Towing w/ 2001 chevy blazer
Christopher Neville
and then decided to purchase a travel trailer. I looked at the blazer
Manuel and noted that the vehicle had a max tow weight of 5600 lbs, so I
assumed if I purchased a trailer weighing no more than 4300 lbs dry that I
should be ok.
I purchased a 2001 26ft keystone springdale tt. that had a dry weight rating
of 4300 lbs. Being a newby, I assumed that this would be the actual weight
of the trailer. After running it across the scales, I found out that the
weight was 4640 lbs and when I loaded the trailer I had a weight of 5053
lbs, uncomfortably close to the max tow rating of the vehicle.
According to the owners Manuel, the blazer tow rating of 5600 lbs assumes a
driver and passenger. I am a family of 5, w/ 3 children, including a 14 yr
old who weighs 140 lbs, so I am sure that I am overgrossing the vehicle a
bit.
Needless to say the performance pulling a hill has a lot to be desired and
the vehicle is very skittish at freeway speeds. It is for this reason that
I have decided to " bite the bullet" and replace the blazer. While I don't
want to get only marginally better performance w/ my new tow vehicle, I
don't want to spend magabucks on the new tow rig either. For this reason, I
am asking if any one out there has any experience we/ either a Chevy Tahoe,
or a Chevy suburban. I require the seating capacity of at times 6-7 when
towing should my kids bring friends along ,there for a pickup is out of the
question.
As previously stated money being a consideration is why I am considering the
Tahoe over the Suburban, but don't want to be dissatisfied w/ the towing
performance. All I want is a unit that will tow safely within reason.
Oh, by the way, I purchased the blazer w/ my mother in law buying privilege
being retired G.M management and got a good price so wont be hurt all that
badly in reselling the blazer thank god. I will also be purchasing the new
tow rig the same way, and that is the reason that I am not considering any
other manufacturer other than G.M for a tow rig.
Thanks for any input that you may have
Chris Neville
meldx
if you take into consideration the 75% rule of tumb, then your max Trailer
weight should be 4200#... and you are definitely overweight with your 4640# dry
TT, and the wheel base of the Blazer is definitely not suitable for a 26' TT.
If you're going to switch to either Tahoe or Sub, you should go for Suburban on
a 2500 frame. Longer wheel base will make a big difference. If your thinking
of a 6 passenger car, then I'd also look at any Crew-Cab PU, 1 Ton or
more...(ie:2500, 3500, F250,F350....) You'll be able to seat 6 easily in there.
They also might end up being less expensive than a Sub.
good luck
Mel
Christopher Neville a écrit :
Will Sill
these words:
>Hello to all. I have made a mistake in that I purchased a new chevy blazer
>and then decided to purchase a travel trailer. . . . . .
>Thanks for any input that you may have
Chris, take a good look at a 2500 van - ideally the extended Chev or
GMC with the long wheelbase. Great for hauling kids and arguably
among the most competent tow vehicles around. Also FYI, some freee
advice on why you don't want to tow at the max rating:
========
There is pretty general agreement that it is unwise and possibly
dangerous to EXCEED maximum ratings, but many of us with long
trailering experience have found that manufacturer's tow rating
information is often misleading - or at least not applicable to
everyone. Recognizing that safety is always relative and not absolute,
I offer the following reasons for urging very conservative towing
weights:
1. The tow rating is ALWAYS a maximum figure, and is as large as the
manufacturer dares make it. They hope you will buy their stuff for
towing. Their rating may or may not be right for you. Every maker
has his own methods of setting tow ratings. Some are conservative
and some are ludicrously over-stated (many Jeep Cherokees are rated
at 5,000 lbs, and IMO are hopelessly overloaded at that figure).
2. MOST tow ratings (nothing personal or specific vs your brand)
do not allow for long steep grades - up or (especially) down.
3. Most tow ratings make no allowance for bad road conditions.
4. Most tow ratings are accompanied by asterisks that call attention
to special equipment "required". Your rig may not have those features.
5. Most tow ratings make no allowance whatever for emergency
maneuvers. I assure you your vehicle WILL NOT turn or stop as
fast or as safely with the maximum load as it will with a lot less.
The difference can be dramatic. Don't believe me? Try a few tactics
in a large parking lot.
6. Vehicle tow ratings make no allowance for the DRIVER'S "tow
rating". No insult intended, but if you have to ask how much your
rig will tow, you have neither the experience or the knowledge to
handle the maximum load safely. IMO.
7. One of the most-overlooked factors in safe towing is a COMBINED
maximum (GCWR = Gross Combined Weight Rating, often only found in
a towing guide) that dictates a much lighter-than-maximum TOWED load.
Most of the weight of cargo & passengers in the tow vehicle must be
deducted from the permissible towed load to find the true rating.
Some towing guides appear to gloss over this issue because the
marketing types want to put the best possible face on their product.
8. What is reasonably safe and comfortable at 45 mph may well be a
lethal weapon at 75. Tow ratings, IMO, do NOT reflect any respect for
this hazard.
9. One party wrote to say "I live at 6200 feet above sea level and
since an internal combustion engine loses about 2 1/2 to 3% efficiency
per thousand feet I'm losing 15-18 % of my performance unless I have
a turbocharger or supercharger. I would not dream of loading past
75% of capacity regardless of what the engineer says."
10. Regardless of weight ratings, SUV's and "1/2'-ton" pickups are
mostly useless for serious towing. They will handle pop-ups and even
some of the short "lite" trailers - and will haul yer big one out to
the lake if you are careful. But competent handling of a large TT
requires a long wheelbase & short overhang.
Someone once wrote: "You can tow anything with anything - the question
is how far, how safely?"
BOTTOM LINE: IF you trust the experienced trailerists who have been
there and done that and don't want to go back, you will not exceed
about 75% of the rated maximum. The number is of course not writ by
the finger of God on a stone tablet - it is merely an indication that
you should stay well below the manufacturer's maximum allowance if you
want a safe, comfortable trip. Some say the figure ought to be as low
as 50 or 60%. But except for a few macho braggarts, most experienced
folks agree in principle if not detail with these concerns.
----------the end. Class dismissed. ------------
Make up your own mind who to believe. I don't have a nickel invested
in your rig, so you can do as you please.
Will KD3XR
Before flaming - consider this: I post to help rv'ers, amuse
non-humor-impaired readers, and annoy morons. After determining
which type you are, do what you feel that type should do.
Robert Carr
I just looked up the dimension specs on several Chevy vehicles. The
Blazer 2 dr has a wheelbase of 100 in. and the 4 dr a wheelbase of 107
in. Entirely too short for TT towing and explains the skittishness.
One of your optional replacement choices is the Tahoe. It has a
wheelbase of 116 in, which in my opinion is still too short. The next
best is the Suburban, with a wheelbase of 130 in. I feel this would be
a reasonable choice, although no doubt an expensive choice. I also
would, based on my own experience, prefer a longer wheelbase. Pickup
trucks are available up to 157 in wheelbase models. Unfortunately a
pickup probably doesn't solve your people carrying capacity too well.
As Will mentioned in his response, look at the Express vans. They have
a minimum wheelbase of 135 in and 155 in for the extended van.
One other item in picking a new tow vehicle. Suburbans, pickups and
vans are not all created equal. There are different chassis
ratings(1500, 2500 etc), engine choices and rear end gearing choices.
All of these choices will affect your towing capability, towing safety
and overall enjoyment of towing.
Bob
Bruce
I pull a 29 ft keystone bobcat, the dry weight as listed on the sticker
inside the trailer is 5000 lbs and I tow that with a 4.3 litre V6 Astro van
1997. The blazer if I'm not mistaken is built on the same chassis etc. but
what the dealer doesn't tell you when you buy is that you have to have the
3:73 gears to get that 5600 lb tow rating from your blazer. You likely have
a 3:23 rear end or a 3:51 which would get you better gas mileage but also a
lower tow rating. My astro came with a 3:23 rear end but yet I was told
that it towed 5500 lbs. When I looked in the owners manual I found out
about the different tow ratings for each gear ratio. Needless to say the
dealer had to replace my rear end with the proper gear ratio so that it
could pull what they said it would pull......at their cost!
With a 3:23 the tow rating drops to 4500 lbs. Check with your dealer and
find out what your gear ratio is on your blazer.
About the Tahoe and suburban, they are both excellent tow vehicles and would
likely have no trouble pulling your trailer, just make sure that the gear
ratio in the tahoe or suburban is suited to your towing needs.
Most tahoes and suburbans are pre equipped with a trailer towing package, so
before you buy, hook up your trailer and take it for a spin.
Also just some info, the dry weights listed in phamplets are usually without
awning, microwave, tv, and other popular options. The dry weight listed on
the sticker inside the unit (somehere on the back of a cupboard door) will
usually tell you exactly what the unit weighed when it left the factory.
Hope this helps
Bruce
"Christopher Neville" <c.b.n...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:dJct7.12771$WW.12...@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
Tom B.
If you're just going to copy and paste each and every response why not put
this on a web page somewhere, give the link, and save the space?
Will Sill <wi...@epix.net> wrote in message
news:vkfbrtciomdqodsti...@4ax.com...
>
> 1. The tow rating is ALWAYS a maximum figure, and is as large as the
>
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