Towing question.

[beaverretriever]

How safe is it to tow close to your vehicle's max rating? Vehicle has a 4500lb tow rating, the boat I will be towing is 3850lbs total on the high side (dual axle trailer).
Throwing around the idea of a smaller tow vehicle.

[Ziggy]

How safe is it to tow close to your vehicle's max rating? Vehicle has a 4500lb tow rating, the boat I will be towing is 3850lbs total on the high side (dual axle trailer).
Throwing around the idea of a smaller tow vehicle.Usually the tow rating is on the safe side of what the vehicle could actually handle.
I've seen many times vehicles over capacity do it fine but should an accident occur then being overweight is gonna be a problem with Insur. and/or lawsuits.
Stay under the rating and you should be just fine.

[shippingguy]

How safe is it to tow close to your vehicle's max rating? Vehicle has a 4500lb tow rating, the boat I will be towing is 3850lbs total on the high side (dual axle trailer).
Throwing around the idea of a smaller tow vehicle.
I would stick with your current setup and not step down. I think it is better to stay a bit under then be right at capacity. No reason to limit yourself if you do not have to.
Mike

[uvindex]

Being at or just under the tow rating is safe, since that's what the manufacturer says the vehicle can safely tow. :)
Having reserve capacity is better, of course. If you're close, you might want to have your boat and trailer weighed at a public scale. Make sure it has a full tank of gas, full water tanks (if any), and includes all the crap (safety equipment, ice chests, etc.) that you might be hauling around in it when you're heading to the water.
Also need to consider your vehicle's GVWR (some numbers are calculated with just the driver, but if you're hauling around a bunch of adults that can add a thousand pounds that is often overlooked).
Also need to make sure you're not exceeding your rated tongue weight.
Good luck! :)

[beaverretriever]

Good stuff. Thanks. Makes me think I should go bigger:devil: LOL.
Don't throw rocks, but I was thinking of getting an H3 for the wife. Does anyone know how those do towing a small boat?

[ChumpChange]

Good stuff. Thanks. Makes me think I should go bigger:devil: LOL.
Don't throw rocks, but I was thinking of getting an H3 for the wife. Does anyone know how those do towing a small boat?
I don't think I've ever seen an H3 towing. I've seen them being towed behind motor coaches though. What are you towing with now?

[Not So Fast]

I would stick with your current setup and not step down. I think it is better to stay a bit under then be right at capacity. No reason to limit yourself if you do not have to.
Mike
Agreed, and dont forget that the weight is probably more that you think. I argued with MVD about weight because they said I was over the limit for a onetime tag which is 6000lbs total, Magic says boat is 4200 and I thought the trailer may come in at 1800 lbs so I went down and had the whole package weighed:eek: Weigh master asked what i was looking for and I said 6000lbs, she laughed and said forget it, 7300 lbs and change. Around town my Tundra does OK but no way for over the road trips, it would get killed. Bigger is better IMO!! NSF

[Jyruiz]

Both the 5 cyl and V8 H3 max tow cap is 4500lbs according to Edmunds.com.

[Xlration Marine]

Well like my 1/2 ton dodge that had 3000 pounds in it or my chevy Z71 1/2 ton that had 2000 pounds in it.
Kinda like leading a horse to water, you can hook any thing to a ball, but will it have enough under the hood to pull it?????

[Chubby4Life]

For safety alone I wouldn't tow with anything with a short wheel-base. Long wheel-based vehichles would absorb trailer whip much better in case of a blow out or spindle/bearing failure. Just my opinion, so take it for what it's worth.
Chris

[uvindex]

Don't throw rocks, but I was thinking of getting an H3 for the wife. Does anyone know how those do towing a small boat?As jyruiz said, the H3 is rated for 4500 lbs. max. BUT, you have to consider the GCWR (gross combined weight rating) too. For the H3, the GCWR is 9500 lbs.
So, take 9500 (GCWR) minus 4500 (the trailer) minus 4700 (H3 curb weight) and that leaves a whopping 300 lbs for additional cargo/payload. It'll work as long as you leave all your friends, beer, soft drinks, ice, skis, boomboxes, etc. at home! :)

[beaverretriever]

Well, we are considering changing vehicles around a bit. I really want an H2 (yeah, I know they are absolutely rediculous and Al Gore loves them) but since they have come out, I have always liked them. We were thinking of getting the H2 and a used Civic for daily use. I started thinking that a H3 might be cool too, but they get 20mpg.
We currently have a Chevy 1500 v8 and a 2006 Hemi Durango.

[BajaMike]

How safe is it to tow close to your vehicle's max rating? Vehicle has a 4500lb tow rating, the boat I will be towing is 3850lbs total on the high side (dual axle trailer).
Throwing around the idea of a smaller tow vehicle.
Take your boat and trailer and everything you normally have in it to a weigh station.....I'll bet you it weighs more then you think.
If the vehicle rating is 4500 lbs, I wouldn't tow more then 3500 lbs.....your wife and kids lives are at stake......
:idea:

[BajaMike]

Well, we are considering changing vehicles around a bit. I really want an H2 (yeah, I know they are absolutely rediculous and Al Gore loves them) but since they have come out, I have always liked them. We were thinking of getting the H2 and a used Civic for daily use. I started thinking that a H3 might be cool too, but they get 20mpg.
We currently have a Chevy 1500 v8 and a 2006 Hemi Durango.
I think the H2 is great....I drove one and almost bought it (and may buy on in the future).....I think they look great and they drive great.....I don't give a sheet what others think!
:D

[centerhill condor]

the brakes are more important than the engine/drivetrain.
and you always have to slam on brakes when you least expect!

[Lightning]

Well, we are considering changing vehicles around a bit. I really want an H2 (yeah, I know they are absolutely rediculous and Al Gore loves them) but since they have come out, I have always liked them. We were thinking of getting the H2 and a used Civic for daily use. I started thinking that a H3 might be cool too, but they get 20mpg.
We currently have a Chevy 1500 v8 and a 2006 Hemi Durango.
If you are looking for something smaller that can tow and gets around 19mpg (not towing) have you considered a GMC Envoy? My wife has one, Envoy in the Denali trim. It has 4x4, auto air ride in the back, 5.3L v8. Very nice setup, rated to tow around 6000. It goes to 4 cyl on the freeway when cruising. Also, you can get one with 0% right now, i think.

[uLtRADeNniS]

I would stick with your current setup and not step down. I think it is better to stay a bit under then be right at capacity. No reason to limit yourself if you do not have to.
Mike
Agreed..
Nice to see you at Hawaiian Shaved Ice last Tuesday. Maybe next time we'll run into each other on the water...

[Deano]

I've towed with a Denali and my HD Duramax. Huge difference. I would stick with the bigger truck. It feels, and is, much safer and you can relax while towing..just my .02

[John.]

Well, we are considering changing vehicles around a bit. I really want an H2 (yeah, I know they are absolutely rediculous and Al Gore loves them) but since they have come out, I have always liked them. We were thinking of getting the H2 and a used Civic for daily use. I started thinking that a H3 might be cool too, but they get 20mpg.
We currently have a Chevy 1500 v8 and a 2006 Hemi Durango.
We used to have an H2, but since they only tow 6,500 we decided to get a diesel truck. I think its better to error on the safe side. H3's look nice, but I'd go with something bigger if you can. you and your wife would love the H2. My wife loved it!
Best to weight the boat and trailer yourself too. I've heard that sometimes the advertised weights are a little light. I think our boat is listed at about 5000 lbs, plus trailer. we weighed it on our way back from Havasu and it came in at 9200 pounds. :jawdrop:

[Biglue]

I would be most worried about that towing scenario at the time of an accident. If you're proven to be over the rated towing cap, you're pretty much f'd. I'd say go bigger if anything.

[shippingguy]

Agreed..
Nice to see you at Hawaiian Shaved Ice last Tuesday. Maybe next time we'll run into each other on the water...
Good to see you too. We will be out on the water this weekend Saturday and Sunday. We will be hanging at Park Moabi during the day.
Mike

[BajaMike]

I would be most worried about that towing scenario at the time of an accident. If you're proven to be over the rated towing cap, you're pretty much f'd. I'd say go bigger if anything.
Or....better yet, worry about it before the accident.....so you don't have one!
:idea:

[YeLLowBoaT]

the brakes are more important than the engine/drivetrain.
and you always have to slam on brakes when you least expect!
this is very true...I have owned a few trucks( all chevys...) that had high tow ratings for thier class ( 1/2 ton.. 3/4 ton... etc), but thier brakes sucked big time. There is no way I hell I would pull anything close to thier max rating with them.
Also the heavyer the truck( yes, SUVs are trucks) the less its gong to be influanced by actions of the trailer.
lots of 1/2 tons these days are saying they can tow close to 10k lbs... I don't care how big the motor/ brakes are... When a trailer wieghts 50% more then the truck towing it, the trailer will push that truck around like a toy when something bad happends.

[spectras only]

And don't forget , max towing capacities are with a weight distributing hitch,
not a weight carrying one ;) .
Take your pick from here >
http://www3.telus.net/spectrasonly/Silverado%20payloads.jpg

[vmjtc3]

With the river rocket you are buying, I think anything the size of say a GOLDWING should suffice :D

[Biglue]

Or....better yet, worry about it before the accident.....so you don't have one!
:idea:
Good point. But no one plans on having an accident....that's why they're accidents. You could only prepare yourself as best you can to avoid them. ;)

[2forcefull]

With the river rocket you are buying, I think anything the size of say a GOLDWING should suffice :D
I was going to say Rhino , for the stability

[OCMerrill]

I find the issue to be in the margin of recovery factor. A boat that weighs as much or more than the vehicle is OK 99% of the time but that evasive maneuver will burst the bubble.
May father used to tow his 24' daycruiser with his Durango. Worked fine for years until a spindle on the trailer failed. The boat out weighed the tow vehicle by more than 1500 lbs and I suppose caught my father (a 60 year river rat veteran) by surprise. So...the boat shoved him off the road and onto his lid. He was within factory ratings.
Even a big rig rolling 80k in weight cannot control the trailer in an evasive maneuver This is done through driver training and dumb luck but jack knife trailers are a daily occurrence.
Keep the bigger vehicle and tow in a relaxed state.

[76ANTHONY]

we where just talkin bout this at work, a guy wanted me to sell him a tacoma that he really liked but he was right at the limit so i called a couple places, one was the chp and one was toyota, i found that the towing on a tacoma is way under what it will tow safely, its the braking that catches the eye of the capacities, so he bought a tundra instead. remember, your vehicle may pull it, but your problem maybe stopping it safely....

[waterluvr]

I agree that the biggest tow vehicle you can use is usually the best.
However, if you are only towing for very short distances and there are not any mountain ranges to go over then a vehicle with a tow rating that just barely exceeds your tow vehicle would probably work.
Just my 02 cents...