Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler Travel Trailer/Campers questions....help guys...

Realistically 3.90 or 4.10 are quite high and either ratio would work well, the 4.10 would give you slightly less fuel economy when not towing and the extra torque it would provide would be minimally noticeable, more of an issue when off roading and low speed high torque is required.

That was the reason for me choosing the 3.90 on my Silverado. I recall that the 4.10 had a 200-300 lb towing advantage over the 3.90 but I knew I was only towing around 3000 to 3500 lbs and mainly highway mileage to head up north fishing, so I opted for the 3.90. Most Z71 back in '01 seemed to be equipped with the 4.10's and I had a hard time finding the truck with all the options I wanted/didn't want, plus the 3.90.

From my experience...

An electric tongue winch is probably a standard item, if not I'd certainly recommend getting one. Hand crank leveling jacks will be fine, keep 'em lubricated, if there's an option for Kodiak brakes I'd ante up the extra cash and spring for them. I didn't opt for the Onan generator whenever we made the purchase, it will have one if we ever buy another and slide outs are good, very good! Our travel trailer was towed all over the country without any of those anti-sway, load leveling and whatever else contraptions the salesmen offer now days ... match the trailer/weight with the tow vehicle and keep the weight and balance in check and there shouldn't be any problems, we did have a simple single anti-sway bar that was used maybe a couple of times. Along those lines make sure the trailer/truck combo is perfectly level on a level surface, evenly distributed weight and matching the tow vehicle with the trailer is what it's all about.

Aerodynamics will be more of an issue with fuel mileage than weight will be with a boxy travel trailer, our boat weighs several thousand pounds more than our travel did but the truck got worse mileage towing the travel trailer ... if I were to buy again aerodynamics would be a big consideration for me.

Rick, I appreciate your advice. The salesmen are not the ones recommending the load balancing/sway systems, it is actually some people we know that have travel trailers and camp all over. Also, we have read many books as well as being on many forums. The feeling I get is these are a must, but again I'm no expert.

With a heavy trailer maybe Randy, but your only talking 6k pounds or less ... with the proper frame hitch and towing vehicle with the right weight distribution I'd not get it and see how it tows, if it doesn't tow like you want then you could always add it if you feel the need is there.

My 3/4 ton Ford pulled ours like it wasn't there, and that was with up to four or five dirt bikes and gear in the back of the trailer (it was a toy hauler) and I never had any issues with either sway or weight balance.

thanks man, ok my 2000 Silverado Z71 has a 3.73 axle (3.90 was not an option) and I didn't want 4.10 either. It has a tow/haul mode that changes the shifting intervals when pulling a heavy load. The sticker says the GVW of the truck is 6,400 lbs (truck + passangers + extras) and the Max tow rating is 7500lbs. I have the 5.3 Vortec which replaced the old 5.7 chevy engines. The 7,500 assumes vehicle weight plus driver and one passenger, any other passengers and equipment on the vehicle need to be subtracted from the Max Tow weight (kids, cooler, etc) most stuff will be in the trailer.

The specs on the trailer we are looking at are as follows:
Dry Weight of trailer (UVW) 5,347
Dry Hitch Weight 543
GVWR 7,543 (max weight of trailer when fully loaded.)

I think the tow bar under under my rear bumber is rated at 1,000 hitch weight, and 11,000 towing. Of course, I would need to get a different receiver/ball as my current one is a 2" ball for my smaller utility trailer I haul my mower on...

One other thing I should mention to see if this will cause issues. A few years ago I ordered a 3" "body lift" kit from JC Whitney for my truck. Keep in mind this is a body lift kit only, nothing else about the suspension was altered.

Not sure this will cause any problems, I don't think so according to the manufacturer's claims. I can tell a little that the side to side motion of the truck is slightly different since my center of gravity has been raised, but it is not bad.

I plan to have the shocks/suspension looked at, as well as the tranny, just to make sure I'm good to go in handling a trailer...

You will most likely need to get a new draw bar that is dropped by 3-4 inches or more depending on how high the trailer sits etc.. The trailer should sit level when hooked up to the truck(the antisway/load levelers help with this) and if the draw bar is too high .........well I think you can figure it out.

I disagree with Rick, the anti sway systems come in very handy when you have severe crosswinds etc. They also make it slightly less necessary to nail the front to back weight/loading ratio of the trailer. Are they necessary, no, but they sure make towing alot easier.

If the truck is stock other than the body lift I bet dollars to doughnuts Randy will need to *raise* the truck's hitch point to the trailer ... matter of fact, I'll almost guarantee it.

I'm sticking to my guns regarding the anti-sway bars, if the combination is correctly hitched and weight distributed he shouldn't have any issues, even in windy conditions. Any add on device for weight distribution or anti-sway is correcting for an issue that isn't right from jumpstreet, a band aid for a problem that should have been nipped at the bud.

Leeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeets get ready to RUUUUUUUUUUuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuumble...