Trailer are brakes needed

[dpw-ct]

I have a 1996 Cobalt 220 - weight approx 3,150 w/o gas . I am looking to buy a used trailer and wondering if brakes are essential I will be trailering <50 miles per year basically in and out of water and to my house. Towing with a 2011 subaru outback 2.5.

 

[agallant80]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

They may be required in your state or not. Typically they are required when the trailer and its load are over X amount. With that said they are never a bad idea to have. Even if they are not required I would consider them. If your boat clocks in at 3K and your trailer at around 1K and you add in fuel and what not you could easily be creeping up on the 5K mark. I would not even think of ignoring an extra 5K to stop even in a 2500 series truck. What are you towing the boat with? What state do you live in? Do you plan on taking it out of state?

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

That weight is also without the trailer weight. You absolutely want to have brakes.

I also question if that vehicle can actually tow it. What is the towing capacity of it?

 

[dpw-ct]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

That weight is also without the trailer weight. You absolutely want to have brakes.

I also question if that vehicle can actually tow it. What is the towing capacity of it?

Outback

4 cylinder 2.5i, XT- 2700 pounds with trailer brakes, 1000 w/o brakes,
Hard towing 1350lbs

 

[GA_Boater]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

Outback

4 cylinder 2.5i, XT- 2700 pounds with trailer brakes, 1000 w/o brakes,
Hard towing 1350lbs

You just answered your own question. You don't need breaks on the trailer, you need another tow vehicle.

 

[haulnazz15]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

That rig is going to weigh 4,500lbs or more with trailer, gas, and gear in the boat. By most state laws, it needs trailer brakes and is outside your Outback's towing capacity (which I read was around 3K lbs). I wouldn't be towing something that is close to 200% of your vehicle's rated towing capacity.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

While you can often get by with small overages and occassional use, you can't risk it when it's a big difference. What will happen, brakes or not, is with a sudden stop even in city traffic, the weight of the boat will push the rear of the car to one side and it all goes downhill from there.

A boat your size is at the break point for single axle v. dual axle w/ brakes (not addressing the vehicle now). Short hauls a couple times a year on flat straight roads on a single would be fine; they just require greater attention and care. More frequent or longer hauls simply increase the risk.

 

[agallant80]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

You are not towing that rig with the proper truck. Im not going to comment on weather its OK to get away with it a few times a year or not I will just say that 4,500LBS is allot to stop (think full size sedan, Crown Victoria) You have to stop that amount of mass with a tow vehicle that has breaks for an accord on it. you need breaks on the trailer, no questions asked, even with a 1500 series pickup you would need breaks. You are a liability to everyone on the road with the way you have things setup right now.

This is the rule of thumb I go by. If my truck is rated to carry 2,000Lbs in the bed then I know the breaks on the truck were sized from the factory to stop the extra 2,000LBS. Anything over is out of spec for the factory setup therefor requiring additional stopping power (triler breaks). There is no way an Outback is designed to carry 2,000 Lbs.

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

so before I jump on the bandwagon and say you are way above tow limits (you are). How far and how fast will your towing be? If you are talking a couple of blocks where you can drive 10 mph or less, I'd probably do it. I've used less capable tow vehicles at my cabin before, and done it perfectly safe. I've used garden tractors to move my boat before, on a public street! (in a very quiet residential neighborhood, moving it to a garage)

If your tow is going to require any more speed, I wouldn't do it. (and that is coming from someone who uses his WRX to tow almost everything possible!)

 

[lrak]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

Yes. You need brakes and they need to be working and properly adjusted.

 

[I`mNotMe]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

1996 Cobalt 220 - weight approx 3,150 w/o gas. Add 200 lbs of gas, oil, onboard gear. Add 500 lbs for empty boat trailer. When combined, assume near 4,000 lbs for "wet" weight. Way too much weight for a V6 mini SUV. Especially when towing combo up boat ramps - which makes items feel even more heavier. As other stated, way too much weight behind a mini SUV V6. Even for short trips...

Regarding trailer brakes. I don't use local laws in my area. If wondering, local laws in my area is 3,000 lbs - which I feel is unsafe for some vehicle / trailer combos. For me, I focus on specific vehicle's Rear Cargo weight capacity (which is different number than pulling power of 3,200 lbs). For example, my specific vehicle is rated to hold (as onboard cargo) up to max 1,500 lbs. With this number in mind, any attached trailer > 1,500 lbs needs its own brakes. If wondering, my boat's "wet" weight is 2,856 lbs (confirmed at local weight scales). Since my Vehicle has max onboard cargo weight of 1,500 lbs, my boat trailer has its own full electric brakes. My local law states my combo doesn't need brakes. But, the safe thing is to have trailer brakes. After all, trailer brakes save lives...

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

fwiw, the subi 2.5 is a 4 cyl too much boat for that car

 

[roscoe]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

Pretty much any trailer on the market that has a 3000+ capacity, will have brakes.

So, what is the capacity of the used trailer you are looking to buy?

You probably need to look at a bigger trailer, with brakes.


And then borrow a truck.

 

[Utahboatnut]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

Yea, a Cobalt 220(thats a 22 footer right) pulled behind a 4 banger subaru would be pretty scetchy. i would think a tandem trailer would be required, along with the boat your talking a pretty good load. i would get it weighed on a truck scale with the trailer and base your towing needs off that weight not a guesstimate weight. Even though you state its less than 50 miles i would be very leary of even trying it in your current rig.

 

[hall832]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

Rule of thumb
Make sure you tow vehicle has more HP than your boat.

 

[haulnazz15]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

Rule of thumb
Make sure you tow vehicle has more HP than your boat.

Most everyone with a Cigarette-style offshore racing boat would never be able to leave home, lol.

We towed a 233HP runabout around with an F-150 (302 - 225HP @ flywheel). Your rule of thumb gets worse if we use diesel engines! There is little correlation between boat HP and tow-vehicle horsepower.

 

[matt167]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

Not only the concern of overweighting the vehicle by so much. The available tow hitches for the vehicle are only class II rated.. What will end up happening is the boat is going to steer the car BAD.. Subaru's are pretty cool in that, they usually are rated for about 2k lbs, so small runabouts are good to tow, but anymore than that and it is a major safety concern.. Edmunds also shows the Automatic 2.5I is a CVT, so it will Freewheel. Not something I would tow with

 

[matt167]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

Rule of thumb
Make sure you tow vehicle has more HP than your boat.

That wouldn't work out well. For instance if his Cobalt had a 3.0L ( unlikely but possible ), it would still weigh about the same, but the Subaru would have more HP than the boat and still not be able to tow it ( That gen 2.5 has 170hp ).. The 3.6R Subaru which is basically the same car with a true automtic and same towing ratings, has 250hp and could possibly exceed the hp his boat actually has.

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

Edmunds also shows the Automatic 2.5I is a CVT, so it will Freewheel. Not something I would tow with

Its a forrester XT... No CVT in that. It has an unbelievably strong auto trans though, there are guys running 600+hp subarus down a drag strip with no mods to the auto trans, other than a high stall torque converter.

 

[hall832]

Re: Trailer are brakes needed

oh well i thought it was funny. i just pictured the Subaru at the boat ramp.