2008/2009 will both do as we like the creature comforts, 6.2l, and 6l80 tranny. We will use it to tow the family 4000lb TT about 10x/year. We actually like the 2009 over the 2008 for the 20" wheels and bluetooth.

Currently we drive an '02 Excursion with the 7.3l diesel which is a great truck and tons of space. It has 4" lift, airbags, 35's, 4:10 gears, and PHP hydra. But we'd like something with a bit more off road capabilities and updated features. And I'm under the impression the 6 speed in the H2 will tow better on hills than the 4 speed in the Ex.

Gas mileage isn't much of a concern as the Excursion only gets 9 mpg towing and 11 around town not towing. I don't think the H2 will be much worse.

My question is. Will I be regretting giving up the Ex for the H2?

 

I have an 08 and had an 04. If you are coming from a diesel and tow pretty regular you will be disappointed with the H2. Especially on hills. The 6 speed might as well be a 5 speed. And it will downshift from 5-4 every hill.

The 08 come with either 4.10 or 3.73 gears and the 09 only 3.73. Which do not get the job done.

As far as fuel economy goes, I am supercharged and get 9-10 towing and 11-12 highway. not sure about around town.

 

How can you tell if the rear end has 3.73 vs 4.10?

The issue w/ the Ex is there's too much space in between 3rd and 4th gear. So you either have to get up the hill at 65-70 otherwise it's 50mph. I'm ok if the H2 downshifts as long as I don't loose 20mph doing it. I've read the spacing on the 6l80 is very good.

 

In the glovebox there are some rpo codes that you need to look at and decode. It's either the g or the h code Can't remember. Another forum member helped me out with that before. There are websites that can help you decode.

Well the H2 won't lose any speed but the tranny will get really warm with all the shifting. My completely stock 08 tranny temps would easily climb to 200* while just driving on the interstate at 75 mph.

 

Seems high, is that while towing?

 

That's not towing. Too much shifting. Most h2 owners install bigger tranny coolers

 

That's not encouraging at all. I can't imagine how a truck can tow 8000lbs if w/o towing the tranny is 200 degrees. That's very uncharacteristic of that tranny in other chevy trucks. I'd expect 150-160's w/o towing.

 

Well there is little to no space under the hood of the Hummer. Other gm trucks coolers are placed similarly but have much more space between them. The hummers are practically touching. Not to mention the h2 is much larger than the other gm trucks.

But with the upgraded tranny cooler the temps will generally be around 150* no matter what. Easy and cheap mod.

 

Maybe you can point in the direction to research this tranny issue some more. I'm pretty much making a decision on this 2009 this afternoon.

 

So you're saying once I do the tranny cooler mod I can tow w/ it and not have to worry as much? I had to do put a bigger cooler in the Excursion as well.