Tahoe vs Suburban

I tow a 24' Passport with an 03 Tahoe, which loaded with all my stuff and full tanks weighs 4800 on the axles plus about 800 on the hitch. It's really the heaviest/longest trailer I would want to do with it. It is comfortable but a bit tiring when on hilly or windy roads. My use is almost exclusively hilly/windy, though.

Trips I've commonly done with it are Portland, OR to Big Sur, CA; Portland to Anacortes Wa (several times), Portland to US101 Oregon (at least once per month), Portland to Tofino, BC, Portland to Boise.

The brakes are great, the 5.3L is fine, but the 4 speed transmission needs another gear and the rear coil spring suspension is too soft and requires a lot of weight distributing hitch to keep from porpoising. My option package is 5.3L, 4wd, 3.73 gears, Nivomat rear shocks, P3 brake controller, typical round bar hitch with 1000 pound bars and friction antisway. The exhaust/intake noise is loud when going up hill. I have had absolutely no heat issues. I run synthetic transmission oil.

To the 2008 denali with the keystone bullet owner.....


Have you towed in the mountains yet? You are towing larger and heavier than me with basicly the same vehicle (2007 denali). I can't find a combination where the engine and trans will stay within a reasonable temp and I'm only towing about 6k??? What does your engine and tranny temp run?

Of course, all else being equal, the longer wheelbase tow rig will be more stable than a shorter wheelbase pulling the same trailer....any trailer.
But I don't hear anyone griping, saying it's irresponsible to pull that 40' long 5ver with that long bed pickup truck. The wheelbase to trailer length ratio may even be more in favor of the Tahoe/25' trailer.
Other factors involved too. I've pulled many different trailers, type, weight, length, profile etc over the years. Way more than I can count on fingers n toes. Some trailers pull better than others either due to design, loading or conditions. With TTs there are ALOT of variables due to the large market and many different offerings. Also due to what sells.....floor plans! You take the DW camper shopping and what does she want? Rear kitchen, 3 bunks, no bunks, king size bed, loves the storage under the front bed, etc.
you've never towed that trailer before and the old lady probably isn't even getting behind the wheel once it's hooked up, but you don't want her griping about having the spice rack too far from the stove for the rest of your days, so guess where the priority gets placed???
RV mfgs know this and they market it, aggressively! Better to sell you your first trailer from them than none at all. Tows like a hay wagon? We got the solution! Bust out the card, here's your $1200wdh, super microprocessor controlled anti sway device, airbags, add a leafs and some new muffler bearings! She'll tow like a feather and the wife won't have to reach across the table for the oregano and thyme when making you that dinner fit for a king after you white knuckled it out of Joesemite Park while she updated Facebook on her iPad from the passenger seat running off the wifi hotspot in your new TT!

There are people comfortably towing 35-37' TTs with 3/4 ton GMT800 Suburbans and Yukon XLs. 116" wheelbase to 130" does not mean 25' to 37' is safe. That's not an appproriate relationship. Keep the weights under all ratings - especially rear axle and GVWR. Use at least ~$500 WDH with integrated sway control, or a premium $2k-3k WDH. Learn how to set/adjust that WDH and there is no problem by length for TT RVs.

Had a Tahoe which is a light duty short wheelbase 1/2 ton. You cannot safely pull more than 25'. Its the tail wagging the dog. We wanted a 27 foot TT as it had the couch. We waited until we found a 2500 Suburban. That is the 3/4 ton model which was designed for towing. If your going to do any serious rving like traveling, you need to purchase the best horse before the cart. It took us a couple of years to cobble it together, but when it was set up, we drove everywhere and had lots of fun.

Happy Trails

I tow a 35 foot Keystone Bullet with a 2008 Yukon XL Denali (the Suburban's big brother). Your trailer's dry weight is irrelevant as the GVW is the value that your tow vehicle should never exceed. My Bullet is around 7400lbs when fully loaded with cargo, propane, and fluids.

The second component to towing capacity is payload. You don't want to exceed this either. We load everything other than the humans into the trailer to keep our payload in check.

The third component to towing is the direct relationship between wheelbase of the TV and length of the trailer. Any tow behind over 26 feet really requires as much wheelbase as one can provide. If the wheelbase isn't there, you'll be in for a big surprise on your first trip at highway speeds.

I recently had to invest a couple thousand dollars in a Hensley Arrow hitch as I had a jaw dropping, white knuckle experience on a return trip from western Michigan. 30+ MPH crosswinds making me cuss all the way home; I wouldn't want to test the waters with a short wheelbase 1/2 ton SUV pulling max loads.

Also, if you're thinking about a full size SUV pulling a lengthy and heavy trailer, you need adequate HP and torque to do so. My Denali has the larger small block 6.2 that produces almost 100 more HP and 50 more ft lbs of torque than GM's smaller 5.3L that you'll find in the none-Denali variants. Ask anyone pulling heavy with GM's 5.3L vortec or Fords 5.4L Triton about how their vehicles master inclines. They just don't. You'll appreciate every extra ft lb on 7% grades.

I'm usually an advocate for half ton trucks and their towing abilities as many on these RV boards are driven by the thought that you need the biggest full ton truck to move anything larger than a 24 foot lightweight.

I almost changed my belief system 5 weeks ago coming back from that camping excursion in 30 MPH crosswinds. I corrected my hitch setup with the forementioned Hensley and just keep a conservative eye on both vehicle's weights. Now, my long wheelbase 1500 is probably more stable than many 3/4 and full ton trucks I've seen out there. Our 2000 mile trip last week to Disney's Fort Wilderness proved it as my wife drove 1/2 the trip while I slept.

Again, as long as capacities are not exceeded and the TV's powerplant and wheelbase are adequate, 1/2 ton's are a viable option. A good hitch and hitch setup help tremendously.

All else equal, longer wheelbase is preferred. However, between the Tahoe and Suburban, all else is not equal. The distance between the ball and rear axle (rear overhang) is larger for the Suburban vs. Tahoe. The differences overall are not significant enough to limit your choices if towing behaviour is the most important aspect. Choose the one with higher payload (which in my experience has been the SWB for same equipment) or what fits in garage. If you plan to use the 3rd row seats on a regular basis, skip the Tahoe. The 3rd row space is cramped and there is no cargo space behind it when up/in use.

6200 dry is a lot for these SUVs,though. That will be 7000-7500 loaded with 900 pounds of TW, leaving 500-600 payload left for people and stuff. Seems enough to me for a couple, but maybe not a growing family of 5+.

I tow a 28.5' Wildwood 26TBSS, empty is is about 5800 lbs and 800+ lbs of tongue weight. Loaded I would guess it is over 7500 lbs and I have measured the tongue weight loaded and it has always been between 1200-1300 lbs. This would exceed the hitch rating of any 2007+ Suburban or Tahoe. This is one reason I chose a 3/4 ton Suburban of 2006 or older where the hitches were rated up to 1500 lbs of tongue weight and are replaceable. I have seen where someone upgraded the hitch on a newer suburban but had to slightly modify the frame to make the Curt hitch fit. They also had additional steel plates welded in to make sure it was solid. I would likely go that route if I needed to replace my Suburban in the future and still wanted an SUV.

If you can keep your tongue weight within your hitch ratings and not go over your GVWR or rear axle weight rating, it would seem that the shorter rear overhang of the Tahoe would compensate for the shorter wheelbase and with a good hitch, they would perform in a similar fashion. A 3/4 ton would perform better but would not be necessary. We travel long distances and I wanted the extra stability of the 3/4 ton Suburban and do not regret it. I have also towed a smaller/lighter trailer with my Buick Wagon that was way over its ratings and axle ratings for about 8000 miles of towing over a 6 year period and was reasonably happy with how it performed as well.

How much you load up your trailer will make a big difference in if you can stay under your ratings. What do you tow with today?

I pull a 26' Dutchman with a 2012 Tahoe with a trailer tow package.
No problems at all. Trailer Unloaded weight is 5004 cargo capacity 2696. Hitch 462.

I had a 2002 (5.3L) and 2007 (5.7L)Suburban 1500 and pulled a 28 foot Sunline TT with the Equalizer hitch. Never had a problem. Comfortable vehicle for passengers and plenty of room to haul extra stuff.

Never owned a Tahoe so I can't answer any questions about that.