2021 Suburban. How Much Trailer?
I just ordered a 2021 Z71 Suburban with the Max towing package. I don’t have it yet, so I don’t have the details provided on the yellow sticker inside the door. The manufacturer indicates 8,100 lbs as...
Forum Discussion
Welcome to the forum, and congrats on the new Burb! As was noted, the big issue is not what you can tow, it's what you can haul. Most travel trailers (TTs) put about 13% of their total weight on the hitch. So a 5000 lb (loaded, not "dry") trailer will add 5000 * 0.13 = 650 lbs. Add another 100 lbs for the weight distributing (WD) hitch and 450 lbs (your number) for passengers and you are at 1200 lbs before luggage or anything else in the Burb.
Where most folks get jammed up is going by the "tow rating" of the vehicle. Most tow ratings are based on only a single 150-lb driver in the vehicle, and every pound you add to the vehicle reduces your max tow rating.
So the better way to work the numbers is to back into your max trailer weight. As was stated, you'll need the "max capacity" of the vehicle from the yellow sticker on the door jamb. This number is unique to the model, weight of options, etc., so won't automatically be the same for all Suburbans.
As an example, let's say the max capacity of the Suburban is 1500 lbs. Subtract 450 for passengers, 300 for cargo, and 100 for WD hitch and that leaves 650 lbs of capacity available for trailer hitch weight. So 650 / 0.13 = 5000 approx max trailer wight. Since this is the fully loaded weight, the trailer dry weight should be about 1000 lbs less, around 4000 lbs.
In past years the Suburban had a solid rear axle like the pickup trucks, 2021 is the first year for Independent Rear Suspension (IRS) which is great for handling, ride quality and performance, but generally not as sturdy as a solid axle. Although my heavy duty 2500 Suburban had IFS in place of a solid front axle and that proved to be very durable.
Be safe, get the numbers and do that math!
Where most folks get jammed up is going by the "tow rating" of the vehicle. Most tow ratings are based on only a single 150-lb driver in the vehicle, and every pound you add to the vehicle reduces your max tow rating.
So the better way to work the numbers is to back into your max trailer weight. As was stated, you'll need the "max capacity" of the vehicle from the yellow sticker on the door jamb. This number is unique to the model, weight of options, etc., so won't automatically be the same for all Suburbans.
As an example, let's say the max capacity of the Suburban is 1500 lbs. Subtract 450 for passengers, 300 for cargo, and 100 for WD hitch and that leaves 650 lbs of capacity available for trailer hitch weight. So 650 / 0.13 = 5000 approx max trailer wight. Since this is the fully loaded weight, the trailer dry weight should be about 1000 lbs less, around 4000 lbs.
In past years the Suburban had a solid rear axle like the pickup trucks, 2021 is the first year for Independent Rear Suspension (IRS) which is great for handling, ride quality and performance, but generally not as sturdy as a solid axle. Although my heavy duty 2500 Suburban had IFS in place of a solid front axle and that proved to be very durable.
Be safe, get the numbers and do that math!
