Quote:
Originally Posted by Shotgunjim
... 09 Tahoe with towing pkg 3.42 etc. I wonder if anyone ...has a good estimate as to how much trailer would be safely towed.
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The "tow rating" published by GM, Trailer Life, and others is extremely optimistic. It's not even useful as a rough estimate if you don't want to be overloaded after you've spent your money.
Here's how to get a better estimate of the max weight of a trailer you can tow without being overloaded.
On an SUV, the GVWR of the SUV is almost always the limiter. In other words, hitch weight is the problem. So here's what you do:
1] Load the SUV with all the people, pets, tools, jacks, and anything that will be in the SUV when on the road with the trailer tied on. Include the shank and ball mount from your hitch. (If you don't have the hitch yet, then add 40 pounds to the weight of the SUV.)
2] Drive to a truckstop that has a certified, automated truck (CAT) scale. Fill the SUV with gas, then weigh the wet and loaded SUV (with driver and passengers inside the SUV).
3] Subtract the weight of the wet and loaded SUV from the GVWR of the SUV. (The GVWR is on the sticker on the driver's door or doorframe). The answer is the max hitch weight you can have without being overloaded.
4] Divide the max hitch weight by 0.15 to estimate the max weight of any tag trailer you can tow without being overloaded.
Example 1: You have 500 pounds available for hitch weight. 500 divided by 0.15 = 3,333 pounds max trailer weight = a small pop-up camper.
Example 2: You have 800 pounds available for hitch weight. 800 divided by 0.15 = 5,333 pounds max trailer weight = a larger pop-up or a very small TT, such as this hybred:
http://www.forestriverinc.com/nd/default22.asp?page=floorviewertt&choice=surv&nav=r ec&name=3253&series=Expand8
Example 3: You have 1,000 pounds available for hitch weight. 1,000 divided by 0.15 = 6,667 pounds max trailer weight = a small TT, such as this bunkhouse:
The GVWR of the model 249 is 6,200 pounds. So if you can keep the weight out of the SUV so you have at least 930 pounds of unused payload capacity you can use for hitch weight, then that's the trailer you should consider.
http://www.skylinerv.com/product.php?brand=nomad%20joey&rvtype=travel_trail ers®ion=616&state=&form=brochure#brochure