Do you exceed Your towing limit ?

[shouldofbeenhereyesterday]

I have an 08 chevy 1/2 ton crew cab that is rated for 6000# towing , my new travel trailer is around 7500# ! What do y'all think about me towing it on short trips around 100 miles or so ? :texasflag

[Tombo]

If 7500#s is empty, add about 1000-1500 more for stuff. If you have an accident, the other persons lawyer will have a field day with you. Really shorten the lifespan of your truck to.
Long story short, I would not do it.

[GhostRider]

I think it's a very bad idea. Those ratings are there for a reason, the different components are designed to only handle so much stress. I know that there are thousands of people who do it, the old "My truck will tow it easy" In my opinion that's only a piece of the equation. How will your suspension handle swaying, how will your brakes handle it in different situations.
I used to drive 150k miles a yr in an 18 wheeler. Saw all sorts of boat & RV accidents and always wondered if they were pushing the equipment too hard.

One thing I would wonder is should you be in an accident while exceeding the limits of the tow vehicle, would your insurance company pay out ?
Don't know the answer, just wondering out loud on the web.

[shouldofbeenhereyesterday]

yep i was kinda thinking the same thing thanks for the input i will get my brother to tow it untill i get a bigger truck.

[bwguardian]

Go get an extra leaf put in the rear spring pack and a better reciever hitch setup...done it on a few F-150's and it makes a huge difference. Cheaper than buying another truck and as long as the power plant is a V-8 and there is a descent tranny behind that...you should be fine!

[onyourlimit]

You might want to double check your specs. All the 2008 half-tons have standard towing is between 5500 to 6500 Max towing is 8500 to 10200. For short distances you may be fine and will just need some added equipment. Brake controller, anti-sway, maybe a extra leaf.

[Pocketfisherman]

Before you exceed the trailer weight rating, you'll probably exceed your Gross Combined Vehicle Weight Rating (GCWR). That's the one people always forget about and is the weight of the vehicle, trailer, and all the weight of gear and occupants inside the truck too. When you tow a trailer at your max rated trailer weight, you cannot then fill up the truck with all occupants and not exceed the GCWR on most vehicles.

[Arlon]

No I don't..

If you are truly exceeding the towing capacity of your truck, look at matching a factory tow package that meets your capacity needs. It will just make for a more pleasant towing experience. Gears, trans coolers, trans guages, etc...

I'm sure there are factory 1/2 ton packages that will meet those needs, you might just need to do a little upgrading to get there.

Might also consider dragging the trailer across some public scales when it's loaded for a trip to find out exactly what you are towing. Factory posted weights are known for being terribly inaccurate.

[SaltH2oAssassin]

Coming from a Toyota guy, trade your Chevy in and get a Tundra. 10,000 lbs towing capacity.:tongue:

[HydraSports]

I vote don't exceed the limits for many of the reasons stated above, but mostly when you need the vehicle to handle the load the most, that is when you get in a bad situation, the capacities make the most difference. The sway control and stopping being the most important.

[LandPirate]

I went through the same thing you're experiencing now. I had a Dodge 1/2 ton with a Hemi when I bought a travel trailer that I thought would be within the truck's towing limit.

Problem is payload. Even Salt's mighty Toyota with 10,000 lbs of trailer towing capacity will fall short on payload with most of today's travel trailers and especially 5th wheels.

My trailer has a 1,000 lb. tongue weight and 8,000 lb gross. The 8,000 lbs is within my trailer weight. However, add the tongue weight (even with a weight distribution hitch), fuel, passengers, cargo, etc to the truck and I was over it's payload cap.

I weighed mine and found that I was roughly 500 lbs over on the rear axle. This condition caused a light front end which made long drives tiring.

I added air bags and that helped stabilize everything but doesn't change the fact that I was still overweight. I would consider air bags over added leaf springs because you can maintain your ride comfort when not towing.

The other weak link on 1/2 tons is that they come with "P" rated tires that have soft sidewalls. The permit flex and movement which translates into sway on the trailer. You end up with the tail wagging the dog, so to speak.

Change out those tires for a good "LT" rated tire with at least a "D" Load Range.

Finally, Maintain your truck and trailer brakes.

You should be ok to tow inside 200 miles as long as you don't try to run 70 or 75 mph.

I eventually traded for a GMC 2500 crew cab 4x4. Towing is much easier now and no more white knuckle moments.

[rstrick1978]

i am with LP. tweak the truck a lil. tranny cooler, hitch, trailer brakes, etc. you can tow it safely, i have done it as well. just dont try to fly with the diesel trucks.

[Supergas]

I have a 2007 GMC CC 4WD, VortecMax 6.0L that is tow rated to 10,500 lbs. but when I tow my boat or anything heavy I rely on my Old Workhorse:

1998 Chevy 2500, 4WD, 454 with E Load Range Tires, Gibson Exhaust, K&N Air System, Bosch Matched Injectors and on and on....

I keep this old dog around just to do this:

Tow Capacity: 12,500 lbs.,... :biggrin::biggrin:

12 MPG unloaded with 6 guys going to Venice, LA or towing whatever @ 10 MPG..

Go out & find one of these older big block GM trucks & use it for hauling your STUFF....

They are not real cheap, but cheaper than buying a new truck or buying a diesel....


Supergas

[Dave aka Regulator]

i am with LP. tweak the truck a lil. tranny cooler, hitch, trailer brakes, etc. you can tow it safely, i have done it as well. just dont try to fly with the diesel trucks.


DITO!!!!

Remember when buying a truck always ask at what loaded capacity with a trailer will void your warenty. The GVW Rating is a sugested rating not an actual rating. Never try to tow anything biger than your tow vehicle without sufficiant experiance though. Who cares if you break your truck or trailer. Its your life and all the people around you that is at risk.

On a dodge 3500 you can actually gross up to 17,500 or 18,000 GVW after that all warenty's are thrown out the window. My last hotshot truck was registard with a 17,500 GVW. I vever got an overloaded ticket after that.