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  • Name:Jim
  • Location:Fallon, Nevada
  • Drives:2020 Silverado 1500 LTZ

New to forum.

Purchased a new Silverado 1500, will use to pull my travel trailer @ 7000 lbs. New truck has max tow package, 6.2, 10 speed transmission , 3.42 gearing. I have used tow haul before in a Dodge truck when pulling a grade and going downhill grades in the Sierra Nevada mountains. When on the flat roads and interstates I use to just leave transmission in drive with no issues. The former Dodge had the 5.9 Cummins with auto transmission.

I do understand what the tow haul does with the current new truck but would like to know if leaving it in Drive will work in the flat land towing. Of course I ask this because I used to do it with the old Dodge and had no problems as it gave me better mileage on a long trip. Does anyone have experience with the 6.2, 10 speed transmission and 3.42 rear gear and pulling as stated above with a comparable  7000# Travel Trailer in flat land without tow haul engaged, if so what is your experience or opinion. Thanks for your reply’s in advance.

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  • 2 months later...

Towed up the grade on highway 50 from Carson City to South shore of Lake Tahoe with my 2020 Silverado 4wd with 6.2 motor and 10 speed transmission,Z60 suspension and tow haul selection from Fallon, NV to Lake Tahoe. The truck preformed flawlessly with plenty of power to pull the 6 percent grade for over ten miles. Average fuel economy was about 10MPG. Speed limit on the grade out of Carson City NV is 50 MPH and was able to do that easily with the motor taching at 3000RPM. Truck has the tow package with 3.42 gears, extra factory cooling and Helwig overload springs. The travel trailer was around 7000 pound and 30 feet long, used a Husky load leveling hitch with sway control, towed perfectly. This half ton rocks! I would imagine that on flat interstates the MPG would be a little better. At the top of the grade, water temp was at 210 degrees and the transmission temp was at 190 degrees, cooled off immediately when reaching the top of Spooner summit and descending down to Lake Tahoe. Weighed before the trip on truck scale at 13,800 lbs. for both the truck and trailer. The max for combination weight of truck and trailer is 17,800 lbs., so was 4000 lbs. under for total weight of truck and trailer. Awesome trip! Hope my review will help those with questions on towing and tow haul mode. In the past i have towed with a Dodge 2004 Ram 2500 with the Cummins motor, it rode higher than the Silverado, but the towing to me was better than the Dodge, due to a lower ride height. Suspension on the Dodge was very stiff, the Cummins though was a great motor. After parking the trailer at Tahoe, the Silverado by itself has a great ride and great fuel economy around 20MPG 

on open road.

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My personal rule of thumb: Tow/Haul Mode when the trailer is hooked up, Normal driving mode when it's not.

 

Whether it's okay w/o tow-haul or not, I'm just trying to think less and worry less and get in good habits so that's what I'm doing. I took the trailer from my house to it's storage yesterday and forgot to switch to tow/haul mode. I got around the corner to the stop light and was thinking "man this just seems kind of different" and realized I had not switched tow/haul mode on. Granted that's very slow stop-to-slow speeds in the city and not flat highway speeds, and doesn't really answer your question.  But I could definitely feel a difference at slow transmission shift points and will be sticking with my rule of thumb just to avoid "potential" transmission strain even if I'm overthinking it. The 3.0 gets good enough gas fuel mileage in tow/haul mode as it is ?

Edited by Duramax3oh
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I sometimes use tow haul even with just 5-600 lb in the bed or a load extended our the back. One thing the mode does is linearizes the throttle and brake sensitivity, making the driving experience smoother, it also gives the transmission different shift point instructions, gives you an extra few flashes of signal lights when you tap etc. 
 

The result of this is a smoother driving experience, likely at the cost of a bit of fuel and brake wear. But if I’m trying to drive carefully in town to take care of my load that is really a good thing IMO.

 

The settings are there for you to use, but you aren’t going to do any harm by ignoring them completely either (trucks worked just fine for decades without the modes). Just play around and see what you like, and read the manual on what switching the mode actually does and use that knowledge to your advantage. There are even some cases where tow haul or off road might be useful tweaks when not hauling or off road for example, the settings are tools at your disposal like anything else rather than defined boxes we need to live in. 

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Thanks for the advice on tow haul mode, i agree that having it on when towing a trailer really helps in the hills and down grades. Noticed that it helps to in stop and go traffic too when towing. the truck responds better when accelerating and shifting, only tow a travel trailer a few times a year, the rest of the time the truck is a daily driver for the family, grand kids, a great all around vehicle!

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I have a 34'ft travel trailer that I tow at about 8,000lbs. I use Tow/Haul mode most of the time. I put it in normal mode and found at that weight there wasn't much difference. In the Owner's manual it states to only use Tow/Haul when you are towing really heavy loads as you may not like the way the transmission handles a lighter load. At 8,000 or lbs towing tow/haul keeps my torque band perfect for the weight. I also have a 6.2/10speed non-towing package though. 

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Tow/Haul Mode: This feature adjusts transmission shift points, steering and chassis controls in order to deliver peak power when needed most. The Sierra provides a reminder to engage Tow/Haul Mode when a trailer is detected. Further, Tow/Haul Mode remains engaged up to four hours after shutting down the engine – leaving one less thing to remember when hopping back in your vehicle after stopping for gas, food, or to enjoy a scenic stop along your drive route.

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2 hours ago, aliveguy5 said:

I have a 34'ft travel trailer that I tow at about 8,000lbs. I use Tow/Haul mode most of the time. I put it in normal mode and found at that weight there wasn't much difference. In the Owner's manual it states to only use Tow/Haul when you are towing really heavy loads as you may not like the way the transmission handles a lighter load. At 8,000 or lbs towing tow/haul keeps my torque band perfect for the weight. I also have a 6.2/10speed non-towing package though. 

When you tow your trailer, what is your MPG? Do you tow in the hills or do you tow mostly flat land road and interstates?

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The first time I towed this trailer I got about 11.8. The last two times out there was some serious winds and I was getting around 9mpg. I tow between 70-75 MPH based on conditions. I also tow mostly on the interstate where it is mostly flat. I've had to hit a few grades in Northern Michigan here where it was going at a steep grade for a while like others have said, this is where the 6.2L shines for a gasser V8. I haven't been able to bog this motor down yet. 

Edited by aliveguy5
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5 hours ago, aliveguy5 said:

The first time I towed this trailer I got about 11.8. The last two times out there was some serious winds and I was getting around 9mpg. I tow between 70-75 MPH based on conditions. I also tow mostly on the interstate where it is mostly flat. I've had to hit a few grades in Northern Michigan here where it was going at a steep grade for a while like others have said, this is where the 6.2L shines for a gasser V8. I haven't been able to bog this motor down yet. 

Exactly my experience in the Sierras pulling up to Tahoe, would not bog down this motor, 6.2 rocks!

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