I posted a question a while back on towing capacities. Thanks for the responces. I have an opportunity to purchase a 23 foot BAJA 232 Islander boat. The dry weight is listed as 3900 lbs and the trailer is about 1400 lbs or 5300 lbs total. My 97 land cruiser has the towing package that states 5,000 lbs. If I am only trailering about 2.5 miles from storage to boat launch is 300-400 lbs over gonna be a problem or is this something that it can handle. This will not be for long hauls, just t o and from storage to lake. Thanks
Towing Capacity
- Thread starter TOLNEY
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You are going to get a barrage of various replies when it comes to towing anything over the 5000lb spec. Personally I'd borrow a full size truck from a friend or rent one for a boat that large, especially since it'll be more than 5300lbs total with gear, fuel, etc....
If this was down a private road at low speeds and nobody around.... likely not an issue. On public roads, kids at crosswalks not looking, everyone texting while driving, etc.... I'd personally skip that risk and liability.
If this was down a private road at low speeds and nobody around.... likely not an issue. On public roads, kids at crosswalks not looking, everyone texting while driving, etc.... I'd personally skip that risk and liability.
ppc
M Go Blue
That weight will not be an issue as long as your cruiser is properly maintained and the hitch has not been compromised by rust. Just make sure that the surge brakes on the trailer are properly maintained. I estimate that I've towed a similar boat/trailer combo for 40K to 50K miles over the years.
mingles
GOLD Star
I think the responses to your earlier thread pretty much summed it up.
Towing Capacity
Can the truck handle it for a few miles at slow speed? Probably yes. Is it worth the liability risk? Probably not.
Towing Capacity
Can the truck handle it for a few miles at slow speed? Probably yes. Is it worth the liability risk? Probably not.
You'll kill them all!!!!!!
Bus loads of Nuns and Kindergartners!
Oh.....The Humanity!
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No you won't!!!!
These are the heaviest duty trucks in the world! You can tow anything!
Yes, tow all you want! I've never had a problem!
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Lather, rinse repeat!
That's gonna be this thread in a nutshell.
Bus loads of Nuns and Kindergartners!
Oh.....The Humanity!
-------------------------------------------------
No you won't!!!!
These are the heaviest duty trucks in the world! You can tow anything!
Yes, tow all you want! I've never had a problem!
-------------------------------------------------
Lather, rinse repeat!
That's gonna be this thread in a nutshell.
honestly at this point 90% of the stuff on here is that way. what oil, how tight, headgasket...
Bludozer
SILVER Star
They're 23-27 year old trucks, everything that can be talked about has been talked about. I only come here for the fuel bladder memes
i thought that was last week and we are talking about nut huggers this week?
if you do decide to tow the boat youll want to add air bags to the rear springs to help with the sag due to the tonged weight. itll tow it but the more important question is will it stop it
send it
only 2.5 miles
only 2.5 miles
I agree.
You'll not damage the truck but it's technically over the weight the mfr rated it for in the US. So you'd potentially have greater liability if something happened. However, if you ask someone in Germany what their gas 80 is rated to tow you'll find something interesting. They were rated to tow 7700lbs and they are mechanically identical to the US models. Toyota and many Asian manufacturers purposely down rate their US ratings due to the liability climate that exists here. So I would not worry about the vehicle's well being - especially for that length of tow.
Like mentioned, European spec 80s had a higher towing capacity. The reason for this is that the tongue loading specs are different in Europe than U.S. Also, Europe offers higher towing capacities because they limit the speed at which the vehicle can tow when loaded down. Here's an article about it:
oppositelock.kinja.com
My opinion (which is worth nothing): I tow a 23foot, 3500 (dry weight) boat with trailer (1500 lbs?) a bunch with my rig. I don't take it on the freeway but I'll tow it on local highways up to 55mph without any issues. It tows fine, accelerates well (Gturbo on 1HDT) and doesn't have any sway issues. I use surge brakes that work. I think you can probably do the same.
Tow me down!
Have you ever wondered out loud and at parties why European countries and other non-American countries seem to be able to tow houses with 1 liter econoboxes where in the US you would need a peterbilt to pull the same load? No? Me too! Wait did you say no? Hey where are you going! I’ve got...
oppositelock.kinja.com
My opinion (which is worth nothing): I tow a 23foot, 3500 (dry weight) boat with trailer (1500 lbs?) a bunch with my rig. I don't take it on the freeway but I'll tow it on local highways up to 55mph without any issues. It tows fine, accelerates well (Gturbo on 1HDT) and doesn't have any sway issues. I use surge brakes that work. I think you can probably do the same.
Here is my rig, 18.5' boat, not sure on the weights. Tows and stops just fine, just SLOW.
Edit - I am just above 3K lbs with boat, two motors, fuel, and gear.
Edit - I am just above 3K lbs with boat, two motors, fuel, and gear.
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typical tongue weight should be 10-15% of the trailer weight, you can calculate it out with a a bathroom scale if desired. the hitch will also be rated for a max tongue weight listed as well a max total weight. Determining Trailer Tongue Weight | etrailer.com
LOL. I know how to measure tongue weight. I should have been more specific. How do you know with the setup that he described that he will need air bags due to excess tongue weight?
the stock springs are fairly soft and after 23 years of use im sure that their a little tired. Im also based this on my hauling my dirt bike with a hitch hauler, total weight is between 350-400 right on the hitch and before I added the heavier springs the first few inches of travel on the hauler when lifting the bike up were just compressing the rear springs. its a total guess that hell need them and he may determine that he dosnt but I think that's its a fair assumption he may want to look into it.
Ultimate MX Hauler Steel Motorcycle Carrier - 375 lbs. Capacity that's the hauler that I use, super solid and well built. highly recommended if someone is looking for something like that
^^^^ What @bigredmachine said above. You NEED airbags. You can install them in about 1.5 hours and they are under $100 at Summit Racing.
I have them in my truck to haul a power wheelchair on a lift on the rear. Makes an ENORMOUS difference in handling and will be even more important during braking when pulling a trailer. During braking, the hitch places more down force, thus lifting the front wheels. Airbags help keep some of that weight distributed to the front axle.
