04 Chev 1500 as a tow vehicle 8000lb camper

[zed1k]

Up until this year we have had our camper setup on a seasonal site (Outback 312BH), and do to other commitments we decided to pull out of the seasonal site so we could travel with the kids sports. I spent many hours on camper forums to see if we need to trade our rig for a 2500 or if you could get by with our truck. almost every forum I read said it is a bad idea and way too much camper for our truck, and would be a very unpleasant experience. We were ready to trade for an older 2500, but decided not to. This past weekend was our 2nd trip out and we were very impressed with how well our truck did. we had no problem at all with the hills, maintained a decent speed on the hardest hills, and very little swaying. The Z71 in this year has larger disk brakes front and back than the normal 1500 so braking was no problem at all either. I really dont find towing this camper any worse than our old coachman 230bh (4500lbs). I must say that so far we really like this combination TV and camper. Thought I would share in case anyone else is in the same situation

Truck:
2004 Chev Silverado 1500 Z71 Crew cab
5.3 auto, 3.73 gears
285/75/17 10 ply tires
extra leaf, CIA and throtle body spacer

Camper:
2014 Keystone Outback 312bH
36 feet from hitch back
aprox 8000lbs loaded

[TomG2]

Grit dog wrote:
......snip......
I'd suggest quitting even responding to the blathering going on here.
Have fun this summer!

The OP knew that he was going to get a few pages of "blathering" when he posted his intentions.

I have chased an overloaded pickup from shoulder to shoulder because that was all that was available at the time and the backhoe bucket had to get to the job. The "blathering" is simply opinions about what makes a safe, efficient, reliable combination. I have towed with Silverado 1500's and won't tow over about 6,000 pounds with one again. Of course, I add "comfort" to the factors listed above. Blather done.

[Grit_dog]

zed1k wrote:

AppFire wrote:
Dangerous, just plain dangerous.....

Please explain, my truck maintains highway speed with low rpm, i have an upgraded suspension, upgraded brakes, and the trailer has absolutely no sway. We all cant afford 3500 diesels, but my trailer tows great with what i have. Might be different if i planed a trip across the country

Z1k, I believe you. And even if I didn't, I tow that kind of weight all the time with 1/2 tons. Been doing it since 1988, lol.
You're on the right track, you seem to understand the strengths and limitations of your truck and when you first posted this, I was waiting for all the "experts" who are afraid of their own shadow to jump up and tell you what you did just couldn't be possible.
If your truck is in good condition and well maintained, it should do what you're asking of it no problem.
Is it the best, ultimate tow rig, nope.
Will it pull your trailer on local trips safely and competently? Yup
I'd suggest quitting even responding to the blathering going on here.
Have fun this summer!

[trailer_newbe]

It’s being posted because they already know.

[jesseannie]

I think that if I had a set-up I was happy with and enjoyed using, I wouldn't post it here just to get 6 pages of telling me I was crazy.
Jesseannie

[JIMMY034]

Huntindog wrote:
I will add one more thought.

Tow often enough, and everyone will have "that day". When something goes wrong,,, An idiot driver, a blowout at a bad time, your own screwup... etc. It will happen. At that time, you will need to to the best you can with what you have.

There have been some times that I was VERY glad to have what many here would consider "too much truck".

There's actually no such thing as too much truck, but definitely such a thing as not enough.

[FishOnOne]

myredracer wrote:

JIMNLIN wrote:

Huntindog wrote:
I will add one more thought.

Tow often enough, and everyone will have "that day". When something goes wrong,,, An idiot driver, a blowout at a bad time, your own screwup... etc. It will happen. At that time, you will need to to the best you can with what you have.

There have been some times that I was VERY glad to have what many here would consider "too much truck".

Hell any of those scenarios could and did happen to me with a 3500 DRW pulling a 7k bumper pull trailer(idiot driver).

That "something" just happened to me when our engine exploded couple weeks ago. Last thing I'd ever expect while towing a TT. No power brakes or steering and just barely made it around a corner and onto a shoulder that appeared out of nowhere just when I needed it. Was just in the process of slowing down into a town after several hours of 65 mph driving too. Scared the p**p out of all 4 us in the truck and could have been a disaster. Can't imagine if we were towing too much trailer for the truck.

Expect the unexpected...

I seen a flat bed F550 pulling a large gooseneck trailer on the side of I10 last week with both rear passenger tires flat.

[myredracer]

JIMNLIN wrote:

Huntindog wrote:
I will add one more thought.

Tow often enough, and everyone will have "that day". When something goes wrong,,, An idiot driver, a blowout at a bad time, your own screwup... etc. It will happen. At that time, you will need to to the best you can with what you have.

There have been some times that I was VERY glad to have what many here would consider "too much truck".

Hell any of those scenarios could and did happen to me with a 3500 DRW pulling a 7k bumper pull trailer(idiot driver).

That "something" just happened to me when our engine exploded couple weeks ago. Last thing I'd ever expect while towing a TT. No power brakes or steering and just barely made it around a corner and onto a shoulder that appeared out of nowhere just when I needed it. Was just in the process of slowing down into a town after several hours of 65 mph driving too. Scared the p**p out of all 4 us in the truck and could have been a disaster. Can't imagine if we were towing too much trailer for the truck.

Expect the unexpected...

[JIMNLIN]

Huntindog wrote:
I will add one more thought.

Tow often enough, and everyone will have "that day". When something goes wrong,,, An idiot driver, a blowout at a bad time, your own screwup... etc. It will happen. At that time, you will need to to the best you can with what you have.

There have been some times that I was VERY glad to have what many here would consider "too much truck".

Hell any of those scenarios could and did happen to me with a 3500 DRW pulling a 7k bumper pull trailer(idiot driver).

[Huntindog]

I will add one more thought.

Tow often enough, and everyone will have "that day". When something goes wrong,,, An idiot driver, a blowout at a bad time, your own screwup... etc. It will happen. At that time, you will need to to the best you can with what you have.

There have been some times that I was VERY glad to have what many here would consider "too much truck".

[JIMMY034]

trailer_newbe wrote:
Going from a Tundra to my current truck and experiencing similar tow weights, I’ll say that is a LOT of trailer, especially for an older 1/2 ton which lacks the towing capacity of the newer 1/2 ton trucks. The Nissan HD with the 5.0 CTD is one 1/2 that would tow that trailer fine. Unfortunately it cost as much as my RAM, so maybe not so good.

Hell man, I didn't like towing 9,000 lbs with my 2500HD 6.0.

[JIMMY034]

I've read everyone's comments and I agree that you're towing a little too much with the truck you have. It'll do it though, but first and foremost you need to ensure you are within all your maximum weight specifications! If you're over, I would advise against towing that down the street until you upgrade the truck. It's not just unsafe to be overweight, it's against the law. If everything IS within max specs, read on.

I was once like you, (not a bad thing, just didn't know better). I had a minivan towing a 21' trailer. It was an ultra-light Rockwood, and I was actually within my limits, though near the max. But it towed it so well. It was like magic. My '97 Town & Country was a towing beast! All the tranny problems were simply because it was a Chrysler product, everyone knows this.;)

But then something happened. I got tired of the problems and traded for an '01 Chevy 1500 Z71 truck. Let me tell you something...there's nothing in the world like towing something that feels like it's not even there. At that point I realized how BADLY my minivan actually towed that trailer! Several years later we upgraded to a small 5th wheel. Another ultra-light. Perfect match. Then came a new truck, an '05 2500HD 6.0 gas, because we wanted a bigger 5th wheel. And we got it, bigger and heavier.

Our new 5th wheel weighed (loaded) 9,000 pounds, about what you're towing. I had a 6 liter engine, 4.10 gears, and HD transmission. I can honestly say I did not feel I had enough power! I certainly would never have even tried towing this trailer with a 1500 knowing how my 2500 towed it, and this trailer was listed as 'half-ton towable', though kudos to my dealer who was honest and advised against towing with a half-ton. Stopping was fine, no sag, everything was all heavy duty, but I just did not like the towing characteristics and how much I had to put my foot in it to get it to pull a 3% grade. I recently got a new truck, same camper ('04 but I'm keeping it, it's paid for), and this time I got the Duramax diesel. I'm finally really happy with how my truck tows!

The moral of my story is, anything can pull anything, but the question is, how long, how safely, how easily, how stress-free? It's not just about getting it moving, but also stability, stopping distance, weight on your axles and suspension etc. Someone suggested renting a 2500 and towing your trailer around for a day. I really like that idea, and being a travel trailer you have that option as most will already have the receiver hitch (unlike anyone wanting to 'test tow' their 5th wheel...good luck finding a rental set up for that). Once you do that, you'll see and FEEL the difference for yourself, and you can make a much more informed decision based on your own first hand experience.

It's great you asked your questions here, you got a lot of good info and advice. Take all that and you'll figure out what you really need. I know it's not always possible to just go buy a new truck just like that, but at least you'd know what to look for when you're in the position to do so, and to just take it easy in the meantime. Let us know what you end up doing. Good luck and enjoy the summer.

[zed1k]

Huntindog wrote:

zed1k wrote:
Is that with your current truck?

Nope.
That was with my first TT and TV. I left 1/2 tons after that, at least for towing duty.

I still have that TV though. I rebuilt the diffs, and it is a daily driver. No more towing for it.... I will add, that there were tranny problems with it as well back when it towed.

Ok good to know, I think I have a small axle seal leak so I will be checking it out very soon, sucks that I just put $100.00 worth of gear oil in it, lol

[RandACampin]

AppFire wrote:
Dangerous, just plain dangerous.....

BS, just plain BS!

[Huntindog]

zed1k wrote:
Is that with your current truck?

Nope.
That was with my first TT and TV. I left 1/2 tons after that, at least for towing duty.

I still have that TV though. I rebuilt the diffs, and it is a daily driver. No more towing for it.... I will add, that there were tranny problems with it as well back when it towed.