The recent talk about towing (and the reasoning) has me very
troubled. A good part of my buisness (farming) involves towing and
complying with state regulations. Comparing a pickup to a semi is out
of the question. When I bought my semi two years ago, the main concern
was axle weight (the main concern of the hypo's). But take into
consideration the differences. One, a semi is a fifth-wheel setup. IOW,
the hitch weight is centered BETWEEN the front and drive axle. Your
bumper hitch is well behing the back axle, thereby actually multiplying
by some factor the weight on the back axle and totally disrupting the
weight balance of the vehicle. This is partially solved by using a
weight-distributing hitch. I checked the manual on my Z-71 with the
towing package, and it says with a bumper hitch (or after market hitch),
the tongue weight should be 10% of the total loaded trailer weight, or
with a weight-distributing hitch, the trailer tongue should weigh 12% of
the total loaded trailer weight. Maximum tow load on this large pickup
is 5500 lbs with auto tranny, or 3500 lbs with manual tranny, with
brakes on trailer. When in doubt, read the manual. Balancing of the
load is done to achieve this, NOT to make the load centered enought to
move a loaded trailer by hand. Two, A semi-tractor is built around the
sole purpose of towing that loaded trailer, unlike your road vehicle. A
tractor without a trailer is a more unbalanced vehicle than one with a
trailer. My tractor carries around half the weight of the loaded
trailer on the tractor, with a portion of that transfered to the front
axle, the load shift being achieved by adjusting the fifth wheel up or
back, resulting in a well balanced load. This combined with air brakes
and mandatory anti-lock brakes on the trailer makes comparisons of semis
and pickups unlogical.
Read your manuals and comply. You may be a danger to everyone on the
road. If you cause an accident you will be liable. This is not the
kind of thing you experiment with. I apologize if this sounds like
flaming, but I have no tolerance for improper loading (95% of farmers
coming across the scales at the elevators are overloaded, resulting in
unsafe driving conditions and torn up roads).
The mom-smog distributor and needles from Dean were money well
spent. I can't believe I drove all these years with the old setup.
Peace and safe driving
Dwight Claassen
Whitewater KS
68-2k
The new non-smog distributor and needles from
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