It seems most of the posts here focus on engine power, but what about suspension and braking? It's one thing to get the trailer moving, it's another to control it and get it stopped.

 

if only all people thought like you...



but majority of people on here don't care about safety only what the truck can get moving

 

I know someone who towed a 20k trailer across town with a S-10. Not pretty, but it worked.

 

It's a wonder that chebby didn't just drop all 4 tires and flop to the ground.

 

Bump stops all the way and hardly any brakes. Didn't go over 20 mph.

 

Trailers of sizable weight (anything more than single axle) have their own brakes. They should stop itself. Suspension? Keep the truck near or under GVWR and well balanced and it will perform well.

 

Assuming the tow vehicle has a controller - the S-10 sure didn't.

 

Peak HP is pretty much irrelevant when towing.

Torque and gearing are what it takes to get you moving.

Whatever it takes to keep the load under control and be able to stop is even more important still.

 

Once you get going in first gear (which isn't ever an issue), horsepower translates to rear wheel torque. It takes horsepower to do work; pulling up a hill us work. A diesel with 400 hp and 800 ft-lbs of torque pulling will climb a mountain fastest at its peak horsepower. A 400 hp gas engine with 400 ft-lbs of torque will pull the same weight the same speed as the diesel up the mountain. It will just be turning twice as fast in twice the gear. The rear wheel torque (and speed) is the same.

 

This is why I did the heavy duty Bilstiens and air bags on my truck. I already had a tuner and I feel that the breaks are up to the task. My travel trailer is on the upper end of the weight limit of the truck but it works alot better now.
If you haven't been to a big camp ground lately it would scare you to see what people are towing!!!!! Our last trip there was a guy over from us with a huge (30ft range) toy hauler loaded with Harleys behind a Tundra. Another guy had a 28ft 5er behind a four door short bed Titan loaded to the max. Niether trucks looked happy pulling out.

 

As you, I see this all the time. What I love seeing is an older suburban, loaded with 5 bikes off the front bumper, a canoe on top, with 8 people, pulling a 35' "standard weight", stick and tin, tall and wide profile camper, with water tanks full. I know this as none of the campergrounds we go, have anything but electric, no water, no septic, just water fills and dump stations. These 1/2 ton Suburbans can't even keep up with a weight distribution hitch as most are riding wheelies!! Now with a truck full of kids, you'd think most of the RVers would be a little safety cautious, but NO.

I'd say at most campgrounds, we see maybe 10% of the rigs that are visibly within their rating while 90% are horrifically, visibly exceeding their ratings.

BTW, if you want to see some campgrounds we've been to, you can see them here.