it gets closed for a few hours from time to time but that is about it. We have gotten more snow this year than we did last! Some of the passes are left for the winter because their isnt enough traffic to justify the money to keep it clear. Mt. Rose Hwy (St. Rt. 431) is also kept open year round, goes from Reno to Incline Village (tahoe) and climes to 9000 feet.

Sounds like the truck did well. Were did you take your weekend warrior?

Bentley

DuneMe-
Our LE3105 weighs 14K loaded. An LE3905 would be probably around 16K lbs. You're way heavy... Easily over the truck's GVWR, and likely over the GCWR too. Yow...

i have my temp set at 230 and my speed at 120 ):h

Cool. . . I'll set it up for 230. . . doubt I'll hit that all that often.

Headed over to Sand Mt. Had a good trip.

your attitude will back down(de-fuel)autimatically when it reaches your set egt temp. go to your menu, enter into juice configuration, enter into max egt set point, and set accordingly. no need to back down on your own. i have mine set to 1400* but i rarely see over 1300* when pulling.

Yeh, I just back down so I don't have to hear that alarm. Hate it when I back out of it and find myself at mid-thrttle. . .

Cool. . . I'll set it up for 230. . . doubt I'll hit that all that often.

Headed over to Sand Mt. Had a good trip.

That's what mine is set on. I thought LB7's weren't supposed to heat up??? Oh well, doesn't seem to phase it and then the fan kicks on a the ECT drops rapidly. My speed is set to 125.

DuneMe-
Our LE3105 weighs 14K loaded. An LE3905 would be probably around 16K lbs. You're way heavy... Easily over the truck's GVWR, and likely over the GCWR too. Yow...

Please.

Explain how, based on the information "DuneMe" provided, that he is "....way heavy... Easily over the truck's GVWR, and likely over the GCWR too ".

You may have created " Concern ", without justification, for DuneMe and others.

Opinions are Opinions. Statements, are held to a higher reference by me, " Expert ", "Personal Experience "; not a guess.

FWIW.

Please.

Explain how, based on the information "DuneMe" provided, that he is "....way heavy... Easily over the truck's GVWR, and likely over the GCWR too ".

You may have created " Concern ", without justification, for DuneMe and others.

Opinions are Opinions. Statements, are held to a higher reference by me, " Expert ", "Personal Experience "; not a guess.

FWIW.






No problem. I'll try to make it simple.:D
DuneMe has a 2500HD. GVW on a 2005 2500HD is 9200 lb. A 2500HD equipped similar to his (mine) weighs approximately 6900 lb. That leaves 2300 lb for "payload"; passengers, FUEL, hitch, Starbucks Venti's, etc. A 2500HD carries 26 gallons of fuel, weighing about ~170 lb. A fifth-wheel hitch weighs about ~180 lb. A Starbucks Venti weighs about 16 ounces, with no foam. A human passenger weighs about ~170 (according to the federal government) A 2500HD carries four comfortably, five in a pinch. Let's use three 170 pounders for this elementary exercise= 3X170=510 lb. So, we now subtract this "payload" from the maximum gross vehicle weight permissable on a 2005 2500HD, 9200 lb. 9200-860.5=8339.5 "Empty weight" of the 2500HD is about 6900, ae the class recalls. We subtract 6900 from 8339.5, and we have 1439.5 lb remaining of useful load available. That means, we can "load" another 1439.5 lb on the 2500HD, before reaching the maximum weight of...9200 lb. Sadly, there is not a Weekend Warrior LE 3905 with a pin (hitch) weight of 1439.5 lb or less, on the planet. Those planets with gravitational properties allowing this load do not have sufficient oxygen to operate an internal combustion engine, not to mention lack of fuel availability. Even if our DuneMe friend had sprung for the slightly sturdier "3500" truck, it would still be insufficient. A Weekend Warrior of that size presents closer to 2460 lb pin weight, plus... Now, if you require further opinion-free info, the 2005 2500HD has a maximum combined vehicle weight of 22,000 lb. If our hauling buddy has his truck maxed out, like it appears, he can tow: a MAXIMUM of 12,800 lb. As in: 9200+12,800=22,000. Again, there's not a Weekend Warrior LE3905 in existence that weighs 12,800 lb with ANY kind of load. Please forgive my assumption that our Dune'r will actually want to load "toys", fuel, water, gear, clothes, and food in the trailer. Recently, I was present at the weigh-in of a Weekend Warrior CL40 fifth-wheel, and it weighed almost 14,000 lb EMPTY. No gas, no water, no toys, no food, no clothes, no nothing.

Please forgive me if some of my math is incorrect, but I am confident it's close enough to unequivocably find the flaw in attempting to tow an LE3905 with a 2500HD. :eek:

If you wish to discuss the moral & legal ramifications of such a choice, that's quite another thing...

Cool. . . I'll set it up for 230. . . doubt I'll hit that all that often.

Headed over to Sand Mt. Had a good trip.

Good old Sand Mt.! I haven't been out in a few months as my quad is under construction right now. Me and my buddies go out their all the time, its about 1.5-2 hours from me (less the way I drive).

Bentley

Please forgive me if some of my math is incorrect, but I am confident it's close enough to unequivocably find the flaw in attempting to tow an LE3905 with a 2500HD. :eek:

If you wish to discuss the moral & legal ramifications of such a choice, that's quite another thing...


That's going to leave a mark!

Idaho, you have to realize, that is a 39 Toy Hauler, it has probably a 25 ft garage with room to haul 7 or 8 quads @ 400-600lbs. It holds 150 gallons of water at 1200lbs. You can't compare this to some park model 5th wheel.

That's going to leave a mark!

Idaho, you have to realize, that is a 39 Toy Hauler, it has probably a 25 ft garage with room to haul 7 or 8 quads @ 400-600lbs. It holds 150 gallons of water at 1200lbs. You can't compare this to some park model 5th wheel.

A pound is a pound is a pound, Toy Hauler or Park Model.

My point is, without Scaling the equipment, it's weight is a guess.

Case in point.

I pull a 36' Alfa Model 292 with a 2500HD Silverado.

I have a Certified " CAT " scale ticket in front of me for my rig: Steer Axle - 4080#, Drive Axle - 5240#, Trailer Axle - 11940# Gross Weight - 21260#.

The Alfa is rated @ 15000# GAWR, 17140# GVWR.

Is it possible, to overload this equipment, you bet it is; in the example above am I overloaded, No.

I'm not an attorney so let's not beat that horse; I do pretty well with math though.

You are correct, Fox. A pound is a pound. Not trying to be jerk by any means, (no matter what my wife says...) but you're overloaded according to the CAT scale. Not by much, but it's over 9200 lb, and pushing 22k pretty close. One issue with the toyhaulers, is the way they're built. Typically, the are inherently heavier because of bigger frames, beefier framing, etc. Our 32' fiver carries 1300 lb of water, 400 lb of fuel, and five motorcycles & gear. So, we're bumping max GVW & CVWR when loaded. Anyway, few people are really aware of just how heavy these toyhaulers are, and how that affects handling and braking dynamics. Not a problem, until there's an accident, and they are trying to figure out who to pin liability on.

Wish I had bought a dually, but still love our heavy setup...

Am I overload when I " Snow Bird ", we both know the answer to that.

That is why I run 265 "E"s.

I do understand your point.

Duneme
The large tires makes a huge difference in the way these trucks tow. I sold a brand new set of BFG AT TAKO 285 after just one pull. When I put 265's back on it the word was right once again. I lost over 2 MPG with the 285's and alot of a*s. My 5er only weighs 18.7K lbs according to CAT scales so that may be the differerence.

dieselpusher saidIf our hauling buddy has his truck maxed out, like it appears, he can tow: a MAXIMUM of 12,800 lb. As in: 9200+12,800=22,000.

Actually, using these numbers, he can tow a 14,800 lb trailer, because 2,000 lb of the trailer weight is being counted as part of the truck's 9,200 GVWR. In your example, the pin weight is being counted twice...as part of the 9,200 and as part of the 12,800.

dieselpusher said

Actually, using these numbers, he can tow a 14,800 lb trailer, because 2,000 lb of the trailer weight is being counted as part of the truck's 9,200 GVWR. In your example, the pin weight is being counted twice...as part of the 9,200 and as part of the 12,800.






Good catch, and good point! I was at the W/W factory today, and they are VERY hesitant to talk actual weights of their products...

Ed

I am struggling with this issue right now.
We are in the process of moving into a 5er to live and work full time for the next few years.


Found a perfect 5er at a great price. A 35' Excel. fiberglass roof, gel coat sides, dual pane windows, floor plan that both my wife and I love all at a great price.

Problem is it weighs 13460 empty. I have no doubt that my duramax can pull it. Heck it would probably pull a house if you could find a big enuff chain. But.... that doesn't make it right. Loading fresh water and supplies would easily put us over 15K.

Being new to the 5er world, is it common for your weight to be checked? To be ticketed for it>? To have the insurance comp. check for weights in the event of an accident?

According to GM I have a max 5th wheel weight of 15K.

Can anyone offer some advice?

thanks - Del

I don't know anyone that has been checked or ticketed myself. But, maybe noone is overweight???

Insurance Company has no reason to check.

Biggest liability is if there is an accident. If you were speeding, drinking, etc. or there was a fatality AND overweight I'm sure things could get ugly.