Suburban Tow Pig Thoughts *Pics added*

[Soundmound]

Well, I want a tow pig and really want an OBS Crew cab, but they are twice the price of a Suburban. So thinking in value for dollar, it appears that a 2500 Suburban is my best choice in 2wd or 4wd.

Now, here's the quandary. OBS with the 7.4 vortec or 99-06 with a 6.0 LS or heaven forbid the 8.1!
I know the LS is the gold standard these days, but I much prefer the body lines and interior of the OBS and let's be honest, neither is getting great mileage. I know I can get the 99-06 with a sunroof and heated seats which would make the wife happy, but that's really the only upside for the newer rig in my eyes as they are very closely priced in my area.

So convince me one way or the other which is better in your opinion and if you'd go 4wd over 2wd knowing you'd tow predominantly in spring/summer/fall.

Thanks for the input all, I appreciate your opinions.

 

[HotWheelsBurban]

Here's my experience: only 2500 Burb we towed with was the '90 R2500(2wd, TBI 350, 4.10 SF, Turbo 400 that got rebuilt the year after we got it, performed great for the rest of its use). This was small utility trailers and a car hauler (moving several vehicles including another C25 big block Burb). Did that great!
The only travel trailer towing was back in the late 70s/early 80s with the C15 Sierra Classic and Sierra C15 350s. There the 78 Heavy Half definitely outperformed the 75; 78 had headers and low restriction duals with glasspacks which also helped. Also had LR60/15 Goodyear GT Radials on 15x8 truck wagon wheels which got it a little lower and more stable too.
Our first OBS Burb towed the utility trailers fine, C1500 Vortec 5.7, 4L60E, 3.42s. Single and tandem axle, heavily loaded and the truck was loaded up too, 4 of us and gear for a long weekend swap meet trip. My current '99 is identical except for not having a G80, and it does the same haul to the same places, just as well. Doesn't even squat it, just levels. Only reason the first '99 was replaced, was it got wrecked and totalled, bent frame and the whole front clip was toast. Haven't tried to tow anything bigger yet.
Last year I got a CCLB, '97 C3500 with 5.7 Vortec,4L80E, 14B FF 4.10 G80. We've towed a single axle utility trailer twice, fully loaded both times, with a load in the truck and 3 of us in the cab. Truck, trailer and load was probably around 7500/8000# total. Towed great, only time we knew it was back there was stopping or changing lanes. Longest and second trip was to Austin and back, even in the hills we had power to cruise at 60-65. Had more power available, but then you get to thinking about "how fast will this stop?" Which is a thing to consider, the way idiots in little cars like to whip in front of you....
I know several guys on GMT400.com that have 2500 OBS big block Burbs, both C and K, and they all say they're great for towing. That's what they're designed for....
We also had an '06 Yukon XL Denali with the 6.0, 4L65E and 3.73s, AWD. It towed the same trailers and loads as the '99s, but with less range and mileage. The GMT 800 series SUVs have 31 gallon tanks because the spare is underneath instead of in the back of the cargo area. Does make a little more room inside, but it's just as much or more of a PITA for access to change a tire. The OBS/400 Burbs have a 42 gallon tank, and of course any of the fuel injected trucks have the in-tank pump.
Basically the difference in range, was on a trip to Lafayette, Louisiana from Houston, Texas (225 miles each way) when I filled up the truck before we left, the Denali needed fill-up before we left Lafayette, or while still in Louisiana, and the Burb would get back almost to East Houston (Baytown) before needing a fill-up. On I -10 there's plenty of places to get gas as long as you're in a town or metro area. But once you get away from those, there's a lot of open spaces between them....
The best thing about the Denali for towing, was the AWD helped hold the truck on hills at lights, whereas the 2wd truck wants to get shoved by the trailer....
Here's a picture of the crew cab and the Burb, with their loads and trailers, at the Austin show.

 

[HotWheelsBurban]

That same 350 crew cab has moved a couple of trailers longer than it, around the RV park. So I'm sure with the appropriate ball mount and sway control, it would tow up to a 28' travel trailer fine.

 

[bucket]

If you are wanting a '92-'99 or a '00-up, focus on the '96-'99 454 or the '01-'06 8.1L. Either of those are the bee's knees, compared to the tbi 454 and 6.0L, respectively. If budget/availability are a concern with the 8.1L, I'd definitely choose a 454 rig over a newer 6.0L rig.

 

[bucket]

Oh yeah, and the GMT 800 Burbs have more fuel capacity than the 1/2 ton Burbs. Besides the standard tank, there's also an auxiliary tank in the back, right above the spare tire. Iirc, it's about 10 gal capacity.

 

[Soundmound]

Honestly there are a good amount to choose from in the sub $5k price range. I think I want 2wd and a 454. So far all really good info, thanks!

 

[yevgenievich]

Another vote for 96+ burb. 7.4 or 8.1

 

[Soundmound]

Went and saw this one today, 4x4 $1500 ask. Batteries were dead and I didn't have my jump box. Not a drop of rust anywhere, no visible puddles but lots of oily undercarriage, looks like tailshaft seal maybe. All fluids looked and smelled good, interior needs a steam and front seat covers and the doors all shut and align perfectly. Bet I could get it for $1200 if she runs out decent. Needs abs module and speed sensor I'm told...

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[bucket]

That's a fantastic candidate, imho.

 

[Soundmound]

Tried to get it jumped off today, no luck. He's going to put a battery in it and we'll try again Saturday night after I get back from C10's on the Capital. Add driver door handle is not attached to linkage to repair list. Alarm locked the doors and I could no longer open driver door even with the key.

 

[Bextreme04]

That's pretty similar to the donor I got for my swap into the squarebody. Mine was a 97 K2500 Suburban I got from some tweekers in a trailerpark here in Oregon for $500. The interior was completely destroyed and the cooling system had a leak somewhere. I poured a gallon of water in it and drove it about 10 miles home just fine. It had 288,000 miles on it, but fired right up. You'll want to replace the fuel injectors with some bosch D3's(~$160) and also replace the FPR with a stock replacement or block it off and put an adjustable unit on it(thats what I did). You can also easily do a swap to an 0411 computer by just repinning the connectors and then do easy free tuning of the computer yourself. The 97 Black box computers are not programmable with HP tuners or any free software I know of and the 0411 runs the engine/trans way better anyways.

The number one biggest improvement you are going to get in everyday driving and towing power is going to be a cam upgrade though. Either an off-the-shelf cam from comp or send it over to Delta Camshaft in Tacoma for a regrind. I had them regrind mine and it took about 2 weeks and cost ~$140.

 

[Bextreme04]

Funny enough, when I went to go look at the one I got, it was dead also. I jumped it off my squarebody and it fired right up.

 

[Soundmound]

Talked him to $1200, 50% deposit from the wife and we took it home tonight. Real bad shifting, slams into reverse, awkward through the gears, but goes highway speed - speedo is inop. Real bad driveline vibration over 40, maybe carrier bearing or clocked u-joints? Otherwise fires up and runs well enough. Seems like everything works otherwise. The wife and I steam cleaned it tonight because it was filthy and she said she wasn't getting in it till we steamed it. What a night and day difference.

I drop it with my mechanic to look over tomorrow, fingers crossed it's just the speed sensor and the anti-lock module. He showed me the receipt from a reputable shop dated 3 weeks ago saying just that so... TBD

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[HotWheelsBurban]

So was this an estimate or did they actually get this work done? If an estimate,of what it needs, I can see why they'd be letting it go. That's a bit of $$$ to put into "an old truck" for most people.

 

[Soundmound]

Estimate. My guy says he can do it for 1/2 the cost if the same work.