Best nineties tow vehicle

[mattbatson]

I'm in the market for a tow vehicle...3/4 to 1 ton.
Have no preference on brand.
It doesnt have to be a pickup either, but must be 4 wheel drive (will be parked on our 10 acres of very steep land in western NC)

It will primarily be used to tow a dump trailer or tractor up to 7K in weight.

I owned a 97 dodge cummins 4x4 extra cab with full 8 ft bed and thought it was a great truck...good fuel mileage, lots of power, easy to work on, etc.

Negatives were a front suspension that wanted to wander on the freeway, weak auto transmission, extra cab was a little tight, and maybe a couple of other things...
I had the tranny rebuilt with billet input shaft, beefy tq converter, etc. and then had no problems whatsoever.

So, I have a buddy who is selling his 95 3/4 ton suburban with the big block vortec and 48le? auto transmission, and it already has the trailer package with tranny cooler, bigger rear springs, etc.. Only has 140K miles on it and no known problems...all for about 4500 dollars

I love the room inside. Man, it is huge in there! 3 rows of seating and still room behind for stuff! or take out the 3rd row and then fit a small volkswagen in there :laughing:
It is plenty powerful too, as I have driven it.

Are the bigger auto tranny's on these strong?

negatives...gas mileage will be poor (but it will not be driven much...mainly towing and work stuff), no pickup bed (but with plenty of trailers of all sizes it shouldnt be too big a deal), and...what else?

I know with nineties tow vehicles that the transmissions are often the weak points.

Which brands, and auto or manual, are considered bullet proof?

thx for any info

 

[mattbatson]

here is my old dodge that I sold...

 

[davo727]

One of my trucks is a 95 3/4 ton ext cab 4x4 , 8 lug with 454 and the 4l80e trans and I really like it. That trans is a strong unit.

My truck has 4.10 gears and gets 10 mpg empty and 8 towing. If I go over 62 mph the milage will start going down a lot due to the 4.10 gearing.

 

[Combustix]

99 F-350 crew cab 7.3 PSD can't beat it room and power:thumbsup:

 

[jeffsw6]

It will primarily be used to tow a dump trailer or tractor up to 7K in weight.

A modern 1/2 ton will tow that without any trouble. In a 90s truck, as you already know, you want something a little bigger.

I owned a 97 dodge cummins 4x4 extra cab with full 8 ft bed and thought it was a great truck...good fuel mileage, lots of power, easy to work on, etc.

I just bought a 97 Ram 2500 V10 with the 47RE. I'd love to know about your transmission history since you mentioned a rebuild and T/C upgrade. I got mine to haul a 10K 8.5x20 7'6" high enclosed trailer, which is a much harder tow than what you are talking about, so maybe that will be a useful point of information for you?

So, I have a buddy who is selling his 95 3/4 ton suburban with the big block vortec and 48le? auto transmission, and it already has the trailer package with tranny cooler, bigger rear springs, etc.. Only has 140K miles on it and no known problems...all for about 4500 dollars

1995 is the last year of the non-VORTEC gassers in GM/Chevy trucks. So you are basically looking at an old-tech 454 TBI. If you compared a 95 to a 96 you would be amazed at the difference. I was ready to pay $4800 for a 96 K3500 recently (it turned out to be junkyard-worthy though) but I would not have even gone to look at a 95 at any price. That's just my $0.02.

The 4L80 transmission of that era was not exactly bulletproof but if you spend much time looking into it, as I recently did, you find that rebuild or whole replacement cost for them really isn't too bad.

Will the truck tow your loads? Sure. Will you find something better for $4500? I don't know. I would not be in a hurry to pay that much for the truck, but on the other hand, I might be upset if it slipped through my fingers, too. If it was a 96 - 00 I would jump on it.

One last thing, the brakes on Suburbans of those years sucked. The rear drums were weak and didn't adjust easily like they were supposed to, and the front brakes wore pretty quickly as a result. When I traded my 99 Suburban for an 05 the brakes were the nicest upgrade for me.

I hope this helps.

 

[Sutol]

ISUZU 2.8 Diesel

Strong reliable economical engine, over 40mpg on a run get a late 90's one as the early ines were rusty at back end.

Isuzu Bighorn in a good example, that is if you are allowed diesels in your state

 

[LD1]

Its pretty much a crapshoot with any 1990's tow vehichle.

The towing characteristics have vehicles have changed NIGHT AND DAY in the last 10-15 years.

I was going to suggest anything with a cummins in it for best tow vehicle, but I see you just got rid of one.:confused2:

You mentioned front suspension liked to wander and the cab wasnt roomy.....

Well anything from the 90's is going to be like that with the front end. And anything that isnt an SUV is going to seemed cramped compared to todays trucks.

So at this point, I really dont have a suggestion for you. It seems as though you are wanting a roomy cab, strong transmission, and good handling front end. Well....I think you are going to have to look about a decade newer to get what you want.

 

[dodge man]

For the older Dodges from the 90's, they make a upgrade kit for the front end that tightens them up quite a bit, it includes a new steering box and power steering unit. Its tough to beat an old 12 valver in terms of durability.

 

[mattbatson]

One of my trucks is a 95 3/4 ton ext cab 4x4 , 8 lug with 454 and the 4l80e trans and I really like it. That trans is a strong unit.

My truck has 4.10 gears and gets 10 mpg empty and 8 towing. If I go over 62 mph the milage will start going down a lot due to the 4.10 gearing.

Hey, my buddies suburban also has the 4.10's

How long have you had it? What is the mileage? Do much towing? Has it been reliable?

thx for the info!

 

[Diamondpilot]

Tough to beat a 5.9 Cummins. The motor is great, rest of the truck not so. You know the weak spots already.

Ford 7.3 is also a good choice. Front end again wears and auto trannys can be a issue.

Chris