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Old 08-05-2016, 06:03 PM   #1
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Default Help!! Need to rethink our tow car ASAP

We are having an issue with our tow vehicle. I need some quick honest help.

We are having MORE problems with our 2010 F250 6.4 diesel truck and I really would like to get rid of it and upgrade our family car. Does anyone have any advice, the truck thing is not working for us and we cannot continue to pour money into a tow car.

Thinking . . . . 2013-2016: Tahoe, Sequoia, Yukon, Expedition
**Surburban, Yukon XL, etc are all too big
Budget: 35-45K+/-

I am aware of the tow guides, but what about engine? Should I look for one with a 6.2, instead of 5.4? After spending a fortune, I do not want the car to work "too" hard and get 4 mpg.

Trailer Towing Guides | Trailer Life Magazine

Trailer Use - 50nts per year on average, lots of weekends and a few week long trips. We do travel up and down many hills.

Fun Finder 2016 242 BDS (we love it!!!)

Please help us, we love the lifestyle!
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Old 08-06-2016, 09:17 AM   #2
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Rather than focus on the engine you really need to evaluate the overall towing capability. The towing guide you reference doesn't really help that much. It only lists the vehicle gross combined weight rating (GCWR). That's a good start, but you need more info than that. Check the manufacturers web site - Chevy, Ford or whatever for the towing guide to get the details you need decide. My gut feel is that a Tahoe is not going to be quite enough for your trailer, but I could be wrong. Here's a good website that explains the terms and has a handy calculator to help work through the numbers: Tow Vehicle Sizing.
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Old 08-06-2016, 10:14 AM   #3
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Default Go big - or . . .

So-my story is that I had a Nissan Titan, 5.6 liter gas engine. Rate to tow between 6500-7400lbs. Okay-have a 210UDS - about half that weight. Then add all the stuff you drag along to camp with, add water, full propane, etc. I'm guessing I was around 4500lbs. Plus 2 truck occupants, dogs, you get the ideal - it all adds up to the gross vehicle weight. Anyways-you'd think I'm well under the "capability" of the truck. Long driving days (6+ hours), the Rockies/Cascades, and other mountain ranges resulted in stressing the truck to the limit. Speed: I was slowed to a crawl up those long mountain passes or even hills or the headwinds on the plains. Heat/Stress: I had to replace both exhaust manifolds (luckily not the same trip.) I had to replace both sides rear main axle seals. Brakes/pads premature wear. Overheating: I had to turn of AC on hot days to make it up those hills without sending the thermostat needle to RED.
That 242BDS is a 27 foot camper with a GVWR of 7600lbs.
Information provided so you can make your informed decision.
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Old 08-07-2016, 05:39 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Colete00 View Post
We are having an issue with our tow vehicle. I need some quick honest help.

We are having MORE problems with our 2010 F250 6.4 diesel truck and I really would like to get rid of it and upgrade our family car. Does anyone have any advice, the truck thing is not working for us and we cannot continue to pour money into a tow car.

Thinking . . . . 2013-2016: Tahoe, Sequoia, Yukon, Expedition
**Surburban, Yukon XL, etc are all too big
Budget: 35-45K+/-

I am aware of the tow guides, but what about engine? Should I look for one with a 6.2, instead of 5.4? After spending a fortune, I do not want the car to work "too" hard and get 4 mpg.

Trailer Towing Guides | Trailer Life Magazine

Trailer Use - 50nts per year on average, lots of weekends and a few week long trips. We do travel up and down many hills.

Fun Finder 2016 242 BDS (we love it!!!)

Please help us, we love the lifestyle!
Gee Colete00,
The Ford F250 with 6.4 diesel sounds like a great match... What's wrong with your truck? And pulling a 242, it should do quite well with pretty good mileage.

I own a '13 Silverado Max Tow with a 6.2 gas and I'll tell you right away, this truck really likes gas, your mileage empty can run 17 and even 20 mpg, but if you put your foot in it even a little bit, that can easily drop to 8 or 9 mpg!!! With the little 19 footer FF behind, I can easily get 7 mpg, just push it up to 70 or 75, or pass a couple cars with my foot in it, or try to run up a long grade at 65+, it will get hot and you have to slow down or burn it up...

I have to work at to get the mileage I do (12 - 14 mpg with the trailer) and I tell you, regardless of vehicle, speed and driving habits are probably a driver's first concern regarding bad mileage. So... what's wrong with your truck... we are all friends here, maybe we can help with what you have before you jump into another TV... ??? Even a mechanic's bills are usually less than a different truck and yours is only 6 years old... What does your dealer or mechanic tell you??

Just trying to get an idea of the problem and help if I can...
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Old 08-08-2016, 09:49 AM   #5
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Smile May I have another gear please....

In my opinion, the real star of any towing vehicle is the, properly matched, transmission and rear gear ratio. Our G20 has plenty of power for pulling but, because it's a '95, lacks a couple of extra gears to fill in the blank spots in the torque curve. There's a real "hole" that it falls into after low gear. Without a tow/haul mode in the ECM, I usually treat it as a manual trans when towing even though our rig is very light, relatively speaking. On it's own it just shifts too early.
I've towed more weight with less power and six speeds and been surprised by the relative ease.
Having towed heavy cargo/race trailers a lot of interstate miles I gained a great respect for the stability of dual wheel TVs as well. If I were pulling 7600# I'd be looking at a dually.
My 2%.
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