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2013 Chevy Avalanche Towing and Hauling

fcfblues

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Jun 15, 2013
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I have a 2013 Black Diamond Chevy Avalanche 5.3 V8 2WD with a 3.42 GUR, the heavy duty towing package with the heavy duty engine cooling system and transmission oil cooler.  I read in the book that I can tow up to 8100 lbs if i have a 5.3L V8 K5L HD Cooling Pkg with a 3.42 GUR, but I've been reading on the forums that I should only tow 5400 with a 3.42 GUR.  I also don't know what K5L means or how to find out if that refers to my vehicle.  How much weight can I tow?  New and trying to figure this out.  I'm trying to purchase the right camper.
 
Here is the disclaimer Chevy says about the towing ability 

"Maximum trailer ratings are calculated assuming a properly equipped base vehicle, plus driver. See dealer for details."
 
The 5400lbs is for the 3.08 gears not the 3.42 gears you have so your AV has max tow rating of 8100lbs, realistically you really should only tow a max 7500lbs once you take away the weight of family and stuff in the AV.

You will need to watch the payload of the AV which is about 1300lbs, minus passengers, cargo and tongue weight. Tongue weight is normally 10-15% of trailer weight so a 7500lb trailer should have a tongue weight of 750-1125lbs, if it's the high end of 1125lbs it only leaves about 200lbs for passengers and cargo in the AV. A weight distributing hitch does shift some tongue weight back to the trailer axles but, you can see how little room you might have.

EDIT/WARNING;

DON'T GO BY DRY WEIGHT!

If you are going by a published weight for the trailer you need to go by the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating for the trailer. The dry weight is sometimes a fantasy number that is lighter then any trailer of that model ever weighed when it left the factory let alone after you add your stuff for camping.
 
The trailer we are looking at is 5200 lbs.  If I'm reading your calculations correctly we should be good to go with that amount of weight.  Thanks so much for your help. 
 
fcfblues said:
The trailer we are looking at is 5200 lbs.  If I'm reading your calculations correctly we should be good to go with that amount of weight.  Thanks so much for your help. 

The trailering setup is just as important as the trailer weight. You want 10-15% tounge weight, axles that are properly placed and allow you to tow without sway., and a good braking controller like the tekonsha prodigy.

Avalon
 
My 03 Z-71 with 4.10 gears was rated for 8100 lbs. I towed a camper that was 4450 lbs dry and pulling it up grades it was screaming at 5500 rpms. I hated it. Could not imagine any thing heavier.
My 04 2500 pulls a 9000 lbs dry camper and never revs more than 3000 rpms  :love:
 
I've got a 2013 AV with the towing package too. I also have a 5K# (empty) 28' travel trailer that's probably loaded to about 5600-5700# for travel. I've towed the TT to the beach and my hunting camp once each since I picked up the AV. When I tow, I put it in manual mode, lock 5th gear and drive 65ish mph (about 2K rpm). From Fredericksburg to VA Beach is relatively flat ground for the most part and I don't remember it having to downsift to maintain speed. It does break torque converter lock on occasion but never revs hard. Going to the cabin is a different story. From F'burg I go west on 66 to 81, then south on 81 to just north of Roanoak, VA (about 180 miles through the Appalachians). There are some pretty good grades and it definitely uses the tranny to climb some of them. But I don't remember ever breaking 4K rpm, but that's because I'm not in any hurry and slowing down to 50-55 mph to climb a hill at about 3600-3700 rpm is not a problem for me. I also have a Reese Dual Cam setup and have zero problems with sway. Only the slightest bit of suck and blow from semis and no noticeable sway from wind, but then again, I can't say I've had the rig out in strong cross winds. If you're looking to get a 5K-6K trailer somewhere comfortably and sensibly, you won't have any problems. If you want to get it somewhere maintaing a constant 75 mph, you need a bigger truck.
 
A number of people have upgraded their hitch to a Draw-tite 41930.  No one actually makes an aftermarket hitch for the Avalanche because they all have one stock.  However as previously noted, they are kind of undersized.  The Draw-Tite is actually for a Suburban, but it fits.  You just need to add spacers.  There is a whole thread on here somewhere on the installation.  

I'm in the process of upgrading a variety of things to haul a 7000lb boat.  However you have the advantage of the 6 speed, the anti-sway control, and the engine braking that I do not have in 2008.
 
Even after reading several threads I find myself very confused about RPO codes for the Heavy Duty Towing package. Below is part of a build sheet description I saw for for a 2013 Black Diamond on a dealer's site.

I understand what a Transmission Oil Cooler is, but what is the Engine Oil Cooler (heavy duty air-to-oil)? What is the Trailer Brake Controller? Is there a different hitch installed? The RPO codes I see are K5L, KC4, KNP, GU6, and JL1. Is anyone else completely confused?

Could someone please explain all this in plain English?

  • COOLING, EXTERNAL ENGINE OIL COOLER heavy-duty air-to-oil, integral to driver-side of radiator tank (Included and only available with (K5L) heavy-duty trailering package) (KC4)
  • COOLING, EXTERNAL TRANSMISSION OIL COOLER heavy-duty air-to-oil (Included and only available with (K5L) heavy-duty trailering package) (KNP)
  • REAR AXLE, 3.42 RATIO (Included and only available with (K5L) heavy-duty trailering package) (GU6)
  • TRAILER BRAKE CONTROLLER integrated (Requires (K5L) heavy-duty trailering package.) (JL1)
  • TRAILERING PACKAGE, HEAVY-DUTY includes (GU6) 3.42 rear axle ratio, (KNP) external transmission oil cooler and (KC4) engine oil cooler, provides increased trailering capabilities (Also includes (NQH) 2-speed active transfer case on CK10936 models) (K5L)

Thank you,

Tom
 
On my 2004 Cadillac Escalade EXT, the KC4 Heavy Duty Engine Oil Cooling can been seen as a set of oil cooler lines going from a set of ports on the oil pan right above the engine oil filter to a set of ports on the left side radiator tank.

The KNP Cooling System Trans, HD cooler is a small horizontal radiator looking device that sits horizontally in front of the a/c condenser in front of the radiator and can be seen right behind the front grill.

The transmission fluid is routed first through the transmission cooler in the right side radiator tank, then is routed through the auxiliary cooler up front before returning to the transmission.

Some have added an aftermarket auxiliary transmission cooler on trucks that do not have the factory installed device and have also replaced the rather smallish factory cooler with a larger aftermarket device for better transmission cooling.

The Tru-Cool - Max LPD47391 47391 Low Pressure Drop Transmission Oil Cooler is one such aftermarket cooler that seems to be pretty popular.

There are several Youtube videos describing the installation of this cooler.

On my EXT, with the factory auxiliary cooler, the transmission temperature generally runs 90 degrees above the outside air temperature all year round under normal driving.

In the heat of summer, while running the a/c and towing my 25' Party Barge, the transmission temperature will run 10-15 degrees above that.

My 2003 Avalanche Z-66, with no factory auxiliary transmission cooler installed, usually runs around 195-205 degrees under normal summertime driving.

I have not yet towed my Party Barge with that truck.

I also have the aftermarket cooler I mentioned above purchased and ready to install in that truck, when I get around to it.

I wanted to have that cooler ready to install when and if my factory original transmission needs a rebuild.

The transmission in that truck has never been rebuilt and currently has 246K miles on it.

It's bound to go out at some point, I would assume.
 
Thank you XT4ME,

I added the OE transmission cooler in front of the radiator. Could you possibly take a picture of the OE engine oil cooler lines to the radiator?

Tom
 
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