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towing capacity for 2500hd

79K views 7 replies 6 participants last post by  Fingers 
#1 ·
what is gm's towing limit on a 2500hd duramax with allison for a fifth wheel trailer? i have towed as much as 18000lbs and it handled it great with plenty of power but was curious what gm says is ok.
 
#3 · (Edited)
There are two issues. Issue one is the GCWR (gross combination weight rating) of the truck/trailer combo (22,000 pounds). Your trucks actual weight plus the trailer actual weight cannot exceed this number. Issue two, you cannot exceed the GVWR of your truck (9200 pounds for 2500HD).

Example, the truck in my signature weighs 7200 pounds with wife, tools and a full tank of fuel when we go camping (includes 5th wheel hitch in bed of truck). That leaves about 2000 pounds for the pin weight of the trailer before hitting the 9200 GVWR of the truck.

So what is the pin weight your trailer puts onto your hitch and the actual weight of your trailer when fully loaded? You need to answer these questions before you can proceed. You need to weigh all this stuff (truck and trailer) at a scale for an accurate answer. For conversation, assume 20% of trailer weight is on the pin and lets use a trailer weight of 14200 pounds (20% of 14200 is 2840 pounds of pin weight). So my truck could not legally pull the trailer in the example. The GCWR is OK (21400 pounds), I just exceeded the GVWR of the truck by 840 pounds (because of the pin weight of the trailer --- 7200 pounds for truck plus 2840 pound pin weight = truck weight of 10040 pounds; which is greater than 9200 pounds).

Depending how much your 5th wheel trailer weighs, you could very likely exceed both the GCWR and the GVWR of your truck (not to mention the gross axle weight rating, GAWR, of 6080 pounds for the rear axle/tire combo).

Hope this helps,
Alan
 
#4 ·
Excellent Post Alan.

Idahofox
 
#7 ·
You really need to take the readings with a grain of salt.

Most 4x4 Dmax trucks with a CC, full tank, and 5 people inside are over the front axle rating, especially if they have a brush guard or winch.

Anyone afraid of putting 5 adults in their truck?

The 4x4 Dually is rated at 1,500lb more on the GCWR than the 2500HD IIRC. But the dually weighs 1500lb more than the 2WD Extcab truck. Anyone believe the smaller truck is safer with the same load?

Making sure your tires are in good shape, inflated correctly, and not overloaded, and checking your lights and brakes are in tip top shape, as well as checking your tongue or pin weight on a good scale are more important than the sticker on a door. Personally if I was going to tow 25k combined on a routine basis, I'd have picked a bigger truck. I like keeping the trailer at no more than twice the weight of the truck with pickups. Don't want the tail waggin' the dog.
 
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