Chev. 1500 HD ?

[PartyCrashers]

Anybody with knowledge of the 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 HD Crew Cab pick-up's. Want to know if this pick-up with a 6.0 engine and 3.73 rear can tow any Keystone 5th wheels or anything in the Montanna 5th wheel family?

[Bob Pasternak]

You MIGHT be able to pull a fair sized U-Haul trailer with it; Not many Montys safely, and safety is most important. I think the tow rating on a 1500 is about 7800 lbs and I know of no 5ers that light in Montana. I have one of the lightest and it is close to 11,000 road ready. 1/2 ton trucks come mostly with car tires and light (station wagon)type suspension. You can see what I have at the bottom of this post. It will pull most anything Keystone makes. Good luck on getting into the 5th wheel line, though.

[PartyCrashers]

Actually the Silverado 1500 HD is rated as a Light3/4 ton pickup. Specs. are 8200 lbs. with the GCWR being 14,000 (The 4.10 axle GCWR 16,000). Problem with towing a U-haul is no bathroom..LOL! We know the Montana's are a heavy trailer, but like their style. That is why we are wondering about other Keystone 5vr's. The hunt is on!
Thanks for your response.

[Dave e Victoria]

Try the cougar by keystone. We have been impressed. Our friends pull a cougar and a fair size fishing boat behind with a ford F250. It all depends on what you want.

[gitrdun]

I had a 1500Hd Chevy crew cab with 6.0 and 3.73 gear. I pulled a Springdale 280 fifth wheel. Fuel mileage was 7.0 pulling and 12 to 15 open road. The truck was okay on open road, but puling hills was another beast.. The engine had high revs but they say it was made for it. The weight of the fiver was 6760 dry weight. Personally, if affordable, and if you want to tow a lot, I would take the hit and buy a diesel or get a smaller trailer. I sure wouldn't want to tow the max with this combination, it makes the trip less enjoyable. Buy a diesel of your choice and a Monty of your choice, then you will have the ultimate rig. But thats' just my opion.

[richfaa]

I pulled with a 1500 HD Super cab, 1996, 5.7L 3:73 Diff.Pulled a Terry TT that weighed in at 7000 to 7500lbs depending on how much junk we had aboard. It was Ok on level to rolling ground but its tongue hung out on hills. Pulled that TT for 10 years with nary a complaint but I would not want to pull anything heaver with a 1/2 ton.Also had to have air bags over the rear axel or it slumped with a hitch weight of about 900lbs I would feel better with a 3/4 ton minimum.

[Montana Sky]

Partycrashers,
To answer your question, NO. The 1500HD will not tow any of the Montana fifth wheels safely. These coaches are just too far over the tow capacities of that truck. You will need to be into the 2500-3500 to handle the load.

[Garin1]

I pulled a Couger 2002 model 30 footer with a 2000 model F-150 Lariet for about two years with no problems.Dry wt of the Couger was 7700 with two slides.

[PartyCrashers]

Montana Sky..Thank you for your honest straight forward answer.
Garin1...hmmm Cougar by Keystone, dry weight 7700lb. gives me some thought. I guess that is one of the things we need to do is figure what the dry weight is.

[Bob Pasternak]

Partycrasher; Dry weight is relatively unimportant. What you really need to calculate is what it is going to weigh packed up ready to drag down the road. That, plus the weight of your TV full of fuel, traveling companion and any other incedentals you may need as you go. I think you'll find you're over your GCVWR real quick with a 1500. My truck weighs 7080 as described. My combined weight is 18110.

[Montana_2036]

I have a 03 GMG 1500HD, 6.0L, with 4.10. I tow a 315RLS TT and it handles fine on flat and hills, still within weight limits, but near the limit. When looking for a new unit I found no Monty in the size I was looking for that this truck could really would tow safely, so bought a TT. I agree with all that suggests you purchase a 2500/3500 for any 5er.

[sreigle]

Another side to your question is whether that truck could tow any of the Keystone fifthwheels. To that I'd say yes. To Montana or Mountaineer FW's I'd say no. I don't have weights on the other Keystone lines but see a number of Cougars towed by the heavy half ton trucks. I always heard a properly equipped heavy half could handle up to 27 feet of fifthwheel if no slides. That's just a guideline. You'd want to check ratings and actual weights. In the absence of actual weights, I'd add 1500 lbs to the published dry weight if weekending/vacationing. I'd add 3000 to 3500 if fulltiming. These numbers are just what we experienced.

I towed a 25 1/2 foot (nominal) Jayco Eagle fifthwheel with fibreglass (heavier) exterior, no slides, actual weight about 6,600 lbs, with a 1995 Ford F150 5.8L V8 gasser with 3.55 rear gears. Towed it from Kansas to Virginia and back including US 50 across West Virginia as well as I64(?) across western Maryland and I64 across West Virginia. No problem whatsoever. So I think you could could find several Keystone fifthwheels you could handle with that truck.

[PartyCrashers]

Thank You to all for your inputs, it has been very helpful. Don't worry we won't get on the road with a too heavy load. We value our lives and others too much to be too crazy and tow something that wasn't proper. I have been looking at Cougars and other brands of light 5th wheels. Problem is I love my truck and it tows our 30ft travel trailer that we have beautifully. Floor plan in the trailer has lots of room. Would like to move into a 5th wheel, but not at the expense of changing vehicles. Since we are just weekenders, guess we better stay as we are. But when it comes time to fulltime...lookout and move over! Will be keeping our eyes and ears open and to this web site, We are learning a lot. Hope you guys don't mind if another brand of trailer show's up at some of the rallies and events?...that's why we are the Party Crashers