2003 2500HD Weight - Is this right?

[jlogan10]

We are looking to buy our first 5th wheel, and have been looking at the 313RLI. The GVWR for our truck is 9200lbs. I should state that the 2500 4x4 is a crew cab, long bed with the 8.1L engine. The pin weight of the 5th wheel is stated as 1865 dry. After getting the 5th wheel hitch installed I took it to a CAT scale and had the truck weighed. To my surprise, with myself about a 1/4 tank of gas and the hitch the truck came in at 7400lbs. That would only leave me with about 1800lbs for the pin weight plus the other cargo. Does the weight of this truck sound right? That means technically I could only have a 5th wheel with a pin weight of 1200 or so.

[Wing-in-it]

I got this from Trailer life tow rating guide, says your GVWR is 12,000lbs.


2003 Chevrolet/GMC Silverado/Sierra 2500 HD Ext. Cab 4WD LWB 8.1L V-8 12000
3.73 axle ratio
4.10 axle ratio
If tongue weight is 10 to 15 percent of trailer weight, must use a weight-distributing hitch and sway control.
A higher tow rating is listed for pickups that tow fifth-wheel trailers. See your dealer for more information.
Alternate fuels are not recommended when towing with fifth-wheel or gooseneck trailers.
Abbreviations: LWB = Long Wheel Base; SHW = Short Wheel Base; TD = Turbodiesel; WB = Wheel Base.

Found this from GM.....

http://archives.media.gm.com/division/2003_prodinfo/03_chevrolet/03_silverado_hd/index.html

Read the whole thing from GM, I think your good!

Mark

[jsmith948]

I would use the GVWR that is listed on your door pillar. Subtract from that number your actual scaled weight ( with full fuel tank and any/all passengers and gear/tools etc that you intend to carry in the truck). This will give you your available payload. That seems to be a common issue with 3/4 ton trucks with heavy cabs, 4WD and heavy engines. Our F250 has a GVWR of 10,000# the truck weighs 7700# (10,000#-7700#= 2300# payload). It has a GCVWR of 23,500# which means I could PULL a trailer weighing 23,500-7700= 15,800#, but, the pin weight on such a trailer would be 2844 to 3160. Way over my truck's payload. Hope this helps:)

[Javi]

We are looking to buy our first 5th wheel, and have been looking at the 313RLI. The GVWR for our truck is 9200lbs. I should state that the 2500 4x4 is a crew cab, long bed with the 8.1L engine. The pin weight of the 5th wheel is stated as 1865 dry. After getting the 5th wheel hitch installed I took it to a CAT scale and had the truck weighed. To my surprise, with myself about a 1/4 tank of gas and the hitch the truck came in at 7400lbs. That would only leave me with about 1800lbs for the pin weight plus the other cargo. Does the weight of this truck sound right? That means technically I could only have a 5th wheel with a pin weight of 1200 or so.

Yep... that is about right
Many of us have been right where you are now. Big trailer.... not enough truck.

[jlogan10]

Thanks for the help! That helps us decide on where to go from here.

[JRTJH]

We are looking to buy our first 5th wheel, and have been looking at the 313RLI. The GVWR for our truck is 9200lbs. I should state that the 2500 4x4 is a crew cab, long bed with the 8.1L engine. The pin weight of the 5th wheel is stated as 1865 dry. After getting the 5th wheel hitch installed I took it to a CAT scale and had the truck weighed. To my surprise, with myself about a 1/4 tank of gas and the hitch the truck came in at 7400lbs. That would only leave me with about 1800lbs for the pin weight plus the other cargo. Does the weight of this truck sound right? That means technically I could only have a 5th wheel with a pin weight of 1200 or so.

Your "weight surprise" is not unique to GM products. Here's a very recent thread centered on a Ford 3/4 ton with exactly the same problem. Like many others, I've got a 3/4 ton and find the limitations on towing a heavier fifth wheel much the same as half ton owners who are looking at longer conventional travel trailers. All of us tend to have the capacity to tow the combined weight, but when we start looking at pin weight on 3/4 ton trucks or hitch weight on 1/2 ton trucks, we find that the trucks just don't "match up" with the towing capability. Frustrating? certainly. The answer? realistically, it's get a 1 ton SRW to gain about 1000 lbs extra payload. The cost of upgrading at initial purchase is only $400-$1000. The cost after buying a 3/4 ton and finding out it's not "big enough"... PRICELESS....

Anyway, here's the link to the same issue with Ford's 3/4 ton truck. http://www.keystonerv.org/forums/showthread.php?t=15495

[KYFamily]

I was in the same boat when I bought are recent camper. But I knew that going in. I'm over my GVWR but under my axle and tire rating. I'm ok with that and put over 1k miles on her last year. Actually felt more stable than my old 10k lb camper.

[KanTC]

jlogan10,

You are correct... if you plan/expect to stay within your truck's 9200 lbs GVWR, then you'll need to choose a
5th wheel with a much lighter [dry/empty] pin weight than the 313RLI. Keystone offers a few (a select few) at
approx 1000 lbs (+/-). Floorplans with a wardrobe-slide and/or bed-slide have higher pin weights.

http://www.vadengmpp.com/owners-manual/gmc/2003-GMC-Sierra.pdf See page 4-80


Terri, the Chevy co-pilot :)

[rhagfo]

We are looking to buy our first 5th wheel, and have been looking at the 313RLI. The GVWR for our truck is 9200lbs. I should state that the 2500 4x4 is a crew cab, long bed with the 8.1L engine. The pin weight of the 5th wheel is stated as 1865 dry. After getting the 5th wheel hitch installed I took it to a CAT scale and had the truck weighed. To my surprise, with myself about a 1/4 tank of gas and the hitch the truck came in at 7400lbs. That would only leave me with about 1800lbs for the pin weight plus the other cargo. Does the weight of this truck sound right? That means technically I could only have a 5th wheel with a pin weight of 1200 or so.

Well call it the curse of the 250/2500, GVWR under 10,000# most in the 8,800 to 9,600# for licensing reasons. Up until 2013, most were 350/3500 with softer spring packs as the only difference. Some 250/2500 Camper packages included 350/3500 spring packs and sway bars just not the badge, or stated GVWR.
When we bought out current 5er before we signed the papers we dropped the new 5er on the hitch and lifted the the landing gear, the truck sat level and only settled about 1" to 1.5" and still was better than level. I thought we would be a bit over GVWR, I will say I was a bit surprised at what we weighed once we hit the scales loaded.
I have no intentions of getting a bigger truck or a smaller 5er! The 2500 was really a 3500 SRW, (not available until 03). It is your choice as to how you want to deal with the issue, this works for me, but I don't recommend for others.

http://www.keystoneforums.com/attachments/photobucket/img_111607_0_ad18fe3dd903faf909c4e27801387243.jpg

[rhagfo]

We are looking to buy our first 5th wheel, and have been looking at the 313RLI. The GVWR for our truck is 9200lbs. I should state that the 2500 4x4 is a crew cab, long bed with the 8.1L engine. The pin weight of the 5th wheel is stated as 1865 dry. After getting the 5th wheel hitch installed I took it to a CAT scale and had the truck weighed. To my surprise, with myself about a 1/4 tank of gas and the hitch the truck came in at 7400lbs. That would only leave me with about 1800lbs for the pin weight plus the other cargo. Does the weight of this truck sound right? That means technically I could only have a 5th wheel with a pin weight of 1200 or so.



I got this from Trailer life tow rating guide, says your GVWR is 12,000lbs.


2003 Chevrolet/GMC Silverado/Sierra 2500 HD Ext. Cab 4WD LWB 8.1L V-8 12000
3.73 axle ratio
4.10 axle ratio
If tongue weight is 10 to 15 percent of trailer weight, must use a weight-distributing hitch and sway control.
A higher tow rating is listed for pickups that tow fifth-wheel trailers. See your dealer for more information.
Alternate fuels are not recommended when towing with fifth-wheel or gooseneck trailers.
Abbreviations: LWB = Long Wheel Base; SHW = Short Wheel Base; TD = Turbodiesel; WB = Wheel Base.

Found this from GM.....

http://archives.media.gm.com/division/2003_prodinfo/03_chevrolet/03_silverado_hd/index.html

Read the whole thing from GM, I think your good!

Mark

Jlogan10, is correct the GVWR of his truck is 9,600# the 12,000# that Wing-in-it refers to is the Max amount that the truck can TOW, not what can sit on it's wheels. This is where many get confused.

GVWR = The amount the Manufacture states can be carried on all wheels total.

GAWR = The weight each axle can carry, typicality the total (front and rear) is considerably more than the GVWR.

The sales brochure in the link is not specific to a particular truck or options, it is just that a sales brochure.

This is Trailer Life's 2003 towing guide, better, but still doesn't really cover payload.

http://www.trailerlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Trailer-Life-Towing-Guide-2003.pdf

[jlogan10]

Thanks for the input. As I read more about it on this and other forums I can see this is a common problem. What I don't understand is that my front axle and rear axle combined weight would allow 10884. So why the limit to 9200lbs? Is it a safety thing?

[hankpage]

Thanks for the input. As I read more about it on this and other forums I can see this is a common problem. What I don't understand is that my front axle and rear axle combined weight would allow 10884. So why the limit to 9200lbs? Is it a safety thing?

Springs, brakes, rims, tires and the opinions of the engineers that designed and tested the truck. Not to mention a CYA policy of the manufacturers. Also, trucks over 5t have limited access to lane use in some states.

[JRTJH]

Thanks for the input. As I read more about it on this and other forums I can see this is a common problem. What I don't understand is that my front axle and rear axle combined weight would allow 10884. So why the limit to 9200lbs? Is it a safety thing?

One consideration for why the axles are rated higher than the GVW is to allow load configuration to be adjusted. Imagine if you had a GVW of 9000 lbs and a 4500 lb front axle with a 4500 lb rear axle. If you wanted to get to GVW, you'd have to very carefully load the truck to keep the weight centered between the front and rear axle. Then, when you and your passenger get into the front seat, you overload the front axle.

Having axle ratings that "add up to" more than the GVW is common in every vehicle. It allows for "shifting of the weight (forward or aft) without having to limit the ability to adjust the load evenly between the axles when getting close to GVW.

The axle ratings on every vehicle I've ever seen add up to more than the GVW. But, there are other factors that go into computing the GVW such as brake size, frame strength, tire capacity, vehicle weight distribution (front to back and side to side) and a host of other factors. having "bigger than GVW axles" is more for flexibility than for "exact GVW computations"

[Javi]

Even registration and insurance fees play a part in the GVWR of a vehicle... For example in Texas the difference between 10K and 10,001 is $56 and the insurance will increase a couple of hundred a year depending on driving record.

Some states have even more penalties for that single pound. That's why Ford and others offer a 10K F350/3500

[RedRover]

I'm a little late to this thread but want to add my $.02. I purchased and brought home a 313RLI on 3/10/14 and it seems like the advertised pin weight of 1860 might be a little light. My old 5'er had an actual pin weight of 1740 pounds so I assumed another 120 pounds would be unnoticeable. Well the difference is noticeable in truck squat. One thing that might help is the 60 gallon fresh water at the back that will tend to counterbalance weight in the front.
Am presently adding Pacbrake air bags to my tow vehicle.

[JRTJH]

David,

That advertised pin weight is the empty weight as it leaves the factory. When the dealer adds 60 lbs of propane and a 50 lb battery, it's going to go up about 100 lbs or maybe more, so the advertised 1860 is probably closer to 1960 by the time you get it hitched to your truck.