dedmiston
Coast to Coast
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Joined: 01/26/2004
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Grit dog wrote:Tal/IL wrote:I'm always curious when the wheelbase issue comes up. What length wheelbase does he need?
I've towed boats and equipment trailers all over creation with a '75 Ford Bronco with a 92 inch wheelbase and never had an issue. Plus, it makes backing into narrow ramps and tight spots much easier.
Yeah, I swear one of these days I'm gonna block the rear springs in my CJ5 and drop the toyhauler on the back hitch for a photo op.
Then photoshop that pic into a mountain road scene and absolutely freak out half the rvnet membership!
Yeah. Don't do it. It doesn't end well.
A friend of mine did that as an elaborate April Fool joke in Toy Haulers about fifteen years ago with pictures of his toy hauler behind his Mercedes ML.
It used to be a pretty tightly knit group, but about half the members were in on the gag and the other half took the bait. He built it up for about a week and then posted his crescendo on 4/1.
People's heads exploded when he posted his doctored pics of the crash site.
He finally came clean and admitted that it was just a gag. The folks who swallowed his lure were furious and took it out on him (and everyone who knew about it) pretty hard. He left the forum after that, along with most of the guys who were in on the stunt.
There aren't many old timers left in the Toy Hauler forum anymore, and that might be part of the reason.
I happened to be out of the country at the time and missed most of the drama. Things were unrecognizable when I got back.
I have to hand it to the guy though, his pics looked pretty believable (except he left some telltale shadows to tip people off) and he really committed to the stunt and timed it perfectly to hit its climax on 4/1. He regretted the fallout though.
Who knew that RV.NET members could be so sensitive, right?
2014 RAM 3500 Diesel 4x4 Dually long bed. AISIN trans & 4.10 rear. B&W RVK3600 hitch • 2015 Crossroads Elevation Homestead Toy Hauler ("The Taj Mahauler") • Hooligan #3
Toys:
- 18 Can Am Maverick x3
- 05 Yamaha WR450
- 07 Honda CRF250X
- 05 Honda CRF230
- 06 Honda CRF230
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wintersun
Monterey
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Joined: 12/22/2011
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When I owned a Tahoe I chose it over the Expedition to get the rear leaf springs. The Expedition had rear coil springs which makes mods to improve load capacity or leveling much more difficult.
What is important is the final gear ratio and usually it is much too tall so as to improve EPA fuel economy numbers during testing. If one had 3.73 gears and the other had 3.21 gears I would go with the former.
Weight is only one factor when towing and Ford spells this out quite nicely in their towing guide. The frontal area of a travel has a huge impact on the total load on the engine and drive train for the tow vehicle.
I would go with a 1500 or 2500 class pickup with a crew cab over an SUV any day if planning to do serious towing.
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Ejraste
Pittsburgh
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Joined: 07/06/2020
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wintersun wrote:When I owned a Tahoe I chose it over the Expedition to get the rear leaf springs. The Expedition had rear coil springs which makes mods to improve load capacity or leveling much more difficult.
What is important is the final gear ratio and usually it is much too tall so as to improve EPA fuel economy numbers during testing. If one had 3.73 gears and the other had 3.21 gears I would go with the former.
Weight is only one factor when towing and Ford spells this out quite nicely in their towing guide. The frontal area of a travel has a huge impact on the total load on the engine and drive train for the tow vehicle.
I would go with a 1500 or 2500 class pickup with a crew cab over an SUV any day if planning to do serious towing.
Thank you for the info. I have a Silverado 1500 as main towing vehicle. We are eventually upgrading my wife’s vehicle so I was just trying to see if any SUV’s out there would be reliable as a secondary tow vehicle.
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Geo*Boy
Unknown
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Joined: 04/27/2020
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Look at a Chevrolet Suburban.
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parker.rowe
Delaware
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Joined: 09/14/2015
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wintersun wrote:When I owned a Tahoe I chose it over the Expedition to get the rear leaf springs. The Expedition had rear coil springs which makes mods to improve load capacity or leveling much more difficult.
What is important is the final gear ratio and usually it is much too tall so as to improve EPA fuel economy numbers during testing. If one had 3.73 gears and the other had 3.21 gears I would go with the former.
Weight is only one factor when towing and Ford spells this out quite nicely in their towing guide. The frontal area of a travel has a huge impact on the total load on the engine and drive train for the tow vehicle.
I would go with a 1500 or 2500 class pickup with a crew cab over an SUV any day if planning to do serious towing.
Tahoe has had rear coil springs since 2000, when they switched to the gmt800 platform. So either one you choose now will have rear coils. If you are buy brand new they will both have independent rear suspension.
My FIL recently upgraded from an 06 Tahoe with 3.73's to a 2016 Expedition with 3.31's, both with full tow packages.
His trailer is a bit smaller at 6500 gross, but he told me it was an improvement in every way. Power, trailer handling, all of that.
Granted, it's 10 years newer. I'm sure a '16 Tahoe would do ok, but none that he found to test had a tow package. But the eco boost is a great engine for moderate trailer sizes.
2015 Starcraft TravelStar 239TBS 6500 GVWR
1997 GMC Suburban K2500 7.4 Vortec/4.10
1977 Kawasaki KZ1000
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ferndaleflyer
everywhere
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Joined: 03/31/2011
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When we owned a towing company a few years back we pulled many of the Tahoe, Suburban, expedition, types towing trailers. Always on the downhill side of the mountain. They start swaying, they get on the brakes, brakes get hot, they sway more, and eventually they are in a bad situation. I my self even did it once just short of crashing. No more. I bought my first duelly in 1985 and my suggestion is. YOU NEVER HAVE TO MUCH TRUCK!!!!!
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