Tahoe, Yukon, Expedition, or Armada to pull 32' TT

[chrisclash]

Hello all, newbie here.

I just bought a Wildwood 27DBK TT (new layout for 2017) and am looking for an SUV to pull it. The trailer is about 32' long ball to bumper and 6400 lbs. dry. The wife wants an SUV with three rows of seats rather than a truck to pull it because the family is soon going to be spending a lot of time in our towing vehicle. So a nice strong truck isn't an option for me, unfortunately. She also doesn't like the bulk of the Suburban and similar vehicles. She also refuses to buy a Toyota or Honda.

So I've been looking at Tahoes, Yukons, Expeditions, and Armadas. After reading quite a few stories around the net, I have found very few trailer owners that can vouch for a Tahoe, Yukon, or Expedition pulling this sort of trailer, even though the trailer is lighter than the 8000-9000 lbs tow rating of these vehicles (properly equipped). Yet, I can find quite a few good testimonials for the Armada. Even though consumer rating services would put the Armada at the bottom of this list (based on comfort, alloy wheel brightness, blah blah blah), is it true that the Armada would be the best tow vehicle of these four vehicles? Or could it just be that Armada owners are more optimistic about their experience than Tahoe / Yukon / Expedition owners for some reason? Is there a physical reason that the Armada would be better (vehicle weight, engine torque, wheelbase dimensions, lube coolers, axle ratio...)?

Thanks for any help you might be able to offer.

[Dadoffourgirls]

The 3500 Express with the 6.0 does not get horrible gas mileage. Towing my trailer, I get the best of three tow vehicles I owned. I also get 2 mpg better in normal use, and 2-3 mpg better in highway driving.

I took a 8 people in mine on a ski trip for the 4-H club this winter, and averaged 20 mpg over the 400+ miles. The reason for great mileage was we never went above 67 mph on the trip (the top speed of the older school bus) on the trip.

I also decided that the barebones (even in LT trim) van saving $40k over a new diesel truck is definitely worth it for my family. I can also afford a cheap small lease vehicle if I really want to save fuel even more.

[afidel]

16RV&TT_Ford_Transit_Sep28.pdf was the file I found. link

[afidel]

Nope, only 7100 for the regular wheel base low roof 150/250, which says it's about the frame or suspension since the eb 3.5 is rated like 12,000 max in the f150.

[austingta]

afidel wrote:
They max out at 7,500 for a 150/250 LWB low roof max tow diesel per Ford's towing guide for the transit vans.

I see it's a baby diesel; 5 cylinders. . They need to step up... I see a need for a big family hauler that is really strong. Maybe the EB is rated for more, I don't know.

http://www.caranddriver.com/comparisons/2015-ford-transit-150-power-stroke-page-4

[afidel]

They max out at 7,500 for a 150/250 LWB low roof max tow diesel per Ford's towing guide for the transit vans.

[austingta]

chrisclash wrote:
Thanks for all of the posts. I think I'm going to forget about those SUVs due to your comments. The borderline numbers are enough for me to think that towing with one of those vehicles would be too risky. Maybe not for a weekend trip, but certainly for the year-long trip I am planning.

Happily, my better half appears to like those big vans, and it looks like the Ford E-350, Express 3500, and NV 3500 V8 all come in configurations with plenty of payload. Going into this, I naively thought that any car manufacturer that makes a truck that can pull 20,000 lbs. would make some sort of SUV built on the same frame where they just replaced the truck bed with a couple of rows of seats. I was wrong. Maybe when SUVs first came out, but not now. The SUVs I have found today are just reconfigured station wagons from the 80s. Station wagons that appeal to today's middle class without looking like something from National Lampoon. These larger vans appear to be the truck-based vehicle with a bunch of seats that I'm looking for, but they are so bare-bones and have horrible gas mileage. Where is the big passenger van with a Ford Ecoboost that can tow a ton? It doesn't exist. I guess it's because the market for these vans and SUVs is so small compared to the truck market.

I built one and it can do a lot. I'm not really sure what it is rated to tow, but it does have a 4000+ payload and the 3.5 L EcoBoost. Plus it's relatively cheap! I'm not sure I put seats in it, but you can. Anyway, you get the idea.


Click For Full-Size Image.

[garyp4951]

I think your making a good decision, and safer for the family.

[chrisclash]

Thanks for all of the posts. I think I'm going to forget about those SUVs due to your comments. The borderline numbers are enough for me to think that towing with one of those vehicles would be too risky. Maybe not for a weekend trip, but certainly for the year-long trip I am planning.

Happily, my better half appears to like those big vans, and it looks like the Ford E-350, Express 3500, and NV 3500 V8 all come in configurations with plenty of payload. Going into this, I naively thought that any car manufacturer that makes a truck that can pull 20,000 lbs. would make some sort of SUV built on the same frame where they just replaced the truck bed with a couple of rows of seats. I was wrong. Maybe when SUVs first came out, but not now. The SUVs I have found today are just reconfigured station wagons from the 80s. Station wagons that appeal to today's middle class without looking like something from National Lampoon. These larger vans appear to be the truck-based vehicle with a bunch of seats that I'm looking for, but they are so bare-bones and have horrible gas mileage. Where is the big passenger van with a Ford Ecoboost that can tow a ton? It doesn't exist. I guess it's because the market for these vans and SUVs is so small compared to the truck market.

[bikendan]

I wouldn't pull that trailer with any SUV, unless it was a Excursion or 3/4 Suburban/Yukon.

[Jebby14]

NO DICE! none of the mentioned suv's will have enough payload to handle more full seats, the stuff that comes with the full seats, and the tongue weight of a trailer that size. full size van, sepporate tow vehicle or voodoo witchcraft are the best options.

[busterbrown73]

I own a 35 foot Keystone Bullet pull behind and pull it with a Yukon XL Denali. Dry weight is a few hundred lbs less (6100) than the OPs. I have since upgraded the hitch to a Hensley Arrow as the Blue Ox Sway pro WDH wasn't effective in 30 mph winds. That paired with a good brake controller, LT tires, premium brakes/rotors, and loading everything in the trailer except for humans and car seats has made for pleasant towing trips. Grant it, I am pretty close to payload capacity on the Yukon, but not over. After a couple more RVing seasons, the kids will be bigger and we will upgrade to a 3/4 ton truck. I'm all about staying within the numbers. But these half ton trucks are capable tow vehicles as long as you stay with the specs. Pack lite, keep your water tanks empty, and load the trailer equally on both sides of the axles. The Hensley completely eliminated sway after I purchased it last year, something I highly recommend for a trailer over 26 feet in lenght. A 3000 mile trip to Disney's Fort Wilderness proved its worth after a roadway hazard almost took out my rig at highway speeds. The evasive maneuver I executed to avoid the hazard would have been catastrophic with anything other than a Hensley.

Personally, I would only look at long wheelbase SUVS (Suburban's, Yukon XLs, and Expy's). Your WDH should be nothing less than a midrange hitch (Equal-i-zer or equivalent). And keep an eye on capacities. If you exceed them, you need to move up to a 3/4 ton vehicle. And most importantly, drive like an old man. Speed kills, especially when pulling 7,000 lbs.

Good luck on your TV search and safe travels.

[rowekmr]

I did some research and it seems the Expedition may be able to do it. If you keep the tongue weight under the max of 920 you will satisfy the hitch rating. I could not find the payload #'s on the Expedition trailer tow guide

http://www.ford.com/resources/ford/general/pdf/towingguides/17RV&TT_Ford_Expedition_Sep7.pdf

But if they are similar to the F150 (1600-1800) with the same 3.5l Ecoboost (prolly less because of added features) and you can keep it under the payload numbers including your family and cargo plus having a properly set up WD hitch you may stay under all the ratings. I bought a tongue scale with my trailer to test my loads. Before my maiden voyage I pegged the scale. Those little items the family brings add up fast especially if they are placed in the front storage compartments.

I like you have heard the Armada is a good towing platform but I don't have any experience with them. I do occasionally borrow my FIL F150 Ecoboost to tow trailers when I don't have a truck and its a good platform to tow with.

I briefly towed a slightly heavier trailer with an older Navigator but I lightened the tongue weight by removing the heavy propane tanks off of the front and loading them inside the trailer slightly behind the axles. Something for a quick trip nothing that I would like to do on a regular basis.

When you look at the unloaded tongue weights don't get misled those 2 tanks filled plus battery add SUBSTANTIAL weight to the tongue of the trailer.

It's good that you are doing the research before it saves a lot of headaches later.

I also briefly had a E350 V10 passenger van and its hard to run out of space (I got 3 kids) or payload with those. Plenty of room and sitting up with legs down (more natural) made travelling less fatiguing for me. They were hard to find when I had mines. I only sold it because I need 4wd.

Good Luck!

[Dadoffourgirls]

austingta wrote:
You do know that, in general, people who tow 32-foot travel trailers tow them with big pick up trucks? Good luck.

I was like them for a period of time. I first towed with my 2500 Yukon XL with the 8.1. I then towed with a crew cab 2500HD (because the older 2 daughters were supposed to be done going places with us - but that was not true). So my last change was to a certified used 3500 Express. It was a year old, less than 20k miles, and under $25k. (You can get a 2016 today in the same scenario.)

A 3500 Express does not have the features that you can get in a truck - heated seats, heated steering wheel, etc., but it does allow you to take kids that do not need to sit next to each other, take bikes that do not get wet, dirty, or drag behind a trailer. It also makes for a great road-trip vehicle. I can say that we have had great family time in ours, and great winery road-trips with four couples as well.

My youngest also did most of her practice driving in our Express. In the non-extended form, it turns easy, and with the mirrors, is not difficult to park.

[dodge_guy]

chrisclash wrote:
I will have to look into the van options. My wife refuses to get another truck (we already had that argument again tonight, and I lost again), but a big van might work.

The thing here is if you want a TT your wife is going to have to be a little more realistic! explain to her that a standard SUV will not work....period. a 3/4 ton truck with the proper payload will work. I`m guessing she wont like a van for the same reasons as a truck.