T@b 400

Baoluo

Hello to everyone! My wife and I are looking at a 2018 T@b 400 Boondock. We put a refundable deposit on it today. It just came in to our local dealership and I know it will be gone quickly. So we put the deposit down while we consider the purchase. We have never owned an RV of any kind. I just purchased my first truck a few months ago. So I don’t know anything about trucks and towing/hitch weight. 

So here is my question/concern.....I’m so inexperienced about hitch weight limit for my truck. I own a 2017 Ram 1500 Laramie with a Hemi V8. My towing capacity is 7990 lbs. so that should not be a problem with the T@b 400. However, my truck door sticker shows total weight with occupants and everything is 1307 lbs. If 3 of us in the truck = 600 lbs + The hitch weight of the T@b 400 = 325 lbs + truck side steps and tonneau cover = maybe 100 lbs....that puts my total weight for the truck at 1025 lbs before I add anything like luggage, etc in the camper or truck. I’m afraid I will go over that 1307 lbs limit. 

I’m sorry for such a long and complicated post but I’m trying to understand and learn. From your experience are my concerns valid? The towing capacity is fine but what about the total weight of truck?

Thank you for any advise or education that you can help me with. We have to decide by tomorrow to purchase or not. I love the 400 just don’t want to do anything that is illegal or unsafe to my family or others. 

Thanks,
Paul

DenisP

I tow a 2018 400 with a Tundra 5.7l that has a 9800 towing capacity but also has a relatively low payload of 1600#. We have enjoyed safely towing our 400 for over 25k miles. A few things to consider: anything in the camper does not count for payload since it is towed, the tongue weight is part of the payload and a 2018 Tab 400 tongue weight is more in the 425# range fully loaded, that leaves the back of the truck for the remainder of the payload. Typically clothing, food, kitchen items are stored in the trailer so as long as you are mindful of the what is in the truck you can safely manage towing a 400. I have periodically weighed my loaded Tab and truck at a Cat scale to verify the weighs and give me peace of mind.
It should be doable with your truck with some planning.  Our experiences with our Tab have been wonderful and well worth any accommodations to what we take on a trip.
Best of luck with your decision.

Denny16

@Baoluo, welcome aboard to the start of your grand TaB adventure.
Does the TaB400 you are considering have a Boondock graphics on the side?  I ask this because the TaB400 first came out as a 2018 year model in mid 2017, and the TaB320 off road version from 2015 to 20118 was called a Outback not Boondock.  The Boondock version/log replaced the Outback starting on the 2019 model, released in mid 2018.  When the TaB400 was introduced in 2018, as far as I know, it only came officially as a standard model, no Outback/BoonDock version was offered until mid 2018 for the 2019 models, when the Boondock Lite/Edge was released for the TaB320 and Boondock Lite for the 400.  

We have a 2018 TaB400, and loaded our tongue weight is around 410 lbs with 1/2 tank water and propane tank filled.  The actual manufacturing date of a TaB is on the big silver sticker on the driver’s side of the trailer tongue.  It will give a month and year.  As 2019 year models were released around April 2018, the trailer you are looking at could be a 2019 year model, manufactured in the 2018 calendar year.  This all gets a bit confusing.  

Also, nüCamp back in 2018 did custom modifications of a stock TaB build, per the buyer’s request.  Our 2018 TaB400, built in Jan 2018, came without a lavatory sink in the shower/toilet area.  Some had Outback axles added form the higher ground clearance, but not labeled as a Outback/Boondock.  We added a Boondock axle to our TaB400.  

Once you work out the actual build date, if it is a 2018 model built between Nov/Dec 2017 or Jan 2018, you should be aware their was a floor issue/recall by nüCamp on these units.  Ours had to have the floor repair mod done, which was at no cost due to the recall.  If this TaB 400 falls into this time slot, you need to determine of the floor repair was done.  

Now that I have probably totally confused you, do not run.  Just check the actual manufacturing date, and proceed from there.  We love our 2018 TaB 400, and it tows quite well with our Jeep Gladiator midsize PU truck, which has a 6500 tow capacity and a 1250 cargo rating also.  With are usually gear loaded, in the truck and TaB, towing is quite stable, and we are within our load limit.
cheers

JeffroNC

@Baoluo great questions to be asking. Lots of folks spend their money and end up in bad situation at the end because they didn't research. The door sticker is the best place to look for your particular vehicles info. I make it a practice to take anything a sales person says with a grain of salt.
We made an inventory of what we would take and added it all up. Our F150 has a pretty high cargo rating of 1800 lbs so we were OK.

NorCalMike

TAB 400 tongue weight was higher pre 2021 before they moved axel 3" forward so can't go off current published specs for current year model.

qhumberd

@Baoluo Welcome and good questions. We got a T@B 400 2019 last year and have been very pleased. I got a lot of specific help on this forum and then really felt the Travels with Delany YouTube Channel was helpful as they had a 2018 like you are looking at. Check out their series of short videos on the 400. It helped me with my decision. Best wishes

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl4c54GHoGN6zwCgnnvgozg

85Redwood

Hemi V8 Ram?  For a T@B 400?!?....I'll buck the analysis paralysis trend and say head on out and enjoy!  Your vehicle could easily handle a TT of twice the 400's weight.

Denny16

Yes, the OP’s Ram truck will not have any issue towing a TaB400...
cheers

Baoluo

Thanks to you all for your feedback!!! I really need that. I have a lot to learn. It seems from your comments that if we plan carefully we shouldn’t have a problem with the weight. Tomorrow I’m going to look at the build date to see if it falls within the time when some were recalled for floors. @Denny16 thank you for that information. I’ll post when I know more about a purchase or not. The dealer just got it in so they have to do complete inspection and prep to sale. At least our deposit is holding it for us for now. We’ll see what happens. If we do purchase it I will have a lot more questions and a lot of searching to do on this form.  

DenisP

@Baoluo Best of Luck.