Towing G23 - Avalanche/Escalade EXT?

[prairiethunder]

the G's need a diesel in my opinion. Mercedes GL comes in diesel uphere in the great white north still don't think it would handle a g 6 hrs on the road each weekend. I think 3/4 or 1 ton would be better for the length of drive you plan. the trucks will still have bigger brakes and designed to handle the big loads all day long.

[rob_usaf]

Drove ML and GL a long time and towed plenty, 2.5 hrs each way. No doubt it can handle it in my mind if you don't need a daily tow vehicle. I based it on percentage of driving. 80% without need to tow drove me towards the small diesels in ML and GL. My GL never had difficulty stopping my 4500 lb package that had inop surge brakes. My ML seems a little soft on 4500 lb package with surge brakes. May be due to fact they are close in weight. Could be same issue with GL pulling a G23.
Not meaning to steer anyone towards these. Just giving an owner's perspective. They have their drawbacks--Cost, Reliability, and MX costs are a few weaker areas.

[tommy1005]

2014 Expedition and Navigator are supposed to be coming with Ecoboost as an option and will likely be rated at 9000+ pounds, since that's what the current one is rated at. If I had to have an SUV, I'd hold out for one of those. I have a 2013 F150 with an ecoboost and regularly tow 9000-10,000 pounds behind it without issue.

[Mikeski]

I have a 2007 Avalanche 5.3L and it is now supercharged because I was not happy with the stock power towing my 3800lb SV211. My modified Avalanche would probably do OK but a G23 is a big boat and 3 hours is a pretty long tow. The supercharged motor builds some heat on the long hills and I have yet to tow it up a long hill in 100+ weather.

If you planned to tow more than ten 3 hour trips/year, I would probably be looking at a diesel, and I am a gas motor guy.

[Panda cub]

Is storage at the lake out of the question? That's a lot of towing!

[Neverenough]

Dang Panda why didn't we think of that. Heck we had him sold on a new 65k truck to go with the 125k boat!!! All he needs is 150 A month slip or boat house and lift. Good call

[shawndoggy]

Check out the Infiniti Q56 - 8500# tow rating or a Nissan Armada 9100#

I just got rid of a qx56 for a 7.3 excursion, and for a boat as big as the G I would not recommend it unless you don't have any hills on that 3 hour tow. My boat is at least 1,000 lbs lighter than a G (I suspect about 6500 in lake ready condition... Must get to scales to confirm).

The thing to remember with the QX/armada is that every lb you put in the vehicle takes away from the gcwr. So the 9100 lb rating is only accurate if your 7 passenger SUV is empty with a driver only.

[CradGen2]

I have the Nissan Armada. I love it as a tow vehicle. In fact I have had two of them. I have towed the 230 with it on the highway, handled it with easy. Not sure of the exact wt, but we will call it 7K. Then I pulled a 24 foot enclosed hauler weighting 8200, full hitch and sway control. I was puckered most of the 14 hours driving it. The wind resistance throw the armada around. Plenty of power and braking, just not enough wheel base and weight. Would i use the armada to pull a G23 under 1 hour with limited highway needs sure. Would I tow 3 hours, AHHHHHHHHHHHH NO. The G23 would be like pulling the car hauler. The freeboard is hughe on that boat.

My suggesting - especially if you are hauling the family, remeber their safety too. It is not just about pulling the boat, but about getting there safe.

Buy as much wheelbase that you can. A suburban or full size F250 like truck. Remember width too. Next look at the axle ratio available. get something with 3.93/2 or 4.10 gears. 3.73 will just be ok unless you have a diesel. I have a 2012 silveraldo 5.3L with 6 or 7 speed tranny. I'm told it was equal to 3.73 gears. it's not. It is always shifting even when I pull the 196. The tech is seeing 4K all the time. If you are buying a new truck and G23 what do you care the amount of fuel you are buring. You just dropped 200K, the difference between and extra 20-30 per trip is nothing.

[surroundsound64]

If you must have an SUV, look for a good used diesel Ford Excursion. I love mine! I bought it new in 2005, and it now has 175,000 miles, much of the time towing a boat (210, 230, G23). It pulls the G with ease.

The market laughed when Ford came out with the Excursion.

The market cried when Ford quit making it.

There are many Excursions here in Texas...some hauling horses...some hauling lots of kids.

Too bad the government shut down the 7.3L but it looks like the 6.0 has treated you well, Jeff.

If you can live with a truck and have to have gas the new Ford f150 Ecoboost is rated at 11,300 towing. My buddy pulls his backhoe around DFW with it and has no problems. I have to think the backhoe weighs more that the G. We are going to hook the G up to in the first weekend in August for a trip. I'll let you know how it handles.

(With the max tow package.) I would seriously look at that truck if I didn't want a diesel.

I love my 2012 ram mega cab with a cummins fwiw.

Is storage at the lake out of the question? That's a lot of towing!

Great call.

[jslipher]

Thank you everyone so much for all of your feedback! This really helps my analysis. Even though I don't really want a diesel truck, it sounds like that is my best and safest option if I will be towing 3 hrs.

Panda cub, storage at the lake is a possibility and will be in the cards for the future. I will have a boat house and dock installed in the future, but will still tow my boat to non home-turf lakes occasionaly which is why I will still need a tow vehicle.

[gate9869]

We tow our g to the lake every weekend also (3-4 hour trip) with a f250 6.7 diesel and I would not even attempt it with a gas because of all the hills. I have also towed the same trip with my 230 for a few years. I went through a 5.3 Tahoe ( no power on the hills) 6.0 Yukon denali ( also no power) Lincoln navigator ( plenty of power but terrible gas mileage) and a 6.0 chevy avalanche ( lack of power). The only suv I would attempt to pull a g with is a navigator but you should really consider a diesel. With all the vehicles minus the diesel my breaks would literally smoke ! The boat weighs a lot and its nice to have the power especially on long trips like that !!

[imoveteeth]

I've pulled my G23 with 1/2 ton trucks and it does reasonable. Not something I'd want to do all the time and your not going to win any speed races. I've pulled with my 2005 F150, my 2004 Escalade, and 2013 Denali. In all honesty, my Escalade did the best. It stays on a lift at my lake most of the time so I don't have to pull often but it makes the four hour trip fine when it has to. All these gassers get around 10gph when pulling. I've tried to justify the diesel but just can't do it yet...

[bsurfin]

Just curious if anyone has weighed a G23 yet on a trailer?

[ironj32]

Just curious if anyone has weighed a G23 yet on a trailer?

I have. http://www.planetnautique.com/vb3/sh...l-Life-Numbers

[bsb4fsu]

I've pulled my G23 with 1/2 ton trucks and it does reasonable. Not something I'd want to do all the time and your not going to win any speed races. I've pulled with my 2005 F150, my 2004 Escalade, and 2013 Denali. In all honesty, my Escalade did the best. It stays on a lift at my lake most of the time so I don't have to pull often but it makes the four hour trip fine when it has to. All these gassers get around 10gph when pulling. I've tried to justify the diesel but just can't do it yet...

You got 10mpg towing with a gas vehicle? I got 7.9mpg towing my 210 with a 6.2L denali. I didn't even try it with the G (I figured it would be in the 6's), I went out a got a diesel.