The 2013 Chevy Silverado 1500s are one of the top five trucks on the road and they are very competitive when it comes to their towing capacity, compared to other vehicle manufacturers and after doing my research, they are quite capable for a 1500 series truck.
I conducted all the research from a couple of different pieces of literature and compiled all of the information into this article to try to make it as complete as possible. I hope it helps someone out there!
Be sure you read through your owner's manual to get familiar with your 2013 Silverado 1500 and adhere to all of Chevy's recommendations.
2013 Silverado 1500 Overview
Overall Towing Capacity: The overall towing capacity for the 2013 Silverado 1500 ranged from 4,400-10,700 lbs. And that was mainly dependent upon which engine you had equipped and whether you had a tow package installed on your truck.
Engine Options: There were five different engine options available for the 2013 Silverado 1500s and these were: the 4.3 L engine, the 4.8 L engine, the 5.3 L engine, the 6.0 L engine that was specifically for Hybrid models and a 6.2 L engine. The engine you had equipped really made the biggest difference overall when it came to the maximum trailer weight ratings in the charts, but there were other variables to take into account as well, that also affected these ratings.
Trim Levels: There were five different trim levels offered, but there was no direct correlation between the trim level you had equipped on your truck and the maximum trailer weight rating listed in the charts. Other factors impacted these ratings instead oh, like the engine you had a quip, cab style, axle ratio, etc.
Assumed Weight: I was able to find a note in the charts that talks about the trailer weight ratings and that a driver was included for these ratings, but a weight was not specified for the driver, so I'm not sure what that weight was. Typically, a 150-pound driver is assumed to be in the vehicle when these trailer weight ratings are specified, but a specific weight amount was not listed anywhere, that I could find.
Standard and 5th Wheel Charts:
The 2013 Chevy Silverado 1500 had two different charts listed, and this was because they had specs listed for conventional and fifth wheel hitch towing. I took screenshots of both charts and posted them below.
If you look at the charts, you can see that you will need to know some information about your truck and plug in some of the variables like the cab style, whether you had a standard or long bed in your truck, whether you had a two-wheel drive or four-wheel drive model, the engine you had equipped and the axle ratio that you had in your truck.
2013 Chart
2013 5th Wheel Chart
1 Maximum trailer weight ratings are calculated assuming a base vehicle, except for any option(s) necessary to achieve the rating, plus driver. The weight of other optional equipment, passengers and cargo will reduce the maximum trailer weight your vehicle can tow. See your Chevy dealer for additional details.
2 Gross Combination Weight Rating. NOTE: Trailer tongue weight should be 10% to 15% of total loaded trailer weight. Trailer kingpin weight should be 15% to 25% of total loaded trailer weight. Addition of trailer tongue weight/trailer kingpin weight cannot cause vehicle weights to exceed Rear Gross Axle Weight Rating (RGAWR) or Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR). These ratings can be found on the certification label located on the driver door or doorframe. Fifth-wheel hitch is available as a dealer-installed accessory on select models. See the Trailering Basics on the next page for more trailering information.
Tongue Weight Rating:
I was able to find a note in the owner's manual that stated some information about the maximum tongue weight ratings. There we're two different weight rating specified, one for standard receiver mounted hitches and the other specification was for fifth wheel hitches.
For a standard receiver hitch, you will want a 10 to 15% maximum tongue weight rating on your truck, 10 to 15% of the trailer's total weight, that is. That figure increased for fifth wheel hitches to 15-25%.
Trailer Brakes:
Trailer brakes were also required if your trailer weighed 2,000 pounds or more, which is pretty common for most vehicles and most manufacturers that typically state either a 1,000 or 2,000 lb. limit on their vehicles before trailer brakes are needed.
You will want to check with your local state and County laws to see if they have different requirements than what Chevy recommends, as their weight requirements may be lower in some cases.
Powertrain and Cab Styles:
I was also able to find an image in the brochure that lays out the different engine options for the 2013 Silverado 1500s and shows what cab configurations were available for each powertrain configuration, which doesn't really help out when it comes to seeing your vehicle specific maximum trailer weight ratings, but I thought it could be helpful for some people out there, or those of you out there that are just curious.
Trim Levels:
There were five different trim levels offered for these model-year trucks and these were listed as the: WT, LS, LT, XFE and the LTZ. I didn't see anything in the owner's manual or brochure that tied the maximum trailer weight rating to the trim level you had equipped on your vehicle.
GVWR, GCWR and GAWR Figures:
GCWR: The GCWR were listed in the Towing charge that I have posted at the top of this article and I always like when they put these figures along with the maximum trailer weight ratings because it makes it easier to determine some of the other weight ratings, for those of you out there that might have to do more complex calculations for your loads.
GVWR & GAWR:The Gross vehicle weight rating and both gross axle weight ratings are listed on the certification label, which is pretty common for most vehicle manufacturers. You should see a label that will have the gross vehicle weight rating listed and both of the gross axle weight ratings listed for the front and rear axles.
Certification Label: The Certification label and tire and loading table are located on the driver side door, attached to the rear edge of the door, like the screenshot I have posted below that I found in the owner's manual.
The Various Packages & What's Included...
In the brochure, I was able to find a chart that not only tells you what kind of packages are offered for your Silverado 1500, but also what is included in those packages and what trim levels have these packages offered standard, which packages were available for which trim models and which trim models they were not available for.
This could come in really handy for a number of different people, depending on what you are looking at, but I thought it was just a good reference for myself and I'm sure it will help out others as well.
1 Extended and Crew Cab models only. 2 Crew Cab models only 15 Requires Heavy-Duty Cooling Package or Vortec 6.2L V8 engine. 16 Requires available Heavy-Duty Cooling Package, Snow Plow Prep Package or Trailering Package. 17 Requires available Trailering Package. 18 Regular Cab models require available Trailering Package or Snow Plow Prep Package; Extended and Crew Cab models require available Trailering Package, Snow Plow Prep Package or Vortec 6.2L V8 engine. 19 Requires available 6-speed automatic transmission. 20 Requires available 6-speed automatic transmission and Trailering Package.
Other Notes I Found:
I was also able to find other notes in the owner's manual that I took screenshots of and posted below, the first image talking about the sway control requirements for the 1500, depending on your trailer weight. The image below that talks about higher altitudes, steep grades, etcetera and how you could run the chance of overheating, in certain circumstances.
That is why I always recommend you read your owner's manual yourself to get familiar with your vehicle and to adhere to all of Chevy's recommendations when it comes to Towing and anything else related to your truck.
Sway Control Requirement
Overheating Warning
Helpful Links:
All of the research for this article came from two main sources, the owner's manual and the 2013 brochure for the Silverado 1500s and I wanted to provide quick links for those of you out there that want to do a little more research yourselves.