Tow Vehicle?

[papajoe222]

My Honda Pilot does a good job towing my boat, but she'll likely turn 200K this winter.  That means I'll either be looking at dumping some serious cash into her, or looking to replace her come spring.  I know it's a long way off, but I was wondering what other SUV's you guys have been using for towing.  Momma can't get up into a truck, so I'll need to stick to a mid-size SUV and I know some of them just won't handle the workload I give out.

[Lund Explorer]

Too bad you can't get into the pickup market.  Site sponsor has another good idea coming out for 2016.

 

https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2015/05/21/all-new-pro-trailer-backup-assist-for-2016-ford-f-150-makes-back.html

 

Get her behind the wheel of a brand new 2016 F-150 and she'll be able to launch you!

[Jig Man]

A bit pricey but I think the Jeep Cherokee in Diesel would tow anything.  My wife tows my Champ with a Jeep Liberty CRD.

[tracker01]

Keep one thing in mind. Towing is easy, stopping can be an issue if you do not have brakes on your trailer.

[jdw174]

You didn't say what size boat you're wanting to pull.  Check out the towing capacity of what you're looking at vs your rig's weight.  The above post about brakes is right on.  If you're going mid-size (or even if you're not), trailer brakes are always a good idea.  As for the truck, have the wife try one with step boards.  Makes things easier.

[WIGuide]

I'm on my second Jeep Grand Cherokee. My first one was a 99 with the 4.7 V8 and that did a decent job towing, but I just bought a 2005 with the 5.7 Hemi and it's got plenty of power to spare. I hardly even know my boat is on there, other than slowing down. Take that part with a grain of salt at the moment though, because when I bought it I knew the brakes were just about done. I'll be replacing them tonight after work, so I'm expecting to see a pretty good improvement there as well. 

[Dwight Hottle]

I have towed with 3 different Toyota 4-runners. Two 8 cylinders & the current one is a 6 cylinder. I pull a heavy 20' boat on a twin axle trailer.

[Way2slow]

If you are towing easily with a Pilot, I think most anything you get of similar size or bigger is not going to be an issue.

My wife has a Toyota Highlander I have pulled my Jon with a few times but would never dream of hooking my 20' Javelin behind it. I've gone from a full size 4WD, pickup with 350 V8 to a 4WD 2500HD for it, and it still knows it's back there.

The three key issues on selecting a tow vehicle is the distance you tow and the speed you tow at, and ability to stop quickly and safely. Which has a lot to do with the weight of what you tow versus the weight of the tow vehicle. The Terrain you tow in, The further you go, and the faster you drive increase the demand on the drive line of the tow vehicle. Flat roads are a lot easier on a vehicle than hilly roads.

[desmobob]

I tow my Tracker Pro170/40HP Merc with a 2009 Subaru Forester.  No troubles.  I love the vehicle... might be my all-time favorite.

 

Tight lines,

Bob

[gardnerjigman]

I have towed with 3 different Toyota 4-runners. Two 8 cylinders & the current one is a 6 cylinder. I pull a heavy 20' boat on a twin axle trailer.

 

My buddy pulls a 19' bass cat with his 4-runner and hasn't had an issue with it. We took it down to the ozarks a few years ago (for those of you don't know the ozarks, they didn't believe in straight flat roads at all) and it never had an issue stopping or starting. I was amazed!

[papajoe222]

I should have mentioned that I'm pulling a Tracker TX with a 50hp Merc. My current and prior have no problems pulling it around the flat land of Illinois, but even with the upgrade on the brakes it only does a fair job when it comes to stopping. I was thinking possibly the GMC mid size SUV, But I'll likely end up with a Tahoe or Expedition. Access for momma is going to be a huge factor.

Thanks for the input. I've some searching to do. Luckily I have plenty of time.

[slonezp]

Too bad you can't get into the pickup market.  Site sponsor has another good idea coming out for 2016.

 

https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2015/05/21/all-new-pro-trailer-backup-assist-for-2016-ford-f-150-makes-back.html

 

Get her behind the wheel of a brand new 2016 F-150 and she'll be able to launch you!

Really? Seems to me it would be cheaper and easier to learn how to back up a trailer. People have been doing it for eons. It's really not all that difficult.

[WIGuide]

Really? Seems to me it would be cheaper and easier to learn how to back up a trailer. People have been doing it for eons. It's really not all that difficult.

Agreed, seems gimicky to me. Besides you can do the same thing if you put your hand on the bottom of the steering wheel. Move your hand in the direction you want the trailer to go...

[Vayned]

I use my 2004 Trailblazer 4.2 4x4 to tow my 20ft Javelin, you can feel it back there for sure. It struggles in the hills a bit, but I'm looking to upgrade to full size truck anyways.

[Way2slow]

That's a lot of boat behind a Trailblazer.  I hope you have a large external cooler on your trans if automatic and there's not a lot of hills.

[Canyon explorer]

I would look for a good used Cherokee.

[Canyon explorer]

I would look for a good used Cherokee.

[Further North]

I should have mentioned that I'm pulling a Tracker TX with a 50hp Merc. My current and prior have no problems pulling it around the flat land of Illinois, but even with the upgrade on the brakes it only does a fair job when it comes to stopping. I was thinking possibly the GMC mid size SUV, But I'll likely end up with a Tahoe or Expedition. Access for momma is going to be a huge factor.

Thanks for the input. I've some searching to do. Luckily I have plenty of time.

Go take a look at the Ford Escape with the 2.0L motor and the towing package.  Rated for towing to 3500 lbs, bulit in anti-sway, lots of other great features.

 

I'd been towing my Crestliner CMV 1850 with a Saab 9-7x (it's the same truck as the Chevy Trailblazer/GMC Envoy) and having no problems, but the day to day gas mileage was killing me.  The escape only gives up 7 ft. lbs of torque and pulls my boat just fine...better than the Saab...subjectively, better than the Saab.  There is no lack of power at all, the brakes do a fine job of stopping (again, as good as the Saab) and I get better than 25 MPG day to day driving, and an easy 15 MPG pulling the boat.

 

Escapes can be found used all over for mid $20Ks a couple of years old (we paid $23,250 for our 2014 in January of this year)...but finding one with the factory tow package can be a bit of a challenge - took me about a month the zero in on the right price/options deal witht he factory package.

 

Going with an aftermarket hitch seriously impacts the tow rating (it drops out the anti sway), I would not recommend it.

 

That Crestliner CMV probably tips the scales at about 3,100 if the gas tank is full and it's got all my gear in it, and it tows great - I've towed the boat an easy 25 times this season including one 700 mile round trip from WI to Lake of the Woods and a couple of 2 hour hauls here in NW WI.  Zero problems, great tow vehicle.

 

I spent the time from the end of the season here (mid November) until January researching and test driving all the comparable SUVs and Crossovers...nothing else even came close to the combination of towing ability and day to day MPG that the Escape did.  I drove them all, read about them on-line, talked to owners, etc.  At the end of all that it was an easy choice.

[Brnnoser6983]

Don't completely rule out trucks. The Chevy Colorado sits lower to the ground than a regular truck would. Add running board and it should be easy to get in.

Plus you can upgrade to the Z71 and tow more, add a trailer break control. You have lots of options.

[Way2slow]

To each his own, but no way under the sun would I consider a 2.0L anything to tow any kind of a boat much bigger than a canoe on a light trailer, and that would be with no more than one other person in the vehicle.  I know  that Tracker is not that heavy and he has tons of options if he's not planning on anything bigger in the near future, but that 's getting pretty small for something to tow it with.

 

My wife thought she wanted a RAV4 several years ago.  She got it, we took a trip from GA to Arkansas a couple months later with four of us in it.  The next week it was traded in for her first Highlander, which she is on her fourth one now. 

[junyer357]

Ive been very pleased with my nissan frontier. With the 4.0 v6 i have not had any trouble pulling the boats ice hooked to, including our 19' hydrasport ls180, ranger 461, and a 20' triton. Crew cab 4wd with long bed and rated for 6300#. Never had any trouble pulling or stopping, even on trips to guntersville and some of the hills around it.

[Ratherbfishing]

Another Honda Pilot?  If you can afford, spring for the 4wd.

[paleus]

To each his own, but no way under the sun would I consider a 2.0L anything to tow any kind of a boat much bigger than a canoe on a light trailer, and that would be with no more than one other person in the vehicle.

 

If that 2.0L is being fed by a turbo, you'd be surprised at what it can do. That 2.0L EcoBoost in the Escape makes 240HP and 270 ft.lbs. That's more power than the 4.0L in my Tacoma. I'm sure it's limiting factor is its ability to stop with a load.

 

"No replacement for displacement" simply isn't true anymore with advances in reliable forced induction and direct injection.

[Further North]

To each his own, but no way under the sun would I consider a 2.0L anything to tow any kind of a boat much bigger than a canoe on a light trailer, and that would be with no more than one other person in the vehicle.  I know  that Tracker is not that heavy and he has tons of options if he's not planning on anything bigger in the near future, but that 's getting pretty small for something to tow it with.

 

I started with the same thinking.  I was wrong.  Modern engines are not the same as the ones I grew up with where cubic inches are the only reliable way to develop torque.  As I mentioned, the 2.0 liter Escape only gives up 7 ft. lbs. to the 4.2 liter straight six in the Trailblazer/Envoy line...which only gave up a little to the V8 they offered.

 

Between far better manufacturing processes, better design, turbocharging, computerized engine management, and transmissions with many more gear ranges, the engine is not stressed like many people tend to think it will be.  I was running at 70 MPH on the interstate on that trio to Ontario and no more RPMs that I would have with the bigger, less efficient truck.

 

That same 2.0 motor in non-turbocharged form puts out 160 HP and 146 ft. lbs. torque at a fairly low 4450 RPM...in the Escape that gets bumped to 240 HP and 270 ft. lbs. @ 3000 RPM...and it comes on smooth and usable, not peaky like older turbocharged engines.

 

I would suggest not dismissing the Escape out of hand because it doesn't fit the old paradigm with what a lot of folks think of as a a small engine - in today's excessively litigious society, Ford would not rate the vehicle with that tow rating unless it was both capable and safe.  Torque is torque and it really is that simple.

 

I wouldn't attempt to pull a 20 ft glass boat with the Escape, or even a deep V Lund/Crestliner/Alumacraft that weighed in at 4,000 lbs....but the Escape will pull that Tracker and my CMV for years with no problems, and get mid 20s MPG in normal driving and high 20s on the highway for the 90% or better that he's not towing the boat.  I was spending about $70+ a week on gas for the Saab - I'm at about $35 - $40 with the Escape...that difference buys a lot of gear...or helps put a kid through school...

 

Obviously, if someone is uncomfortable with a 2.0 liter engine towing a small boat, they shouldn't do it...but the facts and data show that it will work well.

[Further North]

If that 2.0L is being fed by a turbo, you'd be surprised at what it can do. That 2.0L EcoBoost in the Escape makes 240HP and 270 ft.lbs. That's more power than the 4.0L in my Tacoma. I'm sure it's limiting factor is its ability to stop with a load.

 

"No replacement for displacement" simply isn't true anymore with advances in reliable forced induction and direct injection.

 

Well said - and with a lot fewer words than I used...

 

I actually did the calculation on the swept area of the brakes on my Saab ( I called it the SⁿAABlazer) vs. the Escape...and when the weight of the heavier vehicle was taken into account the difference was negligible but slightly in favor of the Escape.  I came down that huge hill in Duluth with the boat behind me with no problems at all.