Truck Shopping and Cargo Weights

[ahattar]

You guys all seem like great people and at the end of the day, the most important thing is that you're having fun.  As a former vehicle sales person, this thread is giving me the sweats and my trigger finger is starting to tremble!  Don't worry, I'd only shoot myself!  

Nice truck.  One thing to note.  My neighbor bought one and proceeded to get it stuck in the snow pretty quickly.  He said something about no clearance for chains.  You might want to do some test fitting before you go out adventuring.  

I have a Ram 1500 and with a lighter trailer than the Oliver, a WDH made all the difference in the world.  It does help breaking and steering in a massive way because you're putting the correct weight on the front tires so you actually have traction.  Even if you got the overpriced RAM airbag option, the WDH mathematically is still way more efficient at loading the frontend.  That said, if you're just driving down pavement in good conditions, those airbags will work just find.    

Congrats.  

[Mike and Carol]

13 hours ago, John E Davies said:

That is a beauty. Did you get the standard or eTorque Hemi? 

Post some pics with your trailer attached please.

John Davies

Spokane WA

It’s got the standard 5.7.  They had one with the eTorque, wrong color and wrong options.  With 20% off MSRP they don’t stay on the lot long.  I’ll post a picture with the trailer in a week or so, after the Christmas schedule slows down!  Mike

[Mike and Carol]

1 hour ago, topgun2 said:

Carol sure is going to be looking good in that truck - you, not so much.  I've always been interested in how those fender boxes work in real life.  Seems that they would be very handy.  Just who gets the job of keeping that nice dark paint clean?

Bill

It rained all day yesterday as I was driving my SIL way over to IKEA to pick up some furniture.  It is officially dirty!  Any vehicle washing in this house is assigned to me.  The Ram Boxes work well.  Plenty of space, LED lights and 110V outlet.  What I used to carry in a couple of toolboxes under all our camping stuff will go in them.  Easy access.  Mike

[Mike and Carol]

10 minutes ago, ahattar said:

Nice truck.  One thing to note.  My neighbor bought one and proceeded to get it stuck in the snow pretty quickly.  He said something about no clearance for chains.  You might want to do some test fitting before you go out adventuring.  

I have a Ram 1500 and with a lighter trailer than the Oliver, a WDH made all the difference in the world.  It does help breaking and steering in a massive way because you're putting the correct weight on the front tires so you actually have traction.  Even if you got the overpriced RAM airbag option, the WDH mathematically is still way more efficient at loading the frontend.  That said, if you're just driving down pavement in good conditions, those airbags will work just find.    

Congrats.  

I checked on proper chains since we’ll be visiting our son and family in Durango.  The manual is pretty specific.  I didn’t get the airbag option and will just continue with my Andersen that I’ve been using on my Tacoma then Ram 1500.  This one sits higher than my old 1500 so some adjustment will be necessary.  Mike

[ahattar]

12 minutes ago, Mike and Carol said:

I checked on proper chains since we’ll be visiting our son and family in Durango.  The manual is pretty specific.  I didn’t get the airbag option and will just continue with my Andersen that I’ve been using on my Tacoma then Ram 1500.  This one sits higher than my old 1500 so some adjustment will be necessary.  Mike

Sounds like a fun setup.  Enjoy 

[bugeyedriver]

Very nice looking truck, Mike.  I think that Ram Box configuration will come in handy for camping.  Have you looked into the Loadmaster Active Suspension system for reducing sag under load and improving ride characteristics overall?  I use it on both my Tacoma and F150 and have been very pleased with how it helps the trucks handle a heavy load or the trailer.

Also, I'm glad you no longer have an itch and that you saved $4.59 since you didn't need the itching cream.     ;)

Now, get out there and wash that truck!

[Trainman]

I opted not to get the eTorque engine, I personally felt that the extra money spent will not bring the return dollars at the time of trade-in value, maybe even less over the standard Hemi engine. 

trainman

[djpinaz]

I’m opening myself up for ridicule, but here’s my current tow vehicle. Long story how we ended up with this vehicle and an Oliver, but had it been planned out better we wouldn’t have paired these two together (Jeep came first in July with no intention of getting a LE2, let alone an Oliver which we got in Oct). Loaded with LP, water, misc payload in the trailer and Jeep, I’m just under the max on GCVWR, payload and tw. We’ve taken it on a couple trips so far, but no significant elevation climbs. But I know when that happens I’ll be in the right lane with the semi’s climbing the hill...

 

 

[Mike and Carol]

No ridicule here.  I picked up and towed 6K miles with a 2012 Tacoma.  As long as you are aware of your weight and know that hills will challenge you should be okay.  The Oliver is a very towable trailer.  You may get tired of not being able to carry much, or frequent stops at gas stations.  That’s what drove me to a bigger truck.  Mike

[djpinaz]

When we were looking at purchasing our used Oliver the owner mentioned they had towed it in the past with a Tacoma. I assumed she really meant a Tundra, or was trying to overcome the concern I had with our Jeep. Later I ran across a picture from a few years back of their trailer connected to a Tacoma, and I also ran across the article below. I don't believe it or our Jeep Gladiator is a very capable truck for towing this much weight (and limited payload capacity), but it can do it as you experienced. 

We originally purchased the Gladiator for off-road driving and occasionally hauling items in the bed of the truck (furniture, trips to Goodwill, etc). The 3rd use was towing a trailer, but at that point we were thinking a teardrop. It then evolved to a LE1 (after learning about the quality differences) and then the used LE2 popped up. We couldn't pass it up so we pulled the trigger. I assume at some point we'll make a change with our TV but we're not retired so our use will be limited at this point anyways.

[Mike and Carol]

Our pick up day in May 2016.  Hooking #135 to our Tacoma.  That’s Steve Landrum providing some expertise!

Edited December 26, 2019 by Mike and Carol

[John E Davies]

I absolutely love the Gladiator but I think there is probably going to be some performance disappointment ahead.

Welcome to Ollie Land. 

John Davies

Spokane WA

Edited December 26, 2019 by John E Davies

[topgun2]

Mike is right about the frequent stops for gas and that is also what drove me (initially) to a larger tow vehicle.  Prior to getting my Oliver I was towing a 15 foot "stick built" hybrid camper across Kansas into a 40 mph headwind.  My gas mileage with the Tacoma was 4 miles per gallon.  With the 18 gallon tank it wasn't very long between fuel stops.

However, within safety margins one usually has to dance with the girl you brought to the party - at least for a little while.

In any case, enjoy that Ollie II.

Bill 

Edited December 27, 2019 by topgun2

[Mike and Carol]

On 12/20/2019 at 8:15 PM, John E Davies said:

Post some pics with your trailer attached please.

 

Drove over to the trailer today to adjust my Andersen hitch to the new truck which sits over an inch taller than the 2016 Ram.  With no adjustments it was 25.5” to the top of the ball.  I was in the bottom two holes in the ball mount so I had to remove the ball assembly and flip the mount over to use the top two holes.  That made the top of the ball sit at exactly 23.5”.  When I lowered the trailer the truck went down about 1.5” without the Andersen.  With the WDH it was just above 22.5” at the top of the ball.  When I used a level on the trailer, it was right at level.  That is with an empty truck.  Once I load the bed with camping stuff I should be very slightly nose down.  We’ll load up this weekend for a Monday departure to points west for Jan/Feb and should get a better idea if any adjustments are needed.

 

[BackofBeyond]

Looking forward to future reports. Looking good!

[Landrover]

On 12/29/2019 at 3:01 PM, Mike and Carol said:

Drove over to the trailer today to adjust my Andersen hitch to the new truck which sits over an inch taller than the 2016 Ram.  With no adjustments it was 25.5” to the top of the ball.  I was in the bottom two holes in the ball mount so I had to remove the ball assembly and flip the mount over to use the top two holes.  That made the top of the ball sit at exactly 23.5”.  When I lowered the trailer the truck went down about 1.5” without the Andersen.  With the WDH it was just above 22.5” at the top of the ball.  When I used a level on the trailer, it was right at level.  That is with an empty truck.  Once I load the bed with camping stuff I should be very slightly nose down.  We’ll load up this weekend for a Monday departure to points west for Jan/Feb and should get a better idea if any adjustments are needed.

 

I’m a Chevy guy. I have to admit that is a good looking truck. For a dodge. Seriously nice truck good luck with it.