Tow Vehicle

[beelbill]

Have a 31 foot Cougar bunkhouse that has dry weight=7115 and load capacity=1885 for total weight of around 9000. My current tow vehicle is a 2007 Chevy Crew Silverado 2500 with tow capacity of 12,000 lbs. There are 6-8 family members that go on vacation together each year. Since only 5 people can fit in the truck, we have to have some people follow in the minivan. The truck and the minivan are both getting up there in miles way past 100,000. Want to trade the truck in on a new tow vehicle where all 8 can ride together. Thought I would just get a Suburban, but in 2007 their towing capacity dropped from 12,000 lbs to 7500 lbs. The best capacity I can find in an SUV is just a little over 9000 lbs. But, I must be missing something, because every campground is full of trailers just as large as mine with Yucon's, Tahoe's, Escalade 's, and Navigator's pulling them. It makes no sense that every year the trailers get bigger and heavier yet the tow vehicles get wimpier. I must be calculating the trailer weight wrong or something.

What are my real choices for an SUV to tow the Cougar?

[Knminton]

krobbe wrote:

Knminton wrote:
The new Suburban 3500HD is already being sold fleet. It has a 4400 payload but some ridiculously low tow rating. The only engine option is the 6.0. Not sure what its intended use is.
Starting as only $81,000.

The Suburban HD is aimed at Gubment sales, ready for that heavy armor the politicians need to feel safe...
Maybe if they hadn't divided this country in half to buy votes? But that's another topic.

Haha. True! And that makes sense. With the platform there, it would have been really nice to see a stout tow rating and either a Duramax or big block. I wouldn't spend the money on it anyway, but there would be a good used market in a few years.

[krobbe]

Knminton wrote:
The new Suburban 3500HD is already being sold fleet. It has a 4400 payload but some ridiculously low tow rating. The only engine option is the 6.0. Not sure what its intended use is.
Starting as only $81,000.

The Suburban HD is aimed at Gubment sales, ready for that heavy armor the politicians need to feel safe...
Maybe if they hadn't divided this country in half to buy votes? But that's another topic.

[Heavy_Metal_Doc]

Another vote for full sized van. We love our Nissan NV 3500 - rides / tows our TT great. With the front built a little more truck like, drivers area is more comfortable than any Ford or Chevy van I have ever driven for hours on end in.

[Knminton]

By the way, I have been researching the Burb 2500's and Excursions for my family of 7. The limiting factor with the Burbs, either 2000-2006 GMT800 or 2007-2013 GMT900 may be payload, especially if you are loading up with adults. And then the 1000 tongue limit on the GMT900, but you may have payload problems before you get to that anyway. The 2000-2006 Burb 2500's with the 6.0 have the highest payload of all these options, as the motor is lighter than the 8.1. The 2000-2006 are as follows, and the right combo can be extremely difficult to find (I've been looking for months).

Tow Ratings/Payload
6.0 with 3.73 - 7600/2828
6.0 with 4.10 - 9600/2828
8.1 with 3.73 - 10,300/2526
8.1 with 4.10 - 12,000/2526

2007
6.0 with 3.73 - 7500/2273-2561
6.0 with 4.10 - 9500/2273-2561

2008-2009 (Integrated brake controller starts 2009)
6.0 with 3.73 (6L90E Tranny starts) - 9300/2273-2561

2010
6.0 with 3.73 - 9300/2049-2385

2011
6.0 with 3.73 - 9400/2049-2385

2012-2013
6.0 with 3.73 - 9400/2181-2450

All payloads are just what I have found through document search. I wouldn't take them as gospel. Try to find some owners or units on lots to verify with labels or scale tickets. I believe the Excursions payloads come in around 1500-1700. As someone noted above, they are underrated and can be easily upgraded. It all depends on which camp you lie in regarding towing over the manufacturer's capacity.

I am sure you know this already, but you can verify the gearing by the RPO labels in the glovebox (assuming they have not been modified).

Good luck!

Edit: The GMT900 numbers are all 4WD. These tow ratings go up to 9600 on the 2WD's, but I'm not considering these. And also, the 4WD will be in the lower end of the payload ranges because of the transfer case, drive shaft, front axle, etc.

[Knminton]

KD4UPL wrote:
GM used to make a 2500 Suburban. They shopped a few years ago, quite possibly around 2012 which may explain the numbers your getting.
There is a rumor that they may be bringing back the 2500 Suburban, I've seen some of the spy photos and it does have 8 lug axles. If you can wait a while and see if that happens then a new 2500 Sub should do the trick.
Otherwise there really aren't any SUV options. You could possible find a used Ford Excursion but the V8 was too weak, the 6.0 diesel too problematic, and the V10 spit out spark plugs. The V10 would still be my pick if you go that route.
The problem is that either way, 8 people in a vehicle will just about eat up all the payload capacity before you even hitch a trailer. As suggested, a 3500 series van may work. Chevy used to put the Duramax in vans. If you can find one of those I think it would be your best bet.
I know some people like to always have newer vehicles and maybe you're one of them. But, there's no reason you can't get over 200,000 out of a modern properly maintained vehicle. Our 3 vehicles have 156,000, 184,000 and 205,000 on them and i have no intention of getting rid of any of them. They all run great.

The new Suburban 3500HD is already being sold fleet. It has a 4400 payload but some ridiculously low tow rating. The only engine option is the 6.0. Not sure what its intended use is.

http://www.paulsadlon.com/showroom/2016-chevrolet-suburban-3500hd-lt-4x4-barrie~srCAC60CHS331B0

https://www.midwaychevy.com/global-incentives-search/2016-Chevrolet-Suburban-3500HD-SUV-Offers-US2016CHV1e66c36713e2fd3c55a182a.htm

Starting as only $81,000.

They sold the Burb 2500 through the 2013 model year.

[krobbe]

Towing 9000# and carrying 8 passengers will require a pretty stout SUV. Look at the 2002-2006 Suburban 2500 8.1L w/ 4.10 axle ratio. The 8.1L and 4.10 will give you the max trailer weight of 12000#. But do subtract from that 12K the total weight of passengers and cargo.
As far as model year differences, 2001 was the first MY for the 8.1L but has the 4L80-E transmission. GM beefed it up to the 4L85-E in 2002. 2003 added the Stabilitrak system and upgraded interiors.
Upgrade any of these GM hitches to a good Class V by Curt for under $250. The OEM hitches are not good.

[beelbill]

It looks like my choices are a Suburban, a Van, or my truck. I don't think a van would hold it's value as well as either a Suburban or my truck. I am thinking that a 2000 to 2006 burb has a much greater tow weight so I would be better off getting that rather than a newer burb.

[Redterpos3]

trail-explorer wrote:

Charley67 wrote:
If you go with one ton van, the Chevys have less overhang behind the rear wheels, thus better for towing.

Ditto... It makes for a more stable vehicle when there's people and gear in the back seat too.

I'd say this is true if you are going for the 15 passenger van. The 8-12 passenger models (ie. without the extra 5 feet on the back) are similar Ford/Chevy. (I have 12 passenger 2000 Ford E-350, V10 - nice tow vehicle especially for larger families).

[trail-explorer]

Charley67 wrote:
If you go with one ton van, the Chevys have less overhang behind the rear wheels, thus better for towing.

Ditto... It makes for a more stable vehicle when there's people and gear in the back seat too.

[Charley67]

If you go with one ton van, the Chevys have less overhang behind the rear wheels, thus better for towing.

[APT]

7100 pounds dry may be within all the limits of my 2011 2500 Suburban. At 8000-8500 pounds loaded, that is pushing the 1000 pound receiver limit. No way any other 2007+ SUV has the payload for 7+ people and 1000 pounds of TW. If you want newer/lower mileages, then you have to stick with 3/4 and 1 ton vans. If your trips are under 4 hours each way, then another crew cab pickup and second higher FE vehicle may be your best options.

[beelbill]

I don't have to have the latest vehicles, but the truck won't hold us all and I hate putting more miles on two vehicles everywhere we go. The van idea is an option, but are you all saying that I am right and none of the newer SUV's are capable of pulling the trailer? So are all those people in the campgrounds pulling trailers that are too big for their rigs? Sounds dangerous. I like the idea of the new Suburban, but it is out of my price range.

[carringb]

I love my van! They make great tow vehicles. If you get a 1-ton is has ample carrying capacity and the big motors have plenty of pulling power too.

Excursions are nice but getting old and you'd have to swap springs to have enough payload for a full passenger load and trailer.

[gbopp]

KD4UPL wrote:

I know some people like to always have newer vehicles and maybe you're one of them. But, there's no reason you can't get over 200,000 out of a modern properly maintained vehicle. Our 3 vehicles have 156,000, 184,000 and 205,000 on them and i have no intention of getting rid of any of them. They all run great.

If it was up to me, and it wasn't, I would still be driving my 1971 International Travelall.
It was a beast. 🙂