Dodge customer care couldn't give me an answer where the 5000lb number came from. They said I would have to go by what the manual says which is 3500lbs. I called my local dealer and they said its most likely with a weight distributing hitch. Well, like others here, I bought my car without the $850 "Trailer tow group IV" thinking it would tow 5000lbs with a standard u-haul class 3 hitch. That is not the case.
The owners manual (pg 526) says, "If the gross trailer weight is 3,500 lbs (1 587 kg) or more, it is mandatory to use a weight-distributing hitch to ensure stable handling of your vehicle. If you use a standard weight-carrying hitch, you could lose control of your vehicle and cause a collision." So this makes it sound like the limiting factor is the tongue weight and not the other factors like proper cooling. If we added the load leveling suspension, we should be able to tow 5000lbs. Thats just speculation since I couldn't get an answer about the 5000lbs from Dodge.
Dodge's website is misleading not just to consumers but the dealers as well imo...