# 5th wheel help



## navyprairiemom (Jul 26, 2015)

My husband and I were looking at a 38' Jayco 5th wheel (40'4" actual length). Years ago, when all of our kids were at home and little, we had a 31' tow behind that we pulled with our Suburban, so we have done this before.   I have a couple of questions: 1.) I know you need to look at the tow vehicle specs to see if the vehicle is rated for that weight, but what are the pros & cons to gas and diesel? The vehicle is going to have to be a 4 door (full second row seating as our 15 year old is over 6' ).  2) We live in the land of eternal wind, ND. Do you need a dually? 3) How do you figure the total length of your rig? Many state parks have length restrictions.


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## C Nash (Jul 27, 2015)

For a 40 footer I would go dually diesel.  All the pros would outweight the cons IMO for a 5th wheel that size.  Do your homework on the tow vehicle and look at how it is speced out.


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## akjimny (Jul 28, 2015)

Navyprairiemom - Welcome to the RVUSA Forum.  Last question first - length is from the front bumper of the tow vehicle to the rear bumper of whatever is being towed.  So a 38" Jayco plus a crew cab truck is going to work out to 60 - 65 feet.  If you get a crew cab truck with a short bed, you will have to have a sliding 5th wheel hitch so the trailer doesn't hit the back of the truck cab.  Long bed is no problem.  Not considering the budget, if I was towing that much trailer, I would want a diesel dually, but that's just my opinion.  Good luck with whatever you buy.


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