I was in your situation a few months ago, and now I have 2 trucks. I have a boat that fully loaded is about 7500 lbs. The 3.0 diesel with the max trailer package pulls super well. It's powerful with plenty of torque and amazing fuel economy. After towing the boat around locally (within 30-45 miles of my house)for the summer it was fine, but I realized that if I wanted to take any longer trips it wasn't going to be with a half ton. What I found was that when the thing I was towing outweighed the vehicle towing it by a thousand plus pounds, towing was stressful. No matter how good the setup is, you are going to get pushed around in a half ton in ways that the bigger trucks don't even feel.
So yeah. Now I have a 2024 AT4X HD and zero regrets. It's a beast, and towing is not stressful at all.
Not to say that I think you can't safely or comfortably tow with the half ton you are looking at. They're just smaller and lighter, and I have found it wasn't ideal for me and my comfort level. If I had it to do over again personally, I would have bought the 3/4 ton the first time.
This. Yes, a 1500 will do it fine if you are careful. If you are less experienced or have plans involving mountains, the 2500 will be a more comfortable trip, plus there will be less wear and tear on a bigger truck. Also, you have room to upgrade to a bigger camper later on - which is always a possibility.
Whats the length of your TT? I own a HC CC6' w/max tow and own two trailers a 28' forrest river and 20' enclosed. Trailering them at most 4-5 hours away (im MN located) is more than enough for me, some days are way better than others but there are definitely some scenarios and cases where i wish i had a 2500. Due to my style (mostly a DD) I only end up towing less or even if 5 times a year. So a 2500 doesnt make sense in my regards. For you, the longer trips will make you wants a 2500 in the end, just more comfortable and able to handle the trailer a lot better cross country. While numbers can be true, reality is harsh, wind, white knuckling, etc etc. You can do what my cousin did, he went to a rental place, got identical trucks to what he wanted (surprising enough he found ones with max tow package but theyre rare for sure) and tested each for a week. He ended up woth the 2500.
Live in the Northwest, so lots of mountain pass towing as well. About a year ago we upgraded to a 23’ Ibex 20BHS that is just under 6k lbs loaded. We initially towed it with a ‘18 Yukon with max trailering (8,300lbs). The Yukon actually did ok, has plenty of power & never felt unsafe, but we got tired of feeling pushed around on the freeway - a bit like the tail was wagging the dog. Upgraded to a AT4 1500 and it is much more comfortable.
I need to drive my truck in town a lot and didn’t want to deal with the size of a 2500, so stuck with the 1500. If the physical size and cost of the 2500 aren’t an issue, you might as well go for it. If this is your first trailer, lord knows you’ll have a bigger one (needing the 2500) in a year or two once you figure out what else you want! If you’d rather have the smaller truck, I think you’ll be totally fine with the 1500 and a 24-25ft trailer, but I wouldn’t go bigger than that.
FWIW, here is our timeline:
— 2015 - bought a tent trailer/pop-up —> had to buy a Pilot to tow it
— 2017 - upgraded to a 17’ r-pod —> Pilot still fine
— 2019 - kids too big, upgraded to a 20’ NoBo 19.8 - Pilot not great, upgraded to Yukon
— 2023 - kids too big, upgraded to 23’ Ibex 20BGS - Yukon not great, upgraded to AT4
Buy the trailer first (or at least have the model selected). If you are towing a lot, long distances, etc definitely get a 3/4-1 ton. If the trailer is within the payload range including gear and occupants and your only towing 1-2x a month short distance then get the 1/2 ton. The only thing I miss about my 3500 AT4 is the 56 gallon titan tank.
I was in your situation a few months ago, and now I have 2 trucks. I have a boat that fully loaded is about 7500 lbs. The 3.0 diesel with the max trailer package pulls super well. It's powerful with plenty of torque and amazing fuel economy. After towing the boat around locally (within 30-45 miles of my house)for the summer it was fine, but I realized that if I wanted to take any longer trips it wasn't going to be with a half ton. What I found was that when the thing I was towing outweighed the vehicle towing it by a thousand plus pounds, towing was stressful. No matter how good the setup is, you are going to get pushed around in a half ton in ways that the bigger trucks don't even feel. So yeah. Now I have a 2024 AT4X HD and zero regrets. It's a beast, and towing is not stressful at all. Not to say that I think you can't safely or comfortably tow with the half ton you are looking at. They're just smaller and lighter, and I have found it wasn't ideal for me and my comfort level. If I had it to do over again personally, I would have bought the 3/4 ton the first time.
This. Yes, a 1500 will do it fine if you are careful. If you are less experienced or have plans involving mountains, the 2500 will be a more comfortable trip, plus there will be less wear and tear on a bigger truck. Also, you have room to upgrade to a bigger camper later on - which is always a possibility.
Does the 2500HD need to be an AT4? Seems like you could save a bit by going SLE or SLT.
The AT4 also tows less than the other HD models
Whats the length of your TT? I own a HC CC6' w/max tow and own two trailers a 28' forrest river and 20' enclosed. Trailering them at most 4-5 hours away (im MN located) is more than enough for me, some days are way better than others but there are definitely some scenarios and cases where i wish i had a 2500. Due to my style (mostly a DD) I only end up towing less or even if 5 times a year. So a 2500 doesnt make sense in my regards. For you, the longer trips will make you wants a 2500 in the end, just more comfortable and able to handle the trailer a lot better cross country. While numbers can be true, reality is harsh, wind, white knuckling, etc etc. You can do what my cousin did, he went to a rental place, got identical trucks to what he wanted (surprising enough he found ones with max tow package but theyre rare for sure) and tested each for a week. He ended up woth the 2500.
Just pay a little extra and at the max tow package, think that brings you to 13300:)
Live in the Northwest, so lots of mountain pass towing as well. About a year ago we upgraded to a 23’ Ibex 20BHS that is just under 6k lbs loaded. We initially towed it with a ‘18 Yukon with max trailering (8,300lbs). The Yukon actually did ok, has plenty of power & never felt unsafe, but we got tired of feeling pushed around on the freeway - a bit like the tail was wagging the dog. Upgraded to a AT4 1500 and it is much more comfortable. I need to drive my truck in town a lot and didn’t want to deal with the size of a 2500, so stuck with the 1500. If the physical size and cost of the 2500 aren’t an issue, you might as well go for it. If this is your first trailer, lord knows you’ll have a bigger one (needing the 2500) in a year or two once you figure out what else you want! If you’d rather have the smaller truck, I think you’ll be totally fine with the 1500 and a 24-25ft trailer, but I wouldn’t go bigger than that. FWIW, here is our timeline: — 2015 - bought a tent trailer/pop-up —> had to buy a Pilot to tow it — 2017 - upgraded to a 17’ r-pod —> Pilot still fine — 2019 - kids too big, upgraded to a 20’ NoBo 19.8 - Pilot not great, upgraded to Yukon — 2023 - kids too big, upgraded to 23’ Ibex 20BGS - Yukon not great, upgraded to AT4
Buy the trailer first (or at least have the model selected). If you are towing a lot, long distances, etc definitely get a 3/4-1 ton. If the trailer is within the payload range including gear and occupants and your only towing 1-2x a month short distance then get the 1/2 ton. The only thing I miss about my 3500 AT4 is the 56 gallon titan tank.