New to towing.

[Fossil Rock]

I'll be pulling a loaded 24' car hauler soon and this will be my first time with it being loaded. I'll be pulling with a Silverado 2500HD 4x4.

 

Any recommendations for gear and speed? We'll be going about 1,000 miles one way (mostly highway miles).

[Raptordude]

My grandpa used to tow a real big 5th wheel camper with his 2500HD. Put it in 3 NOT drive. Also press the tow/haul button on the end of the gear shifter. They say to work the tranny in 3rd gear like that. Even though the tow/haul mode keeps it from going into overdrive, apparently it can still wear on it pretty hard. 3rd gear is designed to take the abuse. He said he would run at 3,000 rpm @ 50 mph on the highway......(4.10 gears, stock tires)...that would get annoying for me but it's what you gotta do to preserve your truck

 

 

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[Fossil Rock]

Thanks. Any info on using 4 wheel high or should 2WD be fine?

[Chevor]

What your year of truck? Engine? Most trailers tires are rated only to 65 mph. Drive over that chances of a tire going boom increases greatly.

 

Pull in 2wd down highway.

[Fossil Rock]

2003 8.1L

[Chevor]

That monster shouldn't have a problem, except stopping for gas. Might not even need to drop a gear. Just keep an eye on temps.

 

Make sure trailer tires are properly inflated before leaving.

[davester]

I would not suggest using 4wd unless you are driving in slippery conditions, like ice/snow on the roads if you are going over a high mountain pass or something like that. Just using 4wd on dry roads will result in a little more tire wear, and more wear on the whole 4wd system, for no benefit. And it takes a bit more gas to drive the 4wd system.

[Fossil Rock]

Thanks for the input guys, that's what I needed to know.

[jake111]

I believe the 2500HD with the 8.1L engine has the 5-sp Allison. The dash may show PRND321 but if you press/hold the button on the end of the selector, an icon on the dash should light up (D with a slash), to show that 5th (or overdrive, if you like) is locked out.

 

Press/release that same button to put it in tow/haul (and you should get another icon lit up) and use that the entire time while towing.

 

Be aware of how hard you're pushing it. Level or slight downhill, maybe with the wind behind you, then 5th would be fine. If it starts to take some effort to pull the load, then press/hold button to lock out 5th. If you came to something steep (up or down), you might want to manually shift it to a lower gear but the Allison in tow/haul will probably do the right thing anyway.

 

Never use 4wd unless you're on a slippery surface (snow, ice, dirt, sand, gravel). On a paved road 4wd is very hard on the drivetrain and could even damage it. We have part-time 4wd, not all-time or AWD.

 

Oh, and keep your speed down!!

[sdeeter19555]

As the others eluded, unless you find specs for a specific tire different, the typical trailer tire is rated at no more than 65mph. I know Hercules STR trailer tires are rated at 75mph (I asked the manufacturer).

 

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[Raptordude]

Interesting.....I have the 4l80e on a 2001 2500HD. Is it the same? If I hold down the tow/haul button it will not go into overdrive but still shift at normal points?

 

 

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[jake111]

Sorry, I don't have a 4L80E and I don't have any experience with it!! So, I may be guessing a little . . .

 

I believe the 4L80E is a 4 speed (or 3 plus overdrive, as some will describe) while the 2000-2005 Allison is a 5 speed (or 4 plus OD, if you like). On the Allison, you lock out 5th by pressing/holding the button (for a couple of seconds). To lock out 4th and 5th, you move the selector down a notch to select "3" on the PRND321, and so on for 2 and 1.

 

Is the selector display for a 4L80E PRND21 ? If so, then I would think it's similar, press/hold the button and a slashed D should light up, letting it shift 1-2-3. Move selector down for 2 or 1. If the display is PRND321 then I wouldn't expect the button to do anything, but then again maybe it duplicates moving the selector? I don't know!!

 

Selecting a lower gear than "D" simply limits the highest gear but does not change shift points. There MAY be self-preservation protection if you mistakenly try to shift to 1 at high speeds, but I'm not willing to test it.

 

Under certain conditions, I have been in tow/haul and locked out D (I've even been in 1 coming down Sonora Pass in the Sierra's). I don't know about the 4L80E, but for the Allison tow/haul alters the shift points and locks the torque converter much earlier (about 27mph instead of about 48mph).

[sdeeter19555]

Not sure if the 4l80e acts the same as a 6l90e, but the tow haul doesn't really lock any gear out in the 6l90e...it raises the shift points and the load point where the trans will upshift...the 6l90e will eventually shift into 6th at about 65mph and almost zero load (i.e., perfectly flat ground with no headwind). But if you don't get to 65mph, it will never shift out of 5th.

 

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[Fossil Rock]

Regarding trailer tire pressure. I've read conflicting information... some say maximum pressure for the tire (80psi) and the labels on the trailer say 65psi (cold).

 

How much difference does/will it make ?

[sdeeter19555]

Regarding trailer tire pressure. I've read conflicting information... some say maximum pressure for the tire (80psi) and the labels on the trailer say 65psi (cold).How much difference does/will it make ?

Whatever the sidewall states cold, run that...trailer tires aren't really meant to be run at less than max pressure while loaded.

 

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