Towing 2014 G23 with a Nissan Armada

[liquidforce133]

Bad idea to tow a G23 with a 2017 Nissan Armada? Would be mainly 20-30 minutes to the lake locally. I am happy to drive slowly to not have wind be much of an issue. Would occasionally want to drive 1.5 to 2 hours to other sites. Should I expect ramp issues or highway issues? I want the G23, but do I need to get a smaller boat (like a 230 or a g21)?

Thanks

[Paxdad]

Sketchy proposition as stopping would be my concern. What is the Armada tow rating capacity?


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[mooneywa]

'17 Armada has an 8500lb capacity. Dry weight of the G plus trailer is around 7k. 65 gal of fuel is another 330lbs, plus gear, coolers, etc. and you're right at the ragged edge of 8k+. It appears you would be legal at a glance, but I don't know if it would be comfortable.

My Toyota has an 8100lb towing capacity and that ruled out the G because I wasn't comfortable with the biannual drive between storage and the ramp. I will say it tows a 230 on a Boatmate very nicely.

[liquidforce133]

Thanks, and yes 8500 is correct. I’m wondering if I need to go with a 230 until I can afford both the more expensive boat and a truck that can pull it properly. I have a family of 5 with young kids so I think the 230 will be enough for us and some friends, but my heart wants a g23.

[mooneywa]

Probably a wise call since you have to factor in payload too (your family, gas, other gear, and tongue weight). Maxing both seems like every trip to the lake would stress me out. I have a 230 after upgrading from a 210 and I can't say enough good things about it. Size, surf wave, maneuverability, looks... but if your lake day doesn't include a dock to store stuff the G is tough to beat in storage.

[hal2814]

The only way to get a real answer to a math problem is to do the math. If that’s an accurate dry weight, all you have to do is add in the rest. You should be able to get a good estimate on fuel. As far as gear, it’s tedious but you can weight it yourself. If that all checks out, all that’s left is making sure you’re under GCWR. How much weight are you putting in the vehicle while towing for passengers, gear, etc? If you can manage to honestly stay within those numbers, then tow away. Tow capacities exist for a reason. Most people don’t want to do that math and leave some sort of buffer. I won’t tell anyone else their business but a fixed buffer often leads to either making the buffer so large it’s potentially cost prohibitive to find a capable vehicle or so small it doesn’t accurately cover the weight.

[paticus]

From my experience, you do not want to be touching the maximum weight on your tow vehicle. I hauled a RV Trailer which was at capacity for the truck and it was a rough ride. You feel a lot less control over the vehicle, and I could only imagine how it would perform in an extreme situation such a braking hard at high speed.

It sounds like you are balancing finances in your decision here, and it worth noting that you can get a newer 230 for the price you would spend on the 2014 G. *Possibly* get into a 2018+ and get the upgraded LINC electronics and less hours. Consider me biased as I have a 230 :P

But you know what they say, buy your second boat first.

[liquidforce133]

This is the way I am leaning, but at the same time, I would prefer a g23, so another way of asking what I’m getting at is, are there a bunch of people towing g23’s with tahoe’s, expeditions, sequoias, etc? They all have around the same towing capacity and if they work fine, an armada should work fine. If everyone who has a g23 uses a 3/4 ton truck, then probably I shouldn’t be assured by being under the limit and should stick to a boat that is well under and get a 230. It’s a big enough purchase that I want to get what I want if I can, but I don’t want to get a bigger boat than I can handle and feel like I can’t actually do what I want with it. Hoping to hear from g23 owners who have towed with similar vehicles.

[mulde35d]

If you are overloaded it will likely manifest itself in 3 ways. First, your rear shocks will over compress which will look like your rear end of the truck/SUV is a low rider and you could feel the frame hit the axle every time you hit a bump. The second is at speeds over 45mph. This can be seriously dangerous as it is where the trailer could start to sway and eventually take control of the back of your vehicle (plenty of youtube videos on this one). The 3rd major area will be when pulling the 7,000-8,000 pound boat out of the water on a slippery inclined ramp (possibly even heavier if you have water in the bilge). Needless to say, if you have bald tires you may never make it out. Not saying you can't, but be cautious of these 3 areas as the trouble with towing at maximum or above maximum gross weight is you have little to no room for error.

[NautiqueJeff]

I tow my G with a Ford Excursion Diesel (F250 frame). I wouldn't want to tow it with anything smaller.

[Infinity]

I have a 2014 boat (SV244) similar in size to the 230 and on the tandem trailer with fuel, gear, etc....I am pushing 7500lbs (with gear/fuel my dry weight is 1200lbs less than my actual weight). Including payload calcs and everything else, I am within all my ratings by only a couple hundred lbs towing with a 2019 Ram 1500 that has 11,500 towing and 1,540 payload.
My guess is that a 230 is going to be closer to your ratings than you think and the G23 will be well over your max. You can easily add 1,000lbs to your dry weight since that does not include the tower, audio system, fuel, gear, etc. Adds up really fast!
Where I would get very uncomfortable would be backing into/pulling out at the boat ramp, a G23/trailer will absolutely outweigh your Armada. Is it worth seeing if your dealer will let you hook up to a G and take it for a short test drive?

[Luebowski]

You can easily add 1,000lbs to your dry weight since that does not include the tower, audio system, fuel, gear, etc. Adds up really fast!

Towers are not included in the dry weight numbers of wake boats?

[Infinity]

Towers are not included in the dry weight numbers of wake boats?

Tower did not used to be included in the dry weight because you have a couple different tower options when boat is built, as well as audio options.
I know that is the case for my 2014 Centurion boat and the difference between the factory listed dry weight and the actual weight (without the tandem trailer) is 1200lbs.
Its possible I am incorrect for Nautique even tho both brands are Correct Craft, I did not think about that when I posted.

[shag]

Coming from a 25year Firefighter/Paramedic who also has a lot of experience towing anything from a lawn trailer to operating Tractor trailers,(and seeing/responding to some pretty gnarly accidents where the tow vehicle wasn't appropriate, I would not tow that much with an Armada any further than maybe just down the road to a ramp. As has been hashed out many times in these and other forums, the issue at hand is stopping and handling at speed, more importantly, braking and handling in a panic situation. Some will tell you that engineers build extra into the GVWR and GCWR, but 8K-10k moving at highways speeds is a lot of weight and will push around anything that is not a substantial tow platform. As stated above, you also need to add the weight of the trailer. My guess is you would be approaching the weight rating with an outfitted 230 on trailer, although well less than the G. 230's are great boats and I like the look better, but you will lose some storage over a G.
In the end, it is your family's safety and safety of those on the road that should guide your decision. Best of luck.

[Cpan13]

Buy a G and a used F250.