GM Sierra 1500 Double Cab 4WD 5.3L V8

[truckguy82]

38 minutes ago, diyer2 said:

 I have a 12 Sierra 5.3 6 speed 3.42's. I live in the mountains of Colorado. I purchased this truck knowing the heaviest thing I would tow regularly was my boat. It weighs about 3500-4000 lbs. The truck does OK with this except pulling grades. You have to down shift to kep up your speed. This causes higher RPM's. Sometimes running it harder than I like so I just find a gear and slow down. The 6 speed trans is the killer.

I have towed heavier 8-9 K pounds and it works hard in the mountains. 

I agree with evad and dieselfan1.

If I was towing heavier I would definaely get a 2500 with the big gasser at minimum. More gears in the trans the better. 

Lol, i used to tow that up grades with an fj60 landcruiser with 120hp on a good day. 355hp having a tough time with 4k lbs.

 

1st world problems to the max

[diyer2]

Let me clarify. Didn't have problems. Just in some cases towing grades I don't run the truck hard so I slow down into a lower gear and lower RPM's. If your not in a hurry no big deal. I'm not in a hurry. It would be nice to maintain speed limit though. I towed a lot with a 93 Silvy 1500 5.7 373 gears 4 speed. This truck is a big improvement. 

[Grumpy Bear]

Fun facts.

 

1.) 5.3 Ecotec makes 350 lb/ft or more between 3100 and 5200 rpm peaking at 4100 rpm

2.) Top gears in automatic transmissions are OVERDRIVES. Not really heavy tow gearing.

 

To get this motor pulling at it's peak torque and on stock tire sizes and a wish for 65 mph speeds would require running in 4th gear with a 4.56 diff....4,100 rpm. You would have 383 * (4.88 * 1.15) = 2,149 pounds feet axle torque. 

 

With a 3.42 and pulling 3rd gear at 65 mph 383 * (3.42 * 1.51) = 2,004 pounds feet axle torque. 

 

But you guys want high gear? 383 * ( 3.42 * 0.67) = 878 pounds feet torque. 

 

What your asking for is diesel like performance from a gas motor or torque limited turbo gas motor perhaps. 

 

You can stuff 10 extra gears in that transmission  and it will always be about multiplying what is available. If you want to tow at 1500 rpm where there is less torque then you have to multiply it more...lower gears....slower speeds. 

 

 

You guys bought motors that peak torque at 4100 rpm and then don't want to spin it to use it. What is a fella to do?  

[dieselfan1]

47 minutes ago, Grumpy Bear said:

Fun facts.

 

1.) 5.3 Ecotec makes 350 lb/ft or more between 3100 and 5200 rpm peaking at 4100 rpm

2.) Top gears in automatic transmissions are OVERDRIVES. Not really heavy tow gearing.

 

To get this motor pulling at it's peak torque and on stock tire sizes and a wish for 65 mph speeds would require running in 4th gear with a 4.56 diff....4,100 rpm. You would have 383 * (4.88 * 1.15) = 2,149 pounds feet axle torque. 

 

With a 3.42 and pulling 3rd gear at 65 mph 383 * (3.42 * 1.51) = 2,004 pounds feet axle torque. 

 

But you guys want high gear? 383 * ( 3.42 * 0.67) = 878 pounds feet torque. 

 

What your asking for is diesel like performance from a gas motor or torque limited turbo gas motor perhaps. 

 

You can stuff 10 extra gears in that transmission  and it will always be about multiplying what is available. If you want to tow at 1500 rpm where there is less torque then you have to multiply it more...lower gears....slower speeds. 

 

 

You guys bought motors that peak torque at 4100 rpm and then don't want to spin it to use it. What is a fella to do?  

I'm not afraid to spin mine. The 5.3 is a stout platform. Made to rev if you ask me.

I ran in 3rd and 4th gear last trip on the way home into a 20-25 headwind. 3500-4500 rpm for hours to maintain 60-62 mph. 

The gas mileage is the killer here. 6-7mpg - 150 miles to a tank max.

Another thing I noticed is after running 4 grand for a while it warms up to around 230° then the thermostat opens and brings it down to 210°. Rinse and repeat.

Tranny runs at 190°-195° steady under these conditions.

If you're not afraid to run at that rpm's the truck will tow it just fine , just requires a lot of gas.

[Ken9XL]

15 hours ago, JimCost2014 said:

If you are talking about the yellow sheet, that is a scale ticket. In this case a private entity, but similar as what you would get from a weigh station on the highway.

 

The numbers are showing the weight at different spots on the truck, and a grand total.

OK!  Thank-you.  I thought it was the door sticker.

[Ken9XL]

13 hours ago, CamGTP said:

The tow rating sticker does not exist on the K2XX trucks, that is only on the 2019+ model year trucks.

 

The only thing you will find on your 2016 is the VIN sticker that shows the build date and gross vehicle weight without the trailer.

 

I stole this from google but it looks like this.

 

These are the only stickers I found on my door(s) and glove box.  Checked all four doors, the jambs front and back.   

[dieselfan1]

Ken,

What trailers are you looking at?

I'm looking at this one for next year.

2021 Wildwood 24RLXL. I was quoted $17,980 plus tax and license.

Empty around 5000 lbs.

Sloped front for less wind resistance. Nice setup for the price. These tow nice a freind has a similar setup(Salem) and tows with a 2017 Sierra crew cab 5.3 6spd 3.42 and never said he has trouble although he only goes up north with it (140 miles fairly flat) once a month.

I'm fairly confident that this trailer will tow easier than my current trailer with the flat front.

 

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[Ken9XL]

Haven't started looking at any RV's at this point. 

Plan to stick with a local dealer for simplicity of warranty and repair.

 

[dieselfan1]

Haven't started looking at any RV's at this point. 
Plan to stick with a local dealer for simplicity of warranty and repair.
 

Local is great as long as you are in a small town. If you are in a large metro area and bring it for warranty work plan on not getting it back for a month or two. It's a big joke, the dealers take your money and then when you need something fixed you are on the back burner. My friend just bought a new Arctic Wolf fifth wheel. The 12 volt refrigerator quit first trip. He brought it back to dealer and they had to order a new one. They had it for 7 weeks. Lame.
The RV world has exploded since coronavirus. The dealers can't keep up with the warranty work.


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[Ken9XL]

1 hour ago, dieselfan1 said:

Local is great as long as you are in a small town. If you are in a large metro area and bring it for warranty work plan on not getting it back for a month or two. It's a big joke, the dealers take your money and then when you need something fixed you are on the back burner. My friend just bought a new Arctic Wolf fifth wheel. The 12 volt refrigerator quit first trip. He brought it back to dealer and they had to order a new one. They had it for 7 weeks. Lame.
The RV world has exploded since coronavirus. The dealers can't keep up with the warranty work.


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Out of curiosity, wouldn't it have been smarter to let the dealership see and diagnose the problem. 

Order the new frig while keeping the old frig, regardless if working while you wait for new, then bring back for swap out once in. 

At least you could still go camping.  May have to rough it with a cooler full of ice. 

Just a thought.  Seven weeks is a long time.        

  

[dieselfan1]

Go over to any RV forum and there are horror stories galore.


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