Family of 6 future tow vehicle.

anw7405 wrote:

Wishin wrote:
I would just stick with what you have. At a minimum I'd go back to stock size tires. My 8.1L Suburban has 4.10 gears and we've been a lot of places and rarely can't go the speed limit. Eisenhower Pass, we got stuck behind someone and slowed down. Once it got below 4000 RPM in 2nd gear, there was not speeding back up. Vail Pass we kept it over 4200 RPM in 2nd and it maintained speed to the top (65 mph?). It was a pretty loud trip to the top however. Might be more enjoyable to just slow down. The previous owner put a CAI on it, I replaced the oiled K&N cone filter with a dry Amsoil cone to make sure I was getting good filtering. I'm sure it makes it noisier, not sure if it has more power.

Good luck. Give what you have a try if you ask me. If I used mine for only towing, I'd seriously consider gearing it down even more. 4.56 gears? Not sure what is available. It would be nice if 4th gear was more usable and 3rd gear got me over almost any hill. Right now 3rd will go most anywhere but occasionally 2nd is needed. No wind and flat, 4th works good. I did upgrade from the stock 245/75R16 tires (30.5") to 265/65R18 rims/tires this year (31.5"). I still had the stock size tires when we were out west last time.

How heavy is your trailer?

7500-8000 lbs is my guess. I have weighed the tongue and it is 1200-1300. It is as loaded as a trailer can be for its size, every compartment is full and we always carry water. I should weigh it sometime. I've upgraded the axles and tires so I'm safe to well beyond the 7800 lb GVWR.