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2013 Ram Heavy Duty seeks to obliterate rivals with claimed 30,000-pound max tow rating

Zach Bowman — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 00:01:00 EST

No one can accuse Ram of backing away from the full-size truck arms race. Chrysler has officially dropped the payload details on its 2013 Ram Heavy Duty, and the 3500 now packs a maximum trailer weight of 30,000 pounds. Chew on that number for a moment. That's 15 tons, or the equivalent of a dozen Mazda MX-5 Miata convertibles stacked on a trailer, and it's also a whopping 6,900 pounds more than the closest competitor to the Ram 3500, the Chevrolet Silverado 3500 HD. Ram engineers have cranked the truck's 6.7-liter Cummins turbo-diesel engine to a ludicrous 850 pound-feet of torque, up 50 lb-ft over the 2012 model. "Shock the world" figures, all.

Throw in a stiffer frame, stouter transfer case, beefed-up transmission and brawnier U-joints in the driveline, and you have what Ram is calling "the most capable trucks we've ever built." That includes the Ram 2500, which has seen its towing capacity swell to 18,350 lbs and its Gross Combined Weight Rating jump to 25,000 lbs. Look for the 2013 Ram 3500 HD to bow at the 2013 Detroit Auto Show, and be sure to check out the full press release below for more information.

Continue reading 2013 Ram Heavy Duty seeks to obliterate rivals with claimed 30,000-pound max tow rating

2013 Ram Heavy Duty seeks to obliterate rivals with claimed 30,000-pound max tow rating originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 09 Jan 2013 00:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GM, Ford continue to squabble over pickup towing standards

Jonathon Ramsey — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Truck, Work, Ford, GM

We've seen this sort of thing before - a group agrees to adhere to a common standard at some determined date, then when the date arrives, one or more parties in the group figures out how to 'adhere' in a completely new way. When the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) laid out its J2807 tow-rating guidelines a few years ago with input from domestic and Japanese truck makers and tow suppliers, the standardized testing regime was applauded as a way to provide reliable comparisons between manufacturers. Even though it would mean lowering their tow ratings, all of the truck makers agreed to use the J2807 protocol as of 2013.

Toyota moved to the new ratings two years ago, resulting in tow ratings for its Tundra dropping anywhere from 400 to 1,000 pounds. When it came time for General Motors to announcing its 2013 trucks, it released towing specs based on the new standards, sending some ratings up and other down by hundreds of pounds. Ford, however, has decided that it will move to the J2807 standard when it's "all-new models come to market," which means The Blue Oval gets at least another year, probably more, to use its current figures. Predictably, GM not only cried foul, it took back the SAE numbers - even though they've been revealed - and has reverted to the pre-SAE ratings. A GM statement read, in part, "For example, key competitors are continuing to use their existing ratings for 2013 model year pickups. Retaining our existing rating system will reduce confusion for dealers and customers."

Ram hasn't disclosed its plans yet, but information on its 2013 models is expected at the end of this month and we'll know where it stands. Concerning GM, the truth is out there, you'll just have to go looking for it. Concerning the clarity everyone was hoping to find this year, well, that's still a ways off.

GM, Ford continue to squabble over pickup towing standards originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 06 Jun 2012 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pickup makers reach pact with SAE on tow rating standards

Chris Shunk — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Truck, Etc.

The pickup truck towing capacity wars have been in full-blown Mortal Kombat-style battle mode for as long as we can remember. For years, it's gone something like this: Automaker A claims that its rig can tow 10,000 pounds, then Automaker B increases their truck's stated capacities to 10,500 pounds without changing a single component. And if you've ever wondered if all automakers test towing capacities in the same manner, well... they don't.

The Detroit Free Press is reporting that the Society of Automotive Engineers will change practice that by the 2013 model year by implementing a new a standardized testing methodology. General Motors engineer Robert Krause, who chaired the SAE committee that set the new standard, said that the automakers involved "wanted our customers to know that 10,000 pounds of towing capacity means the same thing for all trucks."

This sounds like a plan that should have been hatched and executed long ago, but at least the deed is finally getting done. Toyota is already using the new standard with its Tundra (resulting in slightly lower tow ratings), while other major truckmakers will comply to the voluntary standard sometime in 2012. Nissan has stated that it will utilize the standard sometime in the future, but hasn't gotten specific with any details.

Pickup makers reach pact with SAE on tow rating standards originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 12 Jul 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ford Super Duty pickups to regain maximum towing title

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 10:30:00 EST

Filed under: Truck, Work, Ford, Diesel

The never-ending battle of heavy-duty pickup truck one-upmanship continues with Ford's announcement that it will increase the maximum trailer tow rating on its 2011.5 F-350 and F-450 Super Duty models to 17,500 pounds. Not coincidentally, General Motors nabbed the maximum conventional trailer rating at the beginning of 2011 with the latest versions of its Chevrolet Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD with ratings of up to 17,000 pounds.

Of course, to pull such massive loads, any fullsize truck needs to be properly equipped, and in the case of the Ford, that means a 6.7-liter Power Stroke V8 diesel (400 horsepower and 800 pound-feet of torque), a Crew Cab, dual-rear-wheel chassis and a weight-distributing hitch. For those keeping track, GM says its trucks can pull their maximum loads with a standard weight-carrying hitch. Thanks to all for the tips!

At the start of 2011, the Ford Super Duty's maximum conventional tow rating stood at 16,000 pounds when properly equipped. What led to the increase? Speaking to PickupTrucks.com, Ford spokeswoman Anne Marie Gattari explained that a frame change made back in August of 2010 will work together with a new hitch design that will go into production on Monday, February 7th. So there you go.

Naturally, we expect a suitably quick response from General Motors, and possibly even Ram. Of course, there's always the Ferd F-Teenthousand...

[Source: PickupTrucks.com]

Ford Super Duty pickups to regain maximum towing title originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 08 Feb 2011 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toyota lowers tow-rating of Tundra, but it's a good thing

Jonathon Ramsey — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:29:00 EST

Filed under: Truck, Toyota

Automakers have been on the honor system when stating the tow ratings of their pickups, and that has led to lofty numbers that could only be achieved under a very particular set of ideal conditions. Claiming the biggest number for any truck spec is a big deal, but maximum towing capacity is the crown spec. So it was only natural that these automakers - mainly Ford, General Motors, Dodge (Ram), Toyota, Honda and Nissan - would feel the pressure to keep coming up with better and better tow ratings.

Enter the Society of Automotive Engineers and détente: Five of the six truck manufacturers mentioned above have agreed to assess their trucks' tow rating based on SAE standard J2807. The new standard lays out several benchmark tests for pickups, so automakers won't be allowed to simply find the right conditions and produce the highest tow rating possible anymore. For the J2807 test, a standardized trailer is hooked up and the truck is put through acceleration tests on level ground and an incline, and its response to effects like understeer, trailer-sway and braking are measured. Only Ford, General Motors, Toyota, Honda and Chrysler will be employing J2807 now, but by 2013 all pickup truck makers will be obliged to adhere to it.

Someone had to go first, and today we learn that Toyota has adjusted its pickup's tow rating to the new standard, and so the Tundra can tow less on paper today despite not a single change being made to the vehicle. Its towing capacities were lowered anywhere from 400 pounds on the 2WD regular cab (10,800 to 10,400) all the way up to 1,100 pounds on the 4WD CrewMax (10,100 to 9,000).

This shouldn't be viewed as a knock against the Tundra, because we won't know where it really falls until we get revised ratings from each of the other five manufacturers, and we expect them all to shift downwards.

[Source: PickupTrucks.com]

Toyota lowers tow-rating of Tundra, but it's a good thing originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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