Need a new SUV to pull my 99 Air Nautique. What do you pull yours with?

[nautique_stealth]

Last year I pick up (my first!) a 99 Air Nautique... and I love it!

We have an 04 Explorer (4.6 v8) to pull it. It's my wife's car, and see what something newer (We sold her 08 Edge to get the boat!).

Problem is, she's a bit picky. She loved her Edge and that it didn't feel like a truck (like the Explorer). 3 rows is a must.

What I'm wondering is... how small of an SUV can I get to get the job done? Acadia can pull 4500lbs, New Explorer can do 5000lbs. Durango 6200lbs.

We trailer 25 miles to the lake. Can any of these handle it?

What do you think my boat loaded with gas and say 500lbs of gear would weight?

I would be happy with an Expedition, but that's too trucky for her.

See my dillema?

[HS]

http://www.correctcraftfan.com/Downl...nual%20Air.pdf

The above reference says dry wt is 2700 lbs. need to add for trailer, fuel and gear.

[Mahoo]

Maybe a Ford Flex will be a good compromise. It can tow 4500 pounds, sits lower than a SUV and has three rows. You can get it with the ecoboost motor and AWD which will get good gas mileage and good torque for pulling. I personally have not towed with one but should get the job done since you pull a fairly short distance.

[mdvalant]

I'd be shootin for the new explorer. The new explorers have high tow ratings and are uni-body so handle like a sports car, they also get pretty darn good mileage too (along with those others you listed)

I'm' a Ford fan so this is simply my opinion

[mf01]

New Grand Cherokee. Rated at 5000lbs with 3.6l and 7500 with 5.7l. It's still a true SUV, frame over chassis. I wouldn't feel comfortable with uni-body.

[TRBenj]

New Grand Cherokee. Rated at 5000lbs with 3.6l and 7500 with 5.7l. It's still a true SUV, frame over chassis. I wouldn't feel comfortable with uni-body.

Incorrect. Grand Cherokee is, and always has been, a unibody. Id still call it a "real" SUV, in that it has a true 4wd system and is meant to tow. I would not consider it to be in the same class as all the lighter duty FWD based crossovers (like the new Explorer, which is based on the Taurus). The Flex and Acadia/Equinox are car based as well, I believe.

The Durango is just a stretched Grand Cherokee and also very capable.

[swc5150]

IMHO, I don't know that I'd want to use one of the newer car-based crossovers for your application? Being that you don't want to go full-size, I'd go with a smaller SUV equipped with a V8. The GC with 5.7 sure is a nice rig. I may sound old-school, but there's no replacement for displacement. Congrats on the new tug BTW!

[nautique_stealth]

Thanks guys for all the input, appreciate it.

I've heard the GC's are big on problems... I knew someone that had an older one (2000?) to pull his (smaller) SN, and he had problems all the time. Also, the GC does not have 3 rows...

My wife actually like the Durango look (that's all she goes by!), but Durango's didn't have the best rep (at least coming from us Ford guys!) for realiability, and especially gas mileage.

Think these are pretty close estimates?
Dry weight - 2,500
Tower/ballast/accesorries - 750
Trailer - 1,000
Gas (15 gal) - 100
Gear - 500
Total - 4,850

Hence, I'm really cautious to get something that only has a 5k tow rate. Probably once a year we'll take an 800 drive with it, so it need to be able to handle a long trip. It seems the only thing that can tow enough and is a larger 3-row mid-size SUV is the Durango... Problem is, it's brand new in 2011, so they can be pricey. Almost everyone has taken big v6's or v8's out of their mid-size line up!

Another thought... My 04 Explorer has the 4.6 v8 (Fords smallest v8). It is rated for 7k towing. It tows it pretty good, but definitely has to fight up a long hill. Will this be the case with anything that doesn't have a good sized v8?

[Chexi]

Perhaps consider a 4WD Toyota Sequoia. That's what I picked up after my Pathfinder got T-boned and totalled (the Pathfinder I drove your boat up to Iowa with when you bought it from me). The Sequoia tows better than the Pathfinder (much less compression on the rear shocks) and has a 3rd row. It is a truck though, for sure, handling-wise. I cannot say about towing up long, steep hills, as I have not had to do so yet.

BTW, I still have not gotten my ballast installed or my stereo installed on my SAN.

[HS]

Perhaps consider a 4WD Toyota Sequoia. That's what I picked up after my Pathfinder got T-boned and totalled (the Pathfinder I drove your boat up to Iowa with when you bought it from me). The Sequoia tows better than the Pathfinder (much less compression on the rear shocks) and has a 3rd row. It is a truck though, for sure, handling-wise. I cannot say about towing up long, steep hills, as I have not had to do so yet.

BTW, I still have not gotten my ballast installed or my stereo installed on my SAN.

I recently traded in our 2000 Land Cruiser (4.7) for a 2011 Sequoia (Plat. w/5.7). Both very solid vehicles, 5.7 has way better torque and hp. Third row seat folds flat, and independent rear suspension gives a very nice ride, better than the old LC. We live in a hilly area plus we cross over the Cascades on I-90 to get to summer vacation spots in Central WA, so far it is a major improvement on steep, long grades.

Interesting thing about tow ratings: new gov't guidelines resulted in a reduction in the published tow rating for Seqouia last year, from like 8,200 to 7,000 as I recall. Probably means the 6,500 rating on the LC was closer to the mid 5,000s. Toyota was one of the first to adopt the new ratings but look for others to follow (comply) soon.

[swc5150]

A Land Cruiser or Sequoia would be a great option. FWIW, I had a '99 GC that I sold with 200k miles on it, and the only issue I ran into was a bad fuel pump at 170k.

[DanielC]

I have a 1997 Ski Nautique, and tow it with a 1996 Ford Aerostar. I did work for a Nautique dealer in the early 2000's and also used it to tow Sport/Air Nautiques, and an Occasional Super Sport/Air. I drew the line on what I would tow there, I did not tow any SV211's, except in the parking lot.

Look for a vehicle with a trailer towing package. This may include extra wiring to hook up trailer lights, a limited slip rear axle, a lower rear axle ratio, and additional cooling capacity.

Another thing to look for in a tow vehicle is a lower horsepower rating for it's displacement in the engine. That may seem wrong, but one of the ways you increase horsepower without adding displacement is you shift the RPM the engine makes its peak torque higher, and that reduces the torque lower in the RPM range. This is what made the Ford GT-40 such a good boat engine. Good low end, and mid range torque. The GT-40 engine actually had less horsepower than the same sized GM engine, but it was a lot stronger at any skiing speed.

I mentioned it briefly before, but pay attention to the rear axle ratio of the tow rig you are looking for. A lower geared rear axle will make towing easier, but it probably will also cause your gas mileage to drop a little, the engine is turning faster in almost all conditions you drive. However, if you do not need, or want to travel at the upper limits of freeway speed, a lower rear axle ratio may not impact the fuel mileage that much.

You have to make all these common sense decisions on a tow vehicle. You have to do some research. Along with all that, you need to involve your wife in the decision. A larger, heavier vehicle would be better for towing, but your wife sees being "more like a car, not a truck" as important. You may even have to deal with some factor like, "I like the other car, it has more cupholders"

Good luck with the search.

[mf01]

Thanks guys for all the input, appreciate it.

I've heard the GC's are big on problems... I knew someone that had an older one (2000?) to pull his (smaller) SN, and he had problems all the time. Also, the GC does not have 3 rows...

My wife actually like the Durango look (that's all she goes by!), but Durango's didn't have the best rep (at least coming from us Ford guys!) for realiability, and especially gas mileage.

Think these are pretty close estimates?
Dry weight - 2,500
Tower/ballast/accesorries - 750
Trailer - 1,000
Gas (15 gal) - 100
Gear - 500
Total - 4,850

Hence, I'm really cautious to get something that only has a 5k tow rate. Probably once a year we'll take an 800 drive with it, so it need to be able to handle a long trip. It seems the only thing that can tow enough and is a larger 3-row mid-size SUV is the Durango... Problem is, it's brand new in 2011, so they can be pricey. Almost everyone has taken big v6's or v8's out of their mid-size line up!

Another thought... My 04 Explorer has the 4.6 v8 (Fords smallest v8). It is rated for 7k towing. It tows it pretty good, but definitely has to fight up a long hill. Will this be the case with anything that doesn't have a good sized v8?

The new Grand Cherokee is based on Mercedes ML chassis and has a completely new v6 engine (as of 2011). It is bigger than the old GC, but yes it doesn't have 3 rows. The Durango is a stretched version of the GC, but the interior looks like a typical dodge.

[nautique_stealth]

Yeah, Sequoia is a full size (turck) SUV. Something we're trying to avoid until we have kids!

Anyone heard anything about the new Durango? Being a Ford guy, I'd hate to say I bought a Dodge...but I got a boat, so I can't complain.

[Double D]

Last year I pick up (my first!) a 99 Air Nautique... and I love it!

We have an 04 Explorer (4.6 v8) to pull it. It's my wife's car, and see what something newer (We sold her 08 Edge to get the boat!).

Problem is, she's a bit picky. She loved her Edge and that it didn't feel like a truck (like the Explorer). 3 rows is a must.

What I'm wondering is... how small of an SUV can I get to get the job done? Acadia can pull 4500lbs, New Explorer can do 5000lbs. Durango 6200lbs.

We trailer 25 miles to the lake. Can any of these handle it?

What do you think my boat loaded with gas and say 500lbs of gear would weight?

I would be happy with an Expedition, but that's too trucky for her.

See my dillema?

My first question always is, to these types of questions; does the trailer have brakes? IME, many vehicles can pull a boat but can they stop it?? I started pulling my 2550 lbs boat + trailer + gear (est. 3500 lbs) with a 1995 S-series Blazer. I had to install a transmission cooler since it didn't have one and I put air shocks on it, but it pulled fine. However, my trailer does NOT have brakes so there where a few scaring moments and one particular that the boat pushed me into an intersection. I never invested in trailer brakes but I did invest in a full sized Chevy Avalanche, which says to me; is there a boat back there?? Stopping is no longer a problem.

Now, if you are like most people and have trailer brakes I think you'll be fine with an explorer, and I would not go any smaller, but a nice Tahoe would be perfect. IMO.....


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