Towing

[carkrazy1987]

What determines what towing capacity of a vehicle is?

i currently own a 02 s10 crewcab 4x4, with a tired 4.3. ive towed plenty with it before, with no issues, but i think its time to do a few upgrades.

i will be blowing the truck apart soon, ls swapping it, rebuilding the trans, adding aux coolers for oil and trans. also most likely big brakes, with trailer brake controller. i will be upgrading the rear springs at the same time to a bit heavier duty springs. i currently have a load leveler trailer hitch also.

so i guess the question again is, what says how much i can tow, besides my tow hitch, and owners manual.

in a hypothetical world, would i be able to have a fifth wheel with say a 2 car trailer? or would my truck just buckle under the pressure.

i know i could easily go buy a truck to tow. but i like my big lil truck. i can park anywhere, its comfortable, paid for.

what are your thoughts?

[DBasher]

[QUOTE=carkrazy1987
in a hypothetical world, would i be able to have a fifth wheel with say a 2 car trailer? or would my truck just buckle under the pressure.

what are your thoughts?[/QUOTE]

Hypothetical or not, that’s scary as hell to even think about. I’m wondering if the hypothetical trailer is a converted travel trailer
Do the upgrades you want with the lil S-10 and go out and find yourself a 3/4 ton Suburban or truck for 5k to tow with.

[carkrazy1987]

i expect alot of people to say just buy another truck i know that would be the easiest solution.

what i want to know is why/what is stopping my truck from being a capable hauler? wheel base, width, weight, truck too small, frame too weak.

[DBasher]

Originally Posted by carkrazy1987

what i want to know is why/what is stopping my truck from being a capable hauler? wheel base, width, weight, truck too small, frame too weak.

Yes, all of that.

[carkrazy1987]

now not trying to be arrogant or start a fight, just trying to educate myself.

where do these specs or requirements come from. or is it just general consensus that bigger is just better in this case.

obviously a 2 car hauler is a gross exaggeration. i feel that big of a trailer would just drag me around.

i would just like to be educated in the upgrades on my truck so it can be a good capable hauler for when i do pull a trailer.

[DBasher]

When towing, bigger is better. The frame, axles, hubs, bearings, brakes...everything needs to be up to the task. On a 1/2 ton or 1/4 ton everything is smaller, lighter and was never designed or engineered to sustain the loads you’d be asking of them.

I’d stick to, or close to, the manufactures recommendations for the S-10.

[JKnight]

Wheelbase, track width, frame strength, axle bearings are all good reasons why the S10 would be a little scary with any significant weight in tow. The brakes, power, wheel/tire Load capacity, etc. can be addressed to match that of a heavier duty pickup, but you’d have to do significantly more to get the suspension links, mounts (including the front) and frame up to the task. The wheelbase issue will always remain, but may not be that much worse than some older platforms.

[JKnight]

With all that in mind, you could probably setup the truck to tow an open 1 car trailer pretty well, maybe even a small enclosed trailer, but I’d avoid the 5th wheel idea, even if for no other reason than the short bed your truck likely has.

[carkrazy1987]

5th wheel was just a pipe dream, i know that would never happen. i pull a open 1 car with it now, and it pulls fine. could use more power and better brakes. my truck is tired and it shows. i did not think for 1 sec a 5th wheel would be an option, i was just being hypothetical.

[Vegas69]

Physics, an S10 is a tiny truck which means it will handle things appropriate sizes. Think of a full size truck and what it tows and a semi, etc.. A 5th wheel could literally push you right off the road.