Powers Swain Chevrolet · Fayetteville, NC
Chevy Colorado Towing Package: What's Included?
A hitch platform and 7-pin harness, an Integrated Trailer Brake Controller, Tow/Haul mode, camera views for hooking up, and the in-vehicle Trailering App. Standard on Trail Boss and Z71, an option on WT and LT.
The Package Is Mostly Electronics, Not Just a Hitch
Most people ask about the Chevy Colorado towing package expecting to hear about a hitch and a plug. The hitch matters, but it is the cheap part. What the package really buys you is the wiring, the brake controller and the camera and app software that make hooking up a one-person job instead of a two-person job.
It also buys you the rating. Chevrolet's own trailering specification sheet footnotes the Colorado's 7,700-lb maximum as requiring the available Trailering Package and a limited-slip differential. A Colorado without that equipment is a capable truck rated to pull less. That is the single most important sentence on this page, and it is the one people find out about after they have already bought.
If you want the capacity numbers by configuration rather than the equipment list, we cover those separately on our Chevy Colorado towing capacity page.
What You Get, Piece by Piece
Chevrolet lists these as Colorado trailering equipment. The tag on each card says whether it is standard on the Colorado or available.
Available
Integrated Trailer Brake Controller
Built into the truck's electrical system, antilock braking system and StabiliTrak, so the trailer's brakes operate at the same time as the truck's. This is the piece an aftermarket controller cannot really match, because the factory unit is calibrated to the vehicle rather than clamped under the dash and guessed at.
Included with the hitch
Trailer hitch platform and 7-pin harness
A trailer hitch platform with a 7-pin wiring harness that carries trailer lighting and brake signals in one plug. Chevrolet requires trailer brakes above a 1,500-lb trailer weight on the Colorado, which is a lower threshold than the Silverado's 2,000 lbs, so the harness earns its keep sooner than truck buyers expect. Brake requirements also vary by state.
Standard on Colorado
Hitch View
A top-down zoom on the hitch itself from the rear camera, so you can line the ball up under the coupler without a spotter. This one is standard on the Colorado rather than optional, which is a genuine advantage over trucks that make you pay for it.
Available
Hitch Guidance
A dynamic guiding line drawn over the rear camera image that moves with the steering wheel, so you can see where the hitch is going before it gets there. Pair it with Hitch View and backing onto a coupler stops being a skill and becomes a procedure.
Available
Tow/Haul mode
Changes the eight-speed's shift schedule so it stops hunting for a gear with weight behind you. The difference shows up on the long grade approaches and on stop-and-go stretches of Bragg Blvd with a loaded trailer, where a normal shift map upshifts too early and then has to come back down.
Available
Trailer Side Blind Zone Alert
Extends the side blind zone coverage to trailer length and puts a visual alert in the side mirror when a vehicle is sitting in it. Merging onto I-95 with a boat behind you is exactly the situation the standard blind zone system was never sized for.
The In-Vehicle Trailering App Is the Underrated Part
The Trailering App stores a profile per trailer: name, type, dimensions, mileage and settings. Once your boat trailer is in there, the truck knows what is behind it instead of you re-checking everything from scratch.
What it does with that profile is the useful bit:
Pre-departure checklist. A built-in walkthrough before you pull out of the driveway, which is exactly when people forget the safety chains.
Trailer lighting test. Cycles the trailer lights so you can walk around and confirm them alone. No more asking someone to stand behind the trailer while you work the turn signal.
Trailer tire pressure and temperature monitoring. Checks up to six trailer tires to help catch a blowout before it happens. If you have ever changed a trailer tire on the shoulder of I-95 in August, you know what that is worth.
Maintenance reminders. Tracks trailer brakes, tires and wheel bearings by time or mileage, which are the three things nobody services until they fail.
Which Colorado Trims Get the Towing Package?
The Advanced Trailering Package carries RPO code ZL6. Here is where it sits across the lineup.
| Trim | Advanced Trailering Package (ZL6) | Max trailer weight, properly equipped | What that means for you |
|---|---|---|---|
| WT | Factory option, $945 | Up to 7,700 lbs | The value play. A WT with the package tows the same as a Z71 and costs thousands less. |
| Custom | Check the specific unit | Up to 7,700 lbs | Newer trim in the lineup. Confirm the window sticker rather than assuming. |
| LT | Factory option, $945 | Up to 7,700 lbs | The most common configuration people actually order for towing. |
| Trail Boss | Standard | Up to 7,700 lbs | Nothing to add and nothing to check. It is already on the truck. |
| Z71 | Standard | Up to 7,700 lbs | Full tow kit plus the off-road hardware, in one trim. |
| ZR2 | Not offered | Up to 6,000 lbs | Built to go off-road, not to pull the heaviest trailer. Its GCWR is 11,600 lbs. |
Package pricing is Chevrolet's published factory option price and should be confirmed against the Chevrolet Build & Price tool, since GM revises option pricing during the model year. Trailer weight ratings are maximums when properly equipped and are reduced by passengers, cargo, options and accessories.
The WT line is the one worth reading twice. A Work Truck with the $945 package pulls the same 7,700 lbs as a Z71 that costs more than $12,000 more to start. Every trim uses the same 310-horsepower engine, so if towing is the whole job and trail hardware is not, the cheap truck is the right truck. We walk through what each trim actually adds in the Colorado trim comparison.
Sources: Chevrolet Colorado specifications and Chevrolet's published 2026 Colorado trailering specification sheet and 2026 Chevrolet Trailering Guide.
Towing Out of Fayetteville: What the Package Buys You Locally
Most trailers leaving Cumberland County are boats, utility trailers and small campers, and most of them are well inside the Colorado's rating. The equipment matters more than the ceiling.
Boat ramps on the Cape Fear and out to Jordan Lake. Hitch View and Hitch Guidance are the two features you will use every single trip, in a gravel lot, alone, with people waiting behind you.
US-401 and NC-87 with a camper. Tow/Haul mode is the one that changes the drive. Rolling terrain on the way toward Raven Rock or down toward the coast is exactly where an unmodified shift map gets busy.
I-95 north and south. Trailer Side Blind Zone Alert covers the length of the trailer, and I-95 through Cumberland and Robeson counties is heavy truck traffic almost all day.
PCS moves and weekend hauls. If you are at Fort Bragg and moving a household or hauling gear on a rented trailer, the pre-departure checklist and the lighting test in the Trailering App are worth the option on their own. You will be hooking up to a trailer you have never seen before.
Colorado Towing Package Questions We Get on Bragg Blvd
What is included in the Chevy Colorado towing package?
The Colorado's trailering equipment centers on a trailer hitch platform with a 7-pin wiring harness, an Integrated Trailer Brake Controller, Tow/Haul mode, and the in-vehicle Trailering App. Hitch View, the top-down camera zoom on the hitch, is standard on the Colorado. Hitch Guidance, which lays a guiding line over the rear camera image, is available. The Advanced Trailering Package, RPO code ZL6, is the option that bundles the electronics together and adds an automatic locking rear differential.
Which Colorado trims come with the towing package standard?
Trail Boss and Z71 include the Advanced Trailering Package as standard equipment. On WT and LT it is a factory option, listed by Chevrolet at $945. The ZR2 is not offered with it, because its off-road hardware and lower trailer rating change what it needs. Confirm the current option pricing against Chevrolet's Build & Price tool, since GM revises option pricing during the model year.
Do I need the towing package to tow 7,700 lbs?
Yes. Chevrolet's own trailering specification sheet footnotes the 7,700-lb maximum as requiring the available Trailering Package and a limited-slip differential. Without that equipment the truck is rated lower. If a 7,700-lb rating is the reason you are buying the truck, verify the specific unit on our lot has the package before you sign anything. Call us at (910) 864-9500 and we will read the window sticker to you.
What is the Integrated Trailer Brake Controller and do I need one?
It is a factory brake controller built into the truck's electrical system, antilock brakes and StabiliTrak, so the trailer's brakes work at the same time as the truck's. Chevrolet requires trailer brakes above a 1,500-lb trailer weight on the Colorado, and brake requirements also vary by state, so North Carolina buyers should check current state law. A factory controller is worth having over an aftermarket unit clamped under the dash because it is calibrated to the truck and there is nothing extra to wire in.
What does the in-vehicle Trailering App actually do?
It stores a profile per trailer with the name, type, dimensions and settings, then runs a pre-departure checklist and a trailer lighting test before you pull out. It can monitor pressure and temperature on up to six trailer tires and track maintenance reminders for brakes, tires and wheel bearings. If you tow the same boat to Jordan Lake every other weekend, the useful part is that the truck remembers the trailer instead of you re-checking everything from scratch.
Does the Colorado have a Max Trailering Package like the Silverado?
No. Chevrolet offers the Max Trailering Package on the Silverado 1500, Silverado HD, Suburban and Tahoe, not on the Colorado. If your trailer is genuinely beyond what a properly equipped Colorado is rated for, the honest answer is a Silverado 1500, which we also stock on Bragg Blvd.
Can I add the towing package to a Colorado after I buy it?
Some of it, and not the important parts. A hitch and wiring can be added by our parts and service department at 4709 Bragg Blvd. The factory-integrated brake controller, the camera views and the trailer rating that depends on factory equipment are not accessory items. Ordering the truck with the package is the cleaner path, and if you are shopping what is already on the lot, we can filter for units that have it.
Will a Colorado tow a camper to Carolina Beach or Raven Rock?
A properly equipped Colorado rated at 7,700 lbs handles most small travel trailers and pop-ups that Fayetteville families pull down NC-87 to the coast or out US-401 toward Raven Rock. The number to check is the trailer's loaded weight, not its dry weight, because gear and water fill that gap quickly. Bring your trailer's spec sheet to Powers Swain and we will work through it with you rather than guessing.
What Our Fayetteville Customers Say
Bring Us Your Trailer Specs
The fastest way to settle this is to bring the trailer's loaded weight and tongue weight to the store and let us match it to a specific truck on the lot. We will read you the window sticker and tell you whether the package is on it.
- Powers Swain Chevrolet
- 4709 Bragg Blvd, Fayetteville, NC 28303
- Sales: (910) 864-9500
- Get directions
- Schedule service or a hitch install
- Financing and pre-approval
- Serving Fayetteville, Fort Bragg, Spring Lake, Hope Mills, Raeford and Sanford
Check the Sticker Before You Buy the Truck
Inventory changes weekly. Call and we will confirm which Colorados on the lot are equipped to tow what you tow.
Powers Swain Chevrolet · 4709 Bragg Blvd, Fayetteville, NC 28303