Questions on towing with a lifted truck
First off, this is such a great site. I did a ton of reading and research and it totally Influenced me to go out and buy a brand new GMC 3500HD and a 35ft travel trailer. I've never owned or even towe...
Forum Discussion
Nothing inherently wrong with towing with a lifted truck...but I would go weigh the truck and trailer and get a good handle on your tongue weight first. Be sure that your rims/tires and drop hitch are all rated to carry the weight you need them to, a 35'er is not a small trailer, and you are probably at 1200 lbs on the tongue if not more.
Also choose your tires wisely...big off-road tires with large open tread blocks are great in the mud but more likely to squirm under a load. The last thing you want is to spend the $$ on the accessories then find out it tows like spit and the trailer is all over the road.
Considering the lift you are looking at keeps the original drivetrain geometry, the only ground clearance you're gonna get is from bigger tires. Typically on a GM you can get to 285's or even 305s on the rear with no mods. With the GM IFS you may only need to crank on the torsion bars to get enough extra lift in the front to clear the bigger tires, or as was suggested get a leveling kit.
Also be aware that taller tires will effectively decrease your axle ratio. Formula is the old tire diameter divided by the new tire diameter times the axle ratio. For example, I have 4.10's on my truck, and when I swapped out the factory 245's for 265's, the larger diameter tires reduced my axle ratio to an effective 3.92. I noticed it right away in that the trans wanted to downshift a little sooner on hills, and that's towing 8500 lbs. I wanted a little more ground clearance and traction off road, but didn't go to 285's because I didn't want to decrease highway towing performance that much. So the 265's were a good compromise for me. If I was hiway all the time I would have stayed with the OEM 245's. If I was offroad more of the time, I would have gone with 285's.
I would say this is probably the biggest issue towing with a lifted truck, and it may or may not be an issue for you depending on what engine/axle you have in the truck now and how heavy the trailer is.
Again, no issues in towing with a lifted truck, but lots of little data points to keep your eye on, which could add up to create a problem. Towing long and heavy is a different game from off-roading, so make sure you make the right compromises on equipment.
Also choose your tires wisely...big off-road tires with large open tread blocks are great in the mud but more likely to squirm under a load. The last thing you want is to spend the $$ on the accessories then find out it tows like spit and the trailer is all over the road.
Considering the lift you are looking at keeps the original drivetrain geometry, the only ground clearance you're gonna get is from bigger tires. Typically on a GM you can get to 285's or even 305s on the rear with no mods. With the GM IFS you may only need to crank on the torsion bars to get enough extra lift in the front to clear the bigger tires, or as was suggested get a leveling kit.
Also be aware that taller tires will effectively decrease your axle ratio. Formula is the old tire diameter divided by the new tire diameter times the axle ratio. For example, I have 4.10's on my truck, and when I swapped out the factory 245's for 265's, the larger diameter tires reduced my axle ratio to an effective 3.92. I noticed it right away in that the trans wanted to downshift a little sooner on hills, and that's towing 8500 lbs. I wanted a little more ground clearance and traction off road, but didn't go to 285's because I didn't want to decrease highway towing performance that much. So the 265's were a good compromise for me. If I was hiway all the time I would have stayed with the OEM 245's. If I was offroad more of the time, I would have gone with 285's.
I would say this is probably the biggest issue towing with a lifted truck, and it may or may not be an issue for you depending on what engine/axle you have in the truck now and how heavy the trailer is.
Again, no issues in towing with a lifted truck, but lots of little data points to keep your eye on, which could add up to create a problem. Towing long and heavy is a different game from off-roading, so make sure you make the right compromises on equipment.
