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Great suggestions. Love the conversion as well! We’re headed to SLC, Grand Teton, and Yellowstone Late June-Mid July. So hoping to get everything buttoned up and ready for that trip.
I was thinking of adding an additional Aux trans cooler before the trip.
Do you think the shocks are necessary? Did it make a huge difference?
Bilstein shocks made a huge difference in the front of my 3500 short wheelbase that is often almost empty inside (just a few kids and junk in the back around town). Before them it would porpoise up and down at highway speeds with less than 30 k MI on the factory shocks. Towing you will want them at both ends as I am sure I would if the back end was ever full. Also from a friend with a 3500 that tows make sure you get a weight distribution hitch. If you don't get a trans cooler at least get an OBD2 connector and Torque app to view trans temp.
I bought a used 2014 Express 2500 passenger, standard wheelbase with 6.0 engine. It had 45,000 miles and was previously owned by the government. I bought it to tow a 7,000lb travel trailer, so this is what I did: The shocks were worn so I installed new Bilstein's, which greatly improved the ride. I added Sumo Springs to the rear to prevent sag and they also smoothed out the ride over bumps. I added the Curt Class V hitch along with a 7 pin wiring socket and an Anderson weight distribution hitch. I had a rear end specialty shop install a Detroit Tru-trac gear-type limited slip, (if I only have one drive axle, at least I want both wheels to be pushing me forward). I thought about gearing up from 3.42 to 4.10 but figured I'd try towing awhile before deciding. At some point I'll probably add a transmission cooler, the 6L90 is supposed to be a pretty robust trans, but additional cooling when towing can only help. I use a Tekonsha 90920 Prodigy iD brake controller with the main body under the steering column and only the control **** needs to be mounted in the dash. I also added a bunch of other comfort and convenience upgrades, but they don't directly contribute to towing.
I tow a Grand Design 2670MK with has an empty weight of 6,845 and a max weight of 8,495, so I'm within the weight requirements for the vehicle and trailer. I towed it up the Sunol grade where it maintained 60 all the way and will be going over a 7,000 ft pass later in the summer, so we'll see how it does in real mountains. So far I'm super pleased - even before setting up the weight distribution hitch the rear end only sagged 1/2". The ride and handling was great, and I hardly knew the trailer was even there.
I added Bilstein shocks, front and rear and with a load, it rides like a Cadillac.
11-11.5 MPG with trailer at 55-60 mph. 18-20 mpg without trailer at 65-70 mph. On SoCal freeways.
Going in for its 100K Service (currently 88k miles) before I go to Wyoming. I'll be adding a HD trans cooler at that time.
The mirrors 4500? Have a pt number or more info thanks.
Here's some ideas... I have 6 kids, so we bring a lot of stuff when we camp. Our trailer is a 35' "extreme lite" that weighs about 6500# empty, and 7600-7800 loaded (maybe a little more on longer trips).
If I was doing it again, I'd get a heavier-duty hitch for peace-of-mind. The vans are limited to 1000# of tongue weight on the hitch, and you can easily meet or exceed that with a heavier travel trailer. I had no idea I was over 1600# on the hitch until I bought a tongue scale (
). A beefier hitch doesn't change the van's limit, but there's a lot of stress happening back there. (My van never gave me any indications that I was overloading it).
Did the Mishimoto transmission oil cooler upgrade this weekend. Not thrilled about the transmission line routing I had to do so will be looking to try to swap in a hard line so it looks better once i find the right tools to make them. So far so good but another issue I found was my ODB port is not powering up my ScanGauge so no easy way to watch temp levels on the transmission - ugh.
Next will be the Bilstein shocks.
For reference - 2009 Chevy Express 3500 15 passenger van with the 6.0
Knight13, I had to request a special code from Scangauge to measure trans temp on our 2014 4500 chassis. They sent me a data logger to use and send back to them, they then sent the correct setup code. The cooler I installed made about a 20-30 degree change in temps. We weigh about 18K lbs with our Jeep in tow.
Gary
and how is your van performing, I have a 2008 6.0 bus and radiator is leaking, about to change that and looking at upgrades for the cooling system while I am in there, will be towing with it
We have the Eaz-Lift ReCurve R3 800lb Weight Distribution Hitch | Features 1,000lb Max Tongue Weight Rating, 2-5/16-inch Ball has a 15,000lb Max Rating, and Adjustable Sway Control.
We've been staying relatively close to our home and local spots for camping in Southeast GA. We made a trip to Destin, FL for Thanksgiving and then his past week a trip to Cartersville, GA.
On the way back I notice that I couldn't get over 60mph without the rear shaking terribly with both loaded with TT and unloaded.
I'm looking at possibly changing our rear shocks, putting in better bump stops, beefer leaf springs, air bags, etc.
I'm looking at possibly changing our rear shocks, putting in better bump stops, beefer leaf springs, air bags, etc.
Is there anything I should do before hand? TIA
In my opinion the factory shocks are junk. I'd start with a set of Bilstein shocks all around.
Also, are you sure the problem is in the back and not in the steering? First thing I'd check is the idler arm bracket. You have been greasing that right?
