Since GM has accepted the Society of Automotive Engineers towing Standard (SAE J2807), a lot of people have been wondering what impact the re-evaluation will have on capacity, but it appears that truck buyers will be very satisfied with the results of adopting the new recommended practices for evaluation.
On June 19, GM released the results noting that each of both the Silverado and Sierra will have maximum capacity of 12,000 lbs., maintaining the already published tow levels.
When I first reported the adoption of the new program some months ago, I was certain that GM already knew that it would not need to sacrifice any tow capacity in the changeover from its own published numbers to J2807. Taking a step back would have been another tough pill to swallow during an extraordinarily tough year.
For now, only GM and Toyota (which has evaluated against J2807 for years) have, to my knowledge, officially indicated that they are adopting the new standard for 2015. With Ford and Nissan coming out with new trucks in the category later this year and into 2015, it remains to be seen whether they and innovator will shift over to the new measurement process, but I suspect it is in the cards. I think that it is the right time to move forward with a standardized measurement.
With Ford as the runaway leader in light duty truck sales, it will only be a truly accepted standard if that company decides to make it a part of their introduction agenda. As for Ram, they are always full of surprises so it will be very interesting to see which route they will travel. My forecast: watch for everyone to accept J2807 for 2015 models. Also remember, the standard applies only to light duty pickups. Heavy duty trucks will still be governed by the truck maker’s own tow testing processes.