Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

KRS · Feb 8, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

Question was answered when you looked up the tow rating on the vehicle and determined the weight of the trailer.... end of story. The US Govt sells surplus equipment all over the country. You may be able to pickup a GMC 3/4 ton truck with the 6.2liter diesel (can you say HELLO!) and have no problem towing a few miles for years to come. I know a guy that bought one (needed oil change and 2 batteries because military runs 24 volt starter and alt) for $1,500. Check it out on the web. Whatever you do, don't risk using your vehicle to tow. I have seen too many accidents caused by an improper load or a heavy trailer..... they get ugly. If you kill someone you will never forgive yourself... and never should.

DaveM · Feb 9, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

Nooooooo. You should not tow anything larger than a bicycle with a Nissan Maxima.

KM2 · Feb 9, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

Just because you can do it, doesn't mean it should be done. On the other hand, given the short distance and if it was between going boating and not going boating I would probably do it.

s_bamman · Feb 9, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

Thanks all of your advice is great. Ill probably get an inexpensive old pickup, great Idea.

NYMINUTE · Feb 9, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

Originally posted by JB: IN MIAMI!!?? That wouldn't just be irresponsible, it would be suicide!! Those streets are loaded with drivers even older than JB, who are half blind, often drunk, alsheimers patients and deadly dangerous even if you happen to be in a HUMMER!. DON'T DO IT, BAMMAN!

Thats not possible JB, Your SS # is 000-00-0001. Mine is 000-00-0006

jlinder · Feb 9, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

Might as well add my $.02 There are 2 major questions here: 1. Going 2. Stopping Number 2 is the important one. That is where you die. Does the vehicle have the brakes/mass to stop a trailer that weighs about as much as the car? BTW, I don't see where anyone asked if there are brakes on the trailer. If not, this moves from "I sure wouldn't do it" to "Are you kidding?" Concerning number 1, pulling, I would make that 3 questions - pulling power, wear and tear on the vehicle, and control. Pulling power - nervous about pulling up the ramp with a front wheel drive vehicle. Wear & Tear - Probably cost you a bundle in repairs Control - In a panic stop or emergency manuver/swerve what happens? Can you control it? I think every one of these points is a strong indicator for no way.

JB · Feb 9, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

NYM. Some of those FOPs (Florida Old People) were old before SS. That's why they drive yellow 1958 Caddys. The only way I survived driving 8 years in South FL was using Sir Sterling Moss's defensive driving tip: "Every driver on the road doesn't see you and is about to do the stupidest possible thing."

Realgun · Feb 9, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

"Every driver on the road doesn't see you and is about to do the stupidest possible thing."

What do you mean by "About". They alway do the stupidest thing guaranteed. Also looking in front of you means looking about 40 yards ahead not at the guys rear bumper. -------------Steps down from High horse. I would not do it for 2 good reasons. 1. It could tweak the unibody chassis and cause you alignment problems to start with. This is mostly why the tow ratings are 1000-1500 on most cars. Vans are usually a hybred frame/unibody and rated to about 3500lbs. 2. Safety, yours especially but mine too. Your gonna be doing it for a few years and then one day a person will pull out right in front of you. You will stop but will hear a "Ping" thats your unibody pulled out of alignment. From then on it will be a hazard pulling or not.

TilliamWe · Feb 9, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

Every driver on the road doesn't see you and is about to do the stupidest possible thing."

That same quote applies to boating traffic.

TilliamWe · Feb 9, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

Realgun, the unibody will not be "pulled out of alignment" from hitting the brakes with a boat in tow. Unibody is a little more stout than you give it credit. That said, I don't think towing that boat with that car is a very good idea. "Thanks all of your advice is great. Ill probably get an inexpensive old pickup, great Idea. " That is a good idea, glad to see you are willing to try it.

montanaman · Feb 9, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

This is not a safe idea, for you or anybody else on the road at the sametime. Too many variables that are bad news with a properly rated tow vehicle would be devastating for you. A cheap old pick-up is the way to go. I've slid down a ramp with my full size chevy and a 1,500lb boat thanks to a little bit of gravel.

jsfinn · Feb 9, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

If the car is rated for 1000#, then it's rated for 1000#...not 1800. People go to school for a long time to figure these numbers out... they aren't just a guess.

Lou C · Feb 9, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

Agree with not doing it, you could wind up in a bad situation, if you were ever in an accident and you had exceeded your tow rating by close to 2x, what if you insurance company decides not to pay? To say nothing of the liability if someone gets hurt. Plus you may wind up ruining the car doing it as well. Find out how much the boat and trailer will wiegh and work from there. If it is 2000 lbs you can use a smaller SUV to pull it like a Jeep Cherokee or Grand Cherokee, they can be bought pretty cheaply and have good manual 4 wheel drive systems that will make pulling it up the ramp no problem. The beater pick up idea is good too as long as it has 4 x 4. Get brakes on the trailer even if not required by law, it makes it so much less stressful.

TilliamWe · Feb 10, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

If it is 2000 lbs you can use a smaller SUV to pull it like a Jeep Cherokee or Grand Cherokee,

Good thinking. Oh, and by the way, they also happen to have unibody construction!

roscoe · Feb 10, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

I say what I mean and mean what I say, and won't be tip toeing around the issue. Exceeding the gvwr is breaking the law. Will or may destroy trans, clutch, brakes. gvwr includes the vehicle, contents, passengers, fuel, and trailer. It is unsafe. It is negligent. It would be stupid to do this. Boat 1500# motor 300# batteries 125# fuel 125# + rigging and gear 200# trailer 400# + spare tire 25# cooler and contents 100# passengers (2-4) 250 - 500# total wieght .............. ................3025# to 3275# !!!!! If you don't believe these numbers, look them up on the net for yourself, it only took me 2 minutes. You are now 3 times the rated towing capacity, Holy Crop Batman !! I mean bamman. You were smart enough to ask the question. I hope you are going to make the right decision. If you make the wrong decision, I sincerely hope the weight of the boat pulls your entire car into the water, as that may be the only way you learn the lesson. Towing, auto repairs, environmental cleanup fees and fines could cost you many many thousands of dollars. Pick up a $700 beater pickup to tow with. If you can't afford the cost of a second vehicle, then you can't afford the repair bills on the Maxima. In that case, borrow a truck. Be safe, Enjoy the new boat.

Lou C · Feb 10, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

BTW, yes the Jeeps are unibodies, and yes there is no issue with towing with them when they are used within their tow limits and properly set up. I have towed my 20' FW (3500lbs) for 3 summers without a problem. You do need good trailer brakes, and may need airbags in the rear coils. Reason I mention the Jeeps is they are a good tow vehicle for light boats, and they are a good multipurpose vehicle that can be used for general family use unlike a pickup. BTW back in the day all Mopars were unibodies (full size Chryslers, Dodges and Plymouths) and they were tough enough to be used for poilce use and taxi use. Many towed travel trailers with these Mopar beasts with no problems. Unibody just needs a well designed hitch.

TilliamWe · Feb 10, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

BTW, yes the Jeeps are unibodies, and yes there is no issue with towing with them when they are used within their tow limits and properly set up.

Yep, that's what I meant.

BTW back in the day all Mopars were unibodies (full size Chryslers, Dodges and Plymouths

I did not know that

Thanks for proving my earlier point.

Lou C · Feb 10, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

Ever see the chase scenes in the movie "The Blues Brothers" well with a few exceptions, all were the old style full size Mopar monsters, most with 440 cu in Magnums and 727 Torqueflites, and 9 1/4 in Chry Co rear ends. Tough beasts! ChryCo pioneered the use of unitized construction as early as the late 50s. They had a solid feel compared to the body on frame GMs and Fords, but the unibody was never as quiet as the seperate frame vehicles. And remember they also put the baddest engine of all time, the 426 Elephant Hemi, in unibody Dodge Chargers, Super Bees, Coronets, and Plymouth Belvederes, RoadRunners, and GTXs. Don't forget the the Jeeps had to be built to survive the Rubicon Trail (maybe exluding the latest ones with the independent front suspension). The Cherokee/Grand Cherokee is rated for 5000lbs with the tow package, the V-8 Grand is rated for 6500lbs with the tow package. But you NEED good trailer brakes even with a light boat, because these Jeeps don't weigh that much, at most 4200 lbs for a ZJ Grand.

Silvertip · Feb 10, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

There seems to be the opinion here that as long as you can bolt a solid hitch onto a beer can with an engine that it makes it ok to tow with. Certainly a proper hitch is required. That hitch must be attached to a vehicle capable of accepting it and capable of towing the load for which the vehicle is designed (which by the way also includes occupants and luggage). Just recently I spoke with an idiot at a rest stop that was towing a 32 foot travel trailer with a Chevy pickup. The only problem here was he had no torsion bars, no equalizer to attach them to, and the receiver on the vehicle was bumper mounted -- not a frame mounted load equalizing hitch. The bumper sagged at about 20 degree angle. The guy had no clue what I was talking about but I enoucourage him to let me leave the rest stop before him. This trailer had a tongue weight of about 850 pounds. As configured, his hitch was rated for 350 pounds dead weight. By the way, those of you who think Jeeps have unit bodies need to look under them. Unit bodies are the reason vehicles with them aren't rated to pull anything more than a gocery cart.

Lou C · Feb 10, 2005

Re: Will I be able to tow/launch/and pull up my boat

Yes I have spent a lot of time under my Grand, and it most certainly is a unit body! The only modern jeep with a seperate frame is the TJ Wrangler. The last midsize Jeep with a seperate frame was the last run of the SJ Grand Wagoneer, built from 1962-1991. First unibody Jeep was the 1984 XJ Cherokee built until 2001. Then came the ZJ Grand built from 93-98, followed by the WJ Grand 99-04. Now we have the WK Grand and KJ Liberty. ALL are unibodies except the Wrangler. BTW, AMC had about 25 years of experience with unibodies before they designed the XJ Cherokee so they knew what they were doing. If you drive an older XJ and compare it to an Explorer or S-10 Blazer of the same year there is no doubt the Jeep is more solid.

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