Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 

Go Back   Thor Forums > Thor Community Forums > Introduce Yourself | Say Hello
Click Here to Login
Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 05-19-2013, 10:33 PM   #1
Junior Member
 
Brand: Still Looking
State: Minnesota
Posts: 2
THOR #301
Question Hi, newbie, has anyone pulled a 2013 sunset reserve 31ss. With 2011 Tahoe

Trailer weighs 6900 lbs, Tahoe rated for 8200 I will watch what I carry, carry light. Will use top of the line wdh with sway....thanks

__________________
Kidkaden is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-20-2013, 12:35 AM   #2
Moderator Emeritus
 
anaro's Avatar
 
Brand: Crossroads
Model: Zinger ZT26BL
State: North Carolina
Posts: 445
THOR #91
I pulled a zinger with an armada. My zinger is lighter than the sunset trail you are looking at and the armada was rated for more. It was not a good experience. my zinger weighs 7000 lbs loaded (and was about 5700 lbs dry). My armada was "rated" to tow 9100 lbs. I found out the hard way that a vehicle can rarely tow at max ratings. The stated ratings are for a stripped down model with only a 150 lb driver in it. Add options and passengers and those numbers decrease. In addition to my Tahoe can tow 8200 lbs you need to look at a few more things like payload and receiver ratings. inside the drivers side door you will find a sticker that should say something like "occupants and cargo should weigh less than x lbs". This is your payload and you need to subtract passengers and gear from that weight. The more accurate way to do this is to load up the Tahoe with all gear and passengers that will be in it when towing and go weigh it with a full tank of fuel at the local truck scales. Take the scaled weight and subtract it from the tahoes gcwr to get your adjusted towing capacity. take the scaled weight and subtract it from the tahoes gvwr to get your available payload. this is where your weak point will be. The loaded tongue weight needs to be subtracted from your available payload. the loaded tongue weight should be 13-15% of the loaded TT weight. realistically on average people add 1000-1500 lbs of gear (no matter how light you pack, dishes, clothes, chairs, grills, etc really add up quickly). so you are realistically looking at a loaded TT weight of at least 8000-8300 lbs (quite possibly higher) and a loaded tongue weight of at least 1000-1300 lbs. in addition, what is the hitch receiver on the Tahoe rated for with wdh? to give you an idea my 04 armada had only a little over 800 lbs of available payload with 2 adults, 1 small child and a 70 lb dog in it. My hitch was actually only rated to 910 lbs with wdh. My tongue weight is close to 1000 lbs.

Having been there done that with a truck that was under stated tow capacity but over on payload and hitch receiver ratings, I can tell you my family's safety wasn't worth it. I got pushed all over the road by semis, cars and SUVs passing me. I had a lot of tail wagging the dog situations. The final straw came with mountain driving. The engine struggled going up a 7% grade and the armada was pushed going down a 7% grade. The engine wasn't enough to hold the TT back so brakes had to be used more than desired and resulted in overheated brakes. I hauled horses for 20 yrs and never experienced anything that bad. I threw in the towel after that trip, ended up with an F250 diesel (diesel not necessary but we wanted it) to tow the trailer. Now I have complete contol, one handed driving (no more white knuckles) and feel safe. I have since driven the same 7% grade with the new to me F250. I had to touch the brakes one or two times only as the engine was able to hold the trailer back. Basically, my point is, you need to have enough tow vehicle to control and stop the trailer, not just pull it.

If you are wondering, I was running E rated tires, a prodigy P3 brake controller, and a Reese dual cam (still use the reese dual cam but have integrated brake controller now). The difference really is night and day. I hate to sound so negative but having been there, done that, I would be remiss if I didn't share that story with you. What you do from here, is up to you. If you go ahead with the combo, I would start setting money aside for the possibility of needing a tow vehicle upgrade sooner than later. I would also look into hensley arrow for your hitch. Best of luck to you.
__________________
2014 Chevy Silverado 3500 Duramax SRW
2014 Palomino Sabre 34REQS
2011 Crossroads Zinger 26BL --sold
anaro is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Thor Industries or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.




All times are GMT. The time now is 11:45 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Content Relevant URLs by vBSEO 3.6.0 PL2