1995 E350 Chinook

[M1redskin]

Heh guys, I have the above Chinook and I am wondering why these vehicles are only rated for 5K towing capacity. With the 460 - and the auto tranny and frame in this I would think it would be capable of 10k which is what I am after. Is it because of the hitch on these which is sort of part of the bumper. I am building a different bumper is why I ask. My thought is to just buy a proper hitch for this tow capacity and then the bumper. Thanks and any advice would be appreciated.

[doublevan2]

Above Chinook ? Photos ?

[Orv]

I wonder if you're running into an issue with tongue weight pushing you over your gross vehicle weight limitations. A 10,000 pound trailer is going to have a tongue weight of around 1000 pounds. It's pretty common for a camper conversion to leave less than that available from an E350's gross weight.

Not saying you can't do it, but I'd want to weigh the thing and have a close look at the actual rear axle weight vs the axle weight limit before I made a habit of it.

[M1redskin]

Yea I can do that. I know that my 10k aluminum trailer and my jeep will push 7-8k maybe but I also know a Chinook was only rated for 5K which is what I don’t understand because a 95 F350 or E350 I imagine is at least 15-20k. This hitch like I said is part of the bumper in a way, but with a commercial hitch this thing should have no problem I think. It’s also a dually.

[Orv]

I found a Ford pamphlet from 1995 that lists weight ratings based on engine and axle ratio:
https://www.oldcarbrochures.org/Unit...hicles-17.html

Since you have a conversion you'll want to take the GCWR and subtract your van's actual weight to find out how much is left over. That'll be what the factory says it can do. From there you can use your own judgement; I'm not the trailer police.

[M1redskin]

Gotcha - I’ll look that over. Thanks for the information!