Towing 4000lbs up a hill and I'll run 65-70mph at 2000-2200rpms. When the hill gets a little steeper I have to drop down to 50-55mph to maintain the same rpms. If I wait for the tranny to do it on its own and kick down I'll be just under 50mph and blow black smoke out the tail pipe. So I usually down shift w/ the button on the gear selector.

There's a 30% reduction between 3rd and 4th gear. A gear in the middle would be perfect. The gear vendors unit is a 22% reduction.

Anyway, back to the topic. The H2 is looking unlikely. We drove one, loved it, and ready to pull the trigger but then we got the service records. There were too many electrical issues 'fixed' over the years to feel comfortable about it.

 

So you would rather spend thousands of dollars as opposed to pushing the OD button on the stalk to take it out of OD?



Sounds to me like you just need to have your tune adjusted to have the shift points changed to better suit your needs.

I've had a 7.3L in three different rigs towing that much weight and have never had a problem pulling a hill at whatever speed I wanted.

Stewart

 

I always thought mine shifts out of OD too soon, has plenty of ***** left to make tthe hill but shifts anyway.

 

When I installed the hydra my tranny shifted better. But before that it always seemed confused is the only way I can describe it.

 

Here's a little update. We bought the H2 and are keeping the excursion until the H2 proves it can tow our TT. Right now the tranny on it gets too hot so I'll be putting in the larger tranny cooler (just like I did w/ the Ex).

The H2 is a great size and the engine sounds awesome. The tow/haul mode is a great feature but the gas mileage suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucks! But I knew that. My wife loves it but it won't take much for me to sell it.

 

[QUOTE=mulepic;15645197]but the gas mileage suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucks! [n/QUOTE]

Congrats on your purchase, maybe the cheap plastic gas tank is leaking? Mine did.

 

BTW, I didn't know until I parked it on my lawn overnight. The next morning I had a patch of dead grass under tank.

 

A bit late on this thread but if I am reading it correctly the OP has not yet sold the Ex, so... I suspect something is wrong with the engine. The stated fuel economy and lack of towing power to me point to needing a new injector or two.

 

Please explain how you came up with that.

 

Mulepic, where are you located? If you're looking to sell & we're not too far from each other and price is with in budget maybe we could work something out?

We're in the market for an Excursion, actually been looking on/off for a couple years now. lol

Edit: Didn't realize this thread was 7 pages deep, just read OP is keeping his Excursion.

 

I'll keep you in mind if we consider selling it. The guy at the offroad shop that did my gears wanted it too. He made me an offer twice but at the time I wasn't even considering it.

I'm in PHX and used cars look brand new underneath compared to where I grew up in Ohio. I actually sold my 20yo land cruiser for what I paid for it 10yrs ago b/c it also looked new and was always garage kept. The H2 is from PHX as well and it too looks new inside and out.

 

In all honesty most here probably dont have much experience with H2's giving LivingLarge as the exception. With that said we will mostly be biased toward the EX. Never driven an H2, but have had experience with many other GM trucks and here are things Ive noticed. Very cheap feeling interiors, seats in my bros 99 2500 were terribly uncomfortable. Every GM truck I have ever driven has had a very soft feeling braking system from a 93 s-10 all the way to a 2015 Duramax, very unnerving while towing. The IFS front suspension feels light for a "heavier duty" truck. With the EX you have a very reliable proven engine combo, in a comfortable good looking highly desirable rig. The H2's for a short time were very popular here, and now they are few and far between, still many EX's rolling around and I get asked to sell mine on a regular basis by strangers.

Keep the EX

 

If you decide to sell it, please remember sales discussions and advertising isn't allowed in the tech forums, so please keep it to the Classified Forum or to PM's.

Stewart

 

It'll be very tough to get rid of the EX, it's never let us down and we always have room

The more I crawl around the H2, it is quite impressive. The frame is fully boxed and every piece of metal underneath is very thick (there is no shortage of it). The brakes are huge, if I was to guess they are nearly the same size as those on the EX. The coil springs are growing on me but they don't feel as solid as the leaf springs of the EX.

 

I won't dispute the ride at all, that was one of the things that attracted me to ownership.

Either way, congrats and I wish you better luck with your H2 than what I got.