Towing with a Suburban

[dkrukosky]

I am looking at getting a used Suburban 2500 to tow a 29' overlander 1975. anyone towing with this setup? any thoughts on if the 6 liter is vastly different towing than the 8 liter? would a suburban 1500 be enough?

Anyone what to by a 99 jeep cherokee?

[SteveH]

Have a friend that tows a 34 footer with a 2500 Suburban with the 8.1L, and it does it well. I'm sure the 6L would be fine for the vintage 29'.

[AldeanFan]

The vintage units are much lighter than the current trailers of the same length. My 4.7L Tundra is plenty to tow my '77 but might struggle on the hills with a new heavier trailer of similar length.

You also want to factor in what you're putting in the trailer and vehicle.

[Wazbro]

It depends on how you travel if you would do well with a 1500. You would need the heavy duty tow package (4.10 with 4 speed/3.42 with 6 speed) and watch how much weight is in the TV. If you travel with 4 or more people you would be better off with a 2500.

[elolson]

I have towed our 34' airstream with our 2001 yukon xl 2500. That is the same a 3/4 ton burb. I had to spend a day down at the CAT scales to set up the hitch but it tows real stable and at any highway speed. It has the LQ4 6.0L. The newer ones have the LQ9 which is a bit hotter motor, same design but higher compression. It will get the job done but don't plan on flying up the hills. We were down to 25 with the hazards on many times driving from Tucson to the Rim over by Payson up 260. Never had any heating problems even in the hot summer climbing hills. So I guess they did a good job on matching the cooling system with the engine power under load.

If you are the impatient type then you will get frustrated. If you are patient then the 3/4 burb will be just fine. I have never towed with a 1/2 ton. I tried a 1/2ton short bed pick-up when we first bought our stream and that was a disaster.

[drboyd]

We tow a 25' Tradewinds with a Tahoe with the 5.3 liter engine. Tows great, except for uphill. Just gotta have the right hitch setup, and you're gold.

[mstephens]

Suburban 1500 4WD with 5.3L, 4:10 gears towing a 25' Flying Cloud and using an Equalizer hitch.

Tows like a dream. Power to spare, loads and loads of comfort, smooth predictable ride, no noticeable sway. I removed the third row seating so I have mucho room for goodies. 10.6 MPG towing.

Initially I wanted a 2500, but they were scarcer than hens teeth, and when we found the 1500 it was an beautiful LTZ model with low miles and we jumped.

I suppose if I could change something, I might wish I had the 3:83 gears and not the 4:10.

Good luck!

[OilnH2o]

2001 Suburban LT 1500 4wd with 5.3 L and 3.73 rear end (maybe its a 3.83?) with tow package - towing a 76 Overlander with Equalizer hitch - and 203,000+ miles on the Sube - tows great. As said above, on hills it drops to 3rd but can maintain 60-65 easily, and on long, steep grades, it goes to 2nd to maintain 50 - that's about 3500 rpm. On the interstate, if we go much faster than 65, it will drop down into 3rd in a headwind or even a slight, gradual grade. We gassed up today, twice, and got 10.9 and 13.4 between Salmon, ID and Price, UT, with lots of flat country, and several long steep grades (Lost Trail pass and Soldier Summit) - I suspect the reality is close to 12 mpg on average... I can take the hills with the 2nd gear when needed, for the ride, comfort and utility of the half-ton (paid-for!) Suburban.

On the other hand, if I could find a 1999 3/4 ton (K2500) with the turbo diesel I think I'd buy it, because that's a great rig and you can't get it anymore - especially with the cargo doors, which are very handy. But it's a scarce tooth among scarce hen's teeth!

[mefly2]

Duck, here come the clucking chickens; what, no teeth?

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by dkrukosky

I am looking at getting a used Suburban 2500 to tow a 29' overlander 1975. anyone towing with this setup? any thoughts on if the 6 liter is vastly different towing than the 8 liter? would a suburban 1500 be enough?

Yes.

Anyone what to by a 99 jeep cherokee?

No.

[SStar]

We're newbies, just got our 28 ft classic last August. We are towing with an 07 2500 Yukon which is a GMC Suburban. It is the 6.0, 4 speed trans with 4.10 rear end. We towed home, then made a 400 mile round trip, I was well satisfied with the way it towed, really good stability. The Yukon is basically the same set up as a 3/4 ton PU. We were towing in some pretty good hills, Texas Big Bend area but no mountains. Averaged 9.5 mpg. We like having a closed in vehicle as opposed to a pickup, especially like the 3rd row seats, great for grandkids. Good luck on your selection, I guess 1/2 ton versus 3/4 really depends on how much you plan to tow.

[dkrukosky]

Originally Posted by SStar

We're newbies, just got our 28 ft classic last August. We are towing with an 07 2500 Yukon which is a GMC Suburban. It is the 6.0, 4 speed trans with 4.10 rear end. We towed home, then made a 400 mile round trip, I was well satisfied with the way it towed, really good stability. The Yukon is basically the same set up as a 3/4 ton PU. We were towing in some pretty good hills, Texas Big Bend area but no mountains. Averaged 9.5 mpg. We like having a closed in vehicle as opposed to a pickup, especially like the 3rd row seats, great for grandkids. Good luck on your selection, I guess 1/2 ton versus 3/4 really depends on how much you plan to tow.

I went ahead and bought 2001 suburban 2500 with the 6.0. We will see how nice she tows once I get the airstream back together.