My experience with a ½ ton fifth wheel, on a drive to Yellowstone, from New Jersey. The 2011 Silverado was set up with the 5.3 and 3.73 gears, along with the towing package. It is a standard bed and rated for a 9600 pound trailer. Trailer was a new 2011 Wildcat.
Over the Cat scales at Flying J exit 2 in Jersey with a full freshwater tank, and loaded for a long camping trip:
Truck only:
Front 3320
Rear 2360
Gross 5680
Truck & Trailer:
Front 3180
Rear 3740
Trailer 8000
Gross 14920
Calculated:
Truck 6920
Pin 1240
Trailer 9240
So, with the truck rated at 7000, and the combined at 15000 and the trailer at 9600, I ain’t no bricks shy of a full load. This was a little high to me, so for our first journey we decided to not go to Alaska. So we dropped a second spare tire for the truck and the fresh water. Thus we dropped 400 to 450 pounds of gross weight all out of the trailer. The cost to weigh was $10.50, cheap to know as opposed to guessing.
So over the mountains we went. It pulls fine on the flat lands along the Atlantic coast. At 65 mph the transmission saw 180-190. Even with the fairly low pin weight it handled well, no swaying, just a well behaved load. Crossing the eastern continental divide from the town of Seneca Rocks, WV I had my first worry moment. Outside temp was about 80 at the bottom of the mountain. The truck pulled this steep mountain at about 30 to 40 mph, mostly in 2nd gear, with an occasional drop to 1st in the tight turns. The coolant peaked at about 240 or so, and then the temperature dropped to 220. I guess the electric fan has two speeds. Transmission fluid also hit 250 for just a moment, before dropping into the 230 to 240 range. The truck did not give a warning light. Anyone know the temperature to throw a warning and drop into the limp mode?
The tow/haul mode works sweetly going down the mountains, only an occasional use of brakes was necessary. The rest of the mountains pulled with no real drama. Topped most of them in 3rd at 40 to 50 mph. Got about 8.4 mpg on this leg from Jersey to Elkins WV.
Continuing on across the plains all was fine until the long constant pull against a strong headwind in South Dakota. With an outside temp of 105 the truck began to heat up on any extended grade. Four times the temp of the coolant climbed to 240 or so, and the transmission fluid also climbed to 221. Each time this happened, I shut down the A/C for 15 minutes and cooled everything down. The truck spent most of its time in 3rd gear under these conditions, at about 55 to 60 mph. The big headwind (maybe 40 mph) killed my mileage down to 8 even. A bigger truck would be needed to keep up with traffic. The strong headwind limited me to 4th and about 65mph on the downgrades. It would not stay in 5th, unless dropping into a river valley.
Easier pulling from Rapid City, SD to Gardiner, MT with no real headwinds. With temps in the mid 90’s the tranny held 190 to 205. Got about 9.2 mpg. Truck made it West, but I will be shopping for ¾ ton in either gas or diesel for more performance in the mountains.
On the trip East, I normally had a tailwind and cooler temperatures. Across North Dakota and through the Michigan UP, and on down to WV, mileage was in the middle nines with one whole day at 10.1. Plenty of truck for this driving.
After this trip I upgraded to a 2012 F250 with the 6.7 diesel. In 15,000 miles of towing in 13 and 14 no drama at all. The bigger brakes only were needed after the loss of trailer braking between Durango and Silverton Colorado. Ford replaced the trailer brake controller under warranty in Steamboat Springs. I like the F250 with a 10k door sticker since it gives me the towing limits I need (I like to de-rate the manufactures about 10%) and it allows me to use the left lanes and some parkways in the Northeast without the camper.
