Need tow vehicle - preferably under 10k
I'm looking for a vehicle for our travel trailer. My wife likes the sportsmen 301BHLE. It is 33 feet long and hitch weight of 880. Gross trailer weight is 8000. We both like the double bunk bed option...
Forum Discussion
A couple more notes on the Excursion...
The Excursion only got the 4R100 transmission, except behind the 6.0PSD. Stay away from the 6.0 unless you really like tow trucks and repairs shops.
The 4R100 can be made strong, but it's gear ratios are simply too far apart. The stock programming behind the 7.3L leaves the torque converter unlocked too much, and that's why it eats them. They hold up fine behind the V10 (mine has 482,000 miles, still haven't touched the tranny other than doing fluid about every 100k), but the ratios suck. Mine works out ok with deep gears, the Banks Powerpack, and a 5-star tune. But the 5R110 just works better especially behind the V10. And you can't get this in an Excursion. Only in the 2005 and newer E350 vans. But they are getting hard to find, since 2014 was the last year for the factory van body, and lots of folks are scooping up used V10s to convert into 4x4 camper vans. So V10s end up being a hefty premium over the V8.
The Chevy Express 6.0 with the 6-speed is good too but only has a 16,000# GCWR. Because of the higher curb weight, this means it can only tow about 500 pounds more than an Expedition, and the Expedition EcoBoost has WAY more torque on hand. The 6.0 has to spin fast to make power.
The Excursion only got the 4R100 transmission, except behind the 6.0PSD. Stay away from the 6.0 unless you really like tow trucks and repairs shops.
The 4R100 can be made strong, but it's gear ratios are simply too far apart. The stock programming behind the 7.3L leaves the torque converter unlocked too much, and that's why it eats them. They hold up fine behind the V10 (mine has 482,000 miles, still haven't touched the tranny other than doing fluid about every 100k), but the ratios suck. Mine works out ok with deep gears, the Banks Powerpack, and a 5-star tune. But the 5R110 just works better especially behind the V10. And you can't get this in an Excursion. Only in the 2005 and newer E350 vans. But they are getting hard to find, since 2014 was the last year for the factory van body, and lots of folks are scooping up used V10s to convert into 4x4 camper vans. So V10s end up being a hefty premium over the V8.
The Chevy Express 6.0 with the 6-speed is good too but only has a 16,000# GCWR. Because of the higher curb weight, this means it can only tow about 500 pounds more than an Expedition, and the Expedition EcoBoost has WAY more torque on hand. The 6.0 has to spin fast to make power.
