Hi all, I have a 2013 GMC Sierra with a 5.3 litre engine and 3.73 ratio rear axle. It has about 76k miles. It has a max tow rating of 9500 lbs. I'm looking at buying a 2018 Siverado under 30k miles with a 5.3 litre engine but 4.34 ratio rear axle and a rated towing capacity of 300 lbs less at 9200 lbs. The 2018 has a few nice bells and whistles that I'd like to treat myself to. Question is will there be a noticeable difference in the newer trucks ability to tow? Will it seem like it is under powered in comparison? My trailer has a dry weight of 5625 lbs and GVWR of 6995 lbs . My current truck does bog down somewhat on the steeps and I really wouldn't be happy if there was a noticeable difference with the new truck pulling the big hills. Advice appreciated. Thanks for reading.

You want to look at the HP difference. I believe the 2018 has a handful of more HP. A few more gears will keep it in the torque band a little better also.The newer truck will pull marginally better than your old one IMHO. Not night and day; just marginally if I'm correct about the HP.

wtmtnhiker wrote:Hi all, I have a 2013 GMC Sierra with a 5.3 litre engine and 3.73 ratio rear axle. It has about 76k miles. It has a max tow rating of 9500 lbs. I'm looking at buying a 2018 Siverado under 30k miles with a 5.3 litre engine but 4.34 ratio rear axle and a rated towing capacity of 300 lbs less at 9200 lbs. The 2018 has a few nice bells and whistles that I'd like to treat myself to.Did the previous owner re-gear with a custom ratio? Do you know if they also performed other modifications? That would worry me buying something used that's been heavily modified.

4.34 gear ratio has to be a typo. What ratio does it really have? If it's numerically lower than a 3.73 then I would say yes, you will notice a difference towing. It will feel less powerful, not accelerate as well, and be harder to keep the speed under control going downhill. If it is numerically higher than 3.73 it will also be noticeable better in all the aforementioned areas.

“The newer truck will pull marginally better than your old one IMHO”I agree with Turtle. My 2020 Silverado is better than my 2015 Tahoe but not by leaps and bounds.

KD4UPL wrote:4.34 gear ratio has to be a typo. What ratio does it really have? If it's numerically lower than a 3.73 then I would say yes, you will notice a difference towing. It will feel less powerful, not accelerate as well, and be harder to keep the speed under control going downhill. If it is numerically higher than 3.73 it will also be noticeable better in all the aforementioned areas. Tight, sorry. 3:42

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KD4UPL
Explorer
May 30, 2020
4.34 gear ratio has to be a typo. What ratio does it really have?
If it's numerically lower than a 3.73 then I would say yes, you will notice a difference towing. It will feel less powerful, not accelerate as well, and be harder to keep the speed under control going downhill. If it is numerically higher than 3.73 it will also be noticeable better in all the aforementioned areas.
GordonThree
Explorer
May 30, 2020
wtmtnhiker wrote:
Hi all,
I have a 2013 GMC Sierra with a 5.3 litre engine and 3.73 ratio rear axle. It has about 76k miles. It has a max tow rating of 9500 lbs. I'm looking at buying a 2018 Siverado under 30k miles with a 5.3 litre engine but 4.34 ratio rear axle and a rated towing capacity of 300 lbs less at 9200 lbs. The 2018 has a few nice bells and whistles that I'd like to treat myself to.

Did the previous owner re-gear with a custom ratio? Do you know if they also performed other modifications? That would worry me buying something used that's been heavily modified.
Turtle_n_Peeps
Explorer
May 30, 2020
You want to look at the HP difference. I believe the 2018 has a handful of more HP. A few more gears will keep it in the torque band a little better also.

The newer truck will pull marginally better than your old one IMHO. Not night and day; just marginally if I'm correct about the HP.

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