HUMMER H2 vs. OTHER TRUCKS TO TOW A VIPER ....

[MannyC]

Guys,

Up until earlier this month, I was using my 2000 Ford F150 with the 5.4 Liter V8 to tow my Viper around on a quick load trailer that has electric brakes. Pulled it around pretty nicely I must say, although with car and trailer, I was up near that 5,400 pound tow limit.

I gave that truck to my dad for his bday and purchased a 2004 Hummer H2. I haven't yet towed anything with it as I just got it, but the tow rating on it is only rated at 6,000 pounds. I assume this is because the Hummer weighs in a whopping 6,400 pounds. I thought that the heavier the vehicle, the more stable or better it would be at towing something else heavy, but I guess they take braking into account (duh.)

So I have a couple questions:

1) Is the tow rating based on towing a trailer that has no brakes? If the trailer has it's own electric brakes that you can adjust, can you effectively tow more than the max rating?

2) Have any of you towed with an F150 (or equivelant truck) and then with an H2, and if so, what differences did you notice?

I ask because in about a week, I will be towing my car down through the grapevine here in California, and then back up, and it's pretty steep both ways.

Thanks,

Manny

 

[REDSLED]

Manny, your H2 will pull your open trailer & Viper just fine. However, due to the weight of the H2 it won't pull much more. What track event is going on?

 

[YouWish]

H2's rock!!! I love mine you will have no problem towing your Viper/accessories.

 

[Bandit3]

Having the need to purchase an above 6klb vehicle before the end of the year,I just went through the decision to purchase a tow vehicle. Looked at Ford, GM and Dodge. The H2 only has a 6k towing capacity and limited interior space, also only 10mpg on the highway-ouch! I bought an 04 four door Hemi Dodge. Got it for 28k, with 2wd and the laramie package (20inch chrome wheels). Towing capacity is around 9k with plenty of torque. Our other vehicle is an 02 Escalade with the 5.4. This engine has no torque for towing. I havn't towed with the new truck yet, but have heard from others it'll do the job just fine. In my opinion, it looks better than the others, well maybe not the h2's! John

 

[ViperGTS]

[image]http://[******]/gallery/data/500/115jeepvip.jpg[/image]
Have no probs with a JEEP GC, V8 engine.

picture does not show up
go to the gallery and search vor "jeepvip" or my username

 

[pdmracing]

I towed 17k miles last year & have averaged close to that for the last 10 years so here is my expert opinion:

If you are doing occaisional towing of an open trailer, then an F150, ram 1500 or other 1/2 ton truck or suv will do ok. The real issue asint the pulling power , but the stopping power & other saftey type items.

I have a 24 foot gold rush all aluminum trailer with a complete shop & full of spares (4 sets of rims ect) inside, gvw is around 8000 lbs, I towed it for 40k miles with a 1993 Ford lightning with the tow package( 7k capacity) I upgraded the shocks & brakes to pfcs & it did fine, but you had to be ever vigilant especialy in wet weather. The Lightning had huge sway bars, 4;11 posi(A MUST) & HD springs so it was more like a step between a 1500 & 2500.

I now have a 2003 F250 super duty supercab. V10,4:11, Camper package(big sway bars & 1 ton springs) Real truck tires(80psi), 4 wheel disc w abs, WHAT WAS I THINKING!!!!!! the difference is unreal. Stopping, sway control & general overall safety is a 100% improvement.

I was initially dissapointed because the lightning would out accelerate it(or at least felt like it would) but here is so much more than just accelerating. by the way the tow rating on this truck is 11500. The price I paid delivered with all the goodies was under 26K.

Also NEVER think of towing a car without trailer brakes. It is illeagal in most states anyways. Thinking that the trailer brakes will save you a$$ is a big mistake. The Lightning would stop the trailer with no brakes , but it would be a hairy ride. The F250 did it for 200 miles with nary a problem. There is a diffence & going cheap is a false economy. the first time you crest a hill in the rain & see traffic stopped 100 yds infront of you , you'll know what I mean!

feel free to call or email me for more info.

 

[snowmann]

Try a 1/2 - 3/4 ton diesel truck, the towing difference is night and day. Diesel trucks are hands down the BEST for towing. I fly up hills with my diesel truck with just about anything I tow and the gas milage is great too...

 

[jkracer9]

I bought the dodge HD diesel dually and it pulls great. I pull a 36' enclosed trailer loaded w/the Viper and other junk inside and have had zero problems other than the 10.6 to 11 MPG.
I added a chip and it is twice what it was when stock. I have trailer brakes that help and work good unless a fool pulls in front of you and slams on their brakes.

 

[Saleen-Explorer]

It's pushing the limit for the H2 but it should do fine, gas mileage will probably be horrible though. I know my friends H2 without towing anything, it's highway mileage is like an Excursions city mileage, ***** it down.

Your F-150 only had a 5400lb limit? I thought it was closer to 8000 lbs or around that, did you have the trailer package and everything? I know our V8 Mountaineer is rated around 7000 lbs (think 6700), the heaviest thing I towed was our 29ft Fountain when it wasn't on our dock and it actually did well.

I would have rather gone for at least a Powerstroke F-250 or Cummins Ram. A good friend of mine has a new 3500 Ram 4X4 Lariat, h/o Cummins and of course the 6 speed manual, I love the truck. Gas mileage is just awsome, and tons and tons of torque, it doesn't care what you have behind it. Good power too, the interior is so much better then the last Rams.

 

[CarDude]

My suggestion is to purchase the new Durango. I just got mine and it is great. 335 HP, 4750lb vehicle weight...oh and yes...it's got a Hemi. The dealer even put Dubs on so it looks awesome. I just put 4,000 miles on it over Christmas and I averaged 16+ miles per gallon doing 85 mph on the highway. When I was nicer, in regards to speed, the average miles per gallon were much nicer to me. My Durango came with every option plus the wheels and I paid 40K. I can't tell you how many people came over to me and said the Durango looked awesome with the 20" wheels. Kind of cool to think about pulling your Dodge with a Dodge. I'm not brand loyal but the new Durango "is" that much better than the last one.

 

[V10 MOJO]

i just bought a black 04 H2 two weeks ago. i havent towed anything with it yet but im sure itll pull the snake to florida and back just fine in an enclosed trailer

 

[FrankBarba]

Get either a Motor Home that will tow 10K or get a Ford Excursion....This is the only way to travel....

 

[MannyC]

i just bought a black 04 H2 two weeks ago. i havent towed anything with it yet but im sure itll pull the snake to florida and back just fine in an enclosed trailer

Let me know how it goes for you. I really didn't want to have an SUV and a truck, so I chose the SUV that I liked best (the H2) and get the tax write benefit as well since the vehicle is over 6K pounds.

Things I have noticed about the H2. 1st, it has massive understeer when hitting corners too fast - at least mine does. I have 35 X 12.5 X R18 BF Goodrich tires on LExani Wheels, so not sure how these perform compared to STOCK tires since I never had the stock tires on there.

I took a 7 hour trip to Northern California for Christmas, and another 7 hours back, and I averaged 11.1 MPG, but I was going 85+ MPH the whole way. Still horrible, I know, but I knew it was bad going in, so not that big of a deal to me. I found out my H2 is speed limited to 100 MPH -- THOSE *******!

If I do end up getting a truck in addition to what I have now, the new Viper powered Dodge looks pretty cool, but as a 2 or 3 seater, it's kind of pointless for me. Between the H2, by Bike and one of my Vipers, I would rarely drive the truck.

Manny


Manny

 

[VENM8R]

[image]http://[******]/gallery/data/500/115jeepvip.jpg[/image]
Have no probs with a JEEP GC, V8 engine.

picture does not show up
go to the gallery and search vor "jeepvip" or my username

ViperGTS, just replace "[******]" with "vca2.ciperclub.org" so it appears like this: http://vca2.viperclub.org/gallery/data/500/145jeepvip.jpg - you will then see a pic like so:

Nice car! (the jeep...that is)

 

[MannyC]

I now have a 2003 F250 super duty supercab. V10,4:11, Camper package(big sway bars & 1 ton springs) Real truck tires(80psi), 4 wheel disc w abs, WHAT WAS I THINKING!!!!!! the difference is unreal. Stopping, sway control & general overall safety is a 100% improvement.
Also NEVER think of towing a car without trailer brakes. It is illeagal in most states anyways. Thinking that the trailer brakes will save you a$$ is a big mistake. The Lightning would stop the trailer with no brakes , but it would be a hairy ride. The F250 did it for 200 miles with nary a problem. There is a diffence & going cheap is a false economy. the first time you crest a hill in the rain & see traffic stopped 100 yds infront of you , you'll know what I mean!

feel free to call or email me for more info.

I noticed there are better sway bars available for the H2 now through Predator. Do you think it would be wise to upgrade to those? They are pretty cheap.

As for brakes on the trailer, when I bought the trailer from another forum member here, I was told it didn't have brakes but he never really needed them. I ended up towing my Viper to Las Vegas for my 1st ever towing experience, and coming from San Diego, you have to go up several thousand feet in grade and then back down the hill, and the F150 was doing a kind of snaking motion, as it was pushed by the trailer. I aged 2 years in about 30 mins -- SCARY! When I got back, I took the trailer in and found out that it did indeed have brakes and just needed some upgrading and new electronics, so now I have the full set up.

Manny

 

[MannyC]

Manny, your H2 will pull your open trailer & Viper just fine. However, due to the weight of the H2 it won't pull much more. What track event is going on?

Not sure which event it is. One of my buddies told me there were two events before the 10th. I'll have to go look them up.

(3 mins have passed)

OK, back. Here is the schedule. On Jan 3rd and 4th, there's a run on the Streets of Willow, which I have never done. Organized through: http://www.speedtrialusa.com/

Then on the 10th and 11th it's Willow Springs, organized through : http://www.redlinetrackevents.com/

You going?

Manny

 

[V10 MOJO]

im going to be towing to bradenton florida for the v10 nats, about 1100 miles each way. i dont know about the wheels, ive got stock ones. i do know they **** asss for offroading. i went to some strip mines last night and while the suspension is amazing the tires combined with that sick weight got my fatasss stuck deep in a gully, good thing fo ra wynch and a HD towtruck, LOL now ive been spending all damnn day buffing out all the scratches from all the tree branches

 

[REDSLED]

Manny, your H2 will pull your open trailer & Viper just fine. However, due to the weight of the H2 it won't pull much more. What track event is going on?

Not sure which event it is. One of my buddies told me there were two events before the 10th. I'll have to go look them up.

(3 mins have passed)

OK, back. Here is the schedule. On Jan 3rd and 4th, there's a run on the Streets of Willow, which I have never done. Organized through: http://www.speedtrialusa.com/

Then on the 10th and 11th it's Willow Springs, organized through : http://www.redlinetrackevents.com/

You going?

Manny

I'm running Laguna Seca this Fri & Sat and will be doing Willow Springs on Jan 11th & 21st. Then Viper Days at Willow Springs on Jan 24-25. The 21st is with www.opentrackracing.com See you there! BTW-You sell my Gen 1 yet? Man I miss that car.
-Jonathan

 

[CarDude]

My suggestion is to purchase the new Durango. I just got mine and it is great. 335 HP, 4750lb vehicle weight...oh and yes...it's got a Hemi. The dealer even put Dubs on so it looks awesome. I just put 4,000 miles on it over Christmas and I averaged 16 miles per gallon doing 85 mph on the highway. When I was nicer, in regards to speed, the average miles per gallon were much nicer to me. My Durango came with every option plus the wheels and I paid 40K. I can't tell you how many people came over to me and said the Durango looked awesome with the 20" wheels. Kind of cool to think about pulling your Dodge with a Dodge. I'm not brand loyal but the new Durango "is" that much better than the last one.

I forgot to mention the towing capacity is 8500lbs. And the Durango will go somewhere over 110...I've heard and at sea level, I hear , it will spin the front tires (with traction control off) around corners if you are not careful.

The only reason I bring up the Durango is it's a direct competitor for your existing vehicle.

 

[pdmracing]

[quote


[/QUOTE]

I noticed there are better sway bars available for the H2 now through Predator. Do you think it would be wise to upgrade to those? They are pretty cheap.

As for brakes on the trailer, when I bought the trailer from another forum member here, I was told it didn't have brakes but he never really needed them. I ended up towing my Viper to Las Vegas for my 1st ever towing experience, and coming from San Diego, you have to go up several thousand feet in grade and then back down the hill, and the F150 was doing a kind of snaking motion, as it was pushed by the trailer. I aged 2 years in about 30 mins -- SCARY! When I got back, I took the trailer in and found out that it did indeed have brakes and just needed some upgrading and new electronics, so now I have the full set up.

Manny

[/QUOTE]


Go for the sway bars, also a weight distributing hitch is a must on an enclosed trailer & a nice thing to have anyway even on an open.

The trailer brakes are a MUST, not only do they help stop the you , but they serve other functions. Like if the trailer starts to sway ( sometimes due to road surface & air from the big new style aero rigs this can get pretty hairy) you can hit the manual control on the brake controler & activate the trailer brakes alone. This acts like a drag chute & will stop the sway. Also make sure the settings are in sync on the brake controller. This makes a big difference on brake performance.

The bottom line is reserve. In most normal towing sitches all is ok. but in an emergency, you need all the goodies to help you through it.

I used to pull my race car with an el camino! did it for around 10k miles. It towed it fine & luckily we had no issues. One crazy rainy tow down Mount eagle(7% grade) my wife said she would never get into that truck again & the next day she bought me the Lightning! 5 years to the day, on the way back from CMP we were cresting a hill on a major highway around 65 mph we found that traffic was at a dead stop 100 yards ahead. Choosing to hit a pickup instaead of a minivan full of kids, I locked all 8 wheels down & managed to get it up on the median & hit no one & escaped with no damage. The next day we had the F250!

In the words of the great Chris Rock "Just because you can do it, dosent mean its a good idea!"

 

[pdmracing]

Try a 1/2 - 3/4 ton diesel truck, the towing difference is night and day. Diesel trucks are hands down the BEST for towing. I fly up hills with my diesel truck with just about anything I tow and the gas milage is great too...

I agree , but on the budget I was working with , it was around a $7k difference. That buys a lot O gas.

 

[YouWish]

My suggestion is to purchase the new Durango. I just got mine and it is great. 335 HP, 4750lb vehicle weight...oh and yes...it's got a Hemi. The dealer even put Dubs on so it looks awesome. I just put 4,000 miles on it over Christmas and I averaged 16 miles per gallon doing 85 mph on the highway. When I was nicer, in regards to speed, the average miles per gallon were much nicer to me. My Durango came with every option plus the wheels and I paid 40K. I can't tell you how many people came over to me and said the Durango looked awesome with the 20" wheels. Kind of cool to think about pulling your Dodge with a Dodge. I'm not brand loyal but the new Durango "is" that much better than the last one.

I forgot to mention the towing capacity is 8500lbs. And the Durango will go somewhere over 110...I've heard and at sea level, I hear , it will spin the front tires (with traction control off) around corners if you are not careful.

The only reason I bring up the Durango is it's a direct competitor for your existing vehicle.

Dude a Durango is in no way in the same league as an H2. Durango is a hill-billy suv. No thanks!!!

 

[MannyC]

See you there! BTW-You sell my Gen 1 yet? Man I miss that car.
-Jonathan

Jonathan,

Yup, sold her about a month or so ago. I'm going to sell my other red rt/10 and go for a Gen II (red RT/10.) If it doesn't sell, no big deal, as I really like it anyway -- it is just real lopey and loud -- moreso than I like.

Manny

 

[Henry Cone]

What Pete is saying here is absolutely correct - it is extremely scary and unsafe to have too little a tow vehicle. We tow a 48' Featherlite all aluminum 2 car enclosed trailer with most seriout pickup truck that we can find - a 2003 Dodge Quad Cab Cummins Turbo Diesel dually. While this may be overkill for some it is not for us. The key is to have the lowest tow weight possible with the highest tow rating vehicle that you can find.

Some extremely good basic trailering information can be found here.

Golden Gait is the largest Featherlite car trailer dealer in the country and have been great to work with. We have bought 2 trailers from them and have had several other Viper owners buy from them as well....

 

[CarDude]

[/QUOTE]Dude a Durango is in no way in the same league as an H2. Durango is a hill-billy suv. No thanks!!!

[/QUOTE]

You must be joking...

There is nothing an H2 can do that a Durango can't...well except drink gas for no reason (and be a tax write-off). Let's see 0-60 in my Durango about 7 seconds...H2 at least 1 hour. Tow capacity 8,500 vs. 6,000. Seating 7 vs. 5. Etc...etc... And the H2 is a box...in no way comparable to an H1. Oh and by the way...nice Chevy Tahoe in disguise.

 

[YouWish]

Dude a Durango is in no way in the same league as an H2. Durango is a hill-billy suv. No thanks!!!

[/QUOTE]

You must be joking...

There is nothing an H2 can do that a Durango can't...well except drink gas for no reason (and be a tax write-off). Let's see 0-60 in my Durango about 7 seconds...H2 at least 1 hour. Tow capacity 8,500 vs. 6,000. Seating 7 vs. 5. Etc...etc... And the H2 is a box...in no way comparable to an H1. Oh and by the way...nice Chevy Tahoe in disguise.

[/QUOTE]Looks like somebody is upset they couldn't afford a 60k suv. At least you have 30k extra for Viper mods.

 

[Bandit3]

Good points all. In summary--bigger is better!

 

[Nsane1]

Boy oh boy, an H2 vs Durango war. I have owned both (not the new one), and I like the H2 much better, and before you say there is nothing a h2 can do that a durango cannot, you obviously have not taken both offroad (I have, multiple times), I got stuck MANY times in the durango, in pretty moderate conditions, still have yet to get stuck in the h2 in pretty darn extreme situations, not to mention the approach angles, etc (you did say nothing).

Anyway, just a matter of preference, and this is a Dodge board, I loved my durango, just like my h2 more.

Now back to the ORIGINAL posters question. I have towed with my H2 numerous times with an enclosed trailer and viper. Total weight about 7500 pounds (I though the tow rating was 6500 or 7k, I didnt think I was going over 1k over). Tows just fine, the gas mileage does indeed **** (about 6-8mpg vs the normal 11 I get). But it has plenty of power left, does fine on hills, passes fine.
A ram, or some other pickup would tow better, but that's just not my gig.

Weight distributing hitch is a MUST, and you also MUST do trailer brakes, both are very important for safety in the H2.

Since it looks like I'm the only one posting that has gone through this, PM me with questions, you need to do a bit to set it up (wiring harness from GM, electric trailer brake box, longer drop than standard hitch, sway bars).

Your other question "do brakes increase the max tow rating" Unfortunately no, if GM knew I did this, and I had a tranny warranty claim, they would no doubt decline it. Thats why I tow only small loads when asked. IMHO, the truck is under-tow-rated, for the lif of me I don't know why, sure its 6k pounds, but it has 400 lbs of torque, many cars just as heavy have less (excursion?) but higher ratings... Anyway, who cars, we own vipers, like we don't push our cars.

Good luck!

 

[pdmracing]

I think the reason the reason the H2 has a low tow rating for its relative beefy specs is down to the tires. The load rating must be down compared to GVW, as the H2 is a fully equiped luxury ride that cuts into the load rating. When the gen 2 lightning came out it had a max tow rating of 5000 lbs, Even though it had a couple of hundred more hp than my gen 1 it had 2000 lbs less capacity? When i called SVT they told me a bout the load rating thing on the tires. This is an often overlooked part of the towing equaision. Check it out I would think that proper truck tires ( High psi, the ones on my truck cary 80psi)are all that is needed.

 

[MannyC]

The tires on my Hummer have a max weight rating of about 2,900 pounds each, so that should put me at around 11,600 pounds for tires -- should be plenty, right? I'll take some photos later of the wheels and tires.

As for a hitch, I keep hearing about a 'weight distribution hitch.' *** is that? I have 3 hitches here, two of which are rated at 10,000 pounds. I don't think these are the same things.

Manny