Took my 2016 Z71 Suburban to the family coastal cattle ranch for the first time. I was a little nervous due to the size, lack of ground clearance, and the stock SRA tires. I have had every type of SUV, and have been "stuck" on Land Rover products for the past decade, as they make offroading so "easy" and stress free. I had a few sphincter flexing moments in a GX470 and Cayenne; hence, until the Z71 I have not considered anything else. We needed a offroad capable SUV; however, with three rows. The Discovery 5 does not come out until next year, so we got the Z71.
Impressions:
Realize that most everyone on this forum could care less about offroad capability, but at least one owner justified to GM the Z71 package
Impressions:
- It is not any wider than my wife's 2008 Range Rover, which has been my primary ranch truck.
- The turning radius is not "bad" considering its size; but, I still had to do a lot of three point turns in the culverts and swithchbacks.
- Traction is actually pretty good - not a lot of tire spinning, with the exception of a 0.6 mile 20-40 degree grass/gravel slope. During the very steepest portions the rear wheels were spinning the whole way - the limited slip diff works. For this slope, I had it in 4-low and Second gear and 2.5rpms, whereupon it bogged down. I shifted down to First and kept it at 4krpms until the final summit where it gets really steep and grassy. At this point are starting losing momentum and increased the rpms to 5K - made it. The engine got really hot at the final summit - 3/4 temp mark with the fan going full blast. This is with the SRA's, and I'm sure it will do better with the Nokian Rotiiva AT's I have in the garage - will have these on before I try Tally ** Trail again. Pic is at the top of Tally **.
- Leaving it in Drive is only good for flat sections, as it bogs the engine on any type of incline. I used the manual shift exclusively.
- I felt a lot lower in the Z71 than the Rovers - no air suspension
- The ride was actually really good - very smooth. Pleasantly surprised. I think the Z71 suspension is the best on/offroad on these trucks.
- Ground clearance. I did not scrape or rub at all - another surprise. No rock crawling, with the exception of a creek crossing. We will see if I have enough clearance on the front\rear when I have other folks in the truck - not an issue with the Rovers.
- The Hill Assist is absolutely essential, as using low gears/compression does little to keep speeds under control on steep descents - why?
- Overall: It did the job, and will do better with the AT tires on it. Very happy, as I love all of the room in the Suburban, and the size does not seem to limit it as I need to use it.
Realize that most everyone on this forum could care less about offroad capability, but at least one owner justified to GM the Z71 package
