Is it too big? 1997 314BHS

[Plowtoy]

I knew that I was going to be right at the top (or a bit over, once loaded) of what the Tahoe can handle, but the pic makes it look a whole lot longer and heavier than it feels. All things considered, she pulls nice down the road, stops good and has the room we were looking for

[clubhouse]

I had an '04 Tahoe, pulled a 26bh and wasn't happy when I got in the mountains. The 4speed transmission had a hard time finding gears at slower mountain speeds and the high rpm the 5.3 required to make the necessary horse power. We ultimately upgraded TV, and went all the way to 2500 duramax so we wouldn't get in that situation again.

We now have a 29qbh, I imagine it is similar in weight/length to your new TT -- I wouldn't want to pull it with my Tahoe.

[canuckowner]

...that trailer sure looks to be in nice shape... I hope mine will look as nice after 15+ years.

[Paintinfool3]

I used to pull a 32 ft gulfstream mako 7400 lbs dry with my 2005 Yukon which had a 5.3 but if I had hit many hills it wouldn't have been good. the air ride in the rear eventually gave out to it but finally I got a 95 diesel dually and I am glad I did just much easier on the truck

[Adk Camper]

Half ton trucks have their purpose but if your into camping for the long haul and camp a lot then step up to a truck that's made to do the job.
There are a lot of folks that put the cart before the horse and we see it all time time on the road and in the CG's.

[Plowtoy]

Clubhouse, I do notice on some of the hills, it will slow down but if I allow it to downshift into second, I can regain that speed. I rarely tow over 55 to 60 mph. We do have a Powerstroke on the back burner, I will fill you in at the end of this post.

Canuckowner, Thanks!! She's not perfact... Up close the aluminum sideing shows some dings and dents, infact there must have been a tear in the aluminum sideing in between the bunk windows that someone fixed with a piece of aluminum stock, some sealer and some rivits. I can't seem to find any soft spots inside the camper, but the LR outter wall is a little soft, and I suspect the shower has leaked at some point, because that is the same location...

Paintinfool3 and Adk Camper, The Tahoe has just about 220000 miles on her but as Adk said, there is a place for a half ton. I use it primarly as a plow truck. The short wheel base makes it easier for me to get into some of those small driveways I plow. Its been a good truck for me and I know the camper is a bit much for it. My wife and I own half of an 03 Superduty CC with a Powerstroke (7.3L Last year of the good ones IMO) with my folks. I use it as a back up plow truck (incase the Tahoe has issues) in the winter and my folks use it to tow their 30' Mountaineer 5th wheel in the summer. That truck has almost 245000 miles on it, but they are known to go 400000 without many major issues. My dads health is going down hill much quicker than I like to see (Romitoid Arthritis and diabietis are the big things for him) and I suspect that he wont be able to drive much longer. My mom hates to drive big vehicles and refuses to pull a camper of that size. So, when my dad reaches that point in his life, we will buy out their half of the Superduty and the Tahoe will become a back up for towing the camper.

[clutch]

We had a 25ft Prowler TT that we towed with a short box chevy half ton. We only pulled with it 4 times. I didn't like how it drove the truck. The next spring we had a 3/4 ton gasser and towing was a lot more fun.

[exjay1]

Not to be Debbie Downer but good chance your going to burn up the trans in the Tahoe sooner than you think pulling that. My uncle went through two trannys in his 1500 Burban in just three years pulling a 28' Terry maybe 5 times each year in pretty flat country. Just sayin..

Nice Jayco BTW.

[Plowtoy]

Originally Posted by exjay1

Not to be Debbie Downer but good chance your going to burn up the trans in the Tahoe sooner than you think pulling that. My uncle went through two trannys in his 1500 Burban in just three years pulling a 28' Terry maybe 5 times each year in pretty flat country. Just sayin..

Nice Jayco BTW.

It is a 4L60E with just about 220K miles on it... I suspect you may be right That trans takes a beating from me, if its not working to plow snow, its working to tow... When it does go (and it will), I have a trans guy who can make it bullet proof. I do tow in 3rd with the tow/haul on and NEVER use the cruise while towing because it will just shift back and forth. By allowing it to slow down going up hills and not going faster than 60mph, I can keep the rpms around 2500, with the torque converter in lock up. I change the fluid and filter annually and it looks/smells good for now, but you know it is near the end of its usefull life...

[rtbreeves]

Originally Posted by exjay1

.... good chance your going to burn up the trans in the Tahoe sooner than you think pulling that. My uncle went through two trannys in his 1500 Burban in just three years pulling a 28' Terry maybe 5 times each year in pretty flat country. Just sayin..

Nice Jayco BTW.

I also had a 2005 Suburban 1500 Z-71 4x4 towing a 1994 Jayco 3250FK (about 32 ft and 6000# dry) in mostly flat country - went through 2 transmissions in 2 years. Finally did the smart thing and upgraded trucks to 3/4ton.

[KiltDog]

I think I'm in the same boat. Can't wait to see what my rig looks like hooked to the new TT. Low and slow all the way.