What Suspension Upgrades Should I Consider For Towing Heavy Loads?
Can a Chevy Tahoe pull a camper? The Chevy Tahoe is capable of pulling a camper, and the base Tahoe is capable of pulling at least 7,700 pounds. This means that any camper weight below that number can be towed by the base Tahoe without much trouble. However, if you need to tow more with your base Tahoe and you don’t have the Chevy Tahoe Max Trailering Package, you will need to do some aftermarket suspension upgrades for towing.
Note: It is important to note that we do not recommend attempting to tow anything outside of the factory weight limits of your vehicle without each necessary element being upgraded to meet or exceed your desired payload.
Towing With My Tahoe
It’s important to understand the difference between the base Tahoe and the upgraded Tahoe. The base Tahao comes with a 5.3-liter V8 engine that makes 355 horsepower and 383 pound-feet of torque. Without any significant upgrades, this engine can tow 7,700 pounds. With the Max Trailering Package, this engine can tow up to 8,400 pounds. Some Tahoes also come with a 6.2-liter V8 engine that makes 420 horsepower and can tow up to 8,300 pounds in its basic form. The drive layout of your Tahoe also makes a difference. If you have a 4WD Tahoe, you can tow up to 7,700 pounds. If you have the RWD Tahoe, you can tow up to 7,900 pounds with the base engine. Tahoe suspension upgrades and other tweaks can help you tow more. Let’s take a look.
Why Towing Upgrades Are Important
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Before we discuss how you can increase towing with a suspension enhancement system (Timbren SES), let’s take a look at why certain upgrades are important. First of all, towing is hard on any vehicle. It has to work extra hard to get the load going, and then it must also have the ability to bring the load to a stop once it gets going. Towing with a badly-equipped vehicle is unsafe and can cause damage to your vehicle. That’s why all vehicle manufacturers provide tow capacity ratings for every vehicle. Before you buy an RV, it’s important to know what the tow capacity rating is for your truck or SUV. If you end up finding an RV that runs somewhat over your vehicle’s tow capacity rating, you might be wondering whether you can increase your towing capacity. The answer is generally yes, you should be able to increase your towing capacity with various upgrades to your suspension and other systems.
Ways To Increase Towing Capacity
So, how do you increase your Tahoe’s towing capacity to pull something over its weight limit? With Tahoe suspension upgrades, of course. Before we get to the suspension part, it’s also important to make sure you have the right hitch for your trailer. Another thing you can do is use a vehicle programmer to increase horsepower and torque. What this does is adjust the stock settings in your Tahoe’s computer to increase power. Most vehicles have factory-installed settings for better fuel efficiency, even if it’s at the expense of power.
Now, you have more power and the right hitch, so the next step is to make sure that your Tahoe’s suspension is able to handle the power increase and trailer weight. At this point, you’ll want to replace your stock axles with heavy-duty ones and upgrade to a heavier-duty braking system as well. A larger radiator should also be a consideration as your truck will be working much harder to tow a heavy load. Finally, enhancing your intake and exhaust can help your truck breathe better and increase performance.
Timbren Chevy Tahoe Suspension Upgrade
This brings us to the next area to upgrade: your suspension. The problem with modern truck and SUV suspensions is that they’re more designed towards ride comfort versus towing heavy loads. When you tow up to your max capacity or over it, you end up with the rear-end squat problem. Too much weight on the rear suspension can also cause dangerous problems like rolling and swaying.
Timbren Suspension Enhancement Systems are designed to keep your truck level while towing heavy loads. The Aeon springs provide increased resistance with increased load weight. The hollow rubber design absorbs road shock while towing, which allows your shock absorbers to still deliver a smooth ride. Using a Timbren SES eliminates the need for a costly and complicated air suspension that has far more moving parts, which increases the risk of failure.
Other Upgrades
After you’ve completed the steps above and purchased your rubber helper spring rear kit and SES front kit, it’s time to look at a few additional upgrades to enhance your safety while towing. Larger mirrors and the right wiring harness for trailer lights are also important. Larger mirrors can help you see around an extra tall or extra wide trailer by increasing the field of view and reducing blind spots. As most modern vehicles have electric mirrors, you’ll likely need to install permanent towing mirrors to keep the functionality of your electric mirrors.
Wiring harnesses are usually something you will need to purchase separately apart from your hitch. These are often vehicle-specific, and you’ll want to check what your trailer requires before buying one.
Count on Timbren Suspension Enhancement systems to provide the best suspension upgrades for towing. Whether you have a 2020 Tahoe, a 2019 Tahoe, or an earlier model year, our suspension upgrades provide added stability and better ride quality. All SES upgrades come with a lifetime warranty, are easy to install, and require zero maintenance.
