Hrmm, those look fun!

I think the grades in the Smokies are no more than 8% max, up to ~3000ft maybe.

 

Isn't the speed limit with a trailer 55 in CA?

Maybe CHP only really cares if you have out of state plates... good for mpgs, though.

 

 

How about one of these? Any issues with 6.0L from Chevy? Slightly fancier then the 1500 Suburban, not any more expensive if I look near Braineack.

 

I was about to say go for it, and then I saw this:

 

Good catch. I got the VIN's of 2 different ones. Not to afraid of it actually being stolen. Insurance is about $46 a month on the Escalades. Only $6 more a month then my 94 miata's.

 

The 6.0 is reliable. The plastic heater core inlets can rub at the firewall and leak over time on some models of trucks.

 

Does the tow capacity take a hit due to the increased weight of all the balla' luxury? That'd be the only thing I'd be concerned with, but it's probably negligible.

 

Not enough for me to care. I think it goes from 8500 to 7500 or something.

 

A very good friend of mine (Marty Rauch) has a 5.3 in a Tahoe and he has been pulling his 3 axle trailer since our Honda Challenge/Honda Cup days and has been hiccup free.
I think it has 300k on it now and he still uses it to pull his trailer almost 20 years later!



I have also seen some incredible deals on older Class A gas (and some diesel) RV's that are in the 10k-15k range that have less than 100k miles.

 

From what I have read the Suburban is slightly better then the Tahoe for towing due to the longer length, which is the only reason I have not looked at the Tahoe.

Long term I want a diesel RV. It just is not in the budget for a good long while.

 

The Tahoe is around 115" wheelbase, the Suburban is around 130" (roughly the same as a crew cab short bed). That makes a huge difference to trailer stability.

--Ian

 

Taking a look at this 2001 7.3 F-350 this afternoon. It is very cheap, and body is a bit rough, but says it runs great and is already chipped for more power. At the price it is, I probably would learn to deal with a pickup.



Also looking at a 04 Burban at lunch today.

 

Beware of suburban's weak 4L60 transmission. The transmission in my 06 1500 suburban started slipping when I towed the miata to Roebling road from Athens and back.

 

I know the 4l60 is not the greatest, but should be good enough for an open trailer and miata. I will upgrade the trans cooler.

 

700r4 /4l60e have weak 3-4 clutch packs, cooler helps but a good shift kit or tune increases line pressure and helps life and durability greatly.

With that said I dispise that trans.

 

Shuiend on the burban or the Caddy look for broken exhaust studs (typical if they pull a trailer) and if AWD the front diff sucks I just had mine rebuilt for 1K mine is a 02 GMC Yukon XL Denali

 

Good to know about getting a tune to increase pressure. Also I have not seen any broken studs on any of the burbans I have looked at. Savington posted a bit back saying his parents Burban did good towing the miata on an open trailer. Ones I have looked at have all been RWD, so no issue with front diffs. The one today was a single owner, and only 150k and ran nice. Those were the pluses. It needs new tires, a trailer hitch receiver, CEL is on, and the speedo does not work. So passing on it for now. Hoping the F-350 checks out pretty good.

 

The 2500 Suburban gets the 4L80E, right?

--Ian

 

Yes the 2500 has the 4L80E. That was what I was originally looking for, but they are few and far between. Also still probably a bit overkill for towing 4-5k.