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gern
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gern Enthusiast

gern

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I have a 2020 Silverado 4.3L and was thinking about getting a small travel trailer 3350 lbs Micro Mini Winnebago. Will this truck handle that or to much strain? 

voided3 Enthusiast

voided3

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Check out your door sticker in the driver's door jamb. It will list your payload and towing numbers for your specific truck. With that said, that truck should have at least a 7,000 lbs. towing capacity and 700 lbs. tongue weight allowance, but double check.

 

For travel trailers, go off of the GVWR of the trailer, not the dry weight, and assume it will have a higher tongue weight, up to 15% of the trailer's curb weight loaded, than the usual 10% figure GM uses. The GVWR is the maximum loaded weight of the trailer. The dry weight does not factor in your propane tanks, deep cycle batteries, or any water you may be carrying. An average group 27 lead acid battery is about 50 pounds. Water also is about 8 lbs. per gallon. If you have a 30 gallon fresh water tank you fill prior to your trip, that means you're carrying an extra 240 pounds in water alone.

 

Travel trailers also tend to be pretty heavy on tongue weight, hence why I recommend estimating 15% tongue weight. We have a similar weight trailer (Intech Sol Horizon) that's 3372 lbs. dry and 4000 lbs. GVWR, but the tongue weight is about 575 lbs. so keep in mind that tongue weight plus the weight of your hitch equipment (ball mount or weight distribution system) has to be subtracted from your payload allowance. Also load heavier stuff in the front of the rear axle/as far forward as possible to keep things balanced.

 

We tow with our '21 Silverado with the 5.3 V8 and 8-speed with the 3.23 rear end. I always use tow/haul mode and shift down to L6. I would imagine your 4.3 V6 truck has the 6-speed and the 3.42 read end, so you may way to tow in L5 to lock out overdrive, also with tow/haul engaged. This also makes it faster to downshift when going up or down steep grades if you already are in Low.

 

If you don't have the factory integrated brake controller, you are going to need an aftermarket one as that trailer will definitely have electric drum brakes. Check out etrailer.com for what's compatible. Your truck should be prewired for a brake controller with a 4-pin connector under the dash (check the manual for location). I also will assume your truck has the factory 7-pin harness and a hitch already, but if not, you'll want to buy the factory 7-pin harness from the dealer and get a hitch installed that meets or exceed the tow rating for your truck (once again, etrailer.com will have what you need for that).

 

Final word of advice, drive slow. I find 62 MPH to be the sweet spot and never go faster than 65 MPH, even if the speed limit is higher. You're on a vacation, take it easy! Your transmission also won't get nearly as hot if you go slower, and you're way less likely to get trailer sway if you go slower. Travel trailers and cargo trailers have a large frontal area and have a ton of aerodynamic drag and "act" like a heavier trailer at speed due to wind resistance.

Edited by voided3
ratman6161 Enthusiast

ratman6161

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Posted (edited)
On 10/28/2021 at 1:33 PM, gern said:

I have a 2020 Silverado 4.3L and was thinking about getting a small travel trailer 3350 lbs Micro Mini Winnebago. Will this truck handle that or to much strain? 

Sounds like you are talking about the 1708FB ?  If so, the GVWR is 5000 lbs.  The hea iest in that line is 5500.  So you should be fine as far as safety and stability go.  Also, do you have past experience with Travel Trailers i. Do you have a good idea what you will load?  Most people don't when they start out.

 

I did all my numbers in minute dtail...literally weighing every item that I planned to load.  On the day we picked up the camper, I stopped at a CAT scale on the way home to get my baseline unloaded weight.  Then we loaded up and did a 2 day experimental trip...stopping at the CAT scale again to get the loaded numbers.  Turns out, we only carry 400 to 500 lbs of stuff.  But no ,it's so it's just two people taking up the trucks  payload and two people worth of stuff.  Anyway, there is no substitute for hitting the scales and getting real rather than theoretical numbers.

 

I've got a 21 Sierra without max tow package and our camper is a very easy tow at 70 MPH down the highway at 5,800 to 5,900 as we. Old it and 6800 GVWR.   Of course I have the 6.2L.  That's why I say safety should be fine with your truck.  Engine power may be another story though.  I think the 4.3 will do it as long as you aren't in any hurry 😀

 

PS:  Get a weight distributing hitch, even if your owners manual says it isn't required.  My manual says not required 7nder 7000 but the tongue weifgt will be higher than you expect.

Edited by ratman6161

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