There's a lot to pay attention to hauling around a fifth wheel When you're towing almost 20,000 pounds going downhill, you want to ensure you have control and can stop. Towing uphill also means that you want the power to pull that 20,000 pound vehicle, regardless how sharp the incline.
Reading about the right tow vehicle reveals that a diesel engine can handle those tough jobs. That's if you choose the right "sized" truck. Those challenges depend on weights (trailer loaded or empty), bed length (short or long), for the trailer 5th wheel hitch. You could even determine where the truck will be driving (Colorado or Nebraska), where terrains vary quite a bit.
When we decided to do the Big Rig Adventure, we made a lot of mistakes, One of the biggest was to commit to where we were traveling to before we had locked down the choice of pickup truck.
Actually, we had the truck figured out. We purchased used from a nice couple in Maine. Before we were supposed to pick it up, the sellers got into an accident with it. We had time commitments to meet and there was no way in knowing if the truck would have been repaired in time, so after some back and forth, we opted to buy the "dually" from another source.
My dad was a truck mechanic. He never taught me anything about engines; repairing them, understanding them, maintaining them. He spent a lot his time on cold concrete floors underneath huge tractor trailer trucks fixing them; it was his job. He wanted something better for me and not always to come home tired, achy and dirty. Without realizing it, he did me a favor, except that I never took the initiative to learn about engines anyway.
So if a mistake was made, we never should have committed to go anywhere until all of the purchases were made. We put a lot of pressure on ourselves with racing around, trying to get things done in order to meet getting to a campground at a committed time.
Another mistake was buying the "dually" without so much as a warranty. Mistake? Dealerships coming off the pandemic had buyers a bit against the wall. Prices were inflated and warranties for used units were almost non existent.
I was assured that the truck was up to snuff. After all, it made it through the dealers 40 point checks that ensured it was in tip top shape. One of the caveats of purchase was to have the fifth wheel hitch installed. I should have known after waiting for almost a month that the dealerships commitment to its customers was suspect. It didn't matter to them that a condition of that hitch installation was to ensure delivery was within two weeks.
After that stellar customer/seller interaction, I had planned to have the truck fully checked out before taking off. I did not want to be on the road and not have a mechanically sound unit. So I took it to a different truck dealership and learned that several key components were rotten, not functioning at all. So after spending too much for a truck that supposedly went through 40 points of inspection. One point of that inspection must have been that the trucks color matched what was written down on the invoice, while another critical point was that it fit between yellow painted lines on the dealers lot. I'm now out thousands more to fix it. And it's still not right.
The check engine light comes on, goes off whenever it decides to. It's concerning, as I want to be sure we get to where we're going and not doing any further damage to the engine. I believe it's related to the Blue DEF tank sensor. The gauge on my dashboard does not register how much fluid is in the tank. It's supposed to show how full it is, like a gas gauge. The local dealer was only to happy to sell me another DEF tank ($1,500). I didn't agree to do it and will find another dealer at our next campground. At least they can flush the tank and take it apart to fix the sensor. They never told me what was wrong, only "something is in there".
It's one thing to be at the mercy of shady business people. But it's quite another when the source of your problems is you. I can take credit for some things that have gone wrong and cost us money to make right. The other day, while we were undocking from the Puffin, I had adjusted my drive away angle, but I neglected to put down the tailgate. It was a stupid and costly mistake. The pin hit the rear inside of the tailgate and caused it to malfunction. It would not release and Julie and I worried about leaving Roanoke Rapids.
The local truck dealer tried to sell me a new dually. They told me my current truck was worth a lot of money. I suppose they're right. I mean between the purchase price and all of the repair costs, they'd provide a new unit with a full tank of diesel and a warranty covering EVERYTHING for the next 300,000 miles or ten years, plus give me back $25,000.00. And as a bonus, if I buy right now, I'd get a brand new set of Ginzu knives!
For now, I'll keep using my gem of a truck...
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