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Towing and cruise control

8K views 7 replies 6 participants last post by  2nd Hand Old Guy 
#1 ·
Just curious if while towing a trailer or boat and you have the truck in tow/haul mode would you damage the truck/cruise control if you set the cruise on the interstate/freeway (for those of you on the west coast) and just let the truck do it's thing?

I couldn't find anything about this in the manual, so any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks!
 
#2 ·
Tow/Haul mode is recommended only when towing 70% of the maximum towing capacity of the truck or more. My truck can tow 7,000 lbs, and my boat/trailer weighs about 4,000 when fully loaded with gear and fuel. So, I am at 57% of capacity. Tow/Haul is not really needed.
Per our owner's manual, using tow/haul will not hurt anything, but may make your gear changes unusual.

All that said, I use cruise control all of the time, with no issues at all.
 
#3 ·
If you find your cruise control "hunting" or always changing the throttle while towing, I turn it off. It will not hurt the cruise control in any way because it is all electronic.
 
#5 ·
I use cruise control when I'm on flat roads, once I get into the hills and mountains I switch it off so it doesn't hunt or rev like crazy.
 
#6 ·
The main thing with cruise control is not whether it hurts the engine or drive train (which is does not, as already stated). It's more about the work and attentiveness it takes to tow something. Keeping in mind the longer acceleration, greater stopping distances, more space needed for lane changes, etc. Using cruise leads some drivers to be less attentive, which is potentially lethal when towing. It kinda like using cruise control in a hard rain or snowstorm. It will not hurt the truck at all, but it can be very dangerous.

Be careful out there, everyone!
 
#8 ·
I had /still do a 2004 Astro,just bought a 2002, 2500 HD. I towed a small travel trailer 4,000#s,from the NW to S Mexico, to the land of show me and for over 30,000 miles. Finally got a bigger trailer,4500#s thus the 2500 HD. I used tow haul in conjunction with cruise. Except in the hills. That 4.3 auto would start to wheese :shock: , but just drop a gear and tow haul would do the job.30-40 miles an hour then, Back on more level roads the cruise went on and the tow haul went off.
If you use it right and often it works great, just learn to use it .
Good luck and smile you have a Chev :mrgreen:
 
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