V10 towing capacity

[Halogin13]

Hi all.. searched and read through threads till my eyes glazed over, and couldn't find a definitive answer..
1987 V10 Silverado 5.7L TBI 350, 400r.. 14 bolt rear end..
Thinking about purchasing a trailer, nothing huge like a 5th wheel, but what can I comfortably tow? I live in Ca, so hills n mountains are part of every journey..just looking to upgrade from our pop up tent trailer, cause now we're a family of 4 😊
As always, thanks in advance, and apologies if this thread is a duplicate

[csdineley]

I think its between 6000-6500 lbs. But I'd shoot for 3500-4000 as a safety margin.

[zieg85]

Hi all.. searched and read through threads till my eyes glazed over, and couldn't find a definitive answer..
1987 V10 Silverado 5.7L TBI 350, 400r.. 14 bolt rear end..
Thinking about purchasing a trailer, nothing huge like a 5th wheel, but what can I comfortably tow? I live in Ca, so hills n mountains are part of every journey..just looking to upgrade from our pop up tent trailer, cause now we're a family of 4 😊
As always, thanks in advance, and apologies if this thread is a duplicate

What is a 400r?  14 bolt in a V10 would have to been added?  What other upgrades have been done.  What gear do you have in the 14 bolt?

[Irish_Alley]

A V10 would be a 700r4 (aka 4l60) and a V10 should have really low gears for better MPGs not good for towing. But like zieg said the 14 bolt wouldn't of came in a half ton and I don't think the tg400 would either

[Halogin13]

Sorry, autocorrect went nutty on me.. th700-r4, should be 3.06 gearing.. apparently trucks Has had an axle swap done.. I decoded the vin, and GVWR is listed at 6001-7000... wondering if I had a little more room with the axle swap for towing...

[zieg85]

3.21 for a full float, or 3.42 for a semi float is the 2 highest gear ratios available in stock form

[Irish_Alley]

since an axle swap has been done the vin and gvwr shouldnt matter. best thing to do is find your ratio by a couple different ways one way is without popping the cover the other you have to pop the cover off, but its prob a good time to replace the axle fluid anyway
http://forum.73-87chevytrucks.com/smforum/index.php?topic=30546.0

[big_al273]

if your going to get into towing don't forget to research your local laws and regulations regarding towing trailers, best way to avoid tickets is to know what the law says you can and can't do

[Irish_Alley]

curious but what local laws are around you big al?

[ehjorten]

Geesh...if you have 3.21:1 rear gears and a TH700-R4 tranny (0.70:1 overdrive)...I am guessing the truck is in your avatar and it looks like it may be lifted slightly with like 33" tires?  If that is the case you are barely turning 1,600 RPM at 70 MPH!  If you are going to be towing, you could really stand to put some lower gears in that thing!  I would say probably 3.73s.  The lower first gear ratio will help you get moving.

[Halogin13]

Thank you all for your input... will research more specifics... essentially I feel pretty confident with the direction I'm heading.. we have an old 87 Starcraft pop up tent trailer, but want to move into the next larger version... still below 2k lbs dry weight... now to decipher my Frankenstein truck.

BigAl- Ca laws are pretty simple.. if you're towing, ya can't go over 55 😁
Irish-thank you!! That'll be the next thing I tackle!!
Ehjorten-yes it is, 4" lift, those are 35s 🤘
Zelig-swap was done by previous owner.. need to get in there to see what I have for gearing..

[big_al273]

curious but what local laws are around you big al?

Fun to say the least, In Ontario Canada you can tow RV trailers without commercial safeties but pretty much everything else (aside from little tiny trailers for cars) needs a commercial safety inspection certificate sticker on both the towing rig and the trailer plus if your doing anything commercial (for profit) you need to register as a Commercial vehicle operator and receive a C.V.O.R. (commercial vehicle operators registry) number that must be posted on the exterior of the vehicle as well as write Daily inspection reports, log hours of operation and various other regulations.
Basically the C.V.O.R. keeps tabs on who runs safe trucks and properly trained drivers and who's running ill-maintained rigs or untrained/improperly trained drivers, C.V.O.R. holders who get too many tickets on their trucks in a short time will have their C.V.O.R. revoked

[VileZambonie]

4.11:1 or 4.56:1 would be ideal for those final gears.

[Irish_Alley]

curious but what local laws are around you big al?

Fun to say the least, In Ontario Canada you can tow RV trailers without commercial safeties but pretty much everything else (aside from little tiny trailers for cars) needs a commercial safety inspection certificate sticker on both the towing rig and the trailer plus if your doing anything commercial (for profit) you need to register as a Commercial vehicle operator and receive a C.V.O.R. (commercial vehicle operators registry) number that must be posted on the exterior of the vehicle as well as write Daily inspection reports, log hours of operation and various other regulations.
Basically the C.V.O.R. keeps tabs on who runs safe trucks and properly trained drivers and who's running ill-maintained rigs or untrained/improperly trained drivers, C.V.O.R. holders who get too many tickets on their trucks in a short time will have their C.V.O.R. revoked

dang, but at the same time it sounds like a good idea for safety but sounds like a big pain. in Maryland you only have to get you vehicle inspected once as long as you keep up on paying the yearly registration. which is cool but you have some people who just dont care and will drive their trucks till the tires literally fall off

[big_al273]

ya it's a pain but it keeps the number of stupid maintenance related accidents low (at least for commercial vehicles) Cars and light trucks registered for personal use only only need an inspection when buying/selling or to certify that it's safe after an accident/repair and you see a lot more poorly maintained cars than big trucks thankfully, not that any junker on our roads is a good thing