Searching for a Tow Vehicle

You don't say if you are looking for a van, truck or SUV or how new or what kind of budget. Need to be more specific but yes anything in the 1500- 1/2 ton variety from the last 10 years would work fine if you were comfortable with the Safari and the 4.3 under the hood.
Personally I'm partial to pickups and now reasonable priced crew cab 1/2 tons are dime a dozen from slightly used up to 10 years old. Need more storage like a van, throw a topper on the back. Need to run to the lumber yard or feed store you got a pickup truck bed to use. Unlike some of the newer Midsize SUVs or vans, most all pickups are set up to tow with good hitches, trans coolers and lights wired in. In the last few years some have trailer brakes factory installed.

Too many variables for a decent search engine...unless you have filled out
specifications to reduce those variables...

You pretty much have already spec'd out your search criteria...just plug in all
of the Safari's specifications and then do a search with those spec's

jerem0621 wrote:
I love Vans too. My town and country is the handiest vehicle I have ever owned.

I personally would pull your trailer with my 285 HP Van and not think twice about it. However, I am sure you are trying to stay within ratings. So with that said, some potential replacements off the top of my head are:

mid size SUV:
Jeep Grand Cherokee
Dodge Durango
Ford Explorer
Chevy Traverse
Toyota 4runner
Nissan Pathfinder

Mid Size truck:
Toyota Tacoma

Full Size truck:
Ram 1500 Pentastar V6
F150- 3.7 V6
Chevy Silverado 4.3 (way way different than your 4.3)

Thanks!

Jeremiah

I had a 01 Explorer Sport with tow package and towed a 98 Coachman Catalina Lite with it 26' QB, and while it was within the specs it was definitely not something that I'd want to do again. My current tow vehicle is a 2012 Ram 2500 crew cab 4x4 with Cummins and honestly unless I look behind me, I can't tell the trailer is back there.

It's better to get more than you need than the minimum requirements, and the MOST IMPORTANT THING.. how well can to stop what your towing?

We replaced '93 Chevy 1500 high-top conversion van (5.7L/3.43) with a 2003 Ford E150 5.4L/3.55. Have towed 25' TT about 30,000 miles all over the country. Would have been better with a 3.73, but had no problems and have been happy with it. We love the van as a tow vehicle. Wouldn't have anything else.

Campfire Time wrote:
You're pulling it with an older GMC Safari now. Any late model 1/2 ton PU with a V8 will tow that trailer nicely.

We used to have a GMC Safari. I loved that van, but it was the worst tow vehicle I ever owned. It struggled to pull a 2500# pop-up.

Campfire Time... I think I have a picture of your rig. Was the Safari van blue???

I love Vans too. My town and country is the handiest vehicle I have ever owned.

I personally would pull your trailer with my 285 HP Van and not think twice about it. However, I am sure you are trying to stay within ratings. So with that said, some potential replacements off the top of my head are:

mid size SUV:
Jeep Grand Cherokee
Dodge Durango
Ford Explorer
Chevy Traverse
Toyota 4runner
Nissan Pathfinder

Mid Size truck:
Toyota Tacoma

Full Size truck:
Ram 1500 Pentastar V6
F150- 3.7 V6
Chevy Silverado 4.3 (way way different than your 4.3)

Thanks!

Jeremiah

Dave, sounds like a great idea for big bucks with a new ap. If you make a big wad of cash, don't forget the little people!

Campfire Time wrote:
You're pulling it with an older GMC Safari now. Any late model 1/2 ton PU with a V8 will tow that trailer nicely.

We used to have a GMC Safari. I loved that van, but it was the worst tow vehicle I ever owned. It struggled to pull a 2500# pop-up.

I am just stating to look as I am having an engine issue with the Safari. This is my second Safari that has been used for towing this trailer and if they were still made that is all I would be looking for. They have all of the features and capacities that I need. My MCVR at 11,100# is within 50# of the rated maximum.

They have had no problems pulling my 5800# trailer over our mountain passes here in Washington. While I could not maintain freeway speeds of 65+ on the pass, we did go over at least 55 most of the way.

Dave

You're pulling it with an older GMC Safari now. Any late model 1/2 ton PU with a V8 will tow that trailer nicely.

We used to have a GMC Safari. I loved that van, but it was the worst tow vehicle I ever owned. It struggled to pull a 2500# pop-up.

That’s an interesting idea, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard of any such tool. But if you post the specs for your TT I think it will be relatively easy to get some good suggestions. As a daily driver I suspect you’d lean toward a ½ ton TV. Assuming it has the payload and power to pull the TT without undue strain even in the mountains and assuming the TT is not so long compared to the TV wheelbase you get the tail wagging the dog.