Small tow vehicle!

[rz]

I have a 91' mitsubishi mighty max, and got a deal on a 69'-71' 15.5ft Rinkerbuilt tri-hull with a 67' Johnson 80hp outboard on it. I pulled it with no problem @ 55-60mph from the guy's place I bought it from which was about15-20 miles away. <br />Will there be a problem or is it wise to attempt launching and retreiving with this set-up? <br /><br />The wheels on the trailer are 13" or 14".<br />And are the wheel/tire combos from wal-mart a good choice?

 

[JB]

Re: Small tow vehicle!

Howdy, RZ.<br /><br />Get the tow rating of your Mitsu, and the weight of your rig. If the rig weighs more than the rating, get a stronger truck.<br /><br />You can tow that rig with a Yugo, but controlling and stopping it are necessary to stay alive.<br /><br />Good luck.

 

[rz]

Re: Small tow vehicle!

Thanks JB,<br /><br /> I think I'll do just that. I think I'm mainly concerned about steep ramps, and the truck is a manual short bed. I feel that it may spin when hauling it out of the water and no traction may mean rolling back a bit further than I'd like... <br /><br /> If I were to ever get caught pulling my boat with that "yugo", I don't think the folks around here would never let me live it down!

 

[splugeeman]

Re: Small tow vehicle!

JB's right...get the tow rating.....as for spinning when pulling out, thats gonna happen on certain occasions when the lake level is low in the the spring and the ramp grade is deeper than usual

 

[JasonJ]

Re: Small tow vehicle!

I used to tow a 17 ft 1963 runabout w/85 horse Merc with a 4 door Suzuki Sidekick 4 wheel drive. I used 4 wheel low range to retrieve and it worked fine, and it towed and stopped fine. I now have a Ford F150 extended cab with the 5.8 liter and automatic, and I NEVER have problems now....

 

[rz]

Re: Small tow vehicle!

My little two wheel drive rig is rated for a @ 300lb tongue, and 1000lb trailer. It is a late 60's Rinkerbuilt 15' Tri-hull with a 80hp Johnson on it.

 

[JB]

Re: Small tow vehicle!

Sounds like close to 2,000lb ready to tow, RZ

 

[Lark40]

Re: Small tow vehicle!

I would agree. Tri-hulls were heavy.

 

[JasonJ]

Re: Small tow vehicle!

Yeah, you tri-hull will weigh more than 1000 pounds easily. My old 60's runabout weighed about 1500-1600 complete with trailer. My 16.5 tri-hull weighs a fair amount more, but I won't know for sure until its done. I know when I towed it with my Jeep Grand Cherokee, I knew it was back there for sure, and the Jeeps tow rating is only 2000 pounds. Thats why I got the truck, so I wouldn't have to worry about anything..

 

[sony2001]

Re: Small tow vehicle!

The max trailer weight of 1000 lbs is without brakes. With brakes the max weight is considerably higher. Retrofit the trailer with brakes and you will be worry free.

 

[rz]

Re: Small tow vehicle!

Thanks, I completely forgot about the brake option, with brakes it is rated at 3500lbs with a 350lbs tongue weight.<br /><br />If I had not run across this site and your help, I'd be afloat at sea without a sail!

 

[JasonB]

Re: Small tow vehicle!

For comparison, one of my boats, which is the same size, style, and has a Johnson 85 weighs in about 1600-1800lbs ready to fish trailer and all. I have pulled it for years with my trusty Ford Ranger (older, lighter version) with a manual tranny. Puls fin and gets up ramps better than my F-150 with this boat. Stopping without brakes is not a fun event though. Get the brakes and you should be good to go.