This is just my humble opinion after researching my camper and truck choices for the past year. I will be retireing soon and plan on living full time in the camper for a few years, touring this great country of ours so I want it done right the first time.
If your looking a Ford I would highly recommend that you use this guide:
http://www.motorcraftservice.com/vdirs/veh...TruckCamper.pdf
(I know GM publishes a similar guide and I would think Dodge does as well)
Ford put it together for the purpose of matching truck to camper. I was surprised at the difference in load capacity for a truck camper vs straight payload capacity. Weight in the truck bed is not the same as truck camper weight on the truck because the truck camper also affects the front axle.
I thought I had 6200 pound load capicity for a truck camper because the published payload capacity was 6200 pounds for the vehicle I "WAS" going to buy. But after reading the above guide I found that the truck camper capacity on the exact same truck was actually about 5100 pounds and I need more than that. So I'm currently refiguring my truck configuration.
First I picked out a camper to live in full time, an Arctic Fox 1140. 11.5 feet floor length, full wall slide and heavy. Now looking to order a truck that will handle that. I'm also looking to relpace the factory bed with a custom built, aluminium utility / service bed for more outside storage.
Sure you can always do after market suspension add-ons but the GVWR never changes. And in todays litigious society law suits are the norm. Get in an accident with an overweight vehicle and I'm afraid to see what could happen. And that includes being over the GAWR and GCWR as well. I hear about so many people having problems with how the truck handles with the camper, I wonder if the truck they have was really designed to carry the weight of their camper.
I found that you cant trust the truck dealer in most cases. They might mean well but I havent found any that really know the specs on trucks that are going to carry a truck camper or truck campers. Talk to them about camper center of gravity, cab to axle measurements on the truck or camper wet vs dry weight and they look like a deer in the headlights.
My advice is to do your homework and tell the dealer what you want. Work with the RV manufacturer and RV dealer to get accurate numbers on wet and dry weights, weight with options, center of gravity and use realistic numbers when figuring the weight of personal gear.
Then dive into the truck camper loading guides published by Ford, GM and Dodge to get the right vehicle for your camper.
I can tell you right off that you might be dissappointed to find out that beautiful 8 foot bed, crew cab, 4x4, diesel truck you fell in love with isnt designed to carry the weight of the camper you want. But life is full of compromises. And finding the right truck to camper match is no exception to the rule.
Sailor Dave