Is the Denali Hands Down the Best Tow Vehicle?

[Big Mama]

If I was gonna pay to swap gears I’d go 410 if all towing. I went 4.56 in my reg cab 4x4 truck with 33” tires and it don’t hunt but stays Revved for sure but fun to drive. Diesel would fix your problem I have one of those to and was hoping the 456s would get me there in my gasser but it’s not even close. I went from 3.54s

Even the knit picky stuff can be fixed but I also understand the miles are on the entire rig. Have you considered a 2500. They usually come with better towing all the way around and I think there are some 6.0

 

[swathdiver]

I want to be able to put it in cruise at 74 and pretty much forget about it.

You want a 2500 with a 6-speed transmission!

 

[bldn10]

“ if all towing” Not all towing, “ It is also a work truck so I don't want one too nice.”

“Have you considered a 2500.” “You want a 2500 with a 6-speed transmission!” Is there such a thing as a 2500 non-XL NBS?

It was Mikeyss who recommended 4WD over AWD but 2WD best of all for towing. That’s what I thought and I’ve, frankly, shied away from Z71s for that reason. And also that most have 2nd row buckets. The 2005 3.73 2WD here is starting to look better. And w/ 88,500 fewer miles than mine.

I’m going to have to look into programmer/tuners. Frankly, I did not see any claims or expectations on the Black Bear site re hp and torque. Again, will the Bully Dog on the 05 3.73 do the trick?

 

[HiHoeSilver]

“ if all towing” Not all towing, “ It is also a work truck so I don't want one too nice.”

“Have you considered a 2500.” “You want a 2500 with a 6-speed transmission!” Is there such a thing as a 2500 non-XL NBS?

It was Mikeyss who recommended 4WD over AWD but 2WD best of all for towing. That’s what I thought and I’ve, frankly, shied away from Z71s for that reason. And also that most have 2nd row buckets. The 2005 3.73 2WD here is starting to look better. And w/ 88,500 fewer miles than mine.

I’m going to have to look into programmer/tuners. Frankly, I did not see any claims or expectations on the Black Bear site re hp and torque. Again, will the Bully Dog on the 05 3.73 do the trick?

Not sure what you mean about the Z71. They're no different than any other tahoe in that regard.

 

[swathdiver]

“Have you considered a 2500.” “You want a 2500 with a 6-speed transmission!” Is there such a thing as a 2500 non-XL NBS?

Nope. But if you want to cruise @ 74 mph without the motor screaming you're going to have to deepen your garage or park it outside.

What it comes down to is torque. You need to increase the amount of torque delivered to maintain speed. There's no replacement for displacement in that regard. An LQ4 or LQ9 along with gears and the tune should do the trick with your old truck or at least the short GMT-800s.

 

[bldn10]

"Not sure what you mean about the Z71. They're no different than any other tahoe in that regard."

Except most are 4WD.

Well, James, seems like we've come full circle back to Denalis. Or a Tahoe engine swap.

If I can buy a clean 150,000 mile Denali for $6000-$8000 why would I bother w/ a swap?

 

[jsoltren]

If you're looking to stay with GMT800 - I know of a really nice one with 4WD and the 8.1L for sale, if you truly want the best GMT800 tow vehicle.

 

[swathdiver]

"Not sure what you mean about the Z71. They're no different than any other tahoe in that regard."

Except most are 4WD.

Well, James, seems like we've come full circle back to Denalis. Or a Tahoe engine swap.

If I can buy a clean 150,000 mile Denali for $6000-$8000 why would I bother w/ a swap?

To keep the original vehicle if you want and to have a vehicle without AWD. Course, you could convert it to 2WD or a 4x4 too. We've seen guys do that on here. One fella who races converted his from AWD to 2WD. Let's see if we can wake him up and get his opinion...

https://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/threads/yukon-down-awd-delete-headers-converter-etc.81191/

@01ssreda4

Steve, the OP wants to cruise @ 74 MPH while towing his race car with a Tahoe body style. The 5.3 just isn't cutting the mustard, too many downshifts. What say you?

 

[CountryBoy19]

"Not sure what you mean about the Z71. They're no different than any other tahoe in that regard."

Except most are 4WD.

Well, James, seems like we've come full circle back to Denalis. Or a Tahoe engine swap.

If I can buy a clean 150,000 mile Denali for $6000-$8000 why would I bother w/ a swap?

4WD isn't the same as AWD....

Denali is AWD, all 4 wheels being driven all the time... which means additional drivetrain losses.

4WD can have 2 wheels or all 4 driving. Not as much drivetrain loss as AWD.

IMHO, you want 4.10 gears. 4.10 isn't all that common but they're out there. My XL has em. It'll hold gear up some pretty good grades, rarely downshifting unless speeds drops. At 75 mph rpm is about 2450 so it's putting a little more power to the wheels without kicking trans down due to torque management (hp is a function of torque & rpm).

Lastly, regarding the bully dog tune, what does it do? Does it actually change trans parameters? Black bear tunes change shift parameters to make them hold gear at higher throttle positions (in addition to the other things like more power & torque). I doubt an off the shelf tuner does the trans parameters.

 

[HiHoeSilver]

"Not sure what you mean about the Z71. They're no different than any other tahoe in that regard."

Except most are 4WD.

Well, James, seems like we've come full circle back to Denalis. Or a Tahoe engine swap.

If I can buy a clean 150,000 mile Denali for $6000-$8000 why would I bother w/ a swap?

4WD is selectable. Mine is in 2wd 99% of the time. *There were a few RARE, AWD tahoes.

The Denalis will be AWD. You cannot turn it off.