TV recommendations for a large family

[joat_mon]

I need some help choosing a TV for a family of 7. I know there are lots of posts related to choosing a TV and I have been reading them for weeks. But everyone's circumstances are different. This is ours. We recently purchased a used 2007 Jayco Feather 232 but do not yet have a vehicle to pull it with. It was a deal we could not let slip by.

The TT weighs about 4100 lbs and the GVWR is 5500. After reading lots of other forum posts, I am glad it is as light as it is. I have been assuming that we will be in the 5200 to 5500 range when towing. I will be using WD hitch.

So the family of 7 consists of 2 adults, 3 teens, 1 pre-teen and the youngster. I figure together we are close to 925 lbs. But of course, the kids are still growing. Luckily, the kids don't need as much heavy stuff to keep them occupied when we travel.

We enjoy camping (7 in a tent was an experience) and are hoping that the TT will expand our range a little. We are based in Indiana (mostly flat) and are planning to camp there but hope to expand to the Ohio River Valley, Smokey Mtns, Northern MI, and the rolling hills of Missouri. We would also like to do a few (once a year) 2 week trips out West to the coast.

So now we need to find a vehicle to do that in. Preferably for $8K to 12K but can go a little higher for the right vehicle. I should also say that I have no experience towing so I have nothing to compare to and no real world experience. I have your collective wisdom to guide me.

So in doing research and some test drives I have come to this understanding, but please correct me if I am wrong, that we probably need to be checking the towing capacity and more importantly the max payload. We are undecided on van vs. SUV. For the longer hauls, the van has wonderful room and conversions have lots of comfort. But conversions have ambiguous weight ratings and many do not even have the towing package. SUVs seem to have better towing capacity numbers but are about the same or less room as the minivan we have (and have filled to capacity) now.

The Suburban/Yukon XL currently tops our list for SUVs. We tried a Sequoia (nice person room but very little room to spread out), Yukon XL (not bad but the interiors tend to wear out), an Expedition (kids didn't fit well in the back seat), and an Excursion (DW and kids did not like the harsher ride). I know some would recommend a Sub 2500 but they are difficult to find. I am lucky to find 1 within 100 miles that fits within our "soft limits" of 2001 or newer and less than 150K miles. I have seen several 1500 Suburbans (2002 to 2005, ~120K miles) in the price range. Can anyone comment on the towing of the Yukon XL Denali with the 6.0 vs the standard 5.3? I know it may not have the full benefits of a 2500, but more HP is more HP.

We have looked at 1 or 2 vans. These are also very hard to find, especially as I would prefer a low top conversion to a passenger van. It seems that SUVs really did a number on the passenger van market. Finding a 2500 conversion within the price range is a needle in a haystack at best.

So, what are your recommendations? Is a 2500 Suburban the way to go? Does that ride as harsh as an Excursion or closer to a 1500? Can a 1500 conversion van with a 5.3 and the towing package enough, or do I need to stick to ¾ or 1 ton? Are there better places to look than cars.com, autotrader.com, and craigslist? The comfort/performance/cost/scarcity balance for vehicles for large families is more effort than I was expecting. Funny thing is that I never considered us to be a large family until I was looking for this vehicle. We are really excited about getting out more. Thanks for any input. 🙂

[PAThwacker]

2500 Subs are rare birds and you will need one. On every Friday, 9,000 vehicles are run through the Manheim, PA dealer auction. Finding a 3/4 ton is once every 7 weeks Or more. Half ton soccer mom junk every other car run.

[mcsurveyor]

I forgot to mention the side curtain airbags! That was a big selling point on the Express to us.

I searched high and low for a van with the G80 Eaton locker option, but in the end I couldn't find one and bought one without. I was a little concerned coming from a 4wd Silverado, but the Express did just fine in the snow here in Minnesota last winter. There's more weight over the drive axle than a pickup, and the all season tires combined with the traction/stability control did just fine in the snow. I wouldn't take it off road, and some circumstances you have to keep your momentum up, but that's snow driving 101. The ground clearance is great.

[Capt_Ahab]

I'll second (or third or fourth - lost count!) the chevy express 3500. We're now a family of 9 (yikes!) - bought our (used, 2008) van and TT when we were a family of 7 and LOVE IT. We have the 12 psngr (shorter wheelbase), 6.0L with tow package. Can't comment on the Icy/snowy road handling as it almost NEVER gets like that in South Texas.

Chevy's side-curtain airbags is what pushed us it's way (over the Ford). This was a few years ago now so things may be different.

We found ours with about 13K miles, and in your pricerange.

I know I have seen these vans with a diesel engine (which I assume would provide more towing cap.). I would have liked that, but wouldn't have been able to afford it!

[mhoefer]

You really need to stop overlooking the excursions. With you r whole family in it, it will drive nice, it has the room, the cup holders and amenities, 4 by 4. Get a v10 over a diesel, you want to by 6.0 diesels very carefully so you don't inherit problems. They can be very good if properly maintained but since you are buying used I would not recommend. V10 for towing is a far better option than the smaller gas v8 for the load and trailer comfort towing. Of course a suburban with the 8.1 is a great option too. You need a heavy tow vehicle as you will be loaded up with your family and pulling a trailer, this also gets you the best safety equipment by going SUV over Van. Don't be afraid to scour nationwide and fly to the right vehicle. You really want a good towing vehicle for your family, don't under buy with all that precious cargo. Bonus is you will have a very safe winter 4 by 4 to go with it.

[blt2ski]

I had two astro vans, one an 89 rwd with the GM factory Eaton locker, found it to work just fine in the WET snow we get here in the nw. That was traded on a 2000 AWD, with bridgstone winter duellers, it was dang near unstoppable in snow around here!

With this in mind, IF you can find a GM van with the G80 locking rear, get some GOOD DECENT snow tires for the snow you drive in, a van should do reasonably well. Not as good as something with all 4 driving per say, but reasonably well. Bad tires and you do not go any where, even if you do have awd or 4wd, ala put 4 michelin XPS ribs, and plan to drive in the snow! NOT!

As far as drive train. for the GM as I know them better than Fords, the 6.0 gas if you can find one with the 6 sp auto, at least 3.42 gears, better would be 3.73, you will do fine pulling. If you find a 4 sp auto, 3.73 min better is a 4.10 with that auto! The reason is the 4 sp auto has a first gear of 2.48 or effective about 4-1 in first, the 6 sp has a 4.10 first, effective about 6.5-1 with the tc engaged. So you have have a LOT higher axel ratio with the 6 sp, and still have a lower overall low to get you moving etc! This is a number a LOT of people do not pay any attention too, and they SHOULD! BIG TIME SHOULD! The ratio's int he tranny can be more important comparing vehicles than the pumkin axel ratio!

Marty

[mcsurveyor]

Family of 6 here. 2500/3500 Van for sure. I'm very happy with our Express 3500. I love having "too much" space. Lots of room to spread out, a great tow vehicle, and really good gas mileage for a 1-ton truck (18 mpg hwy). In our neck of the woods there are tons ex-fleet vans for sale, as long as you like the color white.

Just a question, what are you driving now that holds 7 people? Or do you usually take 2 vehicles?

[BurbMan]

Normally a regular 1500 Suburban would handle a 5500 lb trailer without too much difficulty, but add the fam of 7 and you'll be overloaded for sure. As far as SUVs go, the 2500 Suburban will definitely ride better than the Excursion, that was one of the main reasons why we chose ours back in 2001. the front end architecture is different, independent front suspension with torsion bars in teh burb vs a solid front axle in the Excursion.

As was noted, a 2500/3500 van is an excellent choice and can be had for less cash than the SUVs, but as you mentioned, you lose the 4WD capability. There are 4WD van conversions available, but not in your price range.

In the 2500 Suburban, either the 6.0L or the 8.1L will be OK with the weight you are towing. Our trailer is 8500 lbs so the 8.1 was a must for us.

Here's a black one with the 8.1L, 79k miles in Elyria, OH for $12,900. Not sure where you are in Indiana, but this isn't that far. Clicky.

Here's a black 6.0L with 138K miles for $7900 in St. John's MI. Clicky.

There's not a lot out there to pick from, but there are a few closeby.

[joat_mon]

Thanks again for all the advice. Especially on where to look for vans. I was actually leaning toward the SUV mostly because of availability. Haven't ruled them out by any means but now that I know that vans can be found with a little more digging, it will be good to compare.

Some edits: I rechecked the weight of the family and I missed someone (probably me) so the total giving everyone a small bag is closer to 1200 pounds. I think I read that 150 lbs of the driver is taken into account in the cargo ratings so I am not that far off in the end.

No car seats and no pets. Car seats are in the rear view mirror now. No comment on future pets.

A single vehicle is the goal. We have had to go to 2 vehicles for camping and it is not the way we would like to camp or travel.

I liked the post with the converted Excursions even though they are completely outside the price range. A nice idea, just not gonna happen.

Followup question on the vans: it seems that even the 2500 or 3500 (350) vans have seemingly smaller engines compared to 3/4 ton SUVs. Are the engines/transmission combinations used in SUVs the same as vans or are they different but with the same volume/ratios?

Also, can anyone comment on handling and safety with vans? We get some nasty ice in the winters in Indiana and although we wont be towing through the winter, if we want to just go somewhere how will this handle? We used to have an Astro many moons ago and it was no fun in the snow (with very little kids). This was one reason we were initially considering a SUV as many have 4WD or AWD. Just asking.

Thanks again. This has been some of the most constructive, helpful and positive information regarding vans that I have read.

[BenK]

So won't say which one is best, just look for the min number of seat belts plus
a few for buddies as they grow.

I would have bought a van if they had a decent 4x4 option or knew of a decent
after market kit

I'd say away from anything with a 7,000 GVWR or less (most 'regular' half tons)

Go for +8,000 GVWR's and more if the seat belt count goes above 8. Don't forget
pets and how you load up. My ex took EVERYTHING, I'm in the middle and dependent
on who/where going

Note that SUV's will cost much more than the same sized van.

I don't recommend diesel...more so if the heavily EPA smog stuff of the last
10 years or so. Their maintenance and service costs are prohibitive for me
Plus there aren't many diesel vans out there

Good luck

[fly-boy]

I think a van is a good way to go but for sure a 2500 or 3500 class vehicle.

Too bad the Excursion was a no go. That would be a perfect vehicle for the load you have!

[Francesca_Knowl]

BB_TX wrote:
Don't know about your area, but here we have been able to find Chevy "certified used" 3500 15 passenger vans pretty easily when we need one for our small business. They are typically 1 to 2 yr old vans with 13,000 to 20,000 miles on them.
Check the online web sites for your local Chevy dealers and see what they have on hand.

This one is a definite "hot tip". Ex-fleet vehicles can be monster good buys, especially if they've come from Public agencies. No problem gettin' the vehicle history there, and usually very well maintained.

I know I'm too far for this to do you any good, but just as an example:
Just this morning in a dealer ad in my local paper, I saw a 12 passenger Chev van that had been surplused from a university. New tires, full maintenance records, 59,000 miles on it...and only $8,000.00!

And they have two of them.

[js6343js6343]

We have 7 in our family as well. Since our tow weight is close to 10K lbs., I knew that an 8.1l suburban was the only tow vehicle for us. Trouble is, they are EXTREMELY hard to find. So my vehicle search had to be countrywide. When I found the right TV, I booked a one way flight from Chicago to Baltimore to pick it up. I figured the one way flight was a small price to pay for the right vehicle at the right price. I guess my 2 cents is, if you are serious about the right car, why let geography be a factor?

[APT]

You pretty much need the payload of a 3/4+ ton TV. Few half ton SUVs have 1600+ pounds of payload you need. The 3/4 ton Suburban and Yukon XL of 2000-2006 ride great, better than the Excursion. If you do not need this as a daily driver, I highly recommend an 8.1L. Otherwise, the 6.0L has ratings you need with better non-towing fuel economy.

Since you have no towing experience, you need to mentally prepare yourself. 60-65mph on flat highways. 6.0L (or any half ton from same era) will be in 3rd gear at 2500-2700rpm. 7-10mpg is typical for towing any high walled RV with a gas engine. And 8.1L would make the driver happier. 🙂

Consider 3/4 and 1-ton vans. GM's 6.0L, 8.1L, and Ford's V10 were all used in the last 10 years. You can get a lot newer/lower mileage van for the same amount of money. They are not offered from the OEMs with nearly as much equipment as SUVs or pretty much any car in the last 15 years. But they are very functional and make great large family TVs.

[blt2ski]

925 for 7 people! wow, well any how, when I first got a trailer, my family of 6 was int he 600 lb range. Granted my youngest was all of 3 months old.......When I sold it, we were in the 1200 lb range for the 6 of us! From my experience, depending upon the size of the parents, figure 200 lbs per person, or 1400 as the base people wt of the 7 of you. Also include things like car seats, extra heavy clothing etc that one might wear and up their base wt per say vs a bathroom scale wt.

Reality is, a Van is the way to go. I went with a crew cab pickup, no regrets, probably the smallest option for a family of 6. An sUV is next, not my first choice at all. A van was, but I could use the truck in my construction biz. the van was useless. hence a pickup for us! For us, a 12 passenger van would have been the way to go. I would have tried for a 4wd conversion, since we used the trailer as a ski hut in the winter alot.

I also found that we added another 200 or so lbs per person on top of the empty wt in the trailer. SOmetimes as much as 300. That could be an easy 1400-2100 lbs. This includes clothes, sleeping bags, towels, food etc.

Marty