New tow vehicle options?

Hi all I have a tow vehicle issue I'm looking for some input on. I currently tow my 6k gvr 25ft tt with an 04 seirra 1500 extended rwd and 4.8l v8 (7000lb capacity) which while fuel hungry ESP when towing has always done a faithfull job. We even took it through New England and NB with out issue short of the cruse kicking out on some of the steeper grades (go figure) how ever I've always felt a little underpowered. And have a top speed with trailer of 88km/hr (~55milles/hr)before it hangs out in third @4k rpm last winter I had a coolant leak which resulted in rebuilding the heads (before our trip. lost 100km/tank with out trailer not much change with) while I like the truck it tows well albeit slowly ESP on the 65m/hr interstates of NE

Our family situation has changed 1dd currently and 2 yet to be determined on the way and a large dog. The extended cab just isn't going to cut it any more. My thoughts are to move to a 2500 suburban or similar. Unfortunately our financial situation current and upcomming precludes us from buying new I was looking at 08 and newer or an 04 ford excursion with the 7.3 stroker. I'm finally getting to the question( sorry) is what are your thoughts comparing an 04 exc with an 08 k2500 burb ( the one I've found in my price range ATM is a retired ontario provincial police cruser with 240k km I know the opp care impeccably for their vehicles doing calipers with every brake job all factory new parts with any repair and above standard maintaince regimes) the ford seems to be available in spades at the moment within my price range with 150-220km on them. As my in-laws live in NB I foresee this trip being a semi annual trip and don't want to feel as underpowered as I was this time. And taking 4 days to go 1500km is a little extreme even if it was with a 9mth old in the back.

What I'm really looking for is a large enough tow vehicle to handle our current trailer and the next one which I'll assume will be In the same or slightly higher weight class a little bigger in size (at least sleeping arrangements) have reasonable fuel economy when unhitched even if it means making it gutless with a tuner, able to handle the east coast terrain with trailer and the dual tanks are a nice touch so I can keep going more than 300km before fueling with trailer. As this is a daily driver it's got to be reasonably comfortable and easy to handle as dw will likely become the principal non towing driver.

Thanks for your patience and input
B

Tow Vehicles

Kalabin
Explorer
Dec 18, 2013
MX-RV wrote:
Very interesting views. Unfortunately I've been Informed by the boss that I can buy an SUV but not another pu. In her ideal world we would buy a Tahoe or Yukon ie short wheel base until I reminded her of the negative impacts of short wheel base and trailering ESP what we call the motion in the ocean and she quickly agreed full size is the way to go. But I won't win the pu battle even with a matching cap.

Kalabin your signature states you have an 08 2500 burb with the 6L how many k do you have on it and how do you feel about its reliability cost of repairs, real life mileage, the engine management system and ride. I'm quite sold on the ex police one I've found and since I've been looking over the past month or so I've seen 4 of them go by. Some with better interiors than others all need minor body work (dents and door paint as the doors are white and the truck is black) but for the cost that's not a big deal. The only complaint I have is they are 240k km (150k mile) but the 2500s go way honor th and are all highway mostly highway speeds and little towing. As I said before are impeccably maintained during their service.

Thanks b

MX,

I have a Silverado crew cab 2500HD. I have around 87,000 miles on it and have only had to replace recently my battery, column shifter (80 bucks) to get tow/haul mode working again and had a throttle body position sensor replaced under a recall.

From what I have been told is the 6.0 Vortec HD motor is a 250,000 mile motor if maintained properly. I have my truck serviced by the place I purchased it from which is a Chevy dealer, just had my 80k mile service done ($580.00) and even with a 2k+lb truck camper on it for about 15k miles it came back with a perfect bill of health.

As for mileage in the summertime on highway only I sit around 14.5mpg hand calculated and then 12.5 in the winters.

As for ride comfort I think GM / Chevy are the most "car like" being that it doesn't ride like a tank. My previous Ford F250 power stroke felt like a big brick going down the road, but it did what I needed it too. I have the LTZ trim which has leather, all the power options, heated seats etc and it's really comfy.

There are quiet a few guys on here that tow with the 6.0 and as far as small-block gasser go it's got a very good reputation for lasting a long time. Locally they use the 6.0 Vortec in almost all fleet utility vehicles I have seen, that or the Ford V10.

The way I look at it is I have buddies that have the 1/2-ton version's with the 5.3 V8, same model year and when they hand calculate out their mileage they see about 3mpg more and we don't have flat driving here. What I get out of a 3/4-ton chassis is bigger / better everything and about a 3100lb payload vs a 1300lb payload. I'll eat the 3mpg all day.
jerem0621
Explorer II
Dec 18, 2013
Expedition with Max-Tow?
tragusa3
Explorer
Dec 18, 2013
I just sold my '03 with a 4.8 and got into the truck in my sig. Haven't towed yet, due to break in period. But, I can attest to it being twice the truck in nearly every way. The crew cab is cavernous after coming from the extended cab.

Anyway, nothing to add for your specific situation, other than to say I loved my 4.8. It was a fine engine. Mine never skipped a beat in 11 years of use. Hope I'm as fortunate with this one. All this technology has me worried though...
MX-RV
Explorer
Dec 18, 2013
Very interesting views. Unfortunately I've been Informed by the boss that I can buy an SUV but not another pu. In her ideal world we would buy a Tahoe or Yukon ie short wheel base until I reminded her of the negative impacts of short wheel base and trailering ESP what we call the motion in the ocean and she quickly agreed full size is the way to go. But I won't win the pu battle even with a matching cap.

Kalabin your signature states you have an 08 2500 burb with the 6L how many k do you have on it and how do you feel about its reliability cost of repairs, real life mileage, the engine management system and ride. I'm quite sold on the ex police one I've found and since I've been looking over the past month or so I've seen 4 of them go by. Some with better interiors than others all need minor body work (dents and door paint as the doors are white and the truck is black) but for the cost that's not a big deal. The only complaint I have is they are 240k km (150k mile) but the 2500s go way honor th and are all highway mostly highway speeds and little towing. As I said before are impeccably maintained during their service.

Thanks b
Kalabin
Explorer
Dec 17, 2013
If it were myself and you could work your family into a 2500-3500 Crew Cab truck it may save some money. Up here the Suburbans and Excursion's are hard to find and when they do they go for about retail. However because of construction / slope trucks you can find a 3/4-ton or 1-ton in Ford / Chevy for pretty good deals.

I have test driven the 8.1 Suburban and it has some serious power behind it, but I wouldn't exclude the 6.0 for what weight your carrying. Same goes for a 5.4 Triton with 4.10 gearing if you can get a screaming deal on it. The "perfect" towing vehicles with correct motor + gearing go for a lot more because the owners know what they have. The small block 5.4 / 6.0 with 4-speed or if you can swing it 6-speed seem to be a lot cheaper in the price range but still allow a lot of towing.
campigloo
Explorer
Dec 17, 2013
I personally like the diesels. I know before ya'll start, the f150 will pull any weight anywhere, but the 7.3 just has effortless power and torque. The only problem I have with the idea is the age. Even though the engines are long life, the problem I had with mine was the little accessories that are sometimes mandatory to make the thing run, (diesel or gas). Just check it out thoroughly, maybe have an INDEDPENDENT shop check it for a couple of hundred dollars. A web site AGCO Automotive may have some good tips for you in the area of pre-purchase analysis.
skipnchar
Explorer
Dec 17, 2013
Any of the full sized half tons with the makers top engine and towing gears would be about perfect for a rig that size. Good luck / Skip
MX-RV
Explorer
Dec 17, 2013
Sorry edited some space in there was unable to sleep so I was posting while tired.
Bill___Kate
Explorer
Dec 17, 2013
Also check out 3/4 and one ton full size vans with either a big block gasser or diesel. Significantly more total payload than the Suburban's and Ex's, and - at least in my opinion - better creature comfort,driving visibility, and handling. 2WD prices are very reasonable, but you will find 4WD conversions pricier and few and far between.
Jim-Linda
Explorer II
Dec 17, 2013
I would love to read the post if there were a few paragraphs in it to break up the eye blurring page.

Jim

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