Put my vote in for overkill on the safety side. (2wd excursion PSD, load bars, air bags, rear sway bar, bilstiens, E load range tires, electric brakes, 11,500 tow capacity)
I'm thinking about the pilot decision and can't make up my mind.
Positives:
Wide track, 4wheel disk, decent HP (not great, decent), sporty suspension (keeps you from getting knocked around), ABS, Girlfirend's 'free' tow ride.
Cons:
lack of torque, unresolved tranny reliability question (does it have a cooler? can it handle the extra weight w/o cooking itself?). nice interior so nowhere to put greasy stuff, girlfriend would kill you if you got it all nasty.
My suspicion is that it's tow fine with electric brakes, if your primary tows were not through the Rocky's. Exepect alot of upshift/downshift messing around, yada yada.
I'll stick with this opinion of mine if:
-You're not doing a 15 race schedule
-You're not located in Palm Desert, Houston, or S Fla (heat)
- You don't overload the wimpy C-load range rear tires with the additional tongue weight and gear weight.
- you move to the right lane when the PSD/Duramax/Cummins guys pull close (lol, just a jab there)
Recommedation to all:
DO some serious checking into what load your rear tires are handling during a tow. Most truck stops have axle scales you can use for a buck or 5. I found that loaded, the standard Firestone's were within 50 lbs each of rated capacity with gear, people, and trailer(racing piano included, don't ask me about this one). On the same trip I also noticed a sinificant heat difference (as measured with pyrometer) between the front's and rears. Finally, on a 1400 mile RT tow, I had visible tire wear on the rears.
My final thoughts are that I towed for at least 8 years with underrated vehicles (S10, Passport, Astro). I'm still here, but I am SOOOOO much more relaxed in the Ex. Especially in traffic. Hell, my wife drives the Ex with the 28 ft on the back.. says it's a breeze..
