RE: If you were buying a new tow vehicle...

[griffsmom]

 
...what would it be?  
 
 DH and I are are looking at new tow vehicles. (Yea!!!  Longer trips and higher elevations, here we come!!![])   We have narrowed it down to either the Chevy Tahoe or the Ford Expedition.  We can get more bang for our buck with the Expedition (bigger engine, more torque, dvd, leather seats and other cool doo-dads), but DH likes the styling of the Tahoe better.  He s also a bit leery of owning a Ford, having always been a Chevy man.  
 
 Which would you choose and why?  Please vote and post your commments below.  
 
 Thanks!  []

[AustinBoston]

 griffsmom
Kids are starting to go their own way (DD#1 is in Bangkok at the moment), so we don t need a 5-6- or 7-passenger vehicle.  Probably just a good basic pickup such as an F-150 is where I m going next.
 
 PJay might have a different opinion.
 
 Austin

[campingboaters]

 griffsmom
Our next vehicle will be a full size four door pickup truck.  We re not sure if we ll go Ford, Chevy or Dodge since that purchase is 3 years away.  Who knows what the trucks will be like by then.  We like the ability to carry just about anything in the pickup bed, while still carrying passengers in the crew cab.  Of course, since we own a Durango with the 5.9L engine, I can t imagine the gas mileage on the pickup truck getting any worse than the Durango.

[Kelly]

 griffsmom
[font=" comic sans ms" ]If the new TV was for my family (of 6) I would definitely buy another Suburban.  The other (big) sport utes can t touch it for cargo space!
 
 If I only had one child and the choices were the Tahoe or the Expedition ~ I d go with the Tahoe.  I also like the styling of the Tahoe better ~ in some cases (not my Suburban, of course []) bigger isn t always better!  
 
 If I only had one child and the options were endless I d go with an extended cab pick-up ... for the cargo capacity.  We traded our pick-up in years ago and sometimes I really miss having one around.  (It s a lot easier to hose down the bed of a truck than to crawl around the back of a SUV with a vacuum cleaner! LOL)
 
 goose may have other ideas, though!![/font]

[LKaskel]

 griffsmom
There are three major functions to the tow vehicle as I see it.  Towing the camper, hauling the campers (family) and storage during the trip for the extra stuff (bikes, luggage or what ever stuff you take).  We thought a full size van was the answer.  In my opinion...I was wrong!!!!  It pulls the camper just...ok.  It fits the campers (family) good and there is ok room for storage.  Problem is the van is too difficult to do even general maintenance on.  Things like front end parts and tires seem to wear much faster than other vehicles.  Although the van works for us the TCO (total cost of ownership) is much higher.  I would consider a few things.  Are you going to be traveling a lot of mountain areas or possibly upgrading to a larger unit?  Then you want a Tahoe or similar.  Is gas milage while not towing a big deal.  You may want something smaller.  I prefer the Expedition over the Tahoe due to the larger capacities but I imaging the TCO would be higher with it also.  Anyone want to buy a van  I did see the Jeep Liberty had a 5500 pound GVWR.  and it gets decent gas milage......hmmmm.  It just doesn t fit the family!  Darn!
 

[Turn Key]

 griffsmom
Just got our new TV about 1 1/2 months ago (see " sig"  line).  Went this way because we (I?) like trucks and we plan on moving to a small " 5 er"  within the next 18-24 months.

[Camping Coxes]

 griffsmom
Lori --
 
 After Paul having the Suburban, he s convinced nothing can compare.  However, you didn t ask that.
 
 Since I equally like the Tahoe and Expedition, I d go for the doodads.  More importantly, I d check the cargo space.  You think Griffin s tricycle takes up room now, try when he s 12 and you need to fit his bike in there, or when he s eating like a horse and you need to pack extra food.  You can always add in later that optional CD player, but you can t put an addition onto the cargo space.
 
 As far as Dave being a Chevy man, Paul has always been a Ford man and swore up and down he d never let a Chevy into his driveway.  Until he realized we needed a stronger TV and started researching.  He bought the Suburban and loves it and raves about it.  Tell Dave a leopard can change its spots, and men can change their brand loyalties!  []

[cyclone]

 griffsmom
I m thinking Jeep Liberty, too....and with only two of us and the camper dog, it s big enough.  So, this time next year it may just be one of those pulling a Palomino.

[YellowXterra]

 griffsmom
Hummer 2   cause they are so COOL ! []

[Venatic]

 griffsmom
I have both a pickup and a mid size SUV. Although we haven t towed the PU with the SUV, it can handle it. I myself would get another pickup only bigger because I would eventually get a different RV. So I want to have the tow vehicle that will handle it.

[whitestar505]

 griffsmom
griffsmom,
 
 I have a mid-size SUV that can pull up to 6,000 lbs. 275 hp six cyc. It runs great. It tows these pop-ups like they are not even attached. In fact it can give you to much security. I have to be careful, so not to over do it. The Ford  Expedition is too large. If I am not mistaking I believe they are going to stop making them. The  Chevy Tahoe is great but once again to large. The mid-size range SUV s today can handle these popup s with no problems. Save some money both in gas, maintenance, and cost. Just get the right MID-SIZE SUV.
 
   My SUV will tow a TT up to 27 feet long if I wanted to buy one. Try a Chevy Trailblazer or Ford compatible

[forestwalker]

 griffsmom
Dodge Ram Quad Cab-Good multi-purpose vehicle.Can comfortably carry 6 passengers.Loads of cargo space.Good work vehicle.We know-we own one,like it,and would purchase one again.

[startx]

 griffsmom
We currently have a F150 Supercrew and a E-150 conversion van.  Our next vehicle, a suburban, a beefier standard full size van.  We could go with an E-150, but I want the V8, and no conversion packages.  Just a basic passenger van, tint the windows, install one of the overhead TV s with DVD maybe.  I would really like the suburban, because I have seen the cargo space on that baby, plus I like the looks better.
 
 My family is big, with the four kids and the antique dog to consider, plus two adults.  Most of the SUV s don t have the necessary cargo space for taking that many people camping once you put all the behinds in the seats.  We are ok with the supercrew, but haven t made a trip since we got the antique dog back.  Plus I also find it is cumbersome in the supercrew with seating six, and the kids want to take a cd player or a gameboy etc, there isn t really room for their bags of stuff for the travel part of the trip.  Course that doesn t even begin to address what we will do when they begin to want to take a friend along for a camping trip.  I have visions of having to buy a small bus to get us around!

[4campinfoxes]

 griffsmom
We currently have an F-150 & an E-150 van.  We usually tow with the van.  I love it - mainly due to the cargo space.  For us - with 2 kids & 2 large dogs - that cargo space is a premium.  I never have to worry about if I have enough space with this big van. there s room for the tv/dvd player to keep the kids entertained on long trips, and a good space for the dogs.  If I were getting a new TV right now I d have to get a new E-150.  If the kids & dogs weren t an issue, I d probably go with one of the larger SUVs - but they re so expensive!!
 
 Sharon

[forestwalker]

 4campinfoxes
Like I said,our Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab is quite roomy.We pack mucho stuff in the pick up bed(we have one of those fiberglass bed covers).