Truck upgrade?

I believe your engine is 2.7L turbo with 310hp and 348lb-ft of torque. That should be plenty to stay above 50mph. What was the typical engine speed on those hills?

Where did you get the 5000lb number from? If it's the empty weight, you could easily be up around 7000-7500lb when towing. If you are just guessing, run over the local CAT scale and find out what the real weights are.

When you say you "had to" slow down, did you ease up on the gas pedal or did the truck just slow down even though you were pouring on the coals? The 2.7L is good for 325HP but at 5000RPM so if you back off to keep the RPM down, you sacrificed HP.

5000RPM is within the engines operating limits, so with a new truck (assuming you broke it in already), there shouldn't be harm in running at 4000-5000RPM for 10-15min to get up a hill. You will be burning a lot of gas to keep 65-70mph up a steep grade.

PS: A 3/4 ton isn't typically much different in cost unless you push for the big diesel but

You guys are quick! You’re correct, the truck is 2.7L, not 2.4. The TT is 4300 empty, so loaded (we’re not running with a tank of water or anything crazy) I’m guessing 5-5.5k. 2 Bikes in the bed of the truck. I know stuff adds up and I haven’t been through the scales but there’s no way it’s over 5500. On flat ground the engine runs around 2400rpm @68mph. I don’t go faster than that. On uphills it’ll shift once to about 3500rpm which if it’s slight it’ll maintain speed. Any more than a slight grade and it’ll start losing speed and then shift again and we’ll be running around 4500-5000rpm which gets me a take-your-foot-off-the-gas-before-the-engine-blows look from my wife. Most of the hills we encountered were no more than a few miles long max so it definitely didn’t take anywhere near 10-15 min.

If you are looking for a excuse to buy another truck, I will give you something besides the extra minute it takes to go up a hill. I'm surprised the wind didn't heat you up, but must be good on cooling.
I would question that 9300 tow capacity with the small engine, and the fancy interior you likely have.

I agree 100%. We had no experience towing a TT prior to this setup so we didn’t really know what to expect. Temps stayed right in the middle the entire trip despite spending 2 days driving across SD with temperatures above 100 so I guess Chevy did a decent job with the cooling setup on this engine. With that said, there’s no way I’d go anywhere near 9300lbs. It would take 15 miles to reach a cruising speed :)

If we upgraded (not that I want to take there hit on trading a brand new truck) what differences would I expect with the same trailer with the v8 1/2 ton and/or the 3/4 ton in the same situation?

So I just made the I-80 trip across Iowa with a 6.0 V8 gas engine in my Express. My trailer is 9500lbs. On some of the larger hills I needed 3700 rpm to maintain 60 mph. You would need to see where the V8 makes it power. Towing a trailer uphill at 65-70 mph takes alot of power.

GM ordering website shows the 1500 GM with the tiny 2.7 4 cyl turbo engine has a 9000-9600 lb tow ratings. Not the best choice for towing duties.

The 1500 5.3 or the 6.2 engine both with the NHT tow package or a 2500 with a gas engine would make a whole lot better tow vehicle. Your choice there.

The biggest advantage with a 2500 6.0 used truck or 6.6 new gas truck will be load carrying capacity over the 1500 6.2 gas NHT package with those big 420 hp and 460 lbs torque numbers.

I use the wifes '16 1500 4wd 6 speed tranny 5.3 355 hp/383 torque pulling a 10k car hauler with a 7800 lb 11' 4" tall blue tractor with a cab with around 8840-9260 lbs on the trailers axles (depending on implements on the tractor). I use the trannies manual mode in the hills that way I can keep the engine rpm where it needs to be (eliminates most TC locking/unlocking and number of shifts).
Now the 1500 won't perform like my Dodge/Cummins HO pulling the same trailer but its always surprise me how well the 1500 5.3 pulls the 10k combo in the hills.

hikingst1ck wrote:
You guys are quick! You’re correct, the truck is 2.7L, not 2.4. The TT is 4300 empty, so loaded (we’re not running with a tank of water or anything crazy) I’m guessing 5-5.5k. 2 Bikes in the bed of the truck. I know stuff adds up and I haven’t been through the scales but there’s no way it’s over 5500. On flat ground the engine runs around 2400rpm @68mph. I don’t go faster than that. On uphills it’ll shift once to about 3500rpm which if it’s slight it’ll maintain speed. Any more than a slight grade and it’ll start losing speed and then shift again and we’ll be running around 4500-5000rpm which gets me a take-your-foot-off-the-gas-before-the-engine-blows look from my wife. Most of the hills we encountered were no more than a few miles long max so it definitely didn’t take anywhere near 10-15 min.

You are traveling really light if the trailer is anywhere close to 5000lb. I'm betting you are closer to 6000lb. Of course, that is certainly within the trucks drivetrain ratings.

It's a change in mindset. The old days of 5000rpm being redline are long gone. The engine isn't going to blow because you are running 4000-5000rpm for a few minutes. It's not an ideal towing machine but it's also capable of doing what you ask.

A small V8 is going to crank up the RPM in the same conditions. Maybe not quite as high but you will notice it. The downside is:
- You will lose MPG when not towing.
- At high altitude, you may be worse off. The V8 at 8000ft will be down 25-30% on power. The turbo compensates for thinning air by force feeding the engine, so power loss is negligible.

@valhalla You have me curious about weights. Next time we're headed out we'll make some time to take it to the scale just so we know exactly what we're pulling.

I did almost always immediately back off after that 2nd shift it made that pushed it to the 4500-5000rpm range. I can just let it go as long as it's still within the range? It just sounds so wound up! It could be that with my normal driving habits my ears just aren't used to hearing the engine in my vehicle operating at 5K rpm :) Slowing down is fine too, I'm not trying to set any records, just safely make it to the destination.

Anytime anyone says it can’t weigh much more than XXX lbs I kind of chuckle. I tell everyone to always add 1200-1500 lbs to the dry weight and this will get you very close without actually weighing. I know that section on I90 at the Missouri River. Although not huge it will tax the most non tow setup vehicle there is. A TV that is rated properly will pull that at 65mph without issue. So your 50mph really isn't all that bad. But for towing beyond IL I would want a truck with a V-8 and proper towing gears. Even if you got a V-8 1500 and you got the highest gears (numerically lower) you will be in the same position you are now.