Looging for a reliable tow vehicle

[swancer]

I have a company vehicle and I was just made aware of a policy they have in place of not pulling personal trailers with company equipment. So with that being said I now have to find something that is both reliable, good looking and cheap. I may end up driving it 2000 miles a year at most. My commute to the lake is 40-50 miles each way.

I have scoured Craigslist ads from around the area only to find in my price (3-6K) range a bunch of junk. I have to have something that can haul the family and the gear.

I found a 1998 Chevy Suburban K2500 4X4 with fairly low miles. Needs a few things to be ok, but seems to be reliable. Has anyone towed with one of these. If so are they tanks, how are they on gas, resale etc. I live in Birmingham, AL so if anyone knows of anything let me know.

[jjackkrash]

My sister has one, similar year. I think that's about as good a tow vehicle as you are going to get for the money. Lots of room, reliable, heavy, 3/4 ton truck platform, etc. Sis has close to 300k miles on hers and only very minor repairs and maintenance through the years. The gas milage is going to suck, no getting around that, but its a tow vehicle, so that comes with the territory, and a second vehicle so not that big a deal. Also, the breaks are notoriously soft on that era chevy trucks, including the 2500 suburban. Not "unsafe" just soft feeling. Also, I am not sure what to say about resale value, but in that price range, how much less could it be worth as long as you don't beat it up and its still running? There is always going to be a family out there that needs a second, gas guzzling vehicle for a tow vehicle, just like you do.

[CradGen2]

I'm not sure what your wife drives but the same things happened to me a couple years back. Had a company car and could no longer tow with it. I made the wife sell the car and bought her an Armada. She isn't a fan of driving the BIG suv, but I didn't want to have to maintain a 3rd car just for towing.

Sell the mini van and get her a nice SUV to tow the boat with. The kids are going to want rear DVD for your trip to the lake anyway and a 6K tow'r won't be playing the DVDs.

JM2C

[CradGen2]

Also nice looking boat. good colors

[swc5150]

I have a '98 Chev conversion van with the 350 motor (215m miles!). Runs perfect and tows like a beast. It's only needed the basics as far as service; oil, tranny fluid, etc. You should be in good hands with that 'burb.

[AirTool]

sing "I love my Chevy truck" like the TV commercials....but

I have a 99 4x Tahoe 2 door. I keep it as an extra vehicle becuase I love the 2 door look and drive. It is a strong tower also. I will tell you this, though, even though every mechanic you find will know that truck inside and out and parts are readily available, you will have to spend $$ to keep it up.

Likely you will need lower ball joints = $1000 (1/2 tons do after 120K miles)

If the vortec lower intake manifold gasket hasn't failed yet, you'll need that (They go around 80K)
Often the engine is ruined when they do. (or after they are repaired by a newby)

The vortec spider drips or plugs around 100K, that is 400 plus labor. You can get a deal if you do the lower intake at the same time as the spider. I'm guessing $1000

My steering gear just started dripping from the input shaft. Perhaps because I switched from the red fluid to clear fluid when I changed a hose. Mechanic says it is common failure. 200 and a Saturday if I do it. 600 if they do it.

Maybe you should look at Crad's suggestion.

PS - take the truck to a good alignment shop and have them check the front end stuff and the drive shaft boots. Check the front wheel bearings also. They are sealed and $$$.

[sodbuster88]

I've pulled with lot's of different vehicles and agree with all the suggestions. For cheap, roomy towing, I'll put a plug in for a full-size van...."Respect The Van, Man." You can dress one of these pretty cool, they're roomy and easy to find. If you go with a 3500 or E350, you can find a stouter motor, heavier powertrain and brake set-up.

[horkn]

I'd steer clear of any Chevy / GM vehicle if you want something that won't break down and cost you ton in the long run.

[swc5150]

I've pulled with lot's of different vehicles and agree with all the suggestions. For cheap, roomy towing, I'll put a plug in for a full-size van...."Respect The Van, Man." You can dress one of these pretty cool, they're roomy and easy to find. If you go with a 3500 or E350, you can find a stouter motor, heavier powertrain and brake set-up.

Amen! I forgot to mention that I bought my van for $1,400! Full-size conversions aren't worth squat used, but provide one heck of a vehicle. Plus, original owners aren't known for beating on them, as they're pretty much highway cruisers. I'll always have one in the stable.

[CradGen2]

I only have 1 comment on the VAN. What kind of ramp do you use to put your boat in and out. I'm not sure I could get my boat out with a 2WD van. I leave my Armada in "Auto mod" most of the time. Depending on the water level sometimes I use 4wd LO just so there less strain on the tranny and I can walk the boat up the ramp. I would hate to get on a wet ramp, spin a tire and through a rock into my boat. I've had to use ramps where 4WD LO was a must.

If I had access to a flat ramp and only used the same ramp all the time, I'd really consider a VAN.

[swancer]

thanks for all the reply's. My dad has had a ton of Chevy's all of which have gone 250K miles plus. I know it is crazy to look at a tow specific vehicle, but my wife loves her Honda Pilot and would not consider the big SUV that would be required to pull the boat as a primary.

It is going to be tough to go from pulling with the company truck with free gas to paying 40-50 bucks round trip per visit to the lake for sure. Keep the comments and suggestions coming, as I am going to go back and look at it tomorrow.

[MattieK27]

I have had great luck with Jeeps, but I have heard others who have had nothing but problems. (Admittedly, I turned my back on the brand when they released the Liberty, they seem to be back on track now)

I had a two door '89 Cherokee with the 4.0 inline 6 (love that engine) that did fine towing 2000-3000 lbs, and '00 Grand Cherokee that has towed a 3200lb boat very well. The GC has a 4.7 V-8 and 145,000 miles on it. No issues with diffs, ball joints, etc. It needed a new heater core a year ago, thats about all other than regular maintinence. The thing you have to watch on the 99-2004 GCs (WJ) is the brakes, they need to be upgraded more often than not. I think last time I checked, private party value for the GC I use is about $5500. With the factory tow package, its rated at 6500 lbs. I would keep about a 1000 lb coushion, but if you do the math on your boat you should still be under 5500 lbs. (3100-3400 lbs for the boat, 1500 lbs for the trailer, 260 lbs for gas, and 300+ lbs for gear)

I would not recommend the last gen GC ('05-'10, WK), but the new one looks to have picked up where the WJs left off. Of course a new to vehicle will cost a lot more money.

If you have any questions about towing with a Jeep, PM me. Many will argue a larger boat will push a GC around, the humorous part of that statement being the GC weighs just about as much as a full size truck...

[swancer]

I have had great luck with Jeeps, but I have heard others who have had nothing but problems. (Admittedly, I turned my back on the brand when they released the Liberty, they seem to be back on track now)

I had a two door '89 Cherokee with the 4.0 inline 6 (love that engine) that did fine towing 2000-3000 lbs, and '00 Grand Cherokee that has towed a 3200lb boat very well. The GC has a 4.7 V-8 and 145,000 miles on it. No issues with diffs, ball joints, etc. It needed a new heater core a year ago, thats about all other than regular maintinence. The thing you have to watch on the 99-2004 GCs (WJ) is the brakes, they need to be upgraded more often than not. I think last time I checked, private party value for the GC I use is about $5500. With the factory tow package, its rated at 6500 lbs. I would keep about a 1000 lb coushion, but if you do the math on your boat you should still be under 5500 lbs. (3100-3400 lbs for the boat, 1500 lbs for the trailer, 260 lbs for gas, and 300+ lbs for gear)

I would not recommend the last gen GC ('05-'10, WK), but the new one looks to have picked up where the WJs left off. Of course a new to vehicle will cost a lot more money.

If you have any questions about towing with a Jeep, PM me. Many will argue a larger boat will push a GC around, the humorous part of that statement being the GC weighs just about as much as a full size truck...

I weighed the boat last summer and it was 5600 lbs. My wife has a 4X4 pilot that is rated to tow 5500 lbs. I have pulled it with it on very short trips. While my A&@ never relaxed, it towed it just fine. My big concern with using it regular is that the boat is about 3-4 foot longer than the pilot. This would make emergency maneuvers very dangerous. I love going to the lake as does my family, so $4K on a good safe tow vehicle is cheap insurance to me.

[horkn]

My parents actually have their low mileage 99 WJ grand cherokee limited 4.7 v8 for sale.But it's slightly above your price range. We've had a few grand cherokees, and the one I just got rid of my parents bough nearly new and was a 92 build 93 model and one of the very first off the line of any grand cherokee. That 93 had a about 180k on it, and outide of the rust it was starting to get just last 2 years was a great vehicle. The 4.0 pulled my 78 martinique quite well, but that was no 22 footer like you have.

The 4.7 in the WJ is a very good motor. It's got more than enough grunt to pull that bigger boat. You could find a higher mileage 4.7 WJ grand for 4-6k easy.

As far as issues with 99-04 WJ grand cherokees, there are a few you need to watch out for. Brakes really are not one of them, the worst issue jeep had with brakes was the the teves front calipers causing abnormal rotor wear, but not all jeep WJ's with teves front calipers had this issue. Mom's 99 has teves calipers and it's never had issues with front brake "imbalance" or shuddering. The Akebono front calipered WJ's did not ever have this problem. Depends on when the jeep was made whether it has teves or akebonos. Other issues on WJ's are a bit more problematic, like blend door issues (heat or lack of it issues in the cabin) on limited and overlands, driveshaft imbalance issues, beat on ones with the dana 44A (aluminum) rear axles can show up, the clock spring causing air bag light to come on and no air bag deployment when needed, are all issues with WJ's. Luckily all those issues have been fixed or never an issue ( the rear end is original as it's not been beat on) on my parents WJ.

You should be able to find a WJ for the price you want to pay, and if you get one, I would wholeheartedly recommend the 4.7 as it has a 5 speed tranny and gets better mpg, as well as just a lot more power than the 4.0 inline 6 ones do. I'd take one of those over a TBI 350 or 305 full size chevy truck or suburban any day. We've had a 94 and a 96 full size chevy trucks. The 94 was a 2wd 2500 with the 350 and a 4 speed auto. While it towed the nautique fine, and even much bigger loads that 350 was less powerful than nearly any 6 cylinder I've ever driven. That one went til about 125k on the original motor, then it literally blew up on the freeway. We dropped in another motor, from a 95 and it ran well until we sold it. It still never had much power for as big as that motor was. The other was a 96 1500 with the 4.3, 2wd again. That truck was a lemon. Had it not been a work vehicle, it would have been lemon lawed. In its 70k with us and he got it new, 2 engine computers went, one under warranty, one not, leaving Dad stranded one time, and without any lights or any electrical power except barely enough to get to his destination which was close. That was a fun drive as I was in the car with my parents headed to my relatives well after dark. We had to hold a flashlight out the window the last few miles to see where we were going. Even turning the dome light on for a second had the engine about to die and it sputtered really bad. Headlights were out of the question. It also took out 3 alternators, and had a tranny slipping problem as well right after warranty was up. A coworker's 07 tahoe had it's auto tranny go right after warranty, and her husband's duramax powered truck had a major fire caused by faulty wiring by GM. I've seen far too many issues to recommend GM's to anyone.

Towing that big of a boat with a pilot is a big risk. The pilot is a honda minivan that is made to look like a SUV. I can't believe Honda has the gall to say they can tow 5500 lbs.

[NautiqueJeff]

I pulled my 2003 SANTE for years with a '99 WJ. It went all over the east coast with no problems at all. Gotta agree, the WJ will likely serve you well.

I had a Porsche 911 in college that I loved. Had to sell it once I graduated though because I had to have a boat, and needed something to pull it. Picked up a '95 ZJ Orvis (the Jeep on the right in this picture). That did fine towing my '94 Ski Nautique. I sold that eventually, but not before picking up the '99 WJ. The '99 towed better, and didn't have to be upgraded when I got rid of the Ski Nautique and picked up the '03 SANTE.

I wouldn't want to tow much more than a pre-'07 SAN with it, but it did fine with my '03, and your boat is pretty much exactly the same.