Truck upgrade - new setup question

[bcdcraft]

We are considering upgrading our tow vehicle… going from a 2018 Chevy Colorado to a new F150 or Silverado.

Should the difference in height of the new truck over the Colorado immediately impact the trailering and towing? We are due to bring the camper for inspection in several months, so the technicians can look at the whole setup then and make any adjustments that are needed. But in the meantime, can we tow with it without too much concern? Is there anything I should look at on the new setup once the camper is hooked to the truck, to make sure I am safe to tow? Or should I just be able to put the WD hitch on, affix the bars, plug in the brakes/lights, and go camping?

The ultimate question is, do I need to take the setup to a dealer to have them check the whole thing out before I tow it camping?

Thanks for the help! I’ve owned many campers, however interestingly I’ve never actually changed out a tow vehicle on an existing camper we’ve owned…

 

[NB Canada]

It needs to be readjusted

You can easily do this yourself and should know how to do it

The instructions are easy

 

[justlarry]

We are considering upgrading our tow vehicle… going from a 2018 Chevy Colorado to a new F150 or Silverado.

Should the difference in height of the new truck over the Colorado immediately impact the trailering and towing? We are due to bring the camper for inspection in several months, so the technicians can look at the whole setup then and make any adjustments that are needed. But in the meantime, can we tow with it without too much concern? Is there anything I should look at on the new setup once the camper is hooked to the truck, to make sure I am safe to tow? Or should I just be able to put the WD hitch on, affix the bars, plug in the brakes/lights, and go camping?

The ultimate question is, do I need to take the setup to a dealer to have them check the whole thing out before I tow it camping?

Thanks for the help! I’ve owned many campers, however interestingly I’ve never actually changed out a tow vehicle on an existing camper we’ve owned…

Ford is recalling thousands of cars and trucks, more than all other dealers combined. The F150 is for brake failure I believe. I’m happy with my 2020 Tundra. Not sure about the new ones. The Dodge Ram and GMC have favorable reviews

 

[Truckerslife]

When I bought my RV, the dealer set my hitch up wrong. The WDH took 500 lbs off of steering tires. So I went to the manufactures ( Of the WDH ) website and found the installation video on how to set it up. Took me about an hour to readjust.

 

[NerkGDguy]

There should be directions in your weight distribution hitch (WDH) owners manual. Like @NB Canada said, you should be able to do it yourself. What WDH do you have? Lots of YouTube videos on how to set up your TT, hitch for optimal towing. I would suggest that you would have to set your ball height first, then follow the instructions.

 

[J_Man]

Interesting question - you don’t state what you’re towing so there is key information missing (in my opinion) in your question.

My initial reaction to your question is that I’m actually shocked you were towing with a Colorado’.

I just traded in a 2017 F150 that I bought new (in 2017) and there was certainly no recall on the brakes in the past 7 or 8 years.

I’ve recently noticed that recalls include some odd issues, such as seat belt hardware, tailgate latches, major engine failure, etc.

Right now, GM just announced a recall of 660,000 vehicles with their gasoline V8 engine, and that recall involves either engine replacement or extending the drive-train warranty along with a recommendation to use a different weight engine oil.

Owners of those vehicles just lost substantial re-sale / trade-in value on their vehicles.

Before you finalize your choice I would suggest an exhaustive internet search on recall details for all major brands.

 

[Travelnbabe]

We are considering upgrading our tow vehicle… going from a 2018 Chevy Colorado to a new F150 or Silverado.

Should the difference in height of the new truck over the Colorado immediately impact the trailering and towing? We are due to bring the camper for inspection in several months, so the technicians can look at the whole setup then and make any adjustments that are needed. But in the meantime, can we tow with it without too much concern? Is there anything I should look at on the new setup once the camper is hooked to the truck, to make sure I am safe to tow? Or should I just be able to put the WD hitch on, affix the bars, plug in the brakes/lights, and go camping?

The ultimate question is, do I need to take the setup to a dealer to have them check the whole thing out before I tow it camping?

Thanks for the help! I’ve owned many campers, however interestingly I’ve never actually changed out a tow vehicle on an existing camper we’ve owned…

We just did that same exact thing. We went from a 2000 Ford F250 7.3 diesel to a new 2024 F350 6.7 (I think) diesel. There was a difference in height at the hitch level. We have a Grand Design Momentum 31G toy hauler with a weight distribution hitch. One local camper dealer near us didn't do that type of thing even though they do sell that same WD hitch. We called another dealer near us and they did do that. Because there was such a difference in height between the two trucks, we don't have impact wrenches capable of turning the hitch if it was needed. We hooked it up and took it to that dealer; it was only 15 minutes away. They fixed it all up for us in about an hour and only charged $114. We knew it was done right and will be good to go. It makes a big difference in stopping ability, sway control and even fuel mileage to have the WD hitch set up correctly