Thoughts on towing with minivan?

[JamesB]

I forgot to mention I tow between 60 and 75 depending on the terrain of the route. comming up the mountain pass on I70 I dont really push the truck. But otherwise I just set the cruise control and run.

[CDS]

I tow with an '02 Tahoe 5.3L w/tow pkg, fairly heavy open trailer with box, 1800# ITC Honda. Several hundred pounds of stuff in trailer box and in back of the Tahoe. On flat terrain usually tow 70-75 mph, down to 60 for larger hills. Haven't really been in big hills yet. Usually average 12-15 mpg unless there are a lot of hills. I've been pretty pleased, it rides well and has decent torque. I've been wanting to add a trans temp guage just to keep an eye on things.

[eMKay]

About 17mpg, The van has a 3.3, I tow at 65mph with the cruise on (tranny never unlocks in cruise, probably why it hasn't exploded yet) It tows straight and true, just slow. I would like to replace it with a better tow vehicle once smaller trucks or vans become available with diesels.

[charrbq]

I tow with an '05 GMC Seirra, 5.3, 3.23 posi final, fully loader luxo cruiser. I've added 20" wheels, Corsa stainless exhaust, K&N ram charger intake, Granetilli mass air sensor, and Hypertech reprogram on the computer. Actually, almost as much as the race car. I tow an 1800# Honda on a 16' tandem axle trailer complete with tire rack and storage boxes. Pickup is also quite full. Did I tell you I almost always take way more than I need?

In stock trim, I got 13 mpg, now I get 17...unloaded, 21. That's at 70 with the cruise and AC. Last truck was a '92 Chevy 5.7 w/5-speed manual, virtually the same add ons, and a 3.08 posi. At the same speed, it got 20mpg towing. Difference was in the tranny. No downshift on the hills for the cruise.

I've heard tails of the 4.8 towing similar loads and getting better mileage.

[mowog]

A little off topic (or a little further off topic), sorry....I've read some mixed reviews on the gas mileage gains with the Granetilli mas, but none pertained to towing. What's your opinion? I'm more concerned with gas mileage improvement, not performance. Thanks

[charrbq]

I've heard the same claims...can't honestly say. I've been pretty shocked at how poor the mileage was with this truck as the one I had just before was identical except for the final drive...3.42 rather than 3.23...and the crushed front end against the I-12 retaining wall.
My initial highway mileage was 17 whereas the other was 20...not towing. Now I get as good as 21, but that's after all the stuff done to it. I can say, from experience, that the K&N and the Corsa Exhaust will pay for themselves...much sooner with gas like it is.

One thing's for certain...the thing will haul a$$ when you punch it!

[Karl Bocchieri]

I started towing with an old Land cruser with a 6 and a stick. Over the years I moved up to an older Burb with a big block that was great except the gas mileage. My wife and I compromised on a new Yukon XL a few years ago and as a dual purpose vehicle it's great. Wonderfull on long trips with the kids and my wife uses it around town so we don't put much mileage on it. I got autoride so it has self leveling rear shocks which work well.
It realy makes a difference on a race weekend when you don't have to wory about the tow home.

I want to know why every SUV manufactuer has forgoten about the diesel, and I dont mean the powerstroke, or duramax type. I mean a smaller 6 that would get good mileage and have a moderate tow rating. The way gas prices are moving I can't believe GM came out with their new SUV's with out a small diesel option. Are they kidding, E85, you get 20% less milage. Can you amagine towing, you would have to stop every hour to fill up.

[Spinnetti]

This is late for a reply, but food for thought if anybody else researches the topic.

My car and trailer weigh about 2800lbs, plus a couple hundred in gear.
I've towed with:

> Chevy astro van: Great sized package, struggled a bit on power (even with a new motor with upgrades), and blew transmissions like kleenex (I gave up after two, and I only towed 3-4 times a year)

> Custom Chevy car carrier. A friend built it for me out of two CK pickups welded together. Just drove the car up the back of it. Actually worked great, but it was too big and unwieldly to use as normal transport too.

> Ford F150 extra cab - worked ok, but too big for daily transport, and I don't race enough just to keep a spare truck around

> Toyota 4Runner. Worked fine overall, though felt kinda underpowered

> Mazda MPV (a friends). This actually worked out pretty good, and I liked it as a race support vechicle better than the 4 runner.

> VW Touareg V6 - Its the wifes daily driver, and she loves it. Cargo room is small, but supralegal speeds in 6th gear I hardly notice I'm towing This would be perfect with a bit more cargo room. I get around 15MPG (if I remember right) towing.

[Z3_GoCar]

The issue with the Astro Van Transmission is that GM uses two differnet brake bands for 2nd and 4th when they put it togeather. These bands are so close togeather in size that the aftermarket assumed they were the same and just used one size fits all in their kits. I have a friend who had this issue with his 1/2 ton tow vehicle, he would up clearancing the 2nd gear band by grinding down the pin that pulls it closed, then selling the truck quickly. I'm thinking diesel Touareg, but a Cheyanne would be cooler, use a Porsche to tow my BMW :P

James