Towing 5er with Crew Cab

1Texan · 09-09-2011, 08:02 AM

Need experienced advice. Just bought a 2011 GMC 1500 4X4, crew cab, 5'8" (short) bed, 6.2 engine, max tow package. We are looking to purchase a Cougar 26SAB. We will be well within the towing weight limits with this trailer, but with the short bed, I need advice on hitch options that others have used. Pros and cons. I am aware of the Pullrite 12K Superslider. That will automatically move the trailer back as I make a turn. Right now, that looks to be my best option. Also aware of the Reese Sidewinder and Airborne. Those would work, but I'm concerned that those will move the pivot point of the hitch back almost 2 feet and take away some of the advantages of the pivot being over the wheels. And of course the manual sliders will move the trailer back 10 - 12 inches for tight turns. Here my questions is, the 26SAB has notched front corners. How tight of a turn can I make without moving the slider, and how tight of a turn with the slider in the back position. Extended cab wouldn't have been a problem with this set up, but the crew cab has me a little concerned.

Thanks in advance.

Hunter757 · 09-09-2011, 08:39 AM

Hello I am going to try and answer part of your question:

How tight of a turn can I make without moving the slider, and how tight of a turn with the slider in the back position. Extended cab wouldn't have been a problem with this set up, but the crew cab has me a little concerned.

The length from the back of the cab to your hitch will be the same distance with the crew cab or the extended cab. Where it makes a differance is long box or short controls the distance from the cab not the cab size itself. Good luck and hope I answered part of your question.

Happy camping and there is a great PDI inspection list here on the form to take with you when you take delivery of your new 5er this will guide you so you are sure not to miss anything.

msp2jxr · 09-09-2011, 11:45 AM

I have the 16K valley slider and I am glad I invested the money in the slider. I too have a trailer with notched corners which 90 percent of the time gets me by just fine. The kicker comes when you are backing on an unlevel surface. The trailer tipping even a little on a tight turn can send your trailer into the top of the cab. The only negative I have about my hitch is if you stop on even a small hill it can be very difficult to pull the level to slide the the hitch back. Other than that I like the hitch because I can still take it out by myself. Just my opinion...

therink · 09-09-2011, 01:27 PM

Hi
I have a slider in my short bed and have notvyet needed it. I've turned some sharp corners too. If I were to buy another. I'd say no. A lot has to do with the front cap shape on the fiver.
That's just me though.

Paddler · 09-09-2011, 01:29 PM

I have a short bed and a Montana, I've had her at 80 degrees with the Reese 16K slider in the tow position, and at a full 90 degrees with the slider in the maneuver position. The slider is a necessity even if you only need it 5% of the time.

Johnnyfry · 09-09-2011, 04:55 PM

I opted for a Reese Sidewinder for my 316SAB and Dodge 3500 Megacab. I am very happy with the set up. It handles very well on the road and is able to turn to 90 degrees without interferance.

The only downside I have found is the fact that you must be straight on to the hitch when connecting.

John

Festus2 · 09-10-2011, 02:02 PM

We have a Reese 16K with manual slider; and with the Cougar's rounded and recessed front cap, I have not yet had any problems turning nor have I run into any situation where it was necessary to move the slider into the back position. This is not say it won't happen but the option is there.
I would not be overly concerned with not having the pin over your wheels/axle for the short amount of time that it would be in that position if you had a hitch that has only the two positions --- tow and maneuver. If you had to move it back into the maneuvering position, it wouldn't remain there long ------ just long enough to do your tight turns.

s92pilot · 09-10-2011, 04:50 PM

I'm pulling a 26SAB with a 2010 Dodge Ram Crew Cab. My bed is 5'7". I went with the REESE 5th Airborne Sidewinder. I have had no problems with turns over 90 degrees. Plenty clearance with the cab. The Airborne portion makes it ride like silk. I have not had any swaying problems either like I had heard abotu the sidewinder set up.

RCrawler · 09-11-2011, 07:26 PM

I have a Pull Rite 18K and it works great. It works smoothly and doesn't clunk Even with the angled sides, my trailer would never clear the cab without it.
The only downfall I've found is having to be almost perfectly in line to hook and unhook. I've been in a couple of angled campsites that made this tricky.
I purchased the Super Rail kit which gives you a flat load floor when the hitch is removed.

Jason

kschitoskey · 09-11-2011, 07:44 PM

I had similar concerns. My hitch is the B&W Companion, and it specifically states using this type of device would void the hitch warranty. That was enough for me...

I agree a slider would work best. I have a 6 foot bed and never had a problem, but I'm aware there is a huge number of owners who bought themselves a new rear window unexpectedly...

esstep · 09-19-2011, 05:20 AM

I have a 2011 Sierra HD with a Super Glide hitch, the truck is higher than previous trucks and I have difficulty hitching and unhitiching ( I just started a post on this) I can tell you when I do get it hooked up theSuper Glide works great, my biggest disappointment is the mismatch in height.

**JRTJH** · 09-19-2011, 06:18 AM

There is a mismatch in truck/trailer height as well as taller bed sidewalls. On my Ford, the bed sidewalls and tailgate are about 2" taller than the older models. That puts the tailgate very close to the trailer during hitching. When I back under my trailer to hitch, I have less than 3" when straight. If I try to hitch at an angle, the tailgate would damage the front of the trailer if I backed fully to the hitch coupler. I have to get out, raise the tailgate and then complete the coupling.

There's no such thing as backing with the tailgate down, even a very slight off center maneuver would make contact. I couldn't imagine trying to tow with a long bed truck, the extra 18" (half of which is behind the coupler/pin) would make my tailgate about 6" past the front of the trailer with the tailgate down.

**hankpage** · 09-19-2011, 06:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JRTJH

There's no such thing as backing with the tailgate down, even a very slight off center maneuver would make contact. I couldn't imagine trying to tow with a long bed truck, the extra 18" (half of which is behind the coupler/pin) would make my tailgate about 6" past the front of the trailer with the tailgate down.

I know my truck is older and side walls are lower but .... I can walk between my tailgate and trailer when hitched and even open storage compartment. I can't see a tailgate that is 3" longer making that much difference unless the pin-box is much shorter.

esstep, I know a few years back some of the Fords were having a similar problem and Ford was installing a kit free of charge to rectify the problem. It might be worthwhile to contact GM to see if they have a solution. JM2¢, Hank

**JRTJH** · 09-19-2011, 07:06 AM

I can walk between my trailer and truck only with the tailgate up. As I said, with the tailgate down, there's barely enough room to get a hand in there to raise the tailgate. We've got an extended pinbox, it sits about 16" in front of the trailer. I can't explain why they are so close other than the extra height of the sidewalls and tailgate, but like you, 3" won't take away enough room to walk between the truck and trailer. The hitch is centered over the rear axle, and I just measured the distance from the front edge of the kingpin to the vertical front wall of the trailer is 67.5" and from the kingpin to the lower edge of the front wall is 75.5". The tailgate when lowered sits just below midway which is about 71" (I didn't back the truck under the trailer to measure) which makes for about 3" when the tailgate is down.

It's a close fit to say the least. When we first started towing this rig, I'd stop after getting the kingpin over the bed and close the tailgate just to be sure I didn't hit anything, but now, after bunches of hitching, as long as I'm straight with the kingpin, I have a bit more confidence it won't hit, but give me any angle..... I'm back to raising the tailgate!!!!!

esstep · 09-19-2011, 12:38 PM

I checked with GMC there is nothing at this time to correct my situation, what they did say is if anything was altered without their ok, the warranty could be void.

cpaulsen · 09-20-2011, 12:52 AM

On my Sperduty/longbed.....the tailgate was close to the f5ver when down...put a 5th wheel tailgate on .....no problems.

PSITracy · 10-02-2013, 06:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paddler

I have a short bed and a Montana, I've had her at 80 degrees with the Reese 16K slider in the tow position, and at a full 90 degrees with the slider in the maneuver position. The slider is a necessity even if you only need it 5% of the time.

What kind of truck ?

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