Pulling LaCrosse 318BHS with Surburban

[bmcgee]

I have a 1/2 ton z71 Burb with a tow package and was looking at getting the 318bhs lacrosse. I'm confused with all the tow capabilities of different TV. I've seen a lot smaller vehicles than mine pull much bigger trailers. I was wondering if anyone is pulling a 318bhs with a 1/2 ton Burb and what their experience has been or suggestions on what can be done to improve the 1/2 ton to pull something this big. I just bought the Burb and I'm not in the market right now to buy another tv. Thank you for any insight and suggestions anyone might have.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by bmcgee

I have a 1/2 ton z71 Burb with a tow package and was looking at getting the 318bhs lacrosse. I'm confused with all the tow capabilities of different TV. I've seen a lot smaller vehicles than mine pull much bigger trailers. I was wondering if anyone is pulling a 318bhs with a 1/2 ton Burb and what their experience has been or suggestions on what can be done to improve the 1/2 ton to pull something this big. I just bought the Burb and I'm not in the market right now to buy another tv. Thank you for any insight and suggestions anyone might have.

you don't say what year or engine size but if it's the 5.3 v-8, NO way will that Burb tow that big of a trailer.
my '07 Avalanche, the same GM900 chassis as the Burb, has a tow max of 7200lbs. and the 318BHS has a "dry" weight of 7613lbs.
unless your Burb is the 2500 model, it's not going to come even close to being able to tow it.
plus it's nearly 36' long!

you need to provide more info on your Burb for a precise answer to what it can tow.
by the way, my Avy has the 5.3, the 3.73 rear end and the factory tow package.
i tow a 24' 5000lbs. loaded HTT and i wouldn't tow anything much longer or heavier.

[bmcgee]

Originally Posted by bikendan

you don't say what year or engine size but if it's the 5.3 v-8, NO way will that Burb tow that big of a trailer.
my '07 Avalanche, the same GM900 chassis as the Burb, has a tow max of 7200lbs. and the 318BHS has a "dry" weight of 7613lbs.
unless your Burb is the 2500 model, it's not going to come even close to being able to tow it.
plus it's nearly 36' long!

you need to provide more info on your Burb for a precise answer to what it can tow.
by the way, my Avy has the 5.3, the 3.73 rear end and the factory tow package.
i tow a 24' 5000lbs. loaded HTT and i wouldn't tow anything much longer or heavier.

Thanks for your reply. I have a 2011 1/2 ton with a 3.42 rear. Would I be more suited to pull the 3150 tracer from primetime? I have 4 kids and that's why I needed to go with the Burb instead of a truck . Would the 3/4 ton Burb be able to pull the lacrosse? What would be a suitable tv to pull the lacrosse with the room for 4 kids?

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by bmcgee

Thanks for your reply. I have a 2011 1/2 ton with a 3.42 rear. Would I be more suited to pull the 3150 tracer from primetime? I have 4 kids and that's why I needed to go with the Burb instead of a truck . Would the 3/4 ton Burb be able to pull the lacrosse? What would be a suitable tv to pull the lacrosse with the room for 4 kids?

the 2012 specs show 8000lbs. tow capacity with a 4x4 1/2 ton Burb with the 3.42 rear end. that's with only a 150lb. driver in it. anything additional in the Burb, will reduce that number by its weight.
say that Mom weighs 150lb. and the rest of the family weighs 400lbs. and the cargo inside weighs 100lbs. with the WDH weighing 100lbs.
now you can only tow 7400lbs.

the 3150 Tracer will have a GVWR over 9000lbs. still too much trailer both in weight and length. it'll weigh around 7000lbs. with options, propane and battery, before you even start adding cargo and water.

the 2500 model would be able to tow the Tracer but the Lacrosse would be a stretch. a diesel Excursion or 3/4 ton crew cab truck could tow it.
a recommended rule is to only tow 80% of your tow maximum.

[bmcgee]

Originally Posted by bikendan

the 2012 specs show 8000lbs. tow capacity with a 4x4 1/2 ton Burb with the 3.42 rear end. that's with only a 150lb. driver in it. anything additional in the Burb, will reduce that number by its weight.
say that Mom weighs 150lb. and the rest of the family weighs 400lbs. and the cargo inside weighs 100lbs. with the WDH weighing 100lbs.
now you can only tow 7400lbs.

the 3150 Tracer will have a GVWR over 9000lbs. still too much trailer both in weight and length. it'll weigh around 7000lbs. with options, propane and battery, before you even start adding cargo and water.

the 2500 model would be able to tow the Tracer but the Lacrosse would be a stretch. a diesel Excursion or 3/4 ton crew cab truck could tow it.
a recommended rule is to only tow 80% of your tow maximum.

Thank you for all your assistance. If I was looking at a 2500 hd silverado crew cab with a 14,400 tow rating would that be able to tow the lacrosse? Sorry for all the questions, it is really confusing to determine what a vehicle can actually tow. Is there a good website that shows what vehicles can tow or a calculator that assists with this?

[campfan]

Originally Posted by bikendan

the 2012 specs show 8000lbs. tow capacity with a 4x4 1/2 ton Burb with the 3.42 rear end. that's with only a 150lb. driver in it. anything additional in the Burb, will reduce that number by its weight.
say that Mom weighs 150lb. and the rest of the family weighs 400lbs. and the cargo inside weighs 100lbs. with the WDH weighing 100lbs.
now you can only tow 7400lbs.

the 3150 Tracer will have a GVWR over 9000lbs. still too much trailer both in weight and length. it'll weigh around 7000lbs. with options, propane and battery, before you even start adding cargo and water.

the 2500 model would be able to tow the Tracer but the Lacrosse would be a stretch. a diesel Excursion or 3/4 ton crew cab truck could tow it.
a recommended rule is to only tow 80% of your tow maximum.

who recommends this 80% rule- just curios

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by campfan

who recommends this 80% rule- just curios

it's a common rule-of-thumb recommendation on all the RV forums.
there's also the 1000lb. rule and a few others but the 80% one is very common.

not saying it's a must-do, just that it's frequently recommended.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by bmcgee

Thank you for all your assistance. If I was looking at a 2500 hd silverado crew cab with a 14,400 tow rating would that be able to tow the lacrosse? Sorry for all the questions, it is really confusing to determine what a vehicle can actually tow. Is there a good website that shows what vehicles can tow or a calculator that assists with this?

yes, that would do fine and even go bigger in the future.
i do recommend you read up on towing more so that you don't feel as confused.
learn things like GCWR, GVWR, CCC, dry vs. actual weight, and so on.

[camper_Lucy]

Here is a good web site to help you understand the TV variables and selection considerations (tow vehicle sizing)
Tow Vehicle Sizing

and here is a good weight calculator on the same site:

Travel Trailer Weight Calculator

[flyrotor]

I agree, way too much trailer for the suburban.

I previously had a suburban to pull my trailer, which is much lighter and shorter than either mentioned, my GVWR is 7680, and probably closer to 6800 pounds fully loaded, it was within the specs of towing with the suburban, but I did not like the lack of power, the transmission temp (even with upgraded HD trans cooler), the shifting of gears, etc. The frame, suspension and handling with the trailer did fine,

I upgraded my TV and never looked back....

[bmcgee]

Originally Posted by flyrotor

I agree, way too much trailer for the suburban.

I previously had a suburban to pull my trailer, which is much lighter and shorter than either mentioned, my GVWR is 7680, and probably closer to 6800 pounds fully loaded, it was within the specs of towing with the suburban, but I did not like the lack of power, the transmission temp (even with upgraded HD trans cooler), the shifting of gears, etc. The frame, suspension and handling with the trailer did fine,

I upgraded my TV and never looked back....

What did you upgrade to for a TV? Also, what is the GVWR on your trailer? I should have picked the TV first.

[spinningbull]

we have the Yukon xl denali (6.1 v8), and pull an 8313 that weighs in around 7k. its about at the limit for the Yukon. frankly the biggest issue I have is tongue weight (the amount of weight directly on the hitch). the airbags run forever levelling the truck.

we will probably goto a 2500 model Yukon xl when we are ready to upgrade the tv.

[flyrotor]

Originally Posted by bmcgee

What did you upgrade to for a TV? Also, what is the GVWR on your trailer? I should have picked the TV first.

I bought a Dodge 2500 6.7 Cummins Diesel, 6 speed manual transmission. The GVWR on my trailer is 7695.

I always owned 1/2 ton SUV's because of 5 kids, but now 2 are out on their own, one is only with us on about 1/2 the trips. But the Dodge with the manual transmission has the split seat in the front, which means no center console, this allows for seating of 6 in seatbelts.

Depending on their size, this would work for you even though it's tighter than having that 3rd row seating.

Another bonus, I have the 8' bed, tons of room for all the extras that I don't need/want to put in the trailer for travel.

[mindenglock]

We bought a 2011 F-250 just for travel with the kids. The rear seat is HUGE... more room than the front seat! The new 6.4 diesel will pull anything you hook to it and pulls my 318BHS like a lawnmower trailer. Put a bed cover over the back and you have a monster TV with plenty of room for kids and lots of dry storage.

[bmcgee]

Originally Posted by mindenglock

We bought a 2011 F-250 just for travel with the kids. The rear seat is HUGE... more room than the front seat! The new 6.4 diesel will pull anything you hook to it and pulls my 318BHS like a lawnmower trailer. Put a bed cover over the back and you have a monster TV with plenty of room for kids and lots of dry storage.

I'm looking to go from a popup that is about 20 ft long to the 318BHS. How much of an adjustment is it to pull something 35 ft long? Is it a real adjustment pulling down the road and also trying to get into camp sites. Do you pull your trailer on long trips or stay close to home.

[MtnGuy]

Originally Posted by bmcgee

I'm looking to go from a popup that is about 20 ft long to the 318BHS. How much of an adjustment is it to pull something 35 ft long? Is it a real adjustment pulling down the road and also trying to get into camp sites. Do you pull your trailer on long trips or stay close to home.

I went from a 20' Trailmanor to a 28.5' conventional trailer. I can't get into some of the camping sites now that I liked with my Trailmanor. My mileage also went south with the new camper........mid 15s with the Trailmanor, low 11s with the current camper.

Make sure you have enough vehicle to safely tow a 35 footer before signing the papers.

[mindenglock]

We usually stay within 4 hrs of home, but only because of small kids and time constraints. We will start longer trips this year. I have pulled and backed up boats, flatbeds and cargo trailers my whole life so the TT is not that difficult for me. I can usually put it anywhere I want it, but I have looked at a few camping spots and said "No Way!"

I went from a Nissan Titan, which would get the job done, to the F250 which was built to do this. Extendable mirrors, memory trailer brakes, etc. This made pulling the trailer FUN to me. 70mph is a breeze and I have comfortably hit 80 a time or two when not paying attention. Mileage is around 13, but if you watched yourself, I have heard 15 is possible while towing. I did add a set of air bags to the rear just to level everything out when the load is heavy in the bed.

[rracer5]

As you can see by my signature, I feel that my TV is at its max (only because of the engine) for my TT. The TV has a GVWR of 8600. The suspension is not taxed at all when all hooked up with the WD hitch (even when I throw the 800 lb. Golf Cart in the bed). The ride and handling is excellent but, when an uphill comes up, I have to be on top of things to keep the engine RPM's in check. and i will loose a lot of speed on inclines (my choice so as not to tress the engine and tranny too much). The TT is advertized "dry" at around 7100 lbs., so figure in gear, clothing, food, pots, pans etc., Tv's, propane, battery and oh yea......beer & ice, and it's probably close to 9000 lbs. at 34' 10". Since we purchased it, we have taken it on local trips, Myrtle Beach 3 times and New Hampshire 1 time all without a hitch (no pun intended).

As I've said, the TV "handles" very well but, I wish I had more motor. I will be upgrading the TV in the near future keeping in mind an upgrade in TT maybe a few years after that.

[TURBS]

I used to pull my 31bhss flagstaff with my 1999 1/2 ton chevy 4x4 suburban with NO issues EVER ! by the way I towed it for 6 years !
some people are just to picky !

[21C1]

I am pulling a Lacrosse 318 with a '10 F150 Screw with a 5.4l without any problems. I have the max trailer tow package and it is rated at 11,200#. Of course the dealer didn't set my Equalizer hitch with enough weight on the bars, but that has been corrected. I probably could use a little more hp when on the interstate but we manage just fine.