Help with TV concerns - new to towing trailer
Hello All, I'm new to towing a trailer and this is my first post. We have a 1999 GMC Sierra 5.3l with tow capacity given at 8200lbs. I checked as many blogs as I could, asked GMC dealership and towi...
Forum Discussion
I had a 2002 Silverado 1500 with the 5.3, and tow package with 3:73 gears and towed about the same weight as yours. I had 2 issues that I dealt with. The first was sway, which I found that the OEM tires only required 32 lbs of pressure which allowed a lot of squirming that contributed to the sway. I added air pressure and made sure my hitch height was set where the trailer was level, front to back while hitched, and that helped a lot. The second problem was the rear of the truck would porpous up and down. I replaced the rear shocks with a firmer shock and tried several different adjustment with the chains on the weight distribution bars. It was plenty good after I got used to it and had a number of trips behind me. Eventually I ran across a deal on a Silverado 2500 with 6.0 and it was even better for stability. So, it can definately be done with a half ton truck it's even better with a 2500. That 5.3 is a stout motor, that was not my issue accept on long enclines.
