03 Silverado SS as tow vehicle?

I want one, anyone own one or have owned one had any issues or concerns with this truck. I Love the way they look and like the AWD.

Don't they come with the 6 liter engine? I had a 2003 1500HD with the 6 liter and it towed my 23 boat great! I don't have any first hand knowledge with an SS but would think it would also make a great tow vehicle.

I know a guy who uses one and it handles the boat no problem.

SS is fine...AWD with 6.0 from escalade

I have one of the first 6.0 hd 1500 crew cabs from 2001(GMC)......It has and still is for me a great truck....hauls anything(almost). I have had no real issues with the truck. So far all I have done is change the tires once, fix the heater fan (3,4,5 settings didnt work, fixed myself with part)
One corroded line coming from rad, parking brake........and...thats it.

(Message edited by absoluteboarder on September 02, 2009)

the rear leaf springs may not be as heavy duty as the regular 1/2 ton. Nothing that some "helper" air bags wouldnt take care of. Thats what I did with my tahoe when i had it. But ya, like previous posts, it has the 6.0, not sure if the hp and torque numbers are the same or higher than the 3/4 ton and escalade 6.0's, but regardless... very adequate.

I've got a trailblazer SS and the thing pulls like a dream. It has the 6.0 LS2 out of the Corvette in it. 390hp 395 ft lbs torque. I love it. Also has airbag suspension which I now can't live without when towing. If the rear squats down from the trailer the bags inflate some more to level it out. I'm sure the Silverado SS would do the job just as well.

That truck should work awesome as a tow vehicle. My dad had one for a few years and it was a sweet ride. I think they are rated for 6k lbs towing so the only thing you will have to worry about is the gas mileage.

BTW - they drive and handle awesome! I took my dad's to a Corvette track day (my Corvette was broken) and beat a LOT of Corvettes with it (bad drivers for the most part). Those trucks are a blast to drive.

I had one towed great hauled a 30' enclosed snowmobile trailer and my VLX all the time. The only time I had problems was when the water levels were low at our lake I couldn't back it into the water deep enough to get the boat on and off the trailer.

If I remember right the rear springs were same as normal 1/2 ton truck, they just removed the 2" block the standard trucks had.

power and traction you're just fine.

If you can afford it, some helper air bags in the back would be ideal.

I currently have an '03 SS. Great truck, pulls great and plenty of power. I get 13.7 average MPG city. 17-18 MPG highway. About 10 MPG average towing. I have a custom PCM tune done to help out with the MPG and add some power. If you really want the truck to come alive power wise, definitely get your PCM tuned it makes a big difference.

Brakes are terrible, and I've heard this is an issue will all of the 03 - 04 SSS. Chevy put disc brake's on the rear and they really under perform when compared to the drum brakes typically used on the 1500 size pickup.

The AWD is great along with the 4.10 drive ratio. I've never slipped once on the ramp and get great traction in the rain. The stock Goodyear tires are trash. I would upgrade those right away and the brake system second. Steel brake lines and high performance brake pads make a great deal of difference.

At stock height you will need to use a 1-2" drop hitch flipped upside down to give you 1-2" of lift so that your trailer rides level (at least this is the case with my Supra 21V).

check out silveradoss.com for more information on the truck. There is a lot of knowledge over there.

Hope that helped.

I had one also. Truck pulls like a dream. As Tom said get the tune done. PCMFORLESS did mine. Great trucks forsure.

thanks for all the help guys, that will probably be my new tow rig. now i just have to sell my current ride.

I have a 05 with 2wd. I had mine tuned by Wheatley and lowered it 2 inches front and rear. I tow my boat with it with no problems. I would suggest a good aftermarket transmission cooler as it has the 4l65 transmission vs the 4l80 that the 1500HD has.

rod, is hayden trans cooler a decent one, and how big do you think it needs to be. and how is the factory stero in them. i would go look at them now but im stuck in korea for a few more weeks. and how muck are these air bags you speak of nick?

I prefer a Tru-cool Max 47391 for a transmission cooler. There are a lot of guys over at Silveradoss.com that run them and swear by them. I am running one and it does a great job and alot cleaner install imo.