To all the Nay-sayers

plio7 · 04-03-2009, 10:12 PM

so i had posted about hauling a truck camper. i looked deeply into it, talked to many mechanics, searched every forum and web blog on the net, found out some but finally broke down and just tested it.......here is my 07' 2wd titan bone stock with my 8' 1400lb dry weight camper, the air bags will be installed next weekend for stability. that said there were no signs what so ever it could not handle it, i was still 4-5" of over loads, pulled fine, very minor body roll, no loss of power, towed up hill at 100kms/hr, at just over 2000 rpm in 4th.

i was very stressed out about this pull spent a lot of time looking into specs, facts, weights.....my payload is 1305 i believe and i think they HEAVILY under rate these trucks

*bbomar* · 04-03-2009, 10:23 PM

Wow!! You're looking for some trouble without any extra support!!

Good Luck!!

**loufish** · 04-03-2009, 10:25 PM

FYI...The rear end is only rated for 3800 lbs...

It works for you, fine... but a truck rated for a payload of 1305 with a camper weighing 1400 lbs and all this before you or a passenger are in the truck means you're overloaded..period. Knowing this, it never ceases to amaze me that people simply have the wrong truck for the job.

What I won't tell you (because I don't believe it) is all the "scare tactic" stuff about putting you and your family's life at risk along with others who share the highway with you...you can get all that nonsense from RV.net...

That being said, enjoy your truck!

**4mula1fan** · 04-03-2009, 10:26 PM

He'll be posting a bent frame or crooked bed post next.......

*adamdude04* · 04-03-2009, 10:30 PM

go easy on him guys.. if it works it works. Yeah if something gives and he takes out 7 minivans and a walmart truck on the highway..he's got some major explaining to do. However those numbers Nissan puts out are safe numbers. I'm sure over time, yeah pushing those numbers will cause problems..but we'll never know until we try.

I give him thumbs up and hope it works out for him (and he doesn't take any lives IF something does happen)

The bags will help though for you, not only for that but for towing and hauling!

plio7 · 04-03-2009, 11:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adamdude04

go easy on him guys.. if it works it works. Yeah if something gives and he takes out 7 minivans and a walmart truck on the highway..he's got some major explaining to do. However those numbers Nissan puts out are safe numbers. I'm sure over time, yeah pushing those numbers will cause problems..but we'll never know until we try.

I give him thumbs up and hope it works out for him (and he doesn't take any lives IF something does happen)

The bags will help though for you, not only for that but for towing and hauling!

thank you....ok as far as rear end goes, brakes go, diff, axles, the titan is fairly heavy, the leafs are the weakness, the air bags will fix this, i talked to a tech, technically will it not raise my payload...no....but will it solve stability and body roll yes, and the rest of the truck is rate higher than that of the leafs. also the pay load indicated on the truck is calculated with having 4 passengers, so subtract that 4-500 lbs. i drove this truck with this camper for 1 1/2 hours, on the highway, very little body roll on corners, stable....though noticeable, and no loss of power...before you guys lash out like i'm some moron, i spent months looking into this, i have talked to mechanics at nissan, techs and repair guys at rv distributors, ect. who have all said with air bags and properly mounted i am ok.

and i find it funny you will condemn me for this but applaud a load of sod, that easily weighs what this camper does and is narrower and not as well supported

plio7 · 04-03-2009, 11:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by loufish

FYI...The rear end is only rated for 3800 lbs...

It works for you, fine... but a truck rated for a payload of 1305 with a camper weighing 1400 lbs and all this before you or a passenger are in the truck means you're overloaded..period. Knowing this, it never ceases to amaze me that people simply have the wrong truck for the job.

What I won't tell you (because I don't believe it) is all the "scare tactic" stuff about putting you and your family's life at risk along with others who share the highway with you...you can get all that nonsense from RV.net...

That being said, enjoy your truck!

alos this info is wrong, look deeper into it, the payload rating on your door..."though stating without passengers"... is wrong it is a "safe rating" which is actually close you 25-30% less than what the truck can handle, check the axle ratings, diff rating ect. and you will find it is a heavier truck that you think.....check the payload on the 08' it suddenly jumps to 1800lbs with little over all upgrades.

Just-in · 04-04-2009, 02:30 AM

Hmmm, might want to look at some PRG Shackles Our stockers are a weak link in the rear suspension supposedly

**loufish** · 04-04-2009, 04:35 AM

Quote:

alos this info is wrong, look deeper into it, the payload rating on your door..."though stating without passengers"... is wrong it is a "safe rating" which is actually close you 25-30% less than what the truck can handle, check the axle ratings, diff rating ect. and you will find it is a heavier truck that you think.....check the payload on the 08' it suddenly jumps to 1800lbs with little over all upgrades.

You said 07' Titan, I did not realize the 07' had such high payloads...My 04' owners manual states it's payload rating is without "passengers or luggage"

May I ask, what is the GVWR for your year Titan?

NorCal 4x4 · 04-04-2009, 08:39 AM

The information below is from the '06 owner manual, and can be useful for determine what will work. Btw, the first one states campers are o.k. on the KC but not on the CC.

Eyedontplay · 04-04-2009, 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by plio7

and i find it funny you will condemn me for this but applaud a load of sod, that easily weighs what this camper does and is narrower and not as well supported

Haha, good one brother! Let me say first off I'm on the side of believing the truck can do more than thay say, especially if you're talking about short periods of time .... Hell I can run pretty damn fast, but not for a long time. That brings me to the other point... I'm no professional landscaper, so I won't be hauling a load of sod every day, week, or maybe never again actually...

I had a Frontier before my Titan, and I was remodeling my house. I had a brick fireplace that I was removing and a buddy who was staying with me was helping with the labor. I went to work one day to leave him to load the truck. When I got home the bed was filled with bricks and concrete, and house doors we had removed were slid into the side to extend the height of the bed up level with the roof and it was FULL... I almost died when I saw it... and we had a little bit more that wouldn't fit so we hooked up my little motorcycle trailer and piled the rest on it... The leaf springs weren't just touching the bump limiter, they were firmly pressed against it.

Mind you I did think about it for awhile, but in the end decided the dump is only about ten miles away, all slow driving, and now that it was loaded I wasn't going to spend the energy to unload it then reload it to make two trips.

The whole way to the dump I was sweating, just waiting to hear a loud pop or bang or something (we're so foolish when we're young, nothing can happen to us) but I went no faster than 35 mph, and took turns like I was balancing a pyramid of champagne glasses on the hood... sure pissed some people off.

In the end on the scales at the dump the whole rig weighed 9,500lbs... yeah. I weighed the truck empty on one of the trips to the dump at it was around 4,000 (V6 ex-cab 4x4)... and my little trailer weighs 300lb itself.... so still an easy 5,000lbs in the bed of the truck, and no ill effects.

Don't worry I'm not stupid enough to think this was a good idea or something that should be attempted again, but it still makes for a hell of a story

And I sure miss that truck...

Cheers,
-Josh

HudsonValleyTitan · 04-04-2009, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by plio7

alos this info is wrong, look deeper into it, the payload rating on your door..."though stating without passengers"... is wrong it is a "safe rating" which is actually close you 25-30% less than what the truck can handle, check the axle ratings, diff rating ect. and you will find it is a heavier truck that you think.....check the payload on the 08' it suddenly jumps to 1800lbs with little over all upgrades.

The suspension and axles were upgraded for 08 which explains the higher payloads. You don't have this on your 07. Having said that, and as you can see by what I tow with mine (I towed it with my 04 as well), these trucks are more rugged than Nissan lets on...I agree. But the numers are there for a reason. I mean....who's to say just how far past those numbers you can go before disaster strikes? If I were you, I'd at the very LEAST add the airbags. I'd also look into a stronger LT tire and better shocks. I'm sure you'll be fine. Just use your head and be safe. Enjoy it!

plio7 · 04-04-2009, 05:28 PM

the air bags are on order as we speak and if you look into the 08' upgrades the axles are no more substantial but yes the suspension was, hence the air bags, if i should find this doesn't make me feel stable on the highways an extra leaf and as said above newer shackles will be installed.....i just found it funny people were quick to say how unsafe it was but had nothing to say about over loading with sod.....no shot at you man, i have had over 2500lbs of drywall in mine for a 2 min trip down a road.

also as i stated before, my leafs were still 4-5" off of my overloads, and never once on the 1 1/2 trip home did i feel the truck hit the overloads. i will keep this thread updated over the summer to assure all of you that the truck is more than capable of handling this load.

i would also like to just say, i am not some moron running out and strapping down a truck camper and taking off down the road with no regards for the risks involved...........as said in my first post, i spent a few months now researching everything i could think of that would be involved in this....and the last thing i will add, is yes i realize the rating on the door says "with out passengers" but once looked further into and talking to a tech at a dealership this is untrue and also a "legal safe out" for nissan. when nissan calculates all of their wieghts they account for 500lbs of persons and cargo

plio7 · 04-04-2009, 05:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NorCal 4x4

The information below is from the '06 owner manual, and can be useful for determine what will work. Btw, the first one states campers are o.k. on the KC but not on the CC.

main reason for the crew cab is the shorter box will not allow for the length of the camper, your center of gravity would be almost directly over your bumper

TitanBlue · 04-04-2009, 06:50 PM

I'm not buying that Nissan allows 500# for passengers, in addition to payload. Not from the legal published way of looking at it, but that is another issue. This has been an interesting issue in the newspapers, with small cars, as they are often overloaded with just 4 or 5 people in them when looking at "published" GVW. The industry is debating what a typical person weighs, we've gotten bigger in the past 50 years!

More importantly, I'd just like to recommend you consider an upgrade to a True Trac LSD since you are maxed out on payload. Could be very helpful investment.