Towing a travel trailer

Cowpie · December 16, 2017

Now that is about as true a statement as there has ever been. And only in the consumer market. In the commercial market, they don't try to inflate numbers like that. You order and spec the rating and you know what you have.

Sonny Silverado · December 23, 2017

Everyone seems to be towing with half ton' s. Anyone with experience with 2500HD?

Waaazooo · December 23, 2017

Everyone seems to be towing with half ton' s. Anyone with experience with 2500HD?

I traded my 1500 in for a 2500. Wish I would’ve done it earlier. The truck weighs more than the 1500 so it naturally feels more planted and less influenced by the weight of my trailer while towing. It’s almost like it isn’t there....almost.

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Sonny Silverado · December 23, 2017

Gas or diesel. Overall how does it handle hills when towing.

Waaazooo · December 23, 2017

Gas or diesel. Overall how does it handle hills when towing.

I have a diesel. I’m not referring to it in the sense of pulling g from a dig. I mean sway, braking...etc

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elchilero53 · December 23, 2017

Well, after re-weighing the truck and trailer combo that I have, the weights all were fine (especially after dumping 2/3 of the fresh water and loading the trailer with food, etc.). The combo towed like a dream during our 2-week trip to New Mexico in September. Trailer came in near 6000 lbs loaded with tongue weight at about 785 lbs. The 6.2L with the 8-speed gave us 13 - 15 mpg across the flats with light breezes and 10 - 12 mpg in the rolling hills north of Amarillo and climbing the mountains in New Mexico (I use a light foot on the gas pedal). Speeds were set to 63 mph with the cruise control. This is a sweet spot for this truck when towing.

The return trip was a different matter. We had to slow down in the face of 25 - 35 mph cross winds with gusts to 40 mph. White knuckle doesn't begin to describe what was going on. The combination of the sway bar and the sway control in the truck helped keep me from losing it when a dust devil and a strong gust got us headed home outside of Clayton NM. We slowed to 60 mph then to 55 mph and the driving experience improved significantly. When we turned south- southeast, the cross wind became a quartering headwind. Still, the worst mileage we experienced going home was 9.5 mpg. We averaged 11 - 12 mpg outbound and 10 -11 mpg homeward bound. Next year, I will put some adjustable shocks and LT tires on the truck. That will help the towing experience (it did on my Tahoe). I am well pleased with the performance of the truck-trailer combo for towing. We have a little room for something a little larger but we are right at the optimum truck/trailer combo.

Blue2500CC · December 25, 2017

Bob,

Sounds like you guys had an awesome trip!!!

What model wdh do you have? Does it have integrated sway control? You stated “sway bar”, so is it a side mounted friction bar?

If so, you may benefit from a wdh with integrated sway control like the Reese Dual Cam, Reese SC, or Equal-I-Zer 4 way system. They are all proven models with sway control integrated into the hitch design. Or a HA or PP system which is the best on the market for a wdh.

Safe travels!!!

elchilero53 · December 26, 2017

11 hours ago, Blue2500CC said:

Bob,

Sounds like you guys had an awesome trip!!!

What model wdh do you have? Does it have integrated sway control? You stated “sway bar”, so is it a side mounted friction bar?

If so, you may benefit from a wdh with integrated sway control like the Reese Dual Cam, Reese SC, or Equal-I-Zer 4 way system. They are all proven models with sway control integrated into the hitch design. Or a HA or PP system which is the best on the market for a wdh.

Safe travels!!!

We are towing a Palomino SolAire7 20RBS. We have a Husky WDH with the side-mountained friction sway control bar (which works quite well) rated 1400/14,000 lbs. I have been considering another assembly but am still doing research. The Husky came with the trailer when I bought it new in 2015 at Bennett's in Granbury TX. It has been a good hitch. The truck has Stabilitrack and an automatic sway control when Tow/Haul is active and the trailer is attached. When that kicks in and you aren't expecting it it scares the willies out of you. You feel it apply the trailer brakes about the time you reach for the manual lever on the integrated controller. It has straightened us up on a couple of occasions. When it kicks in, I know it is time to slow down a bit.

Cowpie · December 28, 2017

On 12/25/2017 at 7:41 AM, Blue2500CC said:

Bob,

Sounds like you guys had an awesome trip!!!

What model wdh do you have? Does it have integrated sway control? You stated “sway bar”, so is it a side mounted friction bar?

If so, you may benefit from a wdh with integrated sway control like the Reese Dual Cam, Reese SC, or Equal-I-Zer 4 way system. They are all proven models with sway control integrated into the hitch design. Or a HA or PP system which is the best on the market for a wdh.

Safe travels!!!

I would add the Blue Ox Sway Pro WDH to that. Very easy to setup and use. Backing is not an issue with it either. One hitch is all that one needs for their lifetime. Just replace the rated torsion bars, if needed, for another trailer tongue weight. Comes in both 2" and 2.5" receiver varieties with torsion bars rated from 350 lb tongue weight to 2000 lb tongue weight. Up to 20,000 lb trailer weight.

Here is a video to see how to set one up to show how simple it is......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLDhAYw943U

JTRATX · December 28, 2017

Get a weight distributing hitch, will make a world of difference.

elchilero53 · December 29, 2017

23 hours ago, JTRATX said:

Get a weight distributing hitch, will make a world of difference.

Thanks. Already have one. I don't tow a TT without one and haven't for that last 25 years.

JTRATX · December 31, 2017

On 12/29/2017 at 9:04 AM, elchilero53 said:

Thanks. Already have one. I don't tow a TT without one and haven't for that last 25 years.

jogutier · January 6, 2018

On 5/19/2017 at 2:27 PM, Eddie0469 said:

I have a 2012 silverado 1500 5.3L v8 with gear ratio 3.42. I believe my max towing is 9,500 lbs. Is it safe to tow a travel trailer with a dry weight of 7,600 lbs?

sounds good.