What exactly is the difference? I am looking at a 1500 91' Suburban to be my daily driver, occasional (once a month maybe) tow rig.

Should I wait for a 2500? Either will probably be the 350 since it is also a daily driver..

here it is, and my current DD is that black thing.

The 2500 is a "3/4" ton rig. Along w/ all the diff's between a 1/2 & 3/4 ton rig. Bigger brakes, heavier suspension, etc.

1/2 ton has small 10 bolt rear end. 3/4 ton has 14 bolt rear (in either semi float, or full float) 1/2 ton has smaller brakes. 3/4 ton has 454 option (definitely worth it!). With that in mind, Kevin is selling his 92 3/4 ton Sub. It's very nice, and it has a 454. I'd like to buy it, but I don't have any $$$. :(

the 2500 is built to tow! mine has the 7.4 and is a 99, but aside from motor availablity the differences are:

transmission! 1500 has 4L60E, 2500 has 4L80E
transfer case (dunno numbers or specs, but the 2500's is way bigger)
axles! 1500 will have a 10 bolt rear, 2500 has FF14 bolt rear.
suspension! 2500 has a much heavier duty suspension.

IMO keep the jetta as a DD and buy a 7.4L 2500... mine tows like a dream! 80mph with a 7k load up and down the mountains of vermont. the 99 with a flowmaster dual exhaust on it gets about 12mpg as a DD, and towing 7k it gets 8. not bad considering that the rig that gets towed would get 10 and wouldnt go as fast.

1500's place as a tow rig is for canoe and kayak trailers, not rigs. my 2500 is rated for 10k, i think that the 1500 is only rated for like 5 or 6?

depends On what your towing.. But it sure is nice to have them brakes for the heavy loads...

I have a Tahoe that is setup quite nicly for towing and power and it tows my toy and trailer well.
BUT...... You can't get any better than a good 3/4 ton for the job... :D

I simply can't afford both vehicles, unless I sold my jeep or my truck and that isn't gonna happen ;)

So...

some good differences there but here is one - mileage? cost?

What I need is a daily driver to haul the family and tow my truck/or jeep. I think both are fairly light but I haven't weighed em. It seems the suburban is the best choice. Now it is 1/2 ton vs 3/4. I understand the 3/4 is a bit stouter but what I need is the all around vehicle - still say wait for the 3/4 ton?

My budget is 10k, and that is once the car is sold..

hey tail_lite is your Tahoe a 1/2 or 3/4 ton? Lance, any idea what Kevin is selling his for, and why?

Originally posted by Brandon

hey tail_lite is your Tahoe a 1/2 or 3/4 ton?
"ho's only come in half -ton. Heres how I keep mine to do the job at pulling 6000 pds. +.
1997 Chevy Tahoe w/ 5700 vortec motor , has 3.73 gears and Loc. diff.
I dropped a K&N airfilter in the stock housing. Put in a 2 chamber flowmaster catback exhaust system. Installed a transmission modulator for more efficient shifting. You shouldn't really need a chip if the motor is a vortec. But if its a T.B.I. , then go for it.
I'll be adding eldebrock IAS shocks later, and an airbag kit (if needed) to keep the vehicle level when towing. Other wise , I'll be changing ther trans fluid and filter every 20000 miles to help it out.

Always buy more then you think you need that way it will be just enough.

Last summer I bought a dodge Cummins 12V motor truck. It was great until I got a new trailer.
This summer I bought a Ford PSD what a difference. Tow any thing a nd everything. When I bought The dodge I didn't want to wait for a Ford PSD. One year later thats what I ended up with.

So if you think you want 2500 buy a 2500, don't settle it will cost you more in the long run.

I know a guy that pulls his Zuki around with a 94 2WD and it does great for that light sucker. I've kinda worndered if it would work well for my 4runner. I've never towed anything before either, but I don't want to overdo and buy more than I need for the occational trip (once a month) or so.

Alrighty, stepping into the mix:
I have a 99 1/2 ton Suburban with the tow package, which gives me the bigger brakes, oil and tranny coolers of the 3/4 ton truck (check it out at a dealer) Still got a Vortech 5.7L and the 10 bolt.
Tow Rating = 10K lbs.
I routinely (weekly)pull my pig of a jeep and flat bad all around with very little problems. Feels like the trailer isn't really there. So, no worries. I get 18mpg unloaded going up and down the hill. I'd like to see a 454 do that. Of course, I added a Whipple supercharger and a shift modulator. Towing and I am down to 12 mpg, which is what my 96 3/4T Suburban got UNLOADED. Got 70K miles on mine and get an occasional check engine light because I forget to screw the gas cap on tight enough.

Summary? If you're not towing every other day and the price is right, get the half ton.

thanks grendel ;)

I don't want to buy a bad ass tow rig cause next thig ya know I'll be liftin it and....

It is the family car, occasional tow rig..

For towing, get a diesel. You will not be disappointed unless you get the GM 6.5. No gasser will tow as well as a diesel and mileage on the gasser will also suck compared to a diesel.
Of course, diesels will cost you more up front.


charles

Originally posted by Brandon
Lance, any idea what Kevin is selling his for, and why?

You could get it for about 10k, and he is selling it because he bought a new powerstroke. ;)

amazing what some of these are going for.. Guess I need to go check em out. Of course I'd go for the 454 and 3/4 ton but my trade off is that this is the commuter and family car too!


CHEVY Suburban 1991 4x4, 350, lks & rns grt, $4500/ofr, 916-952-4576 Posted: 7/02/02 Print Ad

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1.00 CHEVY Suburban 1990 4x 3rd seat, R/ac warr $4980 #2146 dlr 564-2678 Posted: 7/02/02 Print Ad

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1.00 CHEVY Suburban 2500 1993 Silverado, 454 eng, chrome stepside, 3rd seat, rear air, privacy tint, tow pkg, lugg rack on top, clean inside & out $9000 916-519-0808 or 485-8496 Naji Posted: 7/02/02 Print Ad

If you're just towing occasionally, I think the 1/2 ton would be fine.
I used to tow with an 89 1/2 ton Suburban 4WD. It kinda sucked for a tow rig, but it had 32's and 3.08's! Make sure the one you're looking at has 3.73's.

I just used our '01 1/2 ton Suburban to tow my Cruiser to Moab from Dallas Texas. I kept up with the Cummins guys just fine except in the big hills. Even then I could maintain 60mph. Otherwise 75-80 on the interstate. I also got similar mileage.
That said though, I'm thinking of selling this one and getting a 99 3/4 ton 454. I don't drive that much and would like the better power and lower payment.

Oh, and minor point, you mentioned the one you're looking at is a 91, but that one in the picture is a 92 or newer (I think).

Just looked at a 93 Sub 2500 with a 350 for $10,500 at crown motors in Orangevale, nice truck but had a ton of miles on it

I have a '99 1/2 ton Tahoe. My Jeep weighs 3700 and my trailer is light at 1100. That Tahoe tows the 4800-5200lb load all day w/o problems. For a light vehicle with a light trailer it's great. Now if my Jeep weighed 5000 and my trailer 2000+ I don't think I'd trust it w/ that load.

WELL that golf is at least a 2000 so you should get a good dollar for it.. Do u owe $ on it? sell that thing out right I towed with a dakota with the 5.2 a 79 suburban heavy half ton (12 bolt rear) now I am buying a 3/4 ton diesel so you can tow with anything that will pull but can you feel safe in it? stopping the big brakes and the extra weight are nice so u do not become a sled....
The sub was great no problem but I have to get rid of it with only 45000 orig mile it will make a nice show vehichle to the right guy!!1

I tow with a 94 3/4 4x4 chevy suburban .
I pull a double axle 16 foot car trailer (1300lbs ) and my Zuk. I have no problems towing on the flats at 80 mph or on mild hills however on really steep grades It will drop me down to 40 mph at times.

My rig has 180,000 miles on it but still is strong.
I love it to death. I got a good deal on it .

Get a 4x4 and get 3/4 ton if you can. My truck hardly squate down at all in the back this past weekend when pulling a 79 scout II from KC to South dakota .

I get about 12 on the highway running 75-80 and 8 pulling a trailer with the zuk or that scout on it going 65-75.


One question for you guys.
Should I pull in Drive or overdrive?
If I pull in drive running 65-75 the temp guage goes up a bit.
Ive heard that its hard on the tranny to pull in overdrive. IS IT?
I have a towing package on my rig.

Later

Well, as a veteran of the 1/2 ton, TBI350, TH700 ilk, let me say that if you have a downsize trail rig, you'll be able to "get by" with this setup. But, never, ever, ever, ever use OD with the following exception:

No load, at 70MPH or more, on a flat Interstate highway.

Follow that advice & the tranny will live. My dad fried the tranny in what would become my truck towing an empty horse trailer at sea level. I towed HARD with the rebuild for 8 years with zero problems 'cause I almost never used OD. Kid I sold the truck to fried that tranny inside of a month 'cause he didn't listen to me.

The tow rating of an early 90's GM 1/2 ton is 7,000 or so. Realistically, you need to keep that to 5,500 or less. Keep it under 4,500 (total weight of trailer & towed rig) and you're gold.

Plan on ~15 MPG running empty & 8-10 while towing with TBI 350.

Did I mention that you shouldn't use OD? ;)

TEX

PS When I replaced my TBI350/TH700/1/2 ton, I went for a 2500HD. I'm much happier :D

Originally posted by flexlarson


One question for you guys.
Should I pull in Drive or overdrive?
If I pull in drive running 65-75 the temp guage goes up a bit.
Ive heard that its hard on the tranny to pull in overdrive. IS IT?
I have a towing package on my rig.

Later

With your rig, you have the 4L80E, which is a much stouter tranny than the one in 1/2 tons. You don't have the tow/haul mode that the late-model trucks have, but you should be able to use OD for light towing jobs. But, if you notice the tranny jumping back & forth between 3rd & 4th, definitely just snick it down into Drive. Personally, I'd just use OD out on the flat Interstate, or when running empty if I were you.

TEX

Originally posted by TODDK
WELL that golf is at least a 2000 so you should get a good dollar for it.. Do u owe $ on it? sell that thing out right I towed with a dakota with the 5.2 a 79 suburban heavy half ton (12 bolt rear) now I am buying a 3/4 ton diesel so you can tow with anything that will pull but can you feel safe in it? stopping the big brakes and the extra weight are nice so u do not become a sled....
The sub was great no problem but I have to get rid of it with only 45000 orig mile it will make a nice show vehichle to the right guy!!1

I owe more than it is worth which is the case with buying a new car :(

It is for sale...

Need a car ;)

Bought it as a last years model with no miles just a year and a half ago..

I know some people have made the 1/2 tons work fine, but I had a '00 Chevy 1/2 ton Silverado and in the year I owned it, I broke 2 rear diffs and the tranny had a melt-down towing about 6k lbs of D-90 and trailer. I got sick of that crap and went to an F350 powerstroke with a manual tranny. No more worries for me.

I think the 91 and earlier rigs have a good strong set-up, but I would hold out for the 3/4 ton in order to be sure it's going to hold up. Besides, if you're looking at a 10+ y/o rig, you have to remember that the last guy probably beat the crap outta it too even if he says it was granny's car and she only drove it to church on Sundays.

The 3/4 ton will stand up to 100 grannys, while the 1/2 ton might out-live one.

-John

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Grendel
[B]Alrighty, stepping into the mix:
I have a 99 1/2 ton Suburban with the tow package, which gives me the bigger brakes, oil and tranny coolers of the 3/4 ton truck (check it out at a dealer) Still got a Vortech 5.7L and the 10 bolt.
Tow Rating = 10K lbs.

You're smokin' crack if you think a 1500 is rated to tow 10K. Find the GCWR and subtract the weight of your rig, you'll find it's rated for around 6000-6500 lbs.

:D

Brett