Silverado 1500 diesel with Escape 5

[HJN]

I there any one out there that have experience with or busy towing the Escape 5 with a 2024 Silverado 1500,2 wheel drive, Diesel 6 Cylinder with the standard 3.23 axel ratio?
I am interested to hear how the truck with that standard axel ratio perform with Escape 5 especially in hilly or mountain area.I was advised by the dealership that it will work 100% with the GVWR of the Escape 5
The next Silverado trim with the 3.73 axel ratio is quite a bit more than the trims with the 3.23 axel ratio that is a bit lower than the Toyota Tundra axel ratio .
I know the 3.73 will make towing in the mountains probably more easy but not sure if I really need it especially with the price jump in the trims?
Hope it make sense and some one can share their experiences. Please

 

[John Webb]

I think I would go see what the payload is for that truck, and what the tow rating is. Your salesman could tell You. Also, all GM trucks have that information on stickers on the driver side door sill. It is going to vary depending on the amount of options on the truck. Seems like I heard a tow rating of 7500 lbs. for that truck, but I wouldn’t put faith in My memory, I would check the stickers on the actual truck. You can also take the Vin#, I think, and plug it into the Chevy, or GMC truck websites, (depending on which brand), and the sale sheet in the window should come up, and show You which options and specs, are good for that truck. I have never done this, but I heard from Somebody, that this could work. Also, You are going to have to have the payload working with the tow rating. So You can have the tow rating, but not have enough payload, (weight of the 5.0, passengers, hitch, stuff in the box, etc). For that You are going to need to know how much the Pin weight of the 5.0 is. The other stuff You can guesstimate. Tongue in cheek, I am going to say that it will do it, just fine, unless You want to go over the summit of the Rocky Mountains doing 70 MPH. Good luck. P.S, there is a Guy on Utube That did some really good reviews about this model truck. I just can’t remember His channel. It was something like truck reviews, and RV’s. Sorry not exactly sure about that. Type it in, and I suspect it will come up.

 

[John Webb]

O.K. I was little messed up with the channel for those truck reviews. It is, “Pickup truck plus SUV reviews. I found it by typing in reviews for 1500 Chevy Silverado Diesel 4x4. I know these reviews are for 4x4’s but a lot of the info was the same. It is important to note that this Guy has since sold the truck, and resell was not good, due to the fact that it was a diesel. He sold it because, as a Guy who reviews trucks, he buys new trucks frequently to have new content for His channel. Hope this helps.

 

[HJN]

Thanks John
On paper the 3.23 axel ratio trim I look at should do it.
Max tow weight is 9200 lbs and the Escape 5 GWVR is 5500 lbs.
The 3.73 axel ratio even higher max tow weight!
Being new to towing and no experience,with all the other info collected, I guess it is a peace of mind thing if someone already has a positive experience in a GMC or Chevy truck with 3.23 axel in the mountains with an Escape 5 or similar GWVR oon tow.
Hope it make sense. Thanks again for your time and info.Really appreciated ��

 

[John Webb]

I think if I was going to be doing a lot of heavy-duty towing in the mountains. I would probably go with the 3.73. Having said that I would try and do some research, whether it be through people at a dealership, or Utube. The mileage won’t be quite as good with the 3.73, but You won’t work the engine as hard, towing up a lot of steep terrain. Just My 2 cents. Trucks these days are expensive. I would really research the heck out of this before I committed to buying, or ordering one.

 

[Tom&Joan]

I have a 3.73 AXLE ratio on my truck which I think is ideal.

 

[Chamberman]

With a diesel and the excellent low RPM torque curve available I wouldn't think twice about getting the 3.23 rear end gearing. When coupled with the 10spd auto and the numerically high 1st and 2nd gear ratios that transmission uses it should make for an excellent tow vehicle. You can lock out the higher gears when towing.

Now if you were buying one of their gas powered engines I'd then recommend the higher 3.42 or 3.73 axle ratios.

With 9200lbs of towing capacity you'll have more than enough headroom, you're going to likely run out of payload capacity far sooner than you'll get anywhere near the max towing capacity.

 

[hghsl]

I just pulled a 5.0ta from Denver Colorado with a Colorado Diesel, against a 10-18 mph head wind the whole way to northeastern North Dakota with no problem. I am sure a Silverado Duramax would have more than enough power. I have the tow package with 3.42 gears.

 

[AnJ-ESC]

For what it’s worth, we are towing a 21C with the Suburban 3.0L diesel, same axle ratio. So far, it’s been great on fuel and handled the BC Rockies many times without a problem. We actually prefer it to the 5.3L Silverado we had previously.

 

[Bill and Earline]

2022 GMC 1500 3.0, essentially the same truck you’re considering, towing 2014 21C::

 

[Centex]

Nice information sticker on your GM truck

2022 GMC 1500 3.0 ....

Pardon the interruption but I must say that Trailering Information sticker (on your doorframe?) is quite nice IMO. Ford doesn't provide all of that VIN-specific trailering info on a sticker on F150's (so it must not be a mandated requirement), I wish they did.

OK, back to topic ....

 

[Keith3]

2022 GMC 1500 3.0, essentially the same truck you’re considering, towing 2014 21C::

Those are impressive numbers. Is there an option package that would increase the payload rating?

I’m waffling between a F250 and F150 due to a bigger trailer in the future. Diesel is one advantage of the 250, but the 150 with towing package can get to a pretty decent payload and is more manageable when not towing. A 1500 with small diesel would hit the sweet spot if the payload could be bit higher than what your showing.

Obviously, what you have is the sweet spot for you, and seems to be working really well.

 

[Centex]

... A 1500 with small diesel would hit the sweet spot if the payload could be bit higher than what your showing. ....

Just curious, given a possible future larger trailer, what's your desired payload target?

 

[Keith3]

Target implies more precision than I can claim at this point. The trailer is 68 Aistream that is getting fully redone. The weight is still largely undetermined, much less the tongue weight. But some modern similar sized aluminum slugs are pushing 800 lbs on their tongue weights. I’m hoping to be less but looking around based on that.

My current F150 STX 2.7EB has a payload of about 1550. If I add in 100lbs for a WDH, 500 lbs for passengers (human and canine), that doesn’t leave me much margin.

I’d like to have at least a few hundred pounds of wiggle room in the bed for e-bikes, generator, cooler, and such.

So, maybe 1800lbs would be enough, but I won’t be sure until I put water in the finished project.

Until then the current 5.0 and F150 combo are rock solid. It tows like a dream and my only desire is to upgrade the fuel tank.

 

[John in Santa Cruz]

Pardon the interruption but I must say that Trailering Information sticker (on your doorframe?) is quite nice IMO. Ford doesn't provide all of that VIN-specific trailering info on a sticker on F150's (so it must not be a mandated requirement), I wish they did.

OK, back to topic ....

yeah, my Ford says...

But, Ford also provides ...
https://www.ford.com/cmslibs/conten.../guides/19Towing_Ford_Expedition_r1_Dec21.pdf

I have the 3.73 axles with the HD tow (536) option, mine is a 4x4 short body, so I can tow 9200 lbs with a WDH. or 6000 lbs max without it.

 

[John Webb]

Target implies more precision than I can claim at this point. The trailer is 68 Aistream that is getting fully redone. The weight is still largely undetermined, much less the tongue weight. But some modern similar sized aluminum slugs are pushing 800 lbs on their tongue weights. I’m hoping to be less but looking around based on that.

My current F150 STX 2.7EB has a payload of about 1550. If I add in 100lbs for a WDH, 500 lbs for passengers (human and canine), that doesn’t leave me much margin.

I’d like to have at least a few hundred pounds of wiggle room in the bed for e-bikes, generator, cooler, and such.

So, maybe 1800lbs would be enough, but I won’t be sure until I put water in the finished project.

Until then the current 5.0 and F150 combo are rock solid. It tows like a dream and my only desire is to upgrade the fuel tank.

Do Yourself a favor and get the 3/4 ton.

 

[John in Santa Cruz]

I towed my Escape with a F250 3/4 ton, and it was just too big and heavy. sure, easy towing, but lousy maneuverability, impossible to parallel park when not towing, etc..

 

[John Webb]

I towed my Escape with a F250 3/4 ton, and it was just too big and heavy. sure, easy towing, but lousy maneuverability, impossible to parallel park when not towing, etc..

The new HD trucks are pretty clunky, but it sounded like the Airstream He was going to pull might be pretty heavy, with all the extras He planned on taking. The worst part of the newer HD trucks is expense. I am a diesel kind of Guy, as that is what I have always had, but todays new diesels, are pretty high maintenance, and they are so heavy. With all the smog crap, they just don’t get the mileage, or life out of them They should. I probably could of gotten away with the 6.6 liter Chevy gas engine, and do just fine, but I hope to do some extended trips, and wanted more truck than I needed. I do like the extra Horsepower, and the E23, although fairly light, by the time it is loaded, and the truck is stuffed, it is more weight than most people realize. I never could learn to minimize My crap. Always thinking, I am going on Safari, or something!

 

[John in Santa Cruz]

The new HD trucks are pretty clunky, but it sounded like the Airstream He was going to pull might be pretty heavy, with all the extras He planned on taking. The worst part of the newer HD trucks is expense. I am a diesel kind of Guy, as that is what I have always had, but todays new diesels, are pretty high maintenance, and they are so heavy. With all the smog crap, they just don’t get the mileage, or life out of them They should. I probably could of gotten away with the 6.6 liter Chevy gas engine, and do just fine, but I hope to do some extended trips, and wanted more truck than I needed. I do like the extra Horsepower, and the E23, although fairly light, by the time it is loaded, and the truck is stuffed, it is more weight than most people realize. I never could learn to minimize My crap. Always thinking, I am going on Safari, or something!

oh, I missed the Airstream part, this is the Escape forum, so I stilly me assumed < 5000 lbs GWR. Yeah, any Airstream other than a Bambi really should be towed by a HD/Superduty/whatever, 250/2500 or 350/3500 truck.

re diesels, my 2002 F250 had the last version of the classic 7.3L Powerstroke, which has a reputation of being a million mile engine, long as you keep up with maintenance. Mine had 280K miles by the time I sold it, but while I had it, I replaced the glow plugs, and one bank of the injectors.

 

[John Webb]

oh, I missed the Airstream part, this is the Escape forum, so I stilly me assumed < 5000 lbs GWR. Yeah, any Airstream other than a Bambi really should be towed by a HD/Superduty/whatever, 250/2500 or 350/3500 truck.

re diesels, my 2002 F250 had the last version of the classic 7.3L Powerstroke, which has a reputation of being a million mile engine, long as you keep up with maintenance. Mine had 280K miles by the time I sold it, but while I had it, I replaced the glow plugs, and one bank of the injectors.

I bought a 2024 Chevy 3500 4x4 a little over a year ago. The thing gets great mileage, and really excels out on the open road. As a daily driver, not so much. The idea of getting it was, that occasionally I have to haul max payload, and this truck fits the bill for that. The really bad news is that I know that these trucks have a Diesel Particulate Filter, (DPF), and I have heard from Friends that They go 100,000- 150,000 miles. Currently that is a $7500 repair. Most People trade them off before this repair is needed. I figure this is the last truck I will ever own, and I tend to drive them until They are dirt. So not too thrilled with the idea of those kinds of repairs in My future. Just the reality of HD diesel trucks right now. I hope to get a lot of miles in front of My ordered E23. Waiting is hard. Wish I would have got one sooner, but just never had the time to go camping. Too much into My job!