how much can I tow

whatzleft · February 22, 2013

Hello, I am a newbie to the forum, and hope to get some clarity on just what my truck will tow. I have a 2000 K2500 LS 4WD Reg. cab truck. I guess the confusion comes in because there are so many things to look at.

I am wanting to know what my limits are weight wise for a travel trailer and a 5th wheel, or I'm thinkin they would be the same right?

This truck does have the tow package, brake controller, and trany cooler. Right now I am towing a 6500 (dy wt) tt and I have no problems at all. I have the WD hitch also.

I really want to buy a fifth wheel, but what to make sure how big I can go to pull it safely with the truck I have. Here is what is listed everywhere I could find....

The drivers door panel tag: GVWR 8600 GAWF 4410 GAWR 6000

In the manual it has this truck listed to trailer capacity at 10,200lbs with the 4:10 ratio gears. I checked in the glove box and I do have a code of GT5 which I'm sure tells me I have the 4:10 set-up.

Does it matter about a 5th wheel or tt when it comes to the capacity of the rv?? I mean is a 10,000 lb 5th wheel the same as pulling a 10,000 tt as far as capacity goes??? Guess I'm thinking the 5th wheels weight is more distributed to the truck being it hooks on a slider in the middle of the bed, rather than a tt going to a ball hitch. Just seems like it's an eaiser pull.

To me the door panel plate says one thing, the manual says another..... any help is much appreciated.

cyclepuck · February 22, 2013

What motor do you have? A lot of times the 1/5 wheel tow rating will be a little different than conversational and should be in the owners manual.

Sent from HTC using tapatalk 2.

Tucker · February 22, 2013

I had a 2000 Siverado 2500 4x4 with 6.0. I kept the sale brochure from when I bought according to it. With the 4.10 ,6.0 motor,4x4, it is rated to tow 10,800 w/Z82 trailering pkg. With a GCWR of 16,000. Says same for bumper,or fifth wheel hitches. I pulled both ways with mine I much prefer to pull my GN flat bed hauling hay,equipment and livestock trailer hauling heavier loads over my bumper pull trailer. Easier to back and just felt more stable pulling. Just traded that truck about 6 months ago it was a excellent truck.

whatzleft · February 22, 2013

yeah sorry.... it does have the 6.0 motor. the sticker in the glove box has a Z82 listed on it, also a Z85 if that means anything. thanks.

Tucker · February 23, 2013

Z82 is the heavy-duty trailer pkg. Z85 is a suspension pkg. for increased handling while towing. Both packages are good for trailer towing. My truck pulled good out to 10-11k . My loads did not have the wind resistence that U may get with a RV trailer thou.

8.1HD/ALLISON · February 23, 2013

If the manual says 10,200, that is the max tailer weight. TT vs 5th wheel is gonna change tongue weight and the way it rides, but max weight is max weight.

ATMINF · February 26, 2013

Around 10,000 is it with a 6.0 gasser. Could it do more, yes, legally, No.

2017HD · March 23, 2013

There are two specs that are used to determine the max tow - the GCWR and the GVWR. GCWR is the max allowable wt of both the truck and trailer - factory tow ratings are based on this number less the curb wt of the truck and 150 lb driver. Therefore the tow rating includes the payload rating of the truck. The GVWR for the truck is the max allowable wt for the truck itself. The next item is the difference between a travel trailer and a 5th wheel - and the major difference is in the amount of wt carried by the tow vehicle - a tt has between 10 and 15% of its total wt on the tounge while a 5th wheel carries 20-30% of its wt on the front pin. This difference usually means that a truck will run out of GVWR before it runs out of CGWR when towing a 5th wheel vs a std TT. Is that clear as mud?

idahoruss · March 30, 2013

Try looking on the Trailer Life Magazine website. They publish truck towing specs every year and I think you can find earlier year specs in their archives.