Towing 236 with escalade or suburban

[wcherashore]

For what its worth I have a 2005 Yukon 4WD with the self leveling autoride suspension. Although I have a smaller boat (sport/air nautique) I have to remind myself the boat is back there... I believe the towing capacity is 6k plus which more than accomodates anything you'd want to ski or wakeboard behind.

Based on my experience I'd say you would be comfortable towing long distances with a full car of kids in any 6.0L suburban derived platform. The autoride suspenion has also been a huge plus.

[wcherashore]

don't overthink it, these SUVs are the same platform and drivetrains as trucks that are built to handle far more demanding use. The only downer is gas milage, the bigger you go (wheelbase and cubic inches) the less MPGs you'll get with and without the boat and more of a bear for daily driving. IMO the yukon strikes an excellent balance although the gas milage still stinks for a daily driver if you're commuting.

[toddrswenson]

You guys need to really look at what's being towed on the road. We tow full size 14,000 pound backhoes with 3/4 ton trucks in my company, as do a lot of others. Is that more than what the truck is rated for? Most definitely. This biggest hurdle we have in the company is stopping the load, not pulling it down the road. If you have a properly equiped trailer with good brakes, you can tow these boats with almost anything. That's not what we are after though. We all want to tow a boat down the road and feel like it's not there. If that's the case then a 3/4 ton suspension is the way to go. Especially on the bigger boats.
On a side note, I have a 2007 2500HD, 6.0l, and 6 speed transmission. I hate the six speed transmission. I thought it would be great for towing, but it can't ever decided what gear to stay in. I prefer my 2001 2500HD with the 4 speed.

[Miljack]

@ TDC, great post, thanks for the info. I've towed my boat ('99 Pro Air approx. 2900, plus 800 for single axle trl) with the wife's Pilot for short distances, only ok. I had the chance to tow it behind a friend's Tahoe, and what a difference!
Anyway, been looking @ a better tow vehicle for the replacement of the Pilot.

[pablo]

I have an 08 denali xl with the 6.2 liter. I personally have been really disappointed with it towing. I towed a little 2006 210 last summer and my transmission temp was super high. It was getting up to 240 while towing on flat ground. We would have to turn the ac off and even turn the heat on and roll the windows down to try and get it to cool off. I was worried that i was cooking stuff. I took it in to the dealer a couple of times and they told me that it was normal operating range to get up to 200 while towing. I think that is bull sh##. Anyways i have a ford diesel with the 7.3 and it pulls much better. I was hoping that the denali would pull the boat better because it is alot nicer for our family to travel in it than the truck.
I recently sold my nautique and went to the darkside, just bought a malibu 247. I am thinking that i will probably blow my transmission pulling that thing around.
Pretty frustrating, maybe i just bought a lemon. I know a few people that love their Denalis. Ours still has under 20,000 miles.

The dealer basically told me last summer that they could take it apart to see what is wrong or just wait until the tranny goes out.

[CradGen2]

Pablo, I'd be mad if that happened to me. My Armada trans temp never gets above 160 while towing and it is in the 90 range when in 4wd or awd mod. 70 range when in 2wd. You have something way wrong there. I know all cars are different, but that is way high.

[sstexan]

Both my '07 and '09 Denali both run around double the outside air temp while towing. I too was concerned when I was seeing 200-210 trans temps in both trucks. I called GM and they assured me that this transmission is desinged to run hotter and as long as it does not get above 220, no worries. I have been all over the gm forum researching this very topic, and I think you may have an issue. I live in Houston and tow my boat to Austin all the time. I have never seen 240(Outside air 105+). I thought it was supposed to go into limp mode around 225-230? They make a external cooler that is much larger than the stock one that I hear people have great luck with.

I have 55K on my yukon xl denali, of which 10K of that is towing the 236 around the country. No worries and gets about 12 while towing at 65mph. The engine in that truck is so powerful, I really feel you cant beat it. I have been in my buddies king ranch 250 and yes, super nice truck, but a little too much for me. The yukon xl-suburban-escalade esv chasis is so comfortable on the highway with kids and gear.

I will say that my yukon xl denali pulls and rides better than my sierra denali. I would attribute most of that to the adjustable ari suspension in the yukon xl.

[TRO]

i have the trasmission cooler on my 2008 5.3L Z71 4x4 and it has gotten up to 215 degrees while towing, but only when i was towing in the middle of summer in the hills around Chatanooga. other than that, you see the cooler start to cool it off once it gets anywhere near that.

[Latonkaboarder]

Escalade fuel mileage towing is terrible

I tow our 08 210 with a 2007 Escalade, short wheel base. I hate it. I only get 7.5-8.1 mpg towing. It does have plenty of power but the fuel economy is horrible. The vehicle gets 18mpg on a road trip without the boat which is not bad in my opinion but the towing mileage stinks. I have had many problems with this vehicle as well. I will never buy another caddy. I really wish I still had my 2006 Ram 2500 crew cab with the cummins.