Surely Enough ??

[ice2fire]

You may have seen my postings over the last few days/weeks, about how we wish to terminate our relationship with our current Chevy Trailblazer (TB), 4.0L, 3.42 axle ratio.

After lots of humming and hawing we are now considering a 2012 Yukon SUV 5.3 L, V8 Flex Fuel, 6 speed automatic, 3.42 axle ratio, 4x4, 2 speed transfer case, HD trailering package, GVWR of 7100lbs, Max Gross trailer weight of 8,200lbs, max payload of 1,606lbs, wheelbase of 116 inches (9' 8"). Loaded with other electronics. Apparently it was used by a GM Executive for a year. Receiver shows no scratches, so I suspect it never towed anything. We would remove the third row of seats. It would be loaded with "stuff" on the way down and back, (ON to CA to AZ and AZ to ON), but only DW and myself in it.

The 19" TT weighs 4,000 lbs loaded (personally weighed last year). The hitch weight is 450lbs. It has one axle. We use it to travel to and from Ontario to Arizona, doing side trips on the way, and side trips during our stay in Arizona.

This year we are contemplating going from Toronto to Sacramento OVER the mountains, i.e. Salt Lake City, Reno, Sacramento. Then down to Phoenix.

Will this Yukon have sufficient power to go up the mountains, and against 40mph winds on the flat without the transmission overheating (as would the Trailblazer). ?? Is it also reliable ? ( Which the TB was not.)

All comments and opinions welcomed.

[Lessmore]

kknowlton wrote:
You should have the power for it, though the axle ratio is less than ideal for towing. Can't answer as to reliability; it IS a GM, after all. 😉

Reliability...as it's a GM... should be fine.

If it was a Toyota I'd be concerned after the experience of our 2007 Toyota Matrix bought new. The thing has been a disaster and the number of recalls for further issues has been significant.

[ice2fire]

APT wrote:
You may also want to ask a dealer parts department about the OEM one.

Fortunately, it did NOT have the OEM brake controller installed. I understood from the dealer that this could have got confused with the Reese WD sway system (the rods with a bend in them) we have installed for the trailer. It's only a small trailer, but I'm very thankful we have that sway control when we going through "Twister alley" e.g. Oklahoma, or a big semi goes past us. We need it sometimes !

I had good experience with the Prodigy before, I'll go that way again.

Thanks again. We're picking the truck up on Friday !!

[APT]

Congrats! You're going to enjoy the towing experience far more than before.

Tekonsha Prodigy P2 or P3 are great, under $150 for parts and easy installation. You may also want to ask a dealer parts department about the OEM one. It works very well. It was standard on my 3/4 ton, so I have no idea how much a dealer charges.

[Dadoffourgirls]

I would recommend a Prodigy P3. I have used mine in both a 2012 and 2013 Suburban, and found it to provide great control.

You should be able to install yourself very easily. There is 4 wires that are taped up under the dash. Their is a tag that identifies each wire. You can connect to the P3 very easy. You will then need to attach the two wires to the front terminals of the electric box under the hood. One will be taped under the brake master cylinder, the other next to the box tight to the fender. These attach with two different sized metric nuts.

[ice2fire]

Well, we held our breath and went ahead and bought it !! Didn't get much for our TB - just about paid the HST on the new vehicle !

I did an online check of all the Tahoes and Yukons for sale from Ottawa to Niagara Falls, and "ours" (!) was the best. Lots of Black ones out there which we didn't want. I think it will do fine myself, it has a transmission temperature gauge in the DIC, which I will switch to when windy or going up mountains. Plus lots of other nice electronics, that are desirable but we could have done without.

It can't have been used to tow anything before - it has no brake controller ! We were offered a Reese Controller for $186 installed. Opinions ? I think this must be a timed system. I had a Husky in the TB, not that impressed. Had a Tekonsha Prodigy in a previous 3/4 ton truck. Liked that.

And of course we were offered all the back end things like extended warranty, leather treatment, paint treatment, etc, etc. My opinion is to say no to all !! Other opinions ?

At any rate, THANK YOU ALL, for your opinions, advice, and help ! What a great forum !

[Tystevens]

Don't listen to those barking about 3.73 or higher gears. They are stuck in the stone age ... ;). The 3.42 withe the 6 spd transmission tows better than the old 4 spd and 4.10 gear combo (hint -- check my sig ... I've owned and towed the same trailer with both!). The 3.42 and 6 spd is far superior in performance IMO to the older setup.

I think you will be just fine. We tow a heavier trailer in the Utah mountains, and have no issues. Sure, it isn't as fast as our diesel 2500 was, and we have to let the engine rev a bit going up grades, but it works fine for our purposes.

[Mvander]

I tow a 25ft TT with a 5.3 Yukon 4spd. TT is 5500gvwr. I wouldn't want more weight back their but your 6 spd and lighter TT should help out a lot. From my limited experience I would say you will be fine. Just be sure your WDH is set-up right and watch the trans temps. If you don't have a trans temp guage I highly recommend the tourque app for smart devices.

[larry_barnhart]

Reliability means nobody can promised what will happen on any brand or when it will happen but as many vehicle's on the road the amount of break downs is very low. Just a comment and means nothing to the OP's post.
chevman

[MadFinnHockey]

Just my 2 cents.... I've got a Chevy Suburban 1500 5.3 V8 4x4 with the heavy duty towing package, so it sounds very similar to the Yukon, and I pull a 23ft hybrid with a empty vehicle weight of 3303, and I tow throughout NH. For the most part I have no problems, but when towing up through the hilliest parts of the White Mountains it can struggle a bit.

[blt2ski]

The 6 sp auto has a 4.1 first gear, effective with TC around 7-1 vs the old 4 sp at 3.1 for the 4l60 and 2.48 for the 4l80, effective 5-1 for the 4.60 and 4-1 for the 4.80. right there, alone, assuming a 3.42 ratio. you would need a 5.32 axel gear to equal the overall low with the 4l80, and 4.8 with the 4l60. The usuable ratios are better, along with the splits being closer..........you can probably pull a LOT more than what the gcw rating implies and still be fine!

That truck 'should" do better. BUT like a lot of things. it all depends.

Marty

[ice2fire]

APT wrote:
Check the tire and loading sticker for as equipped payload. THANKS.

I recommend loading as much into the TT as possible, not the back of the TV. Then only 10-15% of the weight goes onto the truck's axles.

UNFORTUNATELY TT ALREADY MAXED OUT !

[Dadoffourgirls]

ice2fire wrote:
...After lots of humming and hawing we are now considering a 2012 Yukon SUV 5.3 L, V8 Flex Fuel, 6 speed automatic, 3.42 axle ratio, 4x4, 2 speed transfer case, HD trailering package, GVWR of 7100lbs, Max Gross trailer weight of 8,200lbs, max payload of 1,606lbs, wheelbase of 116 inches (9' 8"). Loaded with other electronics. Apparently it was used by a GM Executive for a year. Receiver shows no scratches, so I suspect it never towed anything. ...All comments and opinions welcomed.

I think you will be fine with this combination. I have towed a 20ft livestock trailer that was nearly 7000 lbs with Burb that had same engine/trans.

Does the vehicle have the built in Brake Controller? The other indication if it was used to tow anything is to look under the hood to see how if the wires are attached to the fused power supply or still neatly taped under the brake cylinder and next to the power supply.

[APT]

I highly recommend the longer wheelbase for its marginal extra costs. I also recommend the 3/4 ton for its standard RV towing equipment. However, you should be under all the ratings with that TV. Check the tire and loading sticker for as equipped payload. Mine says 2051.



I recommend loading as much into the TT as possible, not the back of the TV. Then only 10-15% of the weight goes onto the truck's axles.

5.3L/3.42/6-spd will know your socks off comapred to your current TB. That's like your truck with 4.56 axle. Use tow/haul mode, and M5 to lock out 6th gear.

[Targa]

You might need to consider a 1 ton dually with a diesel and 4.10's.....:B