Do I need a bigger tow vehicle - rhetorical question

[badrano]

I bought my 204 SSi at the end of the season last year. Based on published numbers I knew I'm pushing the rated limits of my Dodge Durango 3.6L. Per Dodge, my vehicle has a 6500 GVWR and a 11600 GCWR.

Today I got everything officially weighed at a CAT scale to see where the numbers stand.

With an empty Durgano (no passengers and a full tank of gas), it weighs in at 5240.
With an empty boat and a full tank, the Dodge weighs in at 5540 and trailer at 4680 for a total GCW of 10220.

If I'm doing the math correctly, the trailer actually weighs 4980 with a tongue weight of 300.

With these numbers I'm just under a 1000 lbs from GVWR and just under 1400 lbs from GCWR.

When I add in passengers, that's another 500 lbs which then puts me just under a 500 lbs from GVWR and just under 900 lbs from GCWR.

Regarding the tongue weight, it's obviously less then 10%. I think I will take the rig to my local trailer shop and have them use their trailer tongue scale just to make sure.

I haven't had any issues trailering other than gas mileage being in the toilet. Tranny temps got to around 220 but it was a hot day. I drive gently as to not push the engine near the red zone during acceleration. Luckily I live in the flat lands. I made the joke with the wife that if we want to head in to the hills for some lakes, we would have to go in two cars.

I'm just looking for thoughts from the wise iBoats community.

 

[Blind Date]

"Regarding the tongue weight, it's obviously less then 10%"

If your boat is sitting on a tandem axle trailer, which I suspect it is, your tongue weight should be around 5%. Single axle, 7% is plenty & it should tow like a dream.

 

[harringtondav]

Don't know the year of your Durango. My '99 Gen1, 5.2L has a towing capacity of 4700#. That is the spec I pay attention to. 220 degrees is getting hot. Do you have the towing package with tranny oil cooler? If not, add one. I only tow 3000-3200#, but I "pedal up shift" (accelerate with purpose, pedal up, auto shift, continue) to keep the clutch's energy absorption - heat rejection to a minimum. Mine has an overdrive-off button. The engine revs higher, but the torque converter clutch stays engaged. Further reducing heat into the tranny fluid.

Sounds like you're pushing the limit, but if you watch your gages you should be fine. Maybe more frequent trans oil and filter changes.

 

[badrano]

Yes, the trailer in tandem. That makes better sense now. It tows like a dream.

My Durango is a 2013 with the factory tow package. It's rated for 6200#. It has a 5 speed that has the manual shift feature (similar to paddle shift) and I stay in 4th. 5th is pretty much overdrive. I typically manually down shift to 3rd just before going up any little hills otherwise I lose too much momentum by the time the computer decides to downshift.

 

[KD4UPL]

Your several hundred pounds under the ratings. What's the problem?
I wouldn't have bothered weighing it empty, that seems like a waste of time. I would have loaded the Durango with you typical passenger and gear load and loaded the boat with all your normal toys, safety equipment, tools, fishing gear, etc and then weighed it. That will tell you what you're really working with.
Chrysler has a reputation for producing some very weak automatic transmissions over the years. I had one in a '94 1500. I don't know which transmission you have but that would be what I would consider your likely weak point. I'd service it often with really good fluid.

 

[badrano]

I'd service it often with really good fluid.

What would be considered a good quality fluid?

 

[Lowlysubaruguy]

I’m partial to having more cowbells than what’s really required but you are below specs so on paper your ok. I work on cars for a living. I can tell you anyone can break anything with the wrong driving habits. If you drive hard with your boat in tow your going to need more truck. Next tires breaks and suspension. All is well until you have a problem when your close to rated GVW. You loose a tire without warning and you’ll find the response to be less desirable in a tow vehicle that’s not rated a fair amount hirer not that a blow out in a larger rig is great either. Steep grades corners are another factor, but you’ve been towing it for a while does it need suspension help or brake work these can be improved with helper springs, tires and while adding bigger brakes to your tow vehicle is not simple your trailer could have bigger brakes if needed while not cheap its cheaper than another tow rig. Just some options you might not have thought about. But its more than how much can you pull.. You can get a lot more weight in motion than what your rated for but stopping and steering it are the real factor to know the answer to..

 

[H20Rat]

Towing is 95% driver, 5% vehicle. I've seen guys I wouldn't trust tow a tinny behind a duelly diesel, and I've seen guys competently tow over double what the vehicle was rated for.

If you aren't towing on hills or extended highway speed, your vehicle is fine. Although you are close to the limit, there is most likely some safety factor already built into those, and again, depends far more on the driver. My only suggestion is just make sure your trailer brakes work well.

 

[badrano]

Thanks for all the feedback.

I am the kind of person that would like to have a tow vehicle with a higher rating and not tow more than maybe 75% of the rating so that there is room for "stress" like in the hills. But this is what I get for getting a boat that I really liked even though it was a little heavier than I wanted.

If I go in to the hills (not mountains), we may just have to go in two cars.