New truck, new trailer, new to this!

cperk · November 20, 2017

Heidi,

Welcome!!!

As mentioned, the 1500 is capable towing the weights your posted. But you will have to be mindful of what is loaded in the truck bed (coolers, firewood, etc) depending on what your loaded tw (tongue weight) ends up being, and what the occupant (passenger) weight is in the truck.

While you are considering your first tt, there is the issue many of us have after a year or two owning the first rig: twofootitis!!! IF you remotely think you may end up buying a bigger tt in a year or two (or three), seriously consider the 2500HD now. MY 2500HD 6.0 is my daily driver, but I only have a 10.5 mi commute which helps. BUT it tows our ~10k lb (loaded for a trip) Jayco just fine.

A Reese Dual Cam, Reese SC, or the Equal-I-Zer 4 way system are all a very good wdh with integrated sway control. The Husky Centerline and Recurve R6 also have pretty good reviews, but are newer than the Reese or Equal-I-Zer systems.

Good luck shopping!!!

I've had several different hitches before we decided to go with the pro pride 3p. It cost more, around $2600, but far outperforms any other hitch. The way it projects the pivot point to the rear axle makes a travel trailer pull like a fifth wheel.
Besides, what's a few more dollars if it will protect your investment. Not to mention the precious cargo.

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idnative1948 · November 23, 2017

You wouldn't believe some of the towing questions asked on an RV forum I belong to...

elchilero53 · January 13, 2018

When I bought our 2017 Silverado 1500 LTZ, I looked at the Max Towing series but none had the 6.2L. The one I bought has a lower tow rating (9100 lbs), but has tremendous towing performance with our 25 ft TT. On top of that, it is an excellent commute vehicle (20-22 mpg typically); my average mileage over the last 10,000 miles of 18 mpg (which includes commuting, towing and four-wheeling), which isn't too bad for a 6.2L. With your rig, you probably can go wrong with a similar setup but get a set of LT tires and lose the P-rated tires; those are nice but not for towing long distances. However, as others have said, if you plan on upgrading to a bigger trailer, go to the 2500. Most people take too much junk with them when towing and are often seriously overloaded (unnecessarily). Enjoy!

elchilero53 · January 13, 2018

On November 23, 2017 at 3:05 PM, idnative1948 said:

You wouldn't believe some of the towing questions asked on an RV forum I belong to...

Oh yes I would!!

swathdiver · January 13, 2018

On 11/4/2017 at 2:26 PM, Heidi Levesque said:

I'm in the process of picking out a truck for the trailer we plan to purchase.

Did you buy one yet?

Wintersun · January 22, 2018

Download the GM trailering guide. It is free and a good place to start as it covers the suitability for towing of all the GM vehicles. Something to look for is an integrated trailer braking controller which should have controls on the dash of the truck. Ford's F-150 truck has a control knob that makes backing up a trailer very easy to do. Turn the knob to the right and the truck steers to move the trailer to the right.

Rear cameras on the trailer help a great deal and some manufacturers make this easier than others. A cable harness to plug in a rear camera on my Silverado would cost $700 whereas the same harness from Ford is less than $100.

Many popular trailers have user communities and online forums and this is a good place to learn in advance about how best to integrate the trailer with the tow vehicle.

Avoid any gas engine with a turbo charger. They do not hold up to sustained loads found with towing up a grade and will shut down without warning.

A camper shell on your truck's bed will provide a secure weatherproof place for lots of things you will want at a camping area but not need to stuff into the trailer (bicycles, camp chairs, fire wood, etc.).

GMcLover · February 8, 2018

On ‎11‎/‎18‎/‎2017 at 3:06 AM, 2017HD said:

Something to consider is the engine choices - 5.3 vs 6.2 both have an available NHT MaxTow package for them but the other components wheels/tires, transmission, rear gears are different. It would probably be worthwhile to run a full comparison between the two - esp if you plan on getting the LTZ trim where you have the choice. I did notice that the CGWR for the 6.2L combo is 17,700 vs 16,700 for the 5.3L. So that tells me that there is slightly more power to the wheels with the 6.2L. The 6.2L also requires premium fuel which may or may not be an issue.

On ‎11‎/‎16‎/‎2017 at 12:37 PM, Cowpie said:

The LT tires make sense. Just don't pump them up too much. Get the load pressure chart from the tire OEM and inflate accordingly. Pressing the edge of the envelope, but should be doable with a 1500. Like has been stated, watch the load out.

The only other observation is, a good 2500 has significantly more overall capability than a 6.2 1500. Maybe not off the line, but it will pull a house down and can carry 1000 lb more. Frame and brakes are beefier in a 2500. Beefed up trans, engine oil, and radiator cooling.... standard. A 6500 lb trailer will feel like nothing is back there with a 2500. Even the 6.0L gasser is rated for over twice that and the new ones have 1700 lb tongue rating, stock and without a WD hitch. And in most cases, cheaper in buying price as well by a good margin. There has always been sound wisdom in buying a little more truck than what you think you might need, just like in computers, you always buy a computer with more RAM than you think you will need. And the engine in a truck is just one part of the equation.

I am looking to buy a 2013 Chevy 1500 4x2 5.0 bed with 5.3 V8 with the Z71 package with 3.23 rear axel and has the Advance trailer package which is the 7 pin and break brake box and the hitch .... I cant find out if it has the engine color or the transmission cooler... .... I will be pulling a alum 2 horse bumper bull total weight including the horse and gear would be 4500 lbs I know it will pull it but stopping safely is my main concern and overheating ... I live in Fl... any insite on this Front Black Recovery Hooks,Front Chrome Recovery Hooks,Integrated Trailer Brake Controller,18" x 8" Aluminum Wheels,Solar-Ray Deep-Tinted Glass,Variably intermittent wipers,3.23 Rear Axle Ratio,

donh · March 13, 2018

Just reading this as I am getting a new Fleetwood Wild wood TT 33' and just got my 17 1500 Z71 double cab last year it has the 3.42 with the 5.3 ECOTEC3.

Trailer dry weight is 6375 tongue weight about 740 I plan on using a weight distribution hitch I have a curt Pro series from my previous vehicle will I have any issues with this setup?

Waaazooo · March 13, 2018

Just reading this as I am getting a new Fleetwood Wild wood TT 33' and just got my 17 1500 Z71 double cab last year it has the 3.42 with the 5.3 ECOTEC3.
Trailer dry weight is 6375 tongue weight about 740 I plan on using a weight distribution hitch I have a curt Pro series from my previous vehicle will I have any issues with this setup?

As long is you don’t load the bed of your truck with other things you’ll be fine. The problem with a half ton truck is that you might be able to tow a house but it’s just too heavy to put in the bed of your truck

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Blue2500CC · March 14, 2018

6 hours ago, donh said:

Just reading this as I am getting a new Fleetwood Wild wood TT 33' and just got my 17 1500 Z71 double cab last year it has the 3.42 with the 5.3 ECOTEC3.

Trailer dry weight is 6375 tongue weight about 740 I plan on using a weight distribution hitch I have a curt Pro series from my previous vehicle will I have any issues with this setup?

As mentioned, watch what is loaded in the bed to prevent exceeding the trucks payload.

Also, make sure the wdh from your last rig had the correct rated wd bars for your new rigs LOADED tw. At least 1000lb bars, if not possibly even 1200lb bars.

Make sure you set the new wdh up for your new truck and trailer.

donh · March 14, 2018

Thank you for the info.

When I was looking I read the trailer guide and some other info and based the unloaded weight added roughly 750 - 800 lbs to the camper and then based what I could trailer at the max rated by the guide was 9200 and made sure I would stay around the 80% trailer weight 9200 * .8 = 7360.

and with that weight I estimated the tongue could be around 876 camper weight * .12.

I believe by current hitch is the Pro series curt which shows bars at 1000 lbs. The bed will have couple chairs and kayaks canopy and gear for the kayaks.

Waaazooo · March 14, 2018

Thank you for the info.
When I was looking I read the trailer guide and some other info and based the unloaded weight added roughly 750 - 800 lbs to the camper and then based what I could trailer at the max rated by the guide was 9200 and made sure I would stay around the 80% trailer weight 9200 * .8 = 7360.
and with that weight I estimated the tongue could be around 876 camper weight * .12.
I believe by current hitch is the Pro series curt which shows bars at 1000 lbs. The bed will have couple chairs and kayaks canopy and gear for the kayaks.

Understood. Just make sure you’re doing this math when you figure out that you have about 1,500 (depending on configuration) payload capacity - tongue weight - wife weight - kayak weight - dry goods - dog - cat.

I ran out of capacity I was comfortable with so i upsized the truck.

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Blue2500CC · March 17, 2018

On 3/13/2018 at 3:15 PM, donh said:

Just reading this as I am getting a new Fleetwood Wild wood TT 33' and just got my 17 1500 Z71 double cab last year it has the 3.42 with the 5.3 ECOTEC3.

Trailer dry weight is 6375 tongue weight about 740 I plan on using a weight distribution hitch I have a curt Pro series from my previous vehicle will I have any issues with this setup?

On 3/14/2018 at 10:41 AM, donh said:

Thank you for the info.

When I was looking I read the trailer guide and some other info and based the unloaded weight added roughly 750 - 800 lbs to the camper and then based what I could trailer at the max rated by the guide was 9200 and made sure I would stay around the 80% trailer weight 9200 * .8 = 7360.

and with that weight I estimated the tongue could be around 876 camper weight * .12.

I believe by current hitch is the Pro series curt which shows bars at 1000 lbs. The bed will have couple chairs and kayaks canopy and gear for the kayaks.

Don,

What is the payload of your truck that is listed on the yellow sticker in the drivers door jamb?

You mentioned a “canopy” on the truck? Are you referring to a tonneau cover, or a cab high fiberglass topper/ cap? If a fiberglass cab high topper, thats ~200lbs itself, 2 kayaks figure ~100lbs for both, gear and chairs ~ 50lbs. So you’re already at ~350lbs used of the trucks payload.

Look at the yellow sticker on the trailer, and it probably shows the as built empty weight of being at least 2-300lbs more than the “brochure” listed weight. The majority of trailer manufacture do not include the weight of the options in the “brochure” weights, even those options that are a “mandatory option”.

Do you still have your old rig? IF so, consider weighin it to see just how much it weighs over the “brochure” dry weight to have an idea of how much “stuff” you have added.

I am guessing your loaded weight will actually be a little higher, as well as the tw being higher.

Not familiar with he wdh you have, but something to seriously consider is the length of the rig you are looking at. A 33’ rig is a considerable length, and i would highly suggest a wdh with integrated sway control. And probably 1200lb rated wd bars.

The Reese SC, Reese Dual Cam, Equal-I-Zer 4 way system, and Husky CenterLine all are good models for the price, ithout spending more on a HA or PP which are the best. The Blue OX has a good following also, but not sure I am sold on it. Though I have no person experience with it, so do your own research and decision making.

Roscopcoletrain · March 17, 2018

Yeah, thats a big trailer. Very much like mine in length and weight. You'll know its there, but if you load it correctly, it should tow fine. Cross winds is where you'll really feel it.

donh · March 17, 2018

The current WDH will not work with this setup I am looking at we are moving up from a Jayco X17Z that i was using with a jeep that's is to small about 13' closed and 18 open.

The payload that is on my truck says 1795# the truck has a tonneau cover on it extang Revolution with built in cross bars I am also looking at adding Ada-Rack to carry the Kayaks they are sit on tops and are about 60-70 # each plus gear the topper I mention is one of those that you would use tailgating that weighs about 40# 2 dogs about 60# chairs about 20 . When we looked at at the camper I beloved the unloaded was about 6400#.

What my wife's cousin mentioned need to get the tongue weight and figure that with the truck capacity weight if hitch and full propane tanks they are 30#s each 2 that dds just over 100 for full tanks.

I have been looking at all the different WDH out there and see it will need the 1200#.

Yes it is long and that is were I have the concern as we do most of our travailing in Vermont and New Hampshire currently and were hoping to do more as I get closer to retirement.

The model were looking at is the Wildwood 27RKSS.

Thanks again for the info.

Don