Can I tow 8600lb

!16ChevSilv! · March 21, 2021

I have 2016 silverado crew cab 5.3L z71 4wd with 3.42 gears.I am looking at a 40ft camper that weights 8600lbs dry. The rv dealer says I can pull it just fine as long as im not pulling across country and recommends equalizer hitch and add rear air bags to truck.

I have read different towing capacitys for this truck so Im confused on the max.

JimCost2014 · March 21, 2021

Yes, you can tow the trailer.

Safely, probably not. Very short distances, I might consider doing, just for how hard your truck will be working.

Long trips, which will include hills, up and down, wind, freeway traffic, and all the other fun stuff, would not feel comfortable at all.

Duramaxsky · March 21, 2021

A 40 foot trailer behind a 1500 is a bad idea. It wiggles you crash. Wind hits it you crash. Your truck is just way too light for that much leverage. The suspension and tires are just too soft.

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lovecars · March 21, 2021

3 hours ago, !16ChevSilv! said:

I have 2016 silverado crew cab 5.3L z71 4wd with 3.42 gears.I am looking at a 40ft camper that weights 8600lbs dry. The rv dealer says I can pull it just fine as long as im not pulling across country and recommends equalizer hitch and add rear air bags to truck.

I have read different towing capacitys for this truck so Im confused on the max.

My 2017 Silverado 2WD LT with heavy duty towing equipment will tow up to 7,000 not the advertised 10,000 according to the GVWR sticker.

To make sure look at the sticker in the body between the left doors in the bottom, it will give you the GVWR which is the maximum rated pull weight of the truck.

I thought according to advertising of Silverados for year 2016. they could tow 10,000, to compare with the Ford 1500 and the Dodge 1500 then it was changed at the beginning of production to state that with 3:42 gears it could tow 10,000.

But knowing GM with the crappy 6 speed they knew it would not be able to tow that weight. So they changed it lower again.

!16ChevSilv! · March 21, 2021

The truck has 20" wheels and 33 12.50 10 ply mud terrain tires.Also a 2" leveling kit was added in the front.Was going to add rear air bags and tow mirrors.

We allready put a deposit down on the travel trailer as it was a great deal so we have to atleast get it home with this truck unless we can find a 2500 by next weekend.The dealer is only 20 miles away though.

We are looking for a silverado 2500 or a ram 2500 now . Thanks for the feedback

CamGTP · March 22, 2021

Your truck can probably tow/haul like 9,200lbs with that transmission and gear ratio. So the dry weight plus 2-3 passengers and you are already over the weight limit of that truck.

YukonXL04 · March 22, 2021

3 hours ago, lovecars said:

My 2017 Silverado 2WD LT with heavy duty towing equipment will tow up to 7,000 not the advertised 10,000 according to the GVWR sticker.

To make sure look at the sticker in the body between the left doors in the bottom, it will give you the GVWR which is the maximum rated pull weight of the truck.

I thought according to advertising of Silverados for year 2016. they could tow 10,000, to compare with the Ford 1500 and the Dodge 1500 then it was changed at the beginning of production to state that with 3:42 gears it could tow 10,000.

But knowing GM with the crappy 6 speed they knew it would not be able to tow that weight. So they changed it lower again.

Your door sticker is the maximum amount of weight your truck can handle on its axles. Not the pull behind weight.

So the max weight of the truck, and the cargo combined on the 2 truck axles. Weigh your truck and subtract that from that number on the door and that's how much weight the truck itself can handle

YukonXL04 · March 22, 2021

2 hours ago, !16ChevSilv! said:

The truck has 20" wheels and 33 12.50 10 ply mud terrain tires.Also a 2" leveling kit was added in the front.Was going to add rear air bags and tow mirrors.

We allready put a deposit down on the travel trailer as it was a great deal so we have to atleast get it home with this truck unless we can find a 2500 by next weekend.The dealer is only 20 miles away though.

We are looking for a silverado 2500 or a ram 2500 now . Thanks for the feedback

Do you have the make and model of the trailer? 8600 sounds light for a 40ft. So is that gross or empty weight.

!16ChevSilv! · March 22, 2021

8600 lb is the dry weight.The gross weight is 11365. The trailer is a 2021 324TS

Even with the small camper we use now we still use a follow vehicle to carry the kids and most packable items as we leave at different times.

YukonXL04 · March 22, 2021

12 minutes ago, !16ChevSilv! said:

8600 lb is the dry weight.The gross weight is 11365. The trailer is a 2021 324TS

Even with the small camper we use now we still use a follow vehicle to carry the kids and most packable items as we leave at different times.

So yea once you pack some stuff in your way overweight. So how far are you towing this thing? I might be willing to tow it home from the dealer, or to a local camp site... but definitely not a couple hours down the road.

JimCost2014 · March 22, 2021

Biggest problem you have going is a 1500 crew's short wheel base, your trailer with the tongue is almost twice as long as your truck.

The cart would literally be steering the horse. First time it decides to get out of line, the truck follows.

!16ChevSilv! · March 22, 2021

Thanks for the feedback. Looking to get a 2500 silverado now.I did find a 2018 ltz 3500 with 40k miles for 55k,might go look at that.

Time for a new truck anyways.This truck has had the lifter issues and the transmission issue.Luckily both was under warranty.Dealer rebuilt transmission and replaced cams and lifters within 75k miles.

I was going to just tow it home about 20 miles but will just have a friend do it unless I buy another truck by saturday which is pick up day.

Edited March 22, 2021 by !16ChevSilv!

lovecars · March 22, 2021

13 hours ago, YukonXL04 said:

Your door sticker is the maximum amount of weight your truck can handle on its axles. Not the pull behind weight.

So the max weight of the truck, and the cargo combined on the 2 truck axles. Weigh your truck and subtract that from that number on the door and that's how much weight the truck itself can handle

You are right. I got all kinds of info at Curtmfg.com, has a kinds of info on towing.

Edited March 22, 2021 by lovecars
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Gagliano7 · March 23, 2021

To just tow 20 miles i would do it in a heartbeat. The junk we used to tow with in the late 80's early 90's couldn't hold a candle to my ford escape 2.0t.To go cross country yes you will need a 2500 but just to get it home you will be fine with your truck.

YukonXL04 · March 23, 2021

2 hours ago, Gagliano7 said:

To just tow 20 miles i would do it in a heartbeat. The junk we used to tow with in the late 80's early 90's couldn't hold a candle to my ford escape 2.0t.To go cross country yes you will need a 2500 but just to get it home you will be fine with your truck.

Honestly I would probably tow the 20 miles home just to see how it handled it lol.

I have hauled a tall dump trailer that was 12000lbs and it handled it really good, but I didn't know the weight till I got to the dump.