2011 suburban to pull 98 salem 37bhss

[Sabrinaandbilly]

We just got a new to us travel trailer. We have a 2011 chevy suburban LT 1500

We will NOT be towing this on a regular basis. We purchased some land here in Maine and will be permanently placing it on that. It is a 3 hour drive to get to the location (grand Lake Stream, ME).

We pulled it from the town purchased in to our home. (about and hour drive).

We put a weight distribution on it....but also have a sway bar we put on AFTER we made that drive, so havent tested it yet.

I followed my husband in my car with my hazard lights on and he did about 45 on the highway the whole way home. Anything over 50 was a bit scary I think.

My husband seems confident about pulling it to Grand Lake....but I am nervous! I will most likely follow behind him again to keep an eye on things.

I think he plans to buy and install a brake controller so we can control brakes of camper as well.

So this will be the only time we will ever pull this camper anywhere. We will live in it in the summers while we build :-)

We will not have our 3 kids and dog with us...and I don't plan to load up camper with a ton of stuff. We can bring stuff there later on.

Thoughts on all of this?

Doable?

Thanks in Advance!

Attaching image of our set up.

[MiCamper6]

With all due respect I think you are close to insane towing that thing with your tow vehicle without trailer brakes!!! Not to mention no anti-sway!!!! Whether you can make the one trip to the permanent spot with your current set-up or not you present a danger to yourselves and all those within your vicinity. If a cross breeze hits that trailer and it begins to sway how do you plan on controlling it? Please reconsider your set-up (yes, I know you have begun to do so).

[Sabrinaandbilly]

The next trip (and only trip) would be WITH anti-sway and trailer breaks set up.

I am asking if that setup would be doable?

And only going about 45 max the whole way.

[Kenny kustom]

Phone a friend?
Maybe one that has a one tonne..


2016 Sabre 36QBOK
2015 Ram 3500 CUMMINS

[Sabrinaandbilly]

yeah......it would be nice if we knew someone that did. I'll keep asking around to friends.

I called an RV towing company.....and for a 3 hour drive it is $800. I don't have that right now.

[Kenny kustom]

Originally Posted by Sabrinaandbilly

I called an RV towing company.....and for a 3 hour drive it is $800. .

WOWSERZ...

[Iwritecode]

Originally Posted by Sabrinaandbilly

I followed my husband in my car with my hazard lights on

This is one of my pet peeves and depending on where you live, may be illegal.

Many times when we have a bad snowstorm, people will drive around with their hazards on. Then I can't tell the difference between the ones moving and the ones sitting on the shoulder.

If you're going to drive slower than normal, that's fine. But don't leave your hazards on unless you are stopped on the side of the road.

[Sabrinaandbilly]

okay...thanks for the info. New to all of this.
We definitely want to be safe.

[MiCamper6]

You can get a better idea about the viability of towing that camper by finding the dry weight of the camper and then the towing capacity of the vehicle, assuming you will only tow the camper empty and the vehicle as lightly loaded as practicable as I am sure you will be close if not over your tow capacity. That info should be able to be found on the camper and on the tow vehicle. Also, you would want to know the tongue weight of the camper vs the capacity of the tow vehicle.

There are many variables at play here, as even the same model vehicle with different configurations have vastly different tow and cargo capacities, and not all same model campers weigh the same. You can get a better handle on what the tow capacity is vs the weight of the camper so you can make a better decision, all taking into account how many miles and at what speeds you want to tow (if you are truly making one trip during a very low traffic time of day that can affect your decision for example.). Further, the use of an anti-sway and weight distribution hitch as well as trailer brakes goes a LONG way towards making the tow much safer.

With all due respect, again, towing that big, presumably heavy trailer without anti-sway and trailer brakes was incredibly unsafe and irresponsible as you were not only endangering yourselves but also everyone around you. THAT much can be stated unequivocally. Whether you can add a WDH, trailer brakes and anti-sway, all absolutely necessary, and still tow safely isn't possible to determine with the limited amount of information you have provided.

Good luck to you.

[Sabrinaandbilly]

The previous owner pulled with a truck the same size as our suburban....so I guess we were mis-guided and shouldn't have taken his word for it.
We made it home safely. The next leg of getting it where it needs to go will surely have hills....so if we were to use the suburban....we would have the trailer breaks in place. And the trailer would not be loaded with anything. I would want everything to be as light as possible. The WDH and sway bar are already hooked up.
It is a 37' 1998 forest river Salem.

My husband has already done the math the you mentioned....I am just being the worried wife.

Thanks again for you information....

I will continue to try to find someone here in Maine that may have a heavy duty vehicle we could borrow.....

[MiCamper6]

Sounds like you tried to do your due dilligence. Maybe you were within the tow vehicles specs. None of that mattered when you towed it without trailer brakes, not to mention anti-sway. Now that you have those things hopefully your tow vehicle will have the tow capacity necessary. I am sure many tow beyond their vehicles capacities and do fine. I can't tell you that it is OK to do so. What I can say definitively is that it certainly wasn't safe to tow without brakes and anti-sway.

[RSchleder]

Find a friend with a 3/4 ton pickup or possibly rent one for a day or two. How about any RV parks around you, check there and see if anyone with a 3/4 ton pickup would tow it for you for a reasonable fee. By the time you spend $$ on outfitting your current vehicle, you could afford to pay someone local a few hundred bucks to get it to it's final destination!

[Dave Lyon]

As other mentioned - can you not rent a 1 ton for the day?

[Evereddie]

Maybe she updated her original post after everyone read it but the first post clearly said they have already put on a weight distribution hitch AND anti- sway, and adding a brake controller.

Looking at some on-line specs. Trailer weighs 7700. Suburban can tow 8100. If that trailer is totally unloaded, no propane tanks, no battery, no personal items, etc, this looks like it is doable. But brake hookup, weight distribution, and anti-sway must be be in place, as they already are.

BTW, as most of us know a brake controller is mandatory by law!!!!

[palmetto rogue]

Go to your local rv dealer and have them move it for you.

[Harkerr]

For the one time hire someone with the right rig. Too much chance for a disaster.

[Sabrinaandbilly]

Evereddie, yes...that was all in my original post..i did not go back and edit it.

The break lights and everything worked....and it was a straight shot to my home (no hills ect)....and we went really slow.

Us being newbies...def. lessons are learned. We will not pull it again unless we get something installed inside the suburban.


We ALREADY have the WDH and sway bar.

I am hearing all of your concerns about the brake thing...and I appreciate you re-iterating it.....message received!

I called our local RV dealer and they didn't have someone that could help me, which i thought was weird...seeings that is their business. I called a hauling place and it was $800...which unfortunately I don't have right now.

I will keeping putting a message out to friends to see if anyone has something bigger than our suburban.

With my husband doing all the calculations, like evereddie mentioned above...we should be able to haul it just fine if not loaded up. All the extras like tanks ect...we will bring in a separate vehicle or trip up. I want the suburban and trailer to be as light as possible. Thats IF we use it.

We need it up there before April 22nd.

Again...thank you for all of your input. I am sure a lot of you are just shaking your head at me.....
This is my very first post here...seeings we are new owners.

[dmdomokos]

In order for us to tow our 2702WS (6250 dry, 7200 loaded) with our 2014 Suburban, I needed to add an equalizer 4 point WD hitch, brake controller, change to LT tires, upgraded shocks to Monroe Relfex and the biggest thing was a HD transmission cooler. Now, I too towed without all this, (except the brake controller and WD hitch) and found it to be doable in the flat (7% grade heated the Suburban up pretty good) for 2-300 miles. Did it once, then changed everything out. So one time, doable, but not long term. Long term for us we will buy a 2500HD. Even with all we have done to the Suburban, it's marginal as a TV with 7200lbs behind it. (8100 tow capacity)

[RollingDownTheHighway]

If this is a one and done tow, I'd go to U-Haul and rent a pick up for the day just to get it to your property or even enterprise to see what they have for you to rent for the day.

[Sabrinaandbilly]

I just called U-haul...and he told me a 15' truck would move it no problem. When I mentioned a brake controller in the truck he said there was not one.
UGH....I thought i was getting somewhere.