Towing with Yukon Denali/Tahoe?

[Dandy]

We are giving consideration to purchaseing a new vehicle. Here is our situation that I am looking for feedback/advise on.
Current daily driver: Ford Flex (odd looking, but comfortable: getting 17/22.5 MPG real world) - Tow Rating of 4500 lbs
Current Tow Vehicle: 2005 Chev Silvarado Crew 1500HD. 6.0L motor. This is our shops work truck. We have had it since new. Tow rating is 7900 lbs but the motor seems to rev high and is quite loud when towing. Gets around 10-11 MPG. This truck is stored at our shop - 20 mins from home. Not a big deal but if we are taking the boat out, I have to decide to leave the Flex at the shop and take the truck or make the round trip trek later to get it.

The Flex has been a great family vehicle. My wife used to drive a VW Passat but we recently upgraded her to a new Subaru Outback. We now have a good family vehilce that can pull our SPACE Trailer (www.spacetrailers.com) for camping, carrying bikes/SUPs, plus we can rack out the Outback as well. We have one child and 2 dogs. When going to the lake she usually brings a friend or two and the dogs stay back.

To simplify things, I am considering trading in the Flex and either going to an Outback and increase mileage, or go into a Tahoe/Yukon Denali so that I have a vehicle that will work for the family and be tow ready for the boat. The 2015 style looks pretty decent (not a fan of the 2008-2014 interior). The Tahoe/Yukon only is available with the 5.3 L motor and the Yukon Denali has the 6.2 L. The Tahoe/Yukon is rated for 16/23 MPG and the Denali is rated at 15/21 and they all state just over 8000 lbs for tow rating.

Anyone have any experiance towing with the current Tahoe/Yukon/Yukon Denali? How has it worked out? I am looking for suggestions/advise. I simply don't trust the manufacturers tow specs.

Thanks in advance for your help/opions as it is a big expense.

[JLG]

Dandy I'm in the same dilemma as you are. I am wondering the same if someone has towed a 22ft boat with the 6.2L engine in the newer denali/escalade as my wife and I are on the market for one. We have considered the new Tahoe as our dealer insists we will like them, but I am real unsure of them as I have owned a 2007 5.3L 1500 and the thing sucked a## at pulling my little 20i and would rev a lot as you are stating. We currently pull our 22ve on occasion when my diesel is hauling the camper 90 mile roundtrip with our 6 cylinder traverse and the thing does a hell lot better than that 5.3 did. It will yank it down the road at 70mph and still get 10-11mpg on a calm day. When the wind blows though is a different story and it struggles.

I own several 6.0L engine chevy cargo vans for my business and absolutely love them. They get around 11mpg daily and are extremely heavy and tall, so I am pleased with the mileage and the engine doesn't downshift like the 5.3 did. Obviously I wish chevy would bring back a diesel in the tahoe and I'd be all over that thing!! We are leaning towards the 14/15 escalade as they have crazy power out of that 6.2L and are bada$$ looking. IMO the new 5.3L tahoe probably won't pull any better than the older ones did, even if geared with the tow pkg. I do pull my stuff around 78-80mph with my diesel as time is money and am limited on time we can spend at lake. Nothing is worse than having to slow up for the wife when she is pulling boat behind me.

[Travism]

photo 2.JPGWe tow our Z3 with our escalade. It has the 6.2l and we tow through the mountains every weekend with no issue. Fuel mileage drops by almost half when loaded compared to unloaded but has no problem pulling the hills and stopping with the boat, gear and 4 - 6 adults in the vehicle. Prior to this we towed with our 2004 denali with the 6.0l and it worked okay but not near as good as the newer 6.2 in the Cadillac.

[bluebomb78]

I'm watching this closely as well. We have the opportunity to upgrade from a 5.3 chevy pu to a 6.2 Denali. I really want the suv form factor as we are a growing family and I want the ability to haul them, stuff, and some friends to the lake as well as a bit more power to tow with. The only suv I know of that has a diesel in it is the Excursion which I believe was discontinued in 2005. So it appears the Denali is the only vehicle out there that fits the bill for me right now. I've searched previously and found some threads on here that address the 6.2 vs. some other vehicles. I'd love to hear firsthand experiences though.

[Booms]

Dandy - good thing you got rid of the Passat. Ours was the worst vehicle we have ever purchased. I will never buy a VW product again. We are so happy we got ride of it a year ago.

I currently own a 2012 Yukon Denali XL. It has the 6.0L in it and I believe 400HP.
It is great for the family. I had a short version before this and would never go back. The space inside and the ride are much better with the extended wheelbase. Especially when towing. Whenever we are going on a road trip we take the Denali. When driving to the cottage we have two boys, stuff for the weekend, a dog kennel and still have plenty of room for more.

The gas mileage is not the best. I think I get 16mpg average. Can get up to 18 mpg on the Hwy around 75 mph.
When towing I only get between 10 and 15 mpg. That is anything from a snowmobile to our boat. I only tow our 08 RZ2 maybe 4 times a year so I am not making cross country tows with it. I am happy with the towing performance around WI. Ours rides a little firmer then most because of the 4" drop kit I put on it. But it looks way better IMO! truck Plasti Dip.jpg

I love the vehicle and will be looking at the 2015 model. I always try not to buy the first model year. My local dealer just received a SLT Yukon. I am going to go test drive it soon. I am excited that it is 2wd first with a manual 4wd switch and not AWD. That will defiantly save some coin at the gas station. But if you are buying a Yukon Denali XL you should not complain about having to fill the 26 gallon tank with premium.

I have always liked the Escalades but the new 2014 Denali basically has everything the Escalade has but is $10 to $20k less. Like they say, "The Denali is the poor mans Escalade". I prefer to say it is the smart mans Escalade as I am saving money.


2011-08-05 14.09.11-1.jpg

[Timmy!]

Dandy - good thing you got rid of the Passat. Ours was the worst vehicle we have ever purchased. I will never buy a VW product again. We are so happy we got ride of it a year ago.

What year was your Passat? I have a 2012 TDi that I have had for 20 months and 36k miles already and is a solid, reliable vehicle that has a lifetime average of 38.9 mpg.

If your Denali is a 2012, it has the 6.2L in it (same as the Escalade).

[Z3James]

I tow with my Yukon XL 2500 8.1L, rated at over 10k it does the job well and can hall all my friends at the same time. I get about 8.4mpg towing or not towing.

[trent]

I run a 2007 5.3L chevy Tahoe. 4.10 rear-end with HD towing.
You can expect to see some pretty high RPM's if keeping up with traffic going over decently steep pass. Other than that I feel it does a pretty good job. The only negative I have is what I consider to be high transmission temperature(230+) when going over steep passes(Locking in a gear appear to help). It would also be pretty sweet if it had another gear I think a 5 or 6 speed would be awesome.

I do like the way its rides, short turning radius, and ride leveling suspension. If given the option I would definitely make sure to have the ride leveling option.

My original boat (SeaRay 200 BR/Trailer), I think 4000+, was towed easily. Z3(weight??) much closer to its limits.

Would I buy another Tahoe? Yep, especially since the new one appear to have a 6-speed trans.
Maybe someone can enlighten me as to what causes heat build-up in the transmission.

[Booms]

What year was your Passat? I have a 2012 TDi that I have had for 20 months and 36k miles already and is a solid, reliable vehicle that has a lifetime average of 38.9 mpg.

Ours was a 2003 Passat wagon. The new ones are probably light years ahead of that model year.

I was lucky to buy the extended warranty as there was $5,000 worth of issues right after I hit 100,000 miles. Engine gaskets freezing and cracking $2,600 to fix, HVAC system $2,000, front seat would slide when driving $500. The car went through brakes like crazy, had all the cv joints replaced multiple times, timing belt replacement.
All of these issues I never had with the Yukon.

[racerdave]

We tow with a Denali awd with the 6.2 it does great IMO it has enough power to pull through the mountains with boat full of gas, camping gear and everything else we can throw at it. The oversized brakes and electronic ride suspension helps with the pulling also


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[jmoore15]

Wife has had two Denali's both with the 6.2... One of the short versions 2wd and current XL with awd. IMO they are totally different vehicles and would not go back to the short 2wd. The XL awd drive rides/tows/pulls up the ramp much much better than short 2wd. My best friend is a GM for a GMC dealership and when he told me that I didn't believe. I am now a believer. Having said all of that you will need a fuel tanker following you on long trips because the fuel mileage for me is single digits. For those I put it behind my diesel and double the mpgs.

[Stingreye]

Maybe someone can enlighten me as to what causes heat build-up in the transmission.

Trent I have had and currently have the concern about the trans heating up. My 2006 has a trans temp gauge and runs hotter than I am used to. I think the engine runs hotter for emissions and the electric fans do not turn on until the engine gets pretty hot. If you look at your engine temp while going up the pass, its likely fairly low but the trans is high. I have heard you can program the fans to come on sooner but the better option is a bigger trans cooler. My auxiliary trans cooler is pretty small. My plan is to beef that up soon. From what I have read, you can get the trans to stay under 200 towing. When I get around to upgrading it, I will try to remember to post my results.

[JohnZ3]

I've got the 2013 Escalade with 6.2 motor. Plenty of power to pull our Z3, but mileage is horrible. I use my F350 to tow it now, much better power and mileage.

If you are going with a gasser, I would save yourself some money and get the Yukon with a 6.2 motor. I don't think I'll buy another Escalade over a Yukon Denali again.
Not that Yukon's are cheap, but much cheaper than the Escalades.

[JohnnieMo]

I feel like we have this thread about 4 times a year.... but I love talking about it, so I'll chime in again. :P

I have an Avalanche with the 5.3L. Simply put the 5.3L is not enough. On a Silverado with the 6 speed.... maybe. But the heavier GMT-900 platform (Tahoe, Suburban, Avalanche, EXT, Escalade etc.) simply needs the 6.2L to get the job done. Also, the 6 speed helps a ton. I think the switch from 4 to 6 gears was in 2009.

I looked at going with a newer truck, but wanted to keep the Avalanche and couldn't jump all the way up to the EXT. So I added a supercharger. It pulls like a dream now.... just keep your wallet close. I'd also strongly suggest the Denali/LTZ trim package (or the Caddy) as they have the auto-leveling rear shocks. I've spent a year of my life agonizing over all of this, so if you have any questions, I'm happy to answer.

Regardless what you do, be sure to get a good auxiliary transmission cooler. And no matter what they say, the stock one (or two) is not enough. It's a simple add on with huge benefit. I'd also suggest a nice tune and premium fuel. For under $600 you will be very happy.

[trent]

Johnnie,

What trans cooler did you add?