Ok. I did this last year and got alot of help. Now I think I went overboard and may have to get a new truck. I have a 00' Expy, 4.6L, 3.55 LS, 4X4 and 17" wheels. I also have the factory installed tow package with the trans and oil cooler and a trailer brake.

I just bought a newer camper. I got a 27ft tongue pull Layton camper trailer. When it left the factory it weighted 5030 lbs. (they actually weigh each and every one).

I have read the manual crunched the numbers and feel that I am at max weight with this thing assuming that when I pull this camper loaded, I will be driving by myself.

There have been some really helpful and informative posts here and would like to know if someone else could confirm what I am thinking. IS this TOO MUCH, or am I just darn close?

I have the Max Tuner and a MagnaFlow CatBack. I did bring this thing home the other night and you could definitely feel it back there.

If someone else who is in the know can help out with some brilliant info I would really appreciate it. Thanks in advance.

Ozark Expedition

 

I looked in my FoMoCo towing guide and I checked my Coachmen vehicle towing guide and both of them said that your vehicle was rated to pull 5,500 lbs. I don't know what your trailer weighs loaded but that's how much you could pull. As a fellow camper I wish you well and the best of luck.

 

5500 lbs in the trailer. My GVWR sticker in the door jam of the Expy says it weighs 5900 lbs. With about a 11000 GCVWR that leaves about 5600 lbs. I normally dont haul water, just get it when I get there. Aside from camping gear and supplies the only real weight that I intend to add would be 2 full bottles of propane.

I camp within 40 miles of the house, a perk to living in the Ozark Mountains. There are a lot of hills that are my main concern. Stopping being a biggie, but making sure I can top the hills as well...

I have been told that its better for the transmission if I manually shift it when taking off and manually down shifting before a steep hill to make sure that I have both the speed and the RPM's to (hopefully) maintain that speed. Would that be correct???

I appreciate your reply and good will. Thank you.

Ozark Expedition

 

As for your transmission I have always found that if you kick the overdrive off the transmission seems to do better. I have noticed that it does a pretty good job selecting the RPM's and gear it needs to be in by itself. Now I am young and haven't done this very long but I have heard what you are talking about and I have just found that manually downshifting before a hill and manually downshifting going down seems to be hard on tranny (forced slow down, jerking etc). Going up hills I usually just work my throttle to keep the pace and RPM's that I need. Going Down hills just make sure the brakes are dialed in good and don't let them overheat.

 

In my opinion (take it or leave it), I think you're overweight. When they weighed the trailer before you left that was dry weight. Yes, the propane anks were included but they are always included. By your numbers you have 100 pounds to work with for clothes, food, gray water, black water, water equipment, sewer equipment, electrical, etc., etc.

Even if you forget all of the extraneous stuff and go with the dry weight, a good rule of thumb is to only go to 80% of ratings.

One other thought. I don't know what the wheelbase is on an expy but if I remember correctly it's pretty short. I know when I tried to pull our 27'TT with my wifes cherokee I almost put the whole thing into a ditch because the trailer pushed the jeep around so badly because of the short wheelbase. Scared the crap out of me.

 

Ozark,

My cousin and her husband pull a 26' Aruba with their 03 Expy 5.4. I don't know about the power side of the equation (because her husband drives like a granny anyway), but he claims that trailer may be just a bit much for the wheelbase of the Expy. A couple of weeks ago, a tractor trailer passed him (I told you he drives like a granny, didn't I?) and he said the trailer whipped a couple of times and he thought for sure he was ditch-bound. The rest of the drive to the camp ground was a "white-knuckle" ride. He was ready for a beer when he got there!!

I think the Aruba is kind of heavy---'don't know the exact figures, but now he REALLY take his time. We are all supposed to go over the Blue Ridge Mountains to Luray from the Fredericksburg area for father's day weekend. He said he wants me to FOLLOW him over the mountain----I asked him if he was DRUNK. I'm going over the mountain, but I'm going first.

Good luck, but I think you may have bitten off just a little too much.

MHO,

Sidewinder

 

I dont like what I have read, but it looks like I went overboard.

Thank you everyone that replied.