Decision time

SHickey · Feb 18, 2013

Hello all,

I am so excited to get back on the water but I still need to buy a tow vehicle!! I have a 19' Bluefin Royale and with the boat and surge brake trailer, I am looking at 2500 lbs w/o any extra's thrown in.

I have been advised to get a Safari or Astro van but they are not easy to find. I see tons of Chevy Blazers, and Ford Explorers and would like to pull the trigger but I'm just not sure which would be better. I am not 100% sold on 4x4's or AWD's and I really want to keep it to a V-6 and avoid a V-8.

I'm willing to install a transmission cooler and keep it out of overdrive while I'm towing.

Any suggestions??

SH

MH Hawker · Feb 18, 2013

Re: Decision time

Under 3500 pounds that leaves a wide selection of tow vehicles. You can browse through this list to see what you like.

Truck and SUV Towing Capacity Charts

airshot · Feb 18, 2013

Re: Decision time

I tow with a 2000 chev blazer 4.3 vortec V-6 rated for 4000 lbs max. I have a starcraft islander with total wt around 3350 including trailer. I have no problems, been doing ot for a few years now. Avg tow is 25-30 miles each way, have the 4WD as it has become usefull on slick ramps. 18-20 mpg back and forth to work, 12-14 mpg towing boat. Blazer looks rather small towing boat but works fine.

Airshot

SHickey · Feb 18, 2013

Re: Decision time

Thanks Commander and Airshot,

After a little more investigation, Ford Explorer customers did not have very good things to say about the vehicle overall especially the transmission. I do not want to offend Ford loyalists but I would rather stick with something as problem free as possible. The 4.3 vortec will probably be the motor of choice in a Blazer, Astro, or Safari body.

I am open to any other suggestions but remember, you are dealing with a Seaman that has 4 kids in college!!

SH

coolbri70 · Feb 18, 2013

Re: Decision time

SHickey said:
Thanks Commander and Airshot,

After a little more investigation, Ford Explorer customers did not have very good things to say about the vehicle overall especially the transmission. I do not want to offend Ford loyalists but I would rather stick with something as problem free as possible. The 4.3 vortec will probably be the motor of choice in a Blazer, Astro, or Safari body.

I am open to any other suggestions but remember, you are dealing with a Seaman that has 4 kids in college!!

SH

i tow with an explorer, i have the 5 speed, and it was the automatics that had trouble.

agallant80 · Feb 19, 2013

Re: Decision time

Ford Explorer V6 would do it. You can find lots of them used. Only issue I have with that is my Explorer got the same MPG as my full size Avalanche. Well the Avalanche did better and it was bigger had a V8 vs the V6 in my explorer. As for 4X4/AWD you will wish you had it when your tires are spinning on the ramp. I had a 4X2 on the ram once and someone had to pull me up the ram with their Jeep.

SHickey · Feb 19, 2013

Re: Decision time

Wow!!

Now you are really mixing up the pot of indicision!! Since I have not owned a V-8 in my whole lifetime, I never considered buying a vehicle that had one just because the milage is lousey. Then on the other hand, the milage I had with my last tow vehicle (GMC Envoy 4.3 L) was not very good considering it was a a v-6. (in my humble opinion).

I would probably consider a small V-8 and drive it gingerly when I was not towing.

BTY, I would have no problem looking at an explorer that had a manual transmission but they are very hard to come by!!

Any thoughts on a small V-8 compared to a 4.3 L V-6??

You guys are the best and thanks for letting me think out-loud because it is not everyday I buy a tow vehicle.

SH

briangcc · Feb 19, 2013

Re: Decision time

Look at a Pontiac Montana (or Chevy or Olds equivalent). 3500lb tow rating as long as you opted for the tow package. Did fine towing my '99 Bayliner when my truck was in for repairs. I believe the Toyota Sienna's have a similar rating. Very nice mini van - my dad just bought his and he's a long time GM fan who absolutely LOVES his new van. Either would get you into the 20mpg+ range non-towing.

My uncle has a TrailBlazer and uses it to pull his 18' Sylvan. No issues with it to my knowledge. Before that he had a S10 based Blazer and it pulled the same boat equally well.

I agree though that you shouldn't be dismissing 4x4....you hit a slick ramp and you'll be cursing the day you didn't opt for it.

jumpjets · Feb 19, 2013

Re: Decision time

I was using a 2002 ford explorer V6 to tow my 4,5000lb boat/trailer combo. My transmission just failed. I never towed more than a couple miles at a time, and rarely got over 35mph, but I was still towing over the explorers max tow rating. I knew that the transmission was a time bomb, and I have absolutely no complaints. The explorer had decent acceleration, good stopping power, and good towing visibility. I always used 4WD low to pull the boat up the ramp, and the explorer pulled my heavy boat out of the steepest ramps easily. I thought it was a great truck considering it was overloaded.

I'm in the market for a full sized V8 truck now.

kenmyfam · Feb 19, 2013

Re: Decision time

Used to tow with a Jimmy and Now a straight 6 Trailblazer. Trailblazer is great with our Marada 2100. Also tow our 26ft travel trailer with it. You sure know that's behind you but it does a great job. Added a big tranny cooler and electronic brake controller immediately.

SHickey · Feb 20, 2013

Re: Decision time

Thanks guys!!

This afternoon I'm looking at a 2000 Jimmy w/ 120,000 miles and hopefully I can get him down to $2000. It has the 4.3 Vortec and is a 4X4 if the car fax check out and if the "boss" likes it, this may be the one.

Thanks for all of your input!!

SH

kenmyfam · Feb 22, 2013

Re: Decision time

SHickey said:
Thanks guys!!

This afternoon I'm looking at a 2000 Jimmy w/ 120,000 miles and hopefully I can get him down to $2000. It has the 4.3 Vortec and is a 4X4 if the car fax check out and if the "boss" likes it, this may be the one.

Thanks for all of your input!!

SH

Good luck with it. That 4.3 motor is pretty much indestructible. The reason we moved on with ours was that we were up to the 500,000km mark and ours was the 2 door version with not a lot of room in the back for passengers. Entire drive train was still in excellent shape.

SHickey · Feb 24, 2013

Re: Decision time

Well I checked out the Jimmy and it was a "pimped out" kids vehicle that did not give me alot of confidence in the owners care or maintenance procedures.

I am going to look at two (2000) Chevy Astro vans, one w/ 2 wheel drive and the other with AWD. Both have @ 130,000 miles and the bodies look good from the pictures.

I am not familiar with AWD and from what I have read about it, it can be problematic as can 4w drive. Any thoughts on AWD? Has anyone had AWD and 4W drive and preferred one over the other from a maintenance or repair prospective?

I prefer simple and cheap but I realize with a slippery ramp, either option can save me alot of messing around on a busy launch.

SH

roscoe · Feb 24, 2013

Re: Decision time

There isn't a vehicle out there that doesn't have "an issue" if you ask for opinions.
Most of the issues have to due with age, previous owner's use, and maintenance.

So you are looking at 9-14 year old vehicles, and you are going to run into issues.
Expect to find problems with air conditioning clutches, brakes lines, water pumps, transmissions, fuel pumps, intake manifold gaskets, and emissions systems.

If the trailer has brakes, the jimmy/Blazer/Explorer/Astro/Safari choices are all good.

Same with the Trailblazer class.

Have have 3 Astros in the family, 1 2wd, 2 AWD. All do well, but our boats are a little lighter to pull up the ramp.

THe only thing with AWD, the tires must be the same size, and in the same general condition.

I currently have a Blazer, a Trailblazer, an Explorer, dad has 2 AWD Astros, and sister has pulled a 22' camper with her Explorer for about 6 years.

Its really hard to do donuts in the snow with the AWD.

SHickey · Feb 24, 2013

Re: Decision time

Good advice Roscoe, tomorrow I'm looking at a 2WD Astro van and if it drives well and looks good underneath, I will most likely buy it. The trailer I have does have surge brakes. The boat and trailer total out to @ 2500 lbs and the towing capacity of the van is 5000 lbs so there is an allowance for extra gear, people and supplies when we head up to the Adk Mts.

I really appreciate all of the input I have been given in this decision. You don't buy one of these vehicles every day and I will most likely keep this until the wheels fall off!!

SH

roscoe · Feb 24, 2013

Re: Decision time

SHickey said:
Good advice Roscoe, tomorrow I'm looking at a 2WD Astro van and if it drives well and looks good underneath, I will most likely buy it. The trailer I have does have surge brakes. The boat and trailer total out to @ 2500 lbs and the towing capacity of the van is 5000 lbs so there is an allowance for extra gear, people and supplies when we head up to the Adk Mts.

I really appreciate all of the input I have been given in this decision. You don't buy one of these vehicles every day and I will most likely keep this until the wheels fall off!!

SH

And hopefully, that will be many years down the road.

I too buy 8-10 year old vehicles, and my newest vehicle is a 2002.

Happy hunting.

airshot · Feb 24, 2013

Re: Decision time

I can't speak for the AWD vehicles, But I have a 2000 chev blazer with 4WD that I pull my 22' Islander and have never had a 4WD problem with it. It currently has 197000 miles on it and still runs great. I normally run the wheels off them then replace with another 6-8 yr old vehicle. If you can buy for 6 to 8 thou, you can put a heck of a lot of repairs into it, rather than spending 30 thou for a new one.

Airshot

skyking897 · Feb 24, 2013

Re: Decision time

I've been a mechanic for 40+ years and these type of questions about what is the best tow vehicle bring out all kinds of opinions. As stated earlier here, all makes of vehicles have issues, not necessarily related to how it's used and cared for but in its design. If you are really interested in a particular type of vehicle, just do a google search for forums on that vehicle and read some of the owner reports. There is a wealth of info in them but look for a concensus on any problem not just a one off.
I've owned most makes of vehicles at one time or another and probably lean towards Ford more than any other. My last tow vehicle was an '01 Ford Sport Trac with the 4.0 L V6 engine and had a tow rating of 5300 lbs. We towed a 21' Bayliner Capri which had an all up weight close to the 5000 lbs mark which included the trailer and gear. The Sport Trac handled the Bayliner easily but really needed the trailer brakes. Unloaded highway mileage was around 24-25mph and I never checked the towing mileage since I always disengaged the over drive. The only tranny issue with them was a 2-3 upshift flare up and the remedy was quite reasonable. I'd probably still have it if they had a larger box on them and that is the only reason I moved up to an F150.

matt167 · Feb 24, 2013

Re: Decision time

GM Autotrack transfer cases have tons of problems, so it is best to stay away from them. The Ford 5R55E ( Ranger, Explorer ) is about as reliable as a 4L60E but has an extra gear so they can be more expensive to fix. Shift flare and loosing reverse due to valve body issues is the common problem and often a cheap fix.. I would rather have a truck that can tow 6k lbs and tow 3k than have a truck maxed at 3.5K and tow 3k with it.. A '94-'95 Chevy C/K1500 with a 5.0L V8 would be my choice. The 5.0's along with the swirl port heads and TBI make for a very nice and flat torque curve below 4k RPM and can get great MPG. I have a '95, ECLB K1500 5.0L/5spd manual ( NV3500 ) and I can break 20 MPG in good weather and it does not go down much towing altho I have not had a good calculation when towing. Automatics can do just as well.. '96 brought the Vortec heads/ induction which has expensive to fix spider injector issues, altho the cylinder heads are better.

Also not mentioned is the 1995-2001 Explorer/ Mountianeer 5.0L's. They are a bit uncommon but exist and get basically the same MPG as the 4.0L V6 versions except run the tried and true 5.0L Ford 302 with some really nice factory cylinder heads. They use the 4R70 used in the F-150/ Mustang

SHickey · Mar 7, 2013

Re: Decision time

Hello,

I bought a 2000 Chevy Astro 2WD that has the tow package on it. the van has 133,000 miles on it and the motor and transmission seem to be running great. It requires some new front wheel bearings and a possibly some new front brakes and rotors but over all, I think it will do the trick and I will baby the hell out of it to get as many miles as possible out of it.

Thank you all for the help and advice!!

SH

Decision time

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