Ah yes, in quest of the perfect tow vehicle:
Here's my 2 cents worth (and then some). I have a '96 Tahoe 4dr, 4X4. I
used to tow an 18 ft. enclosed Braco trailer, with tools, spares, and a Lotus
Cortina. Estimate the towed weight at something less than 5,000 lbs.
I used a weight distributing hitch and anti-sway bar, 4 wheel electric brakes
on the trailer.
It towed fine, no problems with maintaining speed on hills, and could run 70
plus on the flat all day (have tickets to prove it!!).
Towing did take its toll, though...3 areas to watch for.
Transmission. At about 70K miles, the transmission started whining when
cold. I took it into the dealer and they said it was fried and replaced it
under warranty (GM extended 100K warranty). I had the tow package, but did
not add an extra tranny oil cooler. This is probably worth doing to prolong
tranny life. I did change the tranny fluid and filter every year. I towed
in both overdrive, and 3 (as the owner's manual says you can do), depending
on driving conditions.
Brakes... Tahoes/Yukons are notoriously under-braked. The front rotors
warped and have been turned 3 times. I have a new set waiting to go on now.
I tried using Potterfield Carbon Kevlar linings which improved the braking,
but the linings don't last long and may have accelerated the rotor warping
(although they warped from the stock linings in the first 30K miles). Ready
to put on a set of Wagner semi-metallic aftermarket linings now.
Front/Rear suspension - With such a load, the stock Tahoe rear springs sagged
considerably. I added AirLift airbags which brought it back level and made
it perfect for towing...BUT...it made the unloaded ride MUCH more bouncy.
Even with them almost completely deflated (they recommend no less than 5 lbs
min), they still added bounce to bumps. And the AirLifts limit total
suspension travel, so now it bottoms with a huge BANG on big bumps....its
clearly a compromise solution.
I went through shocks (front and rear) rather quickly. The factory Bilsteins
were gone in 25K miles. I then went to heavy duty Gabriels, which were
pretty good and lasted until about 70K miles. But I still wasn't happy.
Everyone recommended the Aftermarket Bilsteins, which I tried, but now
they're done too. A big heavy vehicle like this, needs bigger, stronger
shocks, in my opinion. I haven't found the answer here, but to just replace
them fairly often.
Mine is now just over 100K miles. I've switched to an open trailer, which is
a lightler load, and it tows that just fine. It still makes a great everyday
car too, which is how I use it. I've thought about replacing it, but its
probably still got a good 100K miles left in it before serious problems
start. It still looks like new. I'd consider replacing it with a new
Tahoe/Yukon/Escalade, or BMW X5. From what I read/hear, the new generation
Suburbans outperform the Expeditions and Excursions in every respect. I
recently did a ride/drive with a comparison of old/new Tahoe/Yukons, and
others like the Expedition, Jeeps, etc. The new generations were better, but
not as noticeably better than I expected. There are 2 new hot rod versions
coming in the new Denali and Escalade (250HP - 300 HP). What was
interesteing in the ride & drive was that the Escalade's suspension
calibrations were noticeably more comfortable and nicer to drive than the
Tahoe or Yukon. I didn't like the Expedition at all compared to the Tahoe.
We're going to a BMW ride & drive this week to try the X5. That could be a
contender too. But I've heard that BMW made NO provision for trailer hitches
for the X5!! Can you believe that!! You have to fabricate your own and cut
away the rear fascia to install one!!
Regards,
Myles H. Kitchen
1965 Lotus Cortina Mk1 #128
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