[TNRvCamper]

I want to tow a 32' RV Travel trailer with a diesel Colorado. Do I need 4WD or will a 2WD version work. The trailer weighs about 5800# empty.
I prefer the crew cab short box. Is there any
advantage to having the long box for towing?

 

[dmaxjr]

Only time i had to use 4wd while towing was a steep gravel hill going into a backwoods lake. 2wd should be fine if you are on pavement and no slippery conditions.
I like the long box for a little longer more stable platform, and to fit my ATV in the box with tailgate closed.

 

[.boB]

Is there any
advantage to having the long box for towing?

Not so much the long box, but the longer wheel base makes for a more stable towing platform. You also tend to get a smoother ride on choppy pavement. But you'll be using a weight distributing hitch, so it's probably a moot point.

2 wheel drive is arguable better for towing, because your base weight is less. That's why the towing capacity is higher for a 2 wheel drive compared to a 4 wheel drive. But, if you're going to be camping in national parks and state parks, 4x4 could be nice on rainy and snowy days. Not a necessity, but nice.

 

[KMW]

I agree with the longer wheel base being better, especially with that long of a trailer.

As for 4x2 vs 4x4, that totally depends on where you'll be driving. If you're totally on paved roads, 4x2 will likely be just fine. Any slow gravel roads with hills, and you will want 4x4. I have a gravel driveway with an incline corner, and I need 4x4 to get my 4400# 20' RV up and around it when it's dry and the gravel is loose. When it's wet and the gravel is compacted and hard, I can make it with the rear locker on.

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[DieselDrax]

Having owned a 31’ (33’ overall) travel trailer before, towing it with a 1/2 ton truck with a 9,500lb tow capacity first before upgrading to a 3/4-ton diesel, I can tell you that you are likely to quickly dislike towing that trailer with a Canyon/Colorado. It will push you around and not be a fun drive at all.

Also, ignore the empty weight. It’s useless. Look at the trailer’s GVWR, is it more than the truck’s tow capacity? As a guideline, don’t buy a trailer that has a higher GVWR than your tow capacity, it’s easier than you think to end up overloaded.

Even if the GVWR is less than the tow capacity I wouldn’t want to tow that trailer with that small of a truck unless you’re talking about just going a few miles down the road. Long trips? No way.

You should look at a bigger truck or a smaller trailer.


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[model citizen]

so, after passengers, water in tanks , gear etc, pushing 7k payload?

i'd get a bigger truck

 

[rkj__]

2WD could be a problem if you are faced with towing your trailer over the following:
Sand or sandy inclines
Mud or muddy inclines
Loose gravel inclines
Uneven rocky or rooty ground
Snowy or icy conditions

I camped about 10 times this summer, and used 4x4 3 of those 10 times, because I was spinning tires in 2WD, due to inclines with roots, rocks, and loose dirt. I did not come across much mud at any of my sites this year, but one day I will.

 

[blue47]

The only time I wished I had 4wd was when I was backing the trailer uphill to a campsite.

ron

 

[ARIZONABILL]

Colorado Diesel Towing Experience

TNRvCamper,

If the 32-foot trailer has typical dry and tongue weights, it is probably too heavy to COMFORTABLY tow with a Colorado diesel. A good “rule-of-thumb” for “COMFORTABLE” towing is to not tow a trailer over about 2/3rds, or 65%, of your vehicle’s rated towing capacity (= 7,600 or 7,700 pounds for our Colorado diesels). In other words, if a trailer is near or over 5,000 pounds loaded, it can be towed within a Colorado diesel’s towing capacity specification, but the towing will be barely “COMFORTABLE.” Beyond 5,000 pounds, fuel mileage will drop (further), wear-and-tear on your Colorado’s engine and transmission will go up, maintaining cruise tow speed will be a challenge, and hills become real barriers.

I tow a light, 3000-pound-loaded travel trailer with my 2017 Colorado diesel (crew cab, short box), and the trailer tows very well. On the other hand, my highway fuel mileage while towing drops to between 18.3 and 20.5 mpg depending on weather and terrain conditions. My non-towing highway mileage is normally 29-30 mpg. Also, I definitely “feel” the trailer while towing and experience somewhat slower climbs and longer stops even with good, well-adjusted electric trailer brakes. I am convinced, based on my personal towing experience, that increasing the trailer weight another 2,000 pounds to 5,000 pounds total would not be fun, and over that, it would quickly become downright miserable.

My personal opinion after towing a 3,000-pound trailer over 4,000 road miles with a Colorado diesel is that I would not feel comfortable towing a trailer over 4,500 pounds loaded, and I would not want a tongue (hitch) weight over 450 pounds. This is just my own opinion, though. It all depends on what “COMFORTABLE” towing means to you; personally.

My Colorado diesel is a 4x4. I normally tow (about 90% of the time) in 2-wheel-drive mode, but I have been very glad, several times, to have 4x4 available for towing in slippery conditions and/or over dirt/gravel roads. It is a personal judgment call relative to whether or not you need 4x4 for towing. It all depends on when and where you want to go!

One more thought: For downhill towing, the Colorado diesel’s exhaust brake is great!

I hope this information helps.

Arizona (and Southern California) Bill

 

[k7tnt]

You will need a bigger truck, your pushing the limits of safety. IMO sorry man.

 

[alphaecho4386]

If you were planning on going on RV holidays a couple times a year, and the trailer GVWR is under the 7700lb tow rating of the Colorado, it might be fine for an everyday use pickup with the occasional tow duty.

But if this trucks primary purpose is to tow the trailer many times a year, you'd be better off with at least a half ton truck, or even the heavy halfton titan diesel. The colorado is great, and the high tow rating is great for those that might want to hitch something big up on occasion, but its still a "compact" truck.

 

[dmaxjr]

When i got my Diesel Canyon, i also sold my 32' Toy Hauler TT, then purchased a 23' TT tandem axle for a better suit to the truck.

My 23' Trailer is 5990 full load when dry camp, or 5490 when i don't fill tank, along with fire wood and gear in the back of the truck for stability. The diesel tows the trailer so effortlessly it is easy to see why a person would want to tow another 1000 lbs, but it was not so much the weight, but the length that can get awkward in high cross winds, or storm. If you need to tow 7500 lbs acrross town a few miles or up to the hunting grounds once a year, by all means the truck is fine. If your doing vacation trips that require unknown weather and lots of mountains, the size trailer i have now is just about perfect, safe and still lots of room and ammenities for "camping". :grin2:

 

[alphaecho4386]

When i got my Diesel Canyon, i also sold my 32' Toy Hauler TT, then purchased a 23' TT tandem axle for a better suit to the truck.

My 23' Trailer is 5990 full load when dry camp, or 5490 when i don't fill tank, along with fire wood and gear in the back of the truck for stability. The diesel tows the trailer so effortlessly it is easy to see why a person would want to tow another 1000 lbs, but it was not so much the weight, but the length that can get awkward in high cross winds, or storm. If you need to tow 7500 lbs acrross town a few miles or up to the hunting grounds once a year, by all means the truck is fine. If your doing vacation trips that require unknown weather and lots of mountains, the size trailer i have now is just about perfect, safe and still lots of room and ammenities for "camping". :grin2:

Yeah, toys, water(clean, grey and black), wood, food, propane, general supplies etc all add up to a lot of weight. And then the physical surface area of a big RV all really add up. I think I would plan like that, to be no more than 3/4 of my tow capacity once all loaded down. I am looking casually for my next RV, and as I like to go off the beaten path extra weight and size makes it difficult to get there.

I had a 10' lance camper in my last rig. It had a sticker of about 3k lbs with basic options. When I loaded it on the scales attached to my truck and all the gear, that jumped to about 4500lbs. its amazing how well you can hide weight around the place.

 

[tmhd82]

Weight is never the problem with these trucks. It's stability.

My 24' enclosed car hauler is right up against the rated capacity of my truck. I tow it a few times per year and it's generally very local, so I'm okay with the compromise for 30 highway MPG unladen.

It accelerates and maintains speed with the trailer within a stone's throw of what my 3/4 ton Suburban with the 8.1 V8 would do, but you work far harder with the Colorado to keep everything going straight down the highway. I have to position my Jeep very carefully in the trailer to balance sway and tongue weight. With the Suburban, I'd just pull it in and strap it down without a second thought, because it was stable no matter what.

That said, these are great tow rigs as long as you remember that they aren't heavy duty trucks and adjust your expectations accordingly.

PS - Suburban got 5-7 MPG, Colorado gets 12-15 with the same trailer!

 

[jdecker94]

honestly, ive pulled trailer over a trucks tow rating and never had an issue, including a kubota kx080 excavator behind an f350 dually (way overweight) and never had an issue

 

[DieselDrax]

honestly, ive pulled trailer over a trucks tow rating and never had an issue, including a kubota kx080 excavator behind an f350 dually (way overweight) and never had an issue

Ok...

Weight isn’t the issue here.


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[jdecker94]

Ok...

Weight isn’t the issue here.


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then what is?

 

[DieselDrax]

then what is?

Read the thread.


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[jdecker94]

a lot of you guys need to learn to hook up and dont look back

 

[DieselDrax]

a lot of you guys need to learn to hook up and dont look back

Great way to kill people. Don’t be this guy. ^^^


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