Need to upgrade current tow vechicle and wife wants something more family freindly. Looking for anyone with experience with late model Suburbans. Look to tow 04, 35' Fountain lightning on tandam axle Myco. Fountain list at 9600# but that is dry with no fuel, gear and trailer. 09 Sububan, 3/4 ton, list tow capacity at 9,600 in 4wd, 6.0L version. Wanted to know if anyone has experience with similar setup. Tow about 80 miles on weekends and am familar with acceleration and braking issues. Any imput apprecited.

Go find an Excursion if you need an SUV for a tow vehicle. You will never buy another truck. The only one you don't want is a '03 with the 6.0L.

If you have to have the Suburban, go for the slightly older 2500 Suburban with the 8.1L Gas engine. I towed 12,000 lbs. with my 2500 Avalanche which is the same truck.

The new Suburban 6.0L Gas is not going to be up to that task, regardless of the fact are overweight & illegal towing with such. You can't get a HD hitch for that truck either. You are stuck with the factory hitch which means you need a Weight Distributing hitch which is more effort and weight. Not only that, but you only want to be towing at about 3/4 of your maximum towing capacity. It's good to have truck in reserve you when have an emergency situation. You can't have too much truck.

That Burb won't last long. You'll wear it out fast. I agree with Sydwayz on the Excursion because it's a 1 ton chassis I believe. Look for one with the 7.3 Powerstroke. You might have to buy an 03(last year Ford used that motor) but it will be more than you need which is a good thing as Brian says. Your fuel mileage will be much better with the Diesel too.

I would look at 2006 and earlier Suburbans with the 8.1. They still ride decent and tow up to 12k. The Excursions may or may NOT fit inside of a standard garage, they are that tall. I am a GM guy and never liked the Excursions, but they will do the task. The V10 gas engine is a pig however in the Excursions.

Unfortunately there are no SUV's currently being produced (with enough rating) that will tow your boat. This is a product of the economy and CAFE standards. The 2009 3/4 ton Suburban is the closest with a 6.0 and a 3.73 axle. Will it tow it? Yes. Will you be over the rating, yes. The Nissan and Toyota will not do it. Ford no longer produces the Excursion.

BTW, NADA lists your boat at 8600 lbs. I would take your boat and trailer to a scale to see a real weight.

Wannabe

I towed a 312 Formula behind a 2003 3/4 Burb with the 6.0 and 3.73 gears for several years. The 312 was listed at 8,100 dry with an aluminum trailer under it. I did have the trailer made with 16 in wheels and disk brakes on ALL axles figuring I need the rig to stop even if it didn't pull from a stop light very well. You've got a 500 lbs heavier boat with probably a 1,000 heavier trailer. My truck did OK but I do feel we were shortening it's life and think your extra 1,500 lbs is going to put it over any comfort level. We bought a 382 a few years ago and that Burb only towed the 382 a couple times........I was a sweaty mess after getting 50 miles to the ramp. Ended up buying a F350 dually cause that Burb just couldn't do it anymore.

I have an '05 Suburban 2500 with the 8.1 and 4.10 gears. It's rated at 12k lbs. I've towed my friend 35' Lightning on several long trips and I think the truck was maxed out. I figured 8600 lbs dry, 1k lbs for fuel, another 400 for gear, plus 2k for the trailer. That's it. I would not condider a vehicle with a lower tow rating than 12k lbs for this boat. Even the Excursion is only rated (I think) to 10k lbs.

I suggest a 1 ton diesel for a 35' Lightning.

Just checked - the Excursion in '05 had a max towing capacity of 11k.

I strongly suggest a 1 ton diesel truck. Take a look at the F350 King Ranch. A beautiful rig with 4 doors and I think 13.5k capacity.

Another Vote for the Excursion Diesel! (Well, I'm a little biased, since I own 3 of them!!!)

Excursion diesel for sure. Upgrade springs and you are ready to go.

I'll have to jump on the Burb wagon. I have a '03 with 8.1 and It is also easily upgraded for big H.P.. I tow a (small) '29 powerquest, And a buddy has a '31 formula with his Duramax...Same distance and he gets almost 12 MPG and I get almost 10 MPG. IMO not enough difference for the expense and higher fuel cost. Good Luck P.S. I am a mechanic and work on way too many ford diesels...DO NOT BUY A 6.0 Powerstroke !!!!!!!!! PERIOD!!!!!!!