Towing Question

[Krudedawg]

Ok.... its been quite a while since I have posted here but I gotta question so I thought I would come to the infinite wisdom of you forum "Gurus". Last year when we purchased our 831BHSS, my tv was a Silverado 2500 4x4. I still have the truck but use it very little for anything because the high mileage is showing with engine ticking and other noises. We recently traded our Jeep Wrangler for an '05 Chevy Tahoe. The Tahoe is equipped with a tow package but from numbers I can find, is rated a little lower than what our trailer would weigh. I have been tempted to give it a try on close-to-home trips to see how well it does. It would be great if this vehicle could handle the load well enough for our beach trips too. In the past we have had to take multiple vehicles on these trips in order to have seating room and packing room for our crowd. If the Tahoe can handle the load, it would save a lot of hassle by being able to carry everything in one vehicle.
Question is.... would I be a fool to try it? should I just stick to towing with the Silverado? What do you guys think?

[powerboatr]

Originally Posted by Krudedawg

Ok.... its been quite a while since I have posted here but I gotta question so I thought I would come to the infinite wisdom of you forum "Gurus". Last year when we purchased our 831BHSS, my tv was a Silverado 2500 4x4. I still have the truck but use it very little for anything because the high mileage is showing with engine ticking and other noises. We recently traded our Jeep Wrangler for an '05 Chevy Tahoe. The Tahoe is equipped with a tow package but from numbers I can find, is rated a little lower than what our trailer would weigh. I have been tempted to give it a try on close-to-home trips to see how well it does. It would be great if this vehicle could handle the load well enough for our beach trips too. In the past we have had to take multiple vehicles on these trips in order to have seating room and packing room for our crowd. If the Tahoe can handle the load, it would save a lot of hassle by being able to carry everything in one vehicle.
Question is.... would I be a fool to try it? should I just stick to towing with the Silverado? What do you guys think?

easy answer
whats the rv's GVWR? (gross veh. weight rating)
whats your rv's weight all ready to go?
what is the tahoes GCVWR ( gross combined vehicle weight rating)
tahoes rear axle weight rating, this is important because if your tongue weight plus your empty rear axle weight exceed your trucks axle rating then you would be overweight.


then go to chevies website and look up specs for your model tahoe and compare your weights to what is listed.

for example
my truck is a 26000 lb GCVWR
13000 gvwr
truck weighs 8100-8700 lbs fuel and me
that leaves 17900-17300 left over for trailer weight,

[rockwood06]

The tow capacity of the TV must include cargo and passengers, If there are 4 people in the TV and they weigh 100 lbs each, this total number must be subtracted from the max tow weight of the TV rating from the manufacture. This will change your capacity for towing an RV. the other thing that will help with the load, is the type of hitch you are using. As far as mileage go's It a matter of faith. I have a 97 GMC Suburban 2500 with 125,000 I take it every were, I have faith. My last truck I just retired had 298,000 miles on it, and that's only because of electrical problems. This truck was a Chevy Astro van, I did not us it for towing but I did drive it to work ever day {160 miles round trip}.

[jmyers]

When we purchased our '02 Sandpiper 30FKSS we had a '99 Tahoe we planned to use as a TV. It has the 5.7 L 350 cid, which is enough engine, and a 3.42 axle ratio and short wheel base, which is not enough. The Sandpiper weighs 7K dry, and I'm confident I would have burned up the tranny if I would have tried to use it as a TV. Like many others I studied up on these things before I bought the TT, but I must have missed a lesson somewhere along the line. I bought a 2000 Silverado 2500 4/4 with a 6.0 L gas engine and salvage title for a TV and now I'm much more confident and comfortable. My suggestion would be that if you like the 2500 you have, rebuild the engine or get a reman engine for it and use it for a TV. At the very least, get some true EXPERT advice as to whether the Tahoe can safely handle the job. If so, then go for it. White knuckles and a screaming DW don't make for a pleasant trip. Not to mention possible costly repair bills. Your Tahoe may do just fine, but we don't want you to find out the hard way if it doesn't.

[aintgotnun]

Originally Posted by jmyers

Your Tahoe may do just fine, but we don't want you to find out the hard way if it doesn't.

yep

[hunt4240dw]

According to Trailer Life tow rating guide, the 99 K2500 truck with 5.7 can tow 7500#. The 05 Tahoe can tow 7700#. By these numbers you should do fine. I would getting an ECM programmer for more horsepower and use an 'Equalizer' sway control hitch.

I have a 99 Tahoe with a custom tune ECM and 3.42. I am buying a new Flagstaff V-lite 30WRLS that has a dealership lot actual weight of 6220#. I actually pulled the trailer and it did fine.

We have camping buddy that pulls a Flagstaff 831FKSS with a 05 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited with the 5.7 Hemi. She does just fine pulling it and gets 9 MPG.

And finally, one of the forum members had a 99 Tahoe and pulled the 831 FKSS. He reported it did just fine.

David