blt2ski wrote:
edatlanta wrote:
I think we have two questions here. One involves the tow "rating" of the truck and the other is the "capacity" of some of it's "components". While components can be changed that are stronger, etc. than original, it is my understanding that the tow "rating" of a particular truck can not be changed. It is what was the day it left the factory and no changing of parts will change that original rating.
True, a vehicle stays true to its warranty rating no matter what you do the day after it leaves a dealers lot. BUT, one can still improve its ability by changing out parts. The dealer/manufacture does not have to honor that part with a warranty. OR if it is shown that the improvement broke or hurt another part doing what it is not expected to do.
BUT, it is no illegal to change the numbers depending upon the aftermarket fitting agent does. How it cam off the assembly line. In the OP's case, a burb is a finished product. If it were a cab and chassis rig, then one can add drop axels, tag axels, remove and replace springs tires etc to improve the gvwr rating. It is then up to the aftermarket body builder to certify the gvwr etc of the vehicle. Many times the C&C manufacture will not affix the gvwr sticker to the cab. So it sits in the owners owners manual as it does for my Navistar dumptruck. If pulled over, there is not gvw sticker on the drivers door!
There are ways around things. one has to know how to work around things. Some cases there is not.
Marty
I'm not sure if there is a way to "officially" change the tow rating of the truck or not. As I said earlier: the whole tow rating, axle weights, CDL or no CDL line of discussion seems to just be minefield topic with way too many *opinions* that make it hard to separate truth from fiction. I've read thru some of member Wadcutters comments about doing actual enforcement and see a whole bunch of other info and I'm still not clear what is what.
Be that as it may, my approach to this I think is simple: If GM thinks that a certain set of component upgrades on the 2500HD pickup is good enough to raise the tow rating from 9600 to 13k - then doing those same upgrades to a 2500 Series SUV should give a similar boost in capabilities. If the axle is smaller in the SUV - I'll upgrade the axle. If it's got any other components that are different, I'd do those too. If it's good enough for GM, then that is the best place to start IMHO.
The problem is: I can't seem to find out what other changes there *may* be.
I've considered myself a 'hot rodder' since I was a kid. Read thru magazines like Car Craft or Hot Rod and they will go into DETAIL on how you can take a run of the mill Mustang or Camaro or whatever - and add factory components to make it into the performance version of that same car. If there are major differences - they will let you know (sometimes there are very major changes, like different frames, different body panels, etc.)
I was hoping to figure this out in a similar fashion.
