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Old 12-16-2022, 10:02 AM   #1
seasure1
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Towing with a 2023 Chevy Silverado 2500 gas

I am sure this question has been asked and answered.
I am a newbie transitioning from a Class A to pulling a fifth
wheel.

I looked at the towing info and a fifth wheel shows 16500

I am picking up the RV next week and just purchased the
Chevy Monday night

Any insight would be appreciated
 
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Old 12-16-2022, 12:04 PM   #2
tjblocker
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Your biggest concern is not that the trailer weighs 16500, but rather how much of this weight will be carried by the pickup itself. I suggest you compare the payload of the truck to the sum of the

1) weight on the trailer's pin plus

2) weight of the hitch plus
3) weight of everything that's in the bed plus
4) weight of passengers plus

5) weight of fuel
6) any other weight carried by the truck


I'm betting that if you do this you will find that you're overloading the truck. This discussion can trigger wars here. Thus I won't make any suggestions except to say that you have to decide for yourself if overloading the truck is OK. That is a decision that you must make for yourself.



People pulling fivers will almost always hit the max payload before they hit the max weight that's towable. And if your truck is a gasser you might also be exceeding max tow weight. However, gassers do tend to have higher payloads and lower tow weights.



Please don't anyone flame me. seasure1, know that this discussion is much like arguing Chevy over Ford. It makes some crazy.

cheers
Tom



I used to pull a 14lb Arctic Fox using a Chevy 2500. The truck did the job, but it always annoyed me that I was overweight. Air bags helped (a lot) but they don't change the payload. Nothing can change the legal payload.



Choose truck tires for their max carrying weight. I use only Michelins.



One more thing, be careful to not overload the rear tires. Doing so is very dangerous.

Hope this helps
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Old 12-16-2022, 01:12 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by seasure1 View Post
I am sure this question has been asked and answered.
I am a newbie transitioning from a Class A to pulling a fifth
wheel.

I looked at the towing info and a fifth wheel shows 16500

I am picking up the RV next week and just purchased the
Chevy Monday night

Any insight would be appreciated
Welcome to the MOC

Your signature says 295RL. That's no where near 16500. 11700 empty. I tow mine with a 2500 no problem. If you're thinking about towing 16500 you'll need a 3500!
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Old 12-16-2022, 07:50 PM   #4
seasure1
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Thanks Tony

What I meant was that the truck's fifth wheel towing capacity was 16500.

Appreciate your response

So much on the internet everyone says you need a diesel dually to pull anything

We shifted gears in one afternoon going from a 40 ft Class A towing a Equinox

purchased the Montana at 4pm and the Silverado at 7pm the same day.


Happy Holidays!
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Old 12-16-2022, 09:10 PM   #5
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I pull a 331 HC with a 2500 for 3 years, never a problem, it was about 400-500 over gross but axle weights were fine. Handled just as good as my 19 3500.
Got to watch out for the weight police they try to get at you.
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Old 12-17-2022, 05:45 AM   #6
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Great truck. They just keep improving them every year.
Enjoy your new camper and truck.
Lynwood
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Old 12-17-2022, 08:53 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by seasure1 View Post
Thanks Tony

What I meant was that the truck's fifth wheel towing capacity was 16500.

Appreciate your response

So much on the internet everyone says you need a diesel dually to pull anything

We shifted gears in one afternoon going from a 40 ft Class A towing a Equinox

purchased the Montana at 4pm and the Silverado at 7pm the same day.


Happy Holidays!
That's quite the switchover in one day. I'm sure you know this but you'll have a laundry list of repair items for the dealer with a brand new trailer. It took me about 6 months to ring out major gremlins. There's still a few minor ones left. Just be prepared and hopefully you have a good dealership. Don't hesitate to ask questions!
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Old 12-17-2022, 08:59 AM   #8
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Welcome to the forum!!

Congratulations on your new fifth wheel trailer and truck!!
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Old 12-17-2022, 09:04 AM   #9
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Originally Posted by Camp CA View Post
Crew cab, long bed? My impression is 16500 lbs is a lot of weight to tow with a 2500 gas engine........former F250 diesel owner for over 17 years.
He was referring to the tow capacity of the truck. He has a 295RL. About 12000 pounds.
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Old 12-17-2022, 09:08 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by seasure1 View Post
...

purchased the Montana at 4pm and the Silverado at 7pm the same day.


...

Well, as far as the 2023 model goes, I'm sure there aren't THAT many people who have experience with this years model yet. Even if they purchased a 2023 model, they've not had enough experience towing yet to know the trucks abilities and limitations yet.

So, actually, ... "you" are in the driver's seat right now and will probably have the most experience with this truck and trailer combination in a very short while. The rest of us can only speculate as none of us have a 2023 model.

Since you've already made both purchases, truck and trailer, there's no wiggle room now to back out of it. I suppose if it doesn't work to your expectations you are stuck with "it." However, it's a "sweet ride" after all, then you are truly the "winner, winner, chicken dinner!"

Let us know how it goes. Your very, very first tow (pulling out of the dealer's lot, in the first 1 minute of driving) will tell you everything. Your initial "gut feeling" will be the answer you are looking for.

Let us know how it goes. You are really the one in the position with the answers right now.

And oh! by the way ... CONGRATS! ON THE NEW TRUCK AND NEW TRAILER!
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Old 12-17-2022, 09:23 AM   #11
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Thanks everyone for the well wishes on our new purchase.

Looking for the next phase in our touring the USA.



Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone!


See you at the campground

Best
Mike
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Old 12-20-2022, 02:01 PM   #12
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Hey Mike, I pm'ed you. In my message I suggested a TPMS system for your trip to Florida. I suggested a TST507 prior to looking at your signature. You have a 23 Chevy 2500. Basically the same as my truck. It should have a built in trailer monitoring system and should have come with 4 TPMS sensors. If so the first stop is a tire shop to have them installed. About $40 a tire. This way you can monitor those cheep China bombs and get some use out of them before you replace them. Also get yourself an EMS.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PMJ2K95...roduct_details
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Old 12-21-2022, 01:52 PM   #13
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We tow our 2006 33' with our 2004 2500HD Gas Chevy. The trailer weight is 12,500. We have never had an issues towing it and it is not overweight.
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Old 12-21-2022, 03:20 PM   #14
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Originally Posted by Foldbak View Post
He was referring to the tow capacity of the truck. He has a 295RL. About 12000 pounds.
That weight is for an empty trailer. It will be a lot more when loaded to camp.
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Old 12-21-2022, 05:15 PM   #15
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from what I have seen you are okay..Youre not at 16500 but 14300... payload is 4000 plus.. with you and everything should leave plenty for the hitch of 2300...
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Old 12-22-2022, 07:05 AM   #16
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Towing a fifth wheel RV weighing 16500lbs is not the same as towing a 16500 lb goose neck flat bed with a comparatively lower trailer height and typically lower pin weight. The latter is closer to Mfrs ideal towing conditions that allows them to make such towing claims. As previously stated on this thread, Fifth wheel RVs loaded out to GVWR will typically cause their owners run out of truck payload before hitting the towing limit advertised, depending on the truck/trailer combo.

How you use the truck/rv combo plays a big role. Full time? Your RV will likely be loaded up to its GVWR if not beyond as many do without getting it weighed and thus operate it in ignorance of physics. Now, weekend warriors will likely not be carrying anything close to trailer GVWR and a 2500 may be sufficient. Better to have more truck than you need vs not enough. Safety first.
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Old 12-22-2022, 09:13 AM   #17
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Originally Posted by BiggarView View Post
Towing a fifth wheel RV weighing 16500lbs is not the same as towing a 16500 lb goose neck flat bed with a comparatively lower trailer height and typically lower pin weight. The latter is closer to Mfrs ideal towing conditions that allows them to make such towing claims. As previously stated on this thread, Fifth wheel RVs loaded out to GVWR will typically cause their owners run out of truck payload before hitting the towing limit advertised, depending on the truck/trailer combo.

How you use the truck/rv combo plays a big role. Full time? Your RV will likely be loaded up to its GVWR if not beyond as many do without getting it weighed and thus operate it in ignorance of physics. Now, weekend warriors will likely not be carrying anything close to trailer GVWR and a 2500 may be sufficient. Better to have more truck than you need vs not enough. Safety first.
If the GVWR on the trailer is 16500, the loaded weight is much lower.. Our Montana weighs 12200 on the weight sticker on the door.. After we are loaded we are 13000lbs.. The GVWR of the Montana is 16000. No way will hit hit near this..I believe no one will. If they do, then there is no room for people inside..
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Old 12-22-2022, 11:27 AM   #18
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If the GVWR on the trailer is 16500, the loaded weight is much lower.. Our Montana weighs 12200 on the weight sticker on the door.. After we are loaded we are 13000lbs.. The GVWR of the Montana is 16000. No way will hit hit near this..I believe no one will. If they do, then there is no room for people inside..
Well I suspect that some of the full timer’s do hit or exceed the maximum gross weight rating of their trailer, the vast majority of owners are weekenders and vacationers, and like you said will never get close to max capacity.
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Old 12-23-2022, 12:55 PM   #19
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Well I suspect that some of the full timer’s do hit or exceed the maximum gross weight rating of their trailer, the vast majority of owners are weekenders and vacationers, and like you said will never get close to max capacity.
thank you... have a Great Christmas!
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Old 12-23-2022, 06:49 PM   #20
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You guys can say what you want, but I know for a fact that our unit left the Factory over 1000 Lbs heavier than brochure weight, and that's before filling the 40 Lb LP Tanks and adding additional batteries. So it becomes very easy to get up to the gross weight once you add pots, pans, dishes, and other daily living items.
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