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The truck magazines are all starting to add the "0-60 hauling a 10,000 pound trailer" test to their truck comparos, so expect this phenomenon to get worse.
No, the info has been out there but primarily in media aimed at RV'ers, farmers, ranchers, etc.
For more than 40-years, a tow rig up towards maximum GCWR (Gross Combined Weight Rating) in a 0-60 test showing 20-seconds +/- is doing fine. 18-seconds isn't needed, and 24-seconds is acceptable. Above 30-seconds starts to be a problem to get on the highway, especially with a short entrance ramp.
So long as this number is okay, looking at braking tests, empty & loaded (the truck brakes are only rated to stop the vehicle loaded; a trailer has brakes to stop itself), plus passing times from 30-50.
On the big three automaker diesel trucks these numbers are about dead-on the same. Fuel mileage isn't EPA rated, so take truck "tests" with a grain of salt.
Look at the price as tested, the 0-60 plus 30-50 times, braking, and fuel mileage. Generally, the lowest price truck will be fine for someone not keeping it a very long time.
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