New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

[marquette]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

backyardhockey- when you say the gas mileage stinks on your 4runnner what kind of mileage are you talking about? towing vs not towing?

 

[fishdog4449]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

Unless you really want a newer car for a daily driver, id say keep your car and shop for an older pickup or suburban. We have an '82 Suburban with a 350 carbed V8 an the towing package. Towed my dad's 26' McGregor swing keel with ease. The low price you would get for a older pickup or truck would balance out the lower milage.

 

[ckone0814]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

I actually have run acrosss a few articles/tests that say the Ford Edge easily towed a 2500+ lb boat. That more in line with what I'm thinking. My set-up will probably never get over 3k. Would a big suv be better? for sure. but is it overkill?

 

[Backyardhockey]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

backyardhockey- when you say the gas mileage stinks on your 4runnner what kind of mileage are you talking about? towing vs not towing?

I've never actually done the math LOL! Dash read out says 20 at 70. 15-16 in town. Tows nice but I've never paid attention to the numbers. i would guess 13-14 w/5k behind me. Rumor has it those things read a bit high. I don't drive it much so no big deal. Have turned readout off so not to be bummed. Notice fuel gauge movements though! Very nice vehick. I go to a site tr4.or which has lots of good info. Somebody today posted that they saw an '05 SR5 4wd, v8,leather with 27 on the meter for 17.5

 

[ckone0814]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

OK so I've been researching non-stop and the more I find out the more confused I'm getting.

Here are the details;
Boat is 1900#, motor 400, trailer 500. I'm assuming loaded I should be looking at topping out at 3200-3500#. Trailer does not have brakes but we could add them if we must.

Vehicle will be daily driver 80 miles round trip 2-3 days per week so MPG is important.

Would like to keep the budget under $25k.

Am boat partnering with a buddy who has 2 vehicles that can both tow no problem.

I have access to my Dad's turbo diesel p/u for longer/tougher duty trips.

So, what I NEED is a vehicle to tow less than 1/2 of the tirips out to locations that are within a few hours and not too tough terrain wise PLUS will be usable as a semi-daily driver and family-duty that won't kill me at the pump.

My trusted mechanic (similar sized boat owner) has a Tahoe but in my situation says a midsize SUV would work.

Right now, I'm leaning towards; Toy 4Runner or Tacoma ext cab, Nissan Pathfinder or Frontier ext cab but they suck gas pretty good.

Specific questions are

1) Can I slip into Honda Pilot, Acura MDX, Toyota Highlander? Recent editions of these all are up into the 4500-5000# towing limits.

2) From a strictly fishing and boating standpoint, would you rather have a truck or suv based tow vehicle?

Thanks to everyone for their advice and help - I've gotten a lot of edumacation over the last few months from you all.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

Keep your car and get a used full size 4x4 pickup. It will come in handy for hauling, the 4x4 will be good in the snow, and will easily tow your boat. That's what we did.

 

[ckone0814]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

Keep your car and get a used full size 4x4 pickup. It will come in handy for hauling, the 4x4 will be good in the snow, and will easily tow your boat. That's what we did.

Thanks. Thought about that but I already have a 3rd (fun car) vehicle which is one more than the 2 drivers in our house can drive. I don't want another sitting around that needs insurance, tags, maintenance, etc. I need something to replace one of the cars - if I can get a tower and get 22 mpg back and forth to work I'd buy it today. Seems like a tough find tho. 4Runner, Pathfinder, etc are good towers but seem to be under 20 mpg. Pilot, Highlander, etc. get me the mpg I want but I wonder about towing.

 

[ckone0814]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

Just called the dealer and I can swap trailer (new Venture) for next model Venture with brakes and increased load weight for additional $450. Sounds like a no brainer... is it?

 

[jrolland]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

I use my Trailblazer to tow my 19' Sea Ray. The Trailblazer comes standard with an inline 6 but there are some v8's out there. With a towing capacity of 5700 I find it is not a problem with the boat fully loaded. Plus you can pick one up cheap.

 

[xxxflhrci]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

Explorers? None for me thank you. We have 5 mid 2000 models in our fleet at work. Everyone of them had the tranny replaced at around 30k miles.

Blazers and Jimmy's? I'll pass. My parents have a 1997 with 70k miles that they use to pull a 16ft boat. They couldn't go over 55 without the tranny blowing all the fluid out. Got a friend with the same vehicle. Last month, less than 100k miles, and the tranny goes out.

My vote is for a SUV is for a 4Runner.

 

[BaileysBoat]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

Suburban/Yukon/Tahoe. NOT a Denali with AWD-tears up the front differential.

The load always gets heavier

 

[ckone0814]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

At this point I'm leaning slightly towards a late model certified Ford Explorer or certified GMC Envoy. Lots around with low miles and good starting prices that will get even better after negotiation. Both certifed pgms give 100k miles on drivetrain. I can pocket the $6k extra the 4Runner would cost me.

Just wonder if I can go v6? There are many more and the numbers are a lot better. Boat hasn't been weighed but very loaded-up we're 3500-3800.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

v6 will pull it but not very well. especially in a hilly area.

 

[reelfishin]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

I actually have run acrosss a few articles/tests that say the Ford Edge easily towed a 2500+ lb boat. That more in line with what I'm thinking. My set-up will probably never get over 3k. Would a big suv be better? for sure. but is it overkill?

Bigger is always better, but how much can you afford in gas mileage even when not towing the boat. I have no problem biting the bullet when I am towing but I hate to get 15 or so mpg when empty.

There's no way I'd even consider the Edge for a tow vehicle. Its only a car chassis underneath. I've towed 3500lbs with a Ford Pinto but that don't make it a tow vehicle.
The Honda is also a poor choice, a neighbor here has an '08, and it's about worthless with his 17' trihull that only weighs about 1500 lbs or so. It moans and groans and struggles the whole way.

I've used an Explorer to tow up to about 4800 lbs with surprising results, the 4.0L auto trans does great as a tow vehicle and that truck weighs in close to the weight of the larger SUV. On the down side, I don't think it will get much better mileage than a full size SUV.

I can't recommend the 4Runner since the last one I had was a nightmare. I won't get into that here, but it turned me off of Toyota for good.

A friend of mine as an '02 Pathfinder, it's an ok truck but is hard on fuel, about on par with the Explorer, and again, if your not saving any money on fuel, why drive a smaller truck. I generally favor Fords but the GM Tahoe and any of their half ton pickups all get in the 20 mpg range with the smaller V8 and with this economy, they can be had at a right price now, even new.
I've been looking at a new Silverado, which it looks to be like I can buy it outright for not much more than a used truck. I used a 2007 Silverado 4.8L powered extra cab 4x4 to pickup a boat about 80 miles north of me last month, it averaged 22 mpg up and back, my 4 cylinder Ford Ranger don't get much better than that. The new Dodge is also supposed to get decent mileage but I've not seen that first hand yet and I'm not a fan of their transmissions.

 

[lets_fish]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

My trailblazer is a V6 and my total towing weight is just under 3000lbs. it pulls it fine and stops well (no trailer brakes)the only time i notice it working is on the real long hills. I would recommend the Envoy over the Explorer. The Trailblazer/Envoys are great trucks.


tow rating chart -
http://www.bayliner.com/towratings.pdf

 

[Willyclay]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

I wonder why U-Haul's trailer rental contract says "Will not rent to anyone using Ford Explorer as tow vehicle"?

 

[triumphrick]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

Both certifed pgms give 100k miles on drivetrain. I can pocket the $6k extra the 4Runner would cost me.

Those vehicles are out there cheap for a reason. You don't need the 4 runner either. A pre 2007 Tundra with a 4.7 easily handles my 20' Key West and 150 Yammy with a trailer not equipped with brakes. That truck also gives my wife 21 mpg when she is driving. Since I love to hear the DOHC motor rev, I can't get the same mileage Go with the Toyota, you won't be disappointed.

 

[Tacklewasher]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

Just called the dealer and I can swap trailer (new Venture) for next model Venture with brakes and increased load weight for additional $450. Sounds like a no brainer... is it?

Since no one responded, I say this is a no brainer. It will easily cost that to add brakes and be a bit of work. Plus I imagine there will be some warranty on the brakes with the new trailer.

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

That would be 450 well spent!

 

[twag4]

Re: New boat! now i gotta pull it tho....

I have an 05 Pathfinder. More power than the Toyota, get 23+mpg on the highway about 19 in town, and never ever slipped on a ramp in 2wd. 287 HP it will pull my 3500# of boat as fast as I want, has great brakes, comes pre wired to add an electric trailer brake controller, prewired for trailer lights, seats seven and even has cargo room behind that. Plus it is cheaper than the Toyota and every bit as reliable! That is a fact. They are great vehicles built in Mississippi.