Newbies

[firebird69]

Top of the morning to you all, we are 50 now, kids gone and we decided to try out the RV life. I judge field trials which I do off o a Polaris 700 sportsman atv. So we need a toy hauler. My towing rig will be my 2003 Chevy sudurban 1500 4x4. It has I believe 8400 lbs towing capacity. My wife and I found a 2017 puma XLE lite 20TFC
My questions are is this a good entry level for amiddle age couple to travel to field trials. We would probably put an average of about 400 miles a month. And can my suburban tow it. What kind of problem does anyone know about puma? Thanks for reading

[firebird69]

Thanks all this is a lot of info so I have some hard thinking. You all have help tremendously.
And I'm sorry I never eve could find that yellow sticker

[jrrichar]

firebird69 wrote:
Top of the morning to you all, we are 50 now, kids gone and we decided to try out the RV life. I judge field trials which I do off o a Polaris 700 sportsman atv. So we need a toy hauler. My towing rig will be my 2003 Chevy sudurban 1500 4x4. It has I believe 8400 lbs towing capacity. My wife and I found a 2017 puma XLE lite 20TFC
My questions are is this a good entry level for amiddle age couple to travel to field trials. We would probably put an average of about 400 miles a month. And can my suburban tow it. What kind of problem does anyone know about puma? Thanks for reading

I compete/judge retriever field trials so have a good idea about your locations and want for a trailer. Assume your doing pointer FTs, which is why your on a ATV?

My recommendations from the places that we hold our field events at:
1. If you stay near the grounds it will almost always be dry camping (boondocking)
2. Almost all of our fellow FTers go for Northwood/ORV brand trailers for a good reason
3. All of us own super duty 4x4 trucks (one ton most common) with good AT tires and pull TTs. Some have caps most have slide-in dog boxes or full 6-8 hole chassis (Ainley, MTCK, or Deerskin) allowing us to transport dogs easily when we drop the trailer or some do put a ATV in the back.

The vast majority of people have these setups because it works and makes life easy. Almost everyone who starts with something different adopts the main setup sooner or later.

I have a F350 with cap and a ORV TT. If I take the ATV it is loaded in the back of the truck (cap comes off).

If your trials are held on ground similar to ours, your going to need another tow vehicle, as it gets beat up going into some of these places in the weather and locations common to FTs.

Hope this helps.

[troubledwaters]

firebird69 wrote:
The burbs info (7200) gawr(3600) and the gawr rr(4000)lb. sorry it took so long get this info to you all. I really does thank you for your help

Firebird, inside the drivers door of your Suburban, on the pillar, there should be a yellow sticker that says something like "The combined weight of occupants and cargo should never exceed ____ lbs," What does that sticker say. This is the key number to figure out what you can tow.

[SidecarFlip]

Yellow Weight sticker, I don't have no stinking yellow weight sticker....

[Grit_dog]

Y'all can stop with the constant check the yellow sticker, 1/2 tons can't tow anything diatribes.
It really is a little weird.
OP, yes you can tow a smaller to moderate trailer with a 1/2 ton suburban safely.
No it won't win races, it won't like big hills or altitude as much as a truck with twice the power, but properly set up with trailer brakes and likely a wdh and tow away.

The question we should be asking or you should be asking yourself is how good of mechanical condition is your 15 year old vehicle? That will be the biggest variable in whether it's a good decision for that vehicle.

Edit: and an aftermarket transmission cooler if you're going to be towing in hot weather.
There's a few things you'll likely need to do to make it a better tow rig but it will work.

[firebird69]

The burbs info (7200) gawr(3600) and the gawr rr(4000)lb. sorry it took so long get this info to you all. I really does thank you for your help

[SidecarFlip]

bikendan wrote:

firebird69 wrote:
A friend had recommended a 2018 Forest River Wildwood 18ORT toy hauler. Would that be a better option? Is the Quality good for this company

Wildwood is an entry-level stick and tin trailer line.

Far as I'm concerned they are all (99%) entry level quality today....

[bikendan]

firebird69 wrote:
A friend had recommended a 2018 Forest River Wildwood 18ORT toy hauler. Would that be a better option? Is the Quality good for this company

Wildwood is an entry-level stick and tin trailer line.
So it will be heavier than a comparable filon-sided/aluminum frame trailer.
Also some things will be optional or not available but standard on a mid-level filon/aluminum frame trailer.
Finishes won't be as good but will be functional.

You haven't posted payload capacity or the Burb's specs.
That will help with identifying and recommending a trailer.

[firebird69]

A friend had recommended a 2018 Forest River Wildwood 18ORT toy hauler. Would that be a better option? Is the Quality good for this company

[bikendan]

The OP needs to check the driver's door yellow sticker for the actual payload capacity for his Burb.
4x4 will have a lower payload capacity.

And post the specs for his Burb, to better determine actual towing capacity.
That 8400 number sounds like a max amount for a specifically spec'd Burb. Like a 4.10 rear end.

[Tom_Barb]

SidecarFlip wrote:
Probably not without extensive suspension modifications.

A multitude of these towed pony clubs with horse trailers all over this nation.

[jfkmk]

donn0128 wrote:
You need to load up the Suburban like your going on a trip and weigh it. Historically the 1500 Suburban has been right at its limits with just family and stuff on board. Adding 800 or so pounds is only going to make matters worse.
You might be better off trading it for a 2500 pickup, load the Polaris in themtruck bed and buy a nice TT.

A quick search of the Edmunds site shows the 2003 burb has a payload capacity of just over 1600#. Of course that's base 4x4 with no options. The op says it's just the two of them. I agree they should weigh the truck loaded up to see what they have, but I wouldn't just dismiss it because it's an SUV.

[donn0128]

You need to load up the Suburban like your going on a trip and weigh it. Historically the 1500 Suburban has been right at its limits with just family and stuff on board. Adding 800 or so pounds is only going to make matters worse.
You might be better off trading it for a 2500 pickup, load the Polaris in themtruck bed and buy a nice TT.

[SidecarFlip]

Probably not without extensive suspension modifications.