When i was in tampa florida with my 04 i towed quite a few things (horse trailers a small 24' boat and also a cigarette boat with a 6 wheel setup trailer ) going up all the way to pensacola and down to the keys pretty sure i went over the towing capacity a few times never had a issue but did see MPGs as low as 5 MPG ... keep in mind i dont have airbags on the rear but instead custom reinforced springs look stock but are doing just fine . Now im here in california with all the hills i better stay on the weight limit if i tow anything ...

 

One thing I've noticed over the Excursion is the brakes on the H2 are much better and it's noticeable while towing. As for tackling hills while towing, you need to watch your tranny and engine temp. I have the external tranny cooler and have never seen over 175. Also I've noticed the engine will run cooler at 3500 rpms than 2500 while pulling hills. Since I manually shift, it becomes easy to control the temps.

The area the H2 is lacking is at 75mph w/ the slightest incline (so slight you'd think you it's flat). Again, while towing. This is when aerodynamic start to really make it difficult for the H2. If I'd ever look into adding any performance items, it'd be a turbo. And maybe a rear mounted one to control heat better. But that's a big 'if'. Keeping it stock keeps things simple...reliable. Have enough to worry about when towing.