Why the hard feelings about the 6.0 Chevy?
So been doing a lot of research and reading because my towing has been relegated to my 2010 Suburban 2500. Yes it has the 6.0 which, IMO, runs pretty good, and tows fairly well too. Again, IMO, the en...
Forum Discussion
APT wrote:HaulinBass02 wrote:
Not to get too far off subject, but your TT is kinda what we are looking for in our next one, going down from a LARGE 5er. How is the towing performance with your rig? Mileage etc? Do you spend much time in the mountains at all?
Ours is stock, still dealing with the torque management. I tow at 65-72mph. If I wanted I could hold 65mph up an interstate, but I tend to let speed drop to about 55mph and drop a gear or two as necessary. I budget for 8mpg. Sometimes I get 7, sometimes 10mpg. We towed for two 2000 mile trips last year and got 8.2 and 8.3mpg. The whole experience was uneventful. Kids never new were were towing unless they turned around or got out. My wife even was confident enough to tow for the first time.
No mountains or even big hills in Michigan. We traveled on I-77 last year as well as some local highways and roads in the "mountains" in the Northeast. No drama. The Rockies are certainly tougher and I've never towed there. But I would not have any issues leaving tomorrow doing that.
We towed our current TT with a 2003 F-150 before this Suburban. We chose the 3/4 ton with the plan to get a little bigger/heavier model. I would be comfortable up about 7500 pounds dry and then it's mostly the receiver limit.
We are looking at a TT that is slightly larger than yours, the North Trail 31BDD. Although your floorplan is a backup option if I chicken out of the larger TT.
The 31BDD grosses at 8600 pounds. And yes, I fully know that I will be lucky to NOT hit that with my wife and 5 kids. I know a lot of people will start screaming about how close that is to the 9300 lbs tow rating of the suburban but it doesn't phase me because I know I'll be under on GCWR (16k) and rear axle limits and tongue weight. Yes, it is heavy but I trust the suspension and platform. I'm just wondering how the powertrain will pull that kind of weight.
I've yet to put more than 6k behind it and it towed it well. The ONE thing, if I could only change ONE thing about it, would be going to 4.10 or 4.56 gears. At stock height and tires that might not be necessary but I purposely have larger tires and won't go down to a smaller size. I think with the steeper gears it will handle a 8400-8600lb load with ease. I think and hope at least.
