silverado 1500 towing capacity

[matt113]

my dad has a 2000 chevy silverado 1500 with a 5.7 v8. i was wandering if this would be capable of towing a WW FS2500?? if not, what would it be capable of towing, because we're begging to look at TH's and TT's. thanks for any help

[WheelsUp]

No.

2500HD minimum for something that big and heavy. WWs are heavy trailers.

Do NOT gauge by the trailer's "dry" weight... that weight is empty, and without options. Go by the trailer's gross weight.

FS2500 is rated at 7650 gross (as are all of the Superlites except the 16' Supercross).

Your Gross Combined rating is no more than 11,000. I think your owner's manual recommends no more than 5500.

Your GVWR is likely about 6400, so with a GCVWR of 11,000, it leaves only 4600 to safely tow if your truck is fully loaded with passengers, fuel, gear, etc...

I think your curb weight (empty truck) is about 4600... you could tow 6400 minus the weight of your truck's cargo.

Your GCVWR depends on the axle ratio... lower gears will carry a higher tow rating. The number than I threw out is worst-case with the 3.08 gears.

I think best-case you may have a GCVWR of 14,000... in that case, add 3k to the above numbers, or towing capacity of not more than 9400 and at least 7600, but that would be like a Z71 with the lowest offroad gears available.

The situation that you are in is exactly why I replaced my '03 Tundra with an '06 Duramax 2500HD instead of a new Tundra.

Edit: Look inside of the glove box... it should give the actual towing capacities.

Keep in mind:

GCVWR - Gross Combined Vehicle Weight Rating, the max weight of the truck and trailer, everything loaded up, on the road

GVWR - Gross Vehicle Weight Rating, the max weight of the truck loaded and on the road

Curb Weight - Empty truck (I think they assume a half tank of fuel, no passengers)

Trailer Dry Weight - worse than curb weight... stripped, empty trailer, no options installed, no LP, no batteries.

Tongue Weight - This one can sneak up on your with toy haulers. They tend to be very nose-heavy since they were designed to carry heavy cargo behind the axle. A WD Class-IV hitch is a must, as tongue weights can easily exceed 1,000.

[matt113]

it is a z71 and im pretty sure the gcvwr is over 10k because my dad said something about he got a tax break on it because they consider a truck over 10k to be just for work but thanks for the info.. he might be selling it to me and getting a bigger truck anyways.. i guess i'll find out soon enough though

[Chevy_Cowboy]

Uh, the 5.7 wasnt available in 2000 for the trucks... its either a 4.8 or 5.3.

Otherwise listen to Rich... only the lowest geared half ton 2000 could handle 7700lbs, and even then it'd be pretty sketchy. I'd upgrade to a 2500 or buy a smaller TH.

[WheelsUp]

I'd upgrade to a 2500 or buy a smaller TH.

Agreed.... and since the truck is already "bought", the lighter TH becomes the best option.

For light weight, it's hard to beat the Carson "Fun Runner" series. They are light, but also not built as well as the WW and Gearboxes.

I mean, they're not going to fall apart on you unless you take them on really rough roads, but they're just not built as well or as solidly... cheaper cabinets, that kinda thing.

But... you can get up to about 22ft before you get over 7,000.

[matt113]

Uh, the 5.7 wasnt available in 2000 for the trucks... its either a 4.8 or 5.3.

sorry about that.. yea.. it's a 5.3

thanks for the info.. i'll check the Carson "Fun Runner" series out

[munchieu]

Agreed.... and since the truck is already "bought", the lighter TH becomes the best option.

For light weight, it's hard to beat the Carson "Fun Runner" series. They are light, but also not built as well as the WW and Gearboxes.

I mean, they're not going to fall apart on you unless you take them on really rough roads, but they're just not built as well or as solidly... cheaper cabinets, that kinda thing.

But... you can get up to about 22ft before you get over 7,000.

my experience with carson trailers are there cheaply made and dont hold up that great. try the superlite series from weekend warrior. my fs2300 is great and i towed it behind a 1500 yukon w/5.3 with no problems.all though i now tow it with my f350. dont even know its back there

[WheelsUp]

The FS2300 has the same weight rating as the FS2500 that he was asking about in the original post.

It's too heavy... I don't care what you towed with your Yukon, it is an unsafe combination.

There are people towing FS2300's with Tundras, but it's over the weight rating of the vehicle and is not safe. I've seen people towing these things with Explorers too. THESE are Darwin Award hopefuls and should be locked up before they kill someone.

You can get away with it if you are careful, but if you are involved in an accident, you are screwed and MAY be denied insurance coverage.

Anecdotal evidence aside... PLEASE do not recommend that someone spend $20k on a trailer that will result in an unsafe condition on the highway.

Ya, I already said that Carson trailers are cheaply made, but unless Matt is willing to buy a stronger truck, that's all he can safely tow. Half-ton trucks and SUVs were simply not designed for towing heavy loads. Take a look at the other current thread here in the RV/TH forum... one of the guys checked the tongue weight on his FS2500 loaded for the road and it was 1,600 pounds... that's too much for even a 3/4 ton.

Recommending that someone attempt to haul anything close to that with a 1500 is stupid.

[munchieu]

not trying to start anything here. but why would ww state that the fs series is made to be towed with a 1/2 ton for. if this is a false claim then the would have been in some serious trouble by now.my yukon xl has a max towing of 8,500lbs which is 850lbs more that the trailer at max which it has never seen.

please fill me in on how im in the wrong here. all the chevy 1/2 tons have a min of 7000 max weight and up to 8500lbs for 2wd. so a 1/2 ton will do fine . correct. yea a 3/4 or 1 ton would be better. but a 1/2 ton will do the job fine and leaglly. and use the weight distrabution setup

[matt113]

my 1500 has a max of 7500 lb's im pretty sure

[KS]

Take a look at the other current thread here in the RV/TH forum... one of the guys checked the tongue weight on his FS2500 loaded for the road and it was 1,600 pounds... that's too much for even a 3/4 ton. Recommending that someone attempt to haul anything close to that with a 1500 is stupid.

That was me....It was actually an FS2600. And yes, the tounge weight was 1600lbs. That was before we left for a trip. What do you think happens after you've been out for a long weekend and now 2/3 of your water (that is directly over your axles) is now pumped into your holding tanks which are up towards the front of the trailer. You got it.......your tounge weight is even more on the trip home.

Look, I'm not trying to bag on TH's. I just think there are so damn many of them going down the road in an unsafe towing situation.

On a side note. If you've got a late model GM (truck or SUV) the factory hitch is an absolute POS. I'm talking about the new round style tube hitch that is bolted to the bumper just above the pin box. They twist like crazy and will not allow you to get the proper amount of weight transfer to the front wheels of your tow vehicle (which is the whole purpose of a WD hitch) I replaced mine with a Putnam Class5.......Problem solved.

Just my experience.........

[munchieu]

On a side note. If you've got a late model GM (truck or SUV) the factory hitch is an absolute POS. I'm talking about the new round style tube hitch that is bolted to the bumper just above the pin box. They twist like crazy and will not allow you to get the proper amount of weight transfer to the front wheels of your tow vehicle (which is the whole purpose of a WD hitch) I replaced mine with a Putnam Class5.......Problem solved.

Just my experience.........

true ,true mine twisted upwards a little, so its in the trash now

[dirtyriders110]

My 2001 Yukon Xl has a rating of 5000#'s

It says it right on the bumper

[munchieu]

My 2001 Yukon Xl has a rating of 5000#'s

It says it right on the bumper

thats your hitch capacity not what your truck can tow. with a weight distribution hitch that doubles to 1000 tounge and 10000 trailer. now 10000 exceeds your yukon limit. if you have 3.42 gears your yukon xl has a max trailer weight of 7500lbs, 4.10 gears it goes up 1000lbs

[dirtyriders110]

No way really? Cause we've got a 21 ft TT which weighs around 4500#'s with a hitch weight of 460# with a weight equalizer and it can't even get up to 70 mph ? . Also, right on the receiver it says 650# hitch and 5000# trailer. Am I missing something?

[munchieu]

No way really? Cause we've got a 21 ft TT which weighs around 4500#'s with a hitch weight of 460# with a weight equalizer and it can't even get up to 70 mph ? . Also, right on the receiver it says 650# hitch and 5000# trailer. Am I missing something?

70mph your not even suspose to go that fast 55 is the limit. i keep mine 65 and under. catch some sway at 70 and youll sh%$ your pants.650 tounge weight and 5000 trailer is that on the ball mount or the hitch thats bolted to your truck. with the load bar set up it increases how much you can tow with the hitch. call your local hitch installer and see what they say. im sure with the bars it jumps to 1000,10000

[dirtyriders110]

It says it on the hitch bolted to the truck from factory. Plus who actually goes the 65 mph speed limit and the speed limit is 70 in some places. People like you who go 10-15 mph under the limit cause accidents because they all are trying to pass you. It's better to go with the flow. For the swaying issue, they invented a thing called sway bars ?

[munchieu]

good luck. i use to think like you till one day. there is a reason its 55mph towing. 65 is pushing it. i hope you dont learn the hard way. i allmost did. sway bars help, dont prevent

[KS]

Plus who actually goes the 65 mph speed limit and the speed limit is 70 in some places. People like you who go 10-15 mph under the limit cause accidents because they all are trying to pass you. It's better to go with the flow. For the swaying issue, they invented a thing called sway bars ?

The speed limit in California is 55mph when you are towing. That's why he's towing at 55. Check your facts before you start blaming people for causing accidents.