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Any high mileage guys towing travel trailers?

RPaul

By RPaul
in Engines & Drivetrain

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RPaul Enthusiast

RPaul

Posted
Posted

Looking into a travel trailer buts it’s near the upper end of the capacity of the truck.(2019).

 

posting here because I’d like to see how many guys are doing a significant amount of towing with their 5.3 or 6.2 at the upper end of the capacity and if there have been any failures or issues with doing so. 
 

of course I know that you shouldn’t go over the GCWR and should probably stay 25% under. But my question is strictly related to how drivetrains and engines have fared after a good amount of miles towing heavy on the gassers?

 

thank you

pokismoki Senior Enthusiast

pokismoki

Posted
Posted (edited)

i tow a 14ft car hauler converted to an RV camper, 3 weeks a year for camping, it probably weighs 4000 lbs when loaded, tow about 150-250 miles a day doing 65mph. tranny temp sits at 150-160

truck is the 5.3 running katec 170 thermostat, with 6l80 no thermostat, 3.42 gears i think, and get 10 mpg dong so

Edited by pokismoki
14burrito Enthusiast

14burrito

Posted
Posted
30 minutes ago, pokismoki said:

i tow a 14ft car hauler converted to an RV camper, 3 weeks a year for camping, it probably weighs 4000 lbs when loaded, tow about 150-250 miles a day doing 65mph. tranny temp sits at 150-160

truck is the 5.3 running katec 170 thermostat, with 6l80 no thermostat, 3.42 gears i think, and get 10 mpg dong so

 

You have dual speed tcase?

 

If so, 3.42 is correct. If not, 3.09s.

14burrito Enthusiast

14burrito

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, pokismoki said:

transfer case is either 1:1 or 40:1 on my old suburban 4x4, its not an overdrive unit, 

Tcase either optioned 4hi or 4hi/4low. The dual, which includes 4low, in part of the max trailer package IIRC which has 3.42s.

 

My 3.09 unit, not max trailering, is only 4hi.

14burrito Enthusiast

14burrito

Posted
Posted (edited)

Just looked it up, looks like its standard in the Z71, max trailering and optional across the board to get the dual speed tcase.

Single speed RPO: NP0

Dual speed RPO: NQH

Edited by 14burrito
mikeyk101 Senior Enthusiast

mikeyk101

Posted
Posted

I don't have the Max Trailer package but do have the trailering package on my 2016 LT. It has the NQH RPO code so the Dual speed transfer case and I have the 3.42 gears.

 

As far as towing, I bought a Wildwood FSX 190RT toy hauler last year. Its a 25' trailer and I am using a Equal-Izer 4 point weight distribution hitch with it. I am also leveled 2" on front and went with Airlift air bags on rear to help control the unreasonable sag that leveled trucks can experience when towing. (I did pick up the onboard compressor kit over the winter and will be installing that soon.) Unloaded weight on that is just over 4400lbs and loaded with my 1200lb trike and some extras, I usually end up just north of 6000lbs. So far, I have felt just fine towing this. The trans and coolant temps were running a tad high and was struggling a bit when climbing some grades. I discovered that if I just dropped the gear shift lever from "D" to "M" just before reaching the grade, the trans would drop a gear and if it was a particularly long or steeper grade, dropping the "M" gear one gear, it did much better. Temps might still rise a bit but not like just staying in "D" and letting the truck decide. Last year was still running with the original installed OEM 190⁰ transmission cooler. This year though, I now have the updated 154⁰ cooler installed and am really looking forward to seeing how the trans temps do while towing. I will still use the "M" choice on grades and expect the trans temps to be much more reasonable.  

  • Like 1
pokismoki Senior Enthusiast

pokismoki

Posted
Posted (edited)

I seen those airbags break truck frames or bend em.  be careful since , the problem with bags is the weight is not distributed like the leafsprings are on two points on the frame.. you can overload the weakest part of the frames by lifting in the center of the two loading points.

 

you can unload some weight off the rear of the truck by using an  adjustable hitch ball, and raising the trailer up 1-3" above the hitch

Edited by pokismoki
  • Like 1
mikeyk101 Senior Enthusiast

mikeyk101

Posted
Posted

Here's the rub. The sag I get is well within normal operation. The trucks are designed with a certain amount of rake. Normally when connecting a trailer, and even one with a wdh, there will still be a certain amount of sag in the rear. Because of the rake, when adjusted properly, you will end up with the rear height pretty much even with the front. 

 

Now when you level, you have essentially eliminated the rake before the trailer even gets hitched up. So then when you get the inevitable sag, you will now have the headlights pointed skyward. Most wdh like my Equal-izer one, you adjust based on the height on the front of the truck. You want to get the front end of the truck back down to the height it was prior to being hitched. Mine does that perfectly. The height is dead on to the height iy was prehitch. But... because of the normal rear sag, the rear ends up being slightly lower than the front and headlights are raised. The amount of sag is acceptable, only about 1-1/2"-2" but because of leveling and eliminating the rake, this causes the issue. 

 

The solution is to use the air bags. I dont use them as a substitute for blocks to raise the rear end, just as an aid. They mount just above the axle and pretty much in same location as replacement blocks would be. I just set them at about 10lbs without the trailer and might bump them up to around 25lbs when adding the trailer. They are rated at 100lbs but I don't ever see a scenario where that much might be needed. I still adjust the airbags so there is still some sag, just not as much as there would be without them on my leveled truck.

mikeyk101 Senior Enthusiast

mikeyk101

Posted
Posted
41 minutes ago, 14burrito said:

IMO bags are a bandaid.

 

A properly setup WDH is the way to go and not overloading the TV.

 

A good view here if you have 10minutes.

 

 

I would agree with this if I had an unmodified, unleveled truck. However because I have leveled the front end, there are other variables that come into play.

mikeyk101 Senior Enthusiast

mikeyk101

Posted
Posted (edited)
14 hours ago, pokismoki said:

I seen those airbags break truck frames or bend em.  be careful since , the problem with bags is the weight is not distributed like the leafsprings are on two points on the frame.. you can overload the weakest part of the frames by lifting in the center of the two loading points.

 

you can unload some weight off the rear of the truck by using an  adjustable hitch ball, and raising the trailer up 1-3" above the hitch

I will pay attention to the frame. However like I mentioned, there is always going to be some unavoidable sag when pulling a trailer weighing over 6000lbs. My wdh is correctly set and the rear end sag is an acceptable amount. It's just that my front end is already 2" above stock, so it no longer has the rake that would normally compensate for the acceptable amount of rear sag.

 

Just to add, I have also taken the rig over to the cat scales to weigh it and it is well within the limits for front axle, rear axle, and trailer axles. I did it 3 ways, full rig with wdh, full rig with the wdh bars unattached, and just the truck. Everything comes up as adjusted properly.

Edited by mikeyk101
It's Tim Senior Enthusiast

It's Tim

Posted
Posted
On 3/26/2022 at 10:25 PM, RPaul said:

of course I know that you shouldn’t go over the GCWR and should probably stay 25% under. But my question is strictly related to how drivetrains and engines have fared after a good amount of miles towing heavy on the gassers?

The issue isn't pulling it ... it's trying to stop it. Say for instance the trailer brakes were to fail in an emergency situation do you really want to go there?

mikeyk101 Senior Enthusiast

mikeyk101

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, It's Tim said:

The issue isn't pulling it ... it's trying to stop it. Say for instance the trailer brakes were to fail in an emergency situation do you really want to go there?

That is a good point and proper maintenance of trailer brakes and making sure the brake controller is functioning properly is a must. I personally wouldn't tow something where I was near the capacity of what the truck was safely rated for. It would be time to upgrade the truck for more towing capacity if that's the case. That was the reason for choosing the toyhauler I did so I had a cushion on capacity but still was a size that would be useful. 

pokismoki Senior Enthusiast

pokismoki

Posted
Posted (edited)

i would look at helper springs before i get bags, then if it still sags add a 2" block to the rear, then adjust tounge weight with adjustable ball hitch

 

then get a set of aggressive brake pads from EBC to really bite into the rotors

Edited by pokismoki

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