Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

[soler]

Or a Charger? Or a Chrysler 300C? I have a Magnum R/T, and it's rated to tow 3800 lbs. Has anyone put a hitch on theirs and towed with it? I'm considering towing my Tahoe Q4 with my Magnum, and want to get others' thoughts.

See, I have a 3500 Dogde Dually, and a slide-in camper. I am going to Utah (from Texas) this summer, and my family wants me to bring the boat. It is just going to be an expensive trip, and I have to do all the driving since the truck is a 6 speed, and no one else will learn to drive it (it has it's rewards). So, I figured since gas is cheaper, and maybe the Magnum might get better mileage, it might be worth it to buy a hitch and use it. I'm juggling the numbers right now. Appreciate the info!

Thanks.

SOLER

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

Or a Charger? Or a Chrysler 300C? I have a Magnum R/T, and it's rated to tow 3800 lbs. Has anyone put a hitch on theirs and towed with it? I'm considering towing my Tahoe Q4 with my Magnum, and want to get others' thoughts.

See, I have a 3500 Dogde Dually, and a slide-in camper. I am going to Utah (from Texas) this summer, and my family wants me to bring the boat. It is just going to be an expensive trip, and I have to do all the driving since the truck is a 6 speed, and no one else will learn to drive it (it has it's rewards). So, I figured since gas is cheaper, and maybe the Magnum might get better mileage, it might be worth it to buy a hitch and use it. I'm juggling the numbers right now. Appreciate the info!

Thanks.

SOLER

Stick with the truck !!!!
Just my humble opinion though. A neighbor of mine tows his little Gypsy house trailer with his and swears to get something better as soon as his lease is up !!!!

 

[JB]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

Take the truck. It is designed and built for that sort of work.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

drive the truck, just take some breaks on the way up.

 

[soler]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

With all due respect, I know the truck is better. That wasn't my question. I was asking if anyone tows their boat (or anything around 3,000 lbs) with their Magnum. I just want to know how well the Magnum, Charger, and 300 tow things around. The power isn't in question, it's the size of the vehicle.

Thanks!

SOLER

 

[CATransplant]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

I'd use the truck. How many miles is the trip, roughly? If you're the only driver, you might have to make an overnight stop or two, depending on the distance.

If you use the Magnum, you'll be near its towing limit, and if you run into crosswinds, you're not going to be a happy guy. If the temperature's in the 90s or above, your Magnum's not going to be a happy vehicle, either.

The Magnum's a road car, and a really nice one, but it's not a tow vehicle by design. The truck is. I'd hate to see you cook the Magnum or have someone other than you who's not that experienced with towing driving it if there's a problem.

 

[soler]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

Okay, let's pretend I don't have a truck. Who actually has experience towing with a Magnum, and what are your thoughts. I know about towing. I used to be a truck driver. But, I'm looking for those with experience towing with THIS TYPE OF CAR. I don't need the advice, opinions, etc, unless you have actually towed with this car. Thanks. I don't mean to be rude, really. I just want a direct answer to the original question.

So, original question...Have you towed with a Magnum, Charger, or 300C with the Hemi? If so, then...

1. How did it handle? How big of a load?
2. What was your mileage?
3. On a scale of 1 to 10, how did you like it? 1 being you were white-knuckled scared, hating every single mile the trailer was behind you and 10 being it was no problem at all.

Thanks again

SOLER

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

what is the vehicle rated to tow? if it is rated for it. put the hitch on it, and try a couple of short trips. you will probably end up doing all the driving pulling the trailer. if the others won't learn to drive the truck, do you really think they will tow the trailer.

 

[25thmustang]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

Rated to tow 3800 lbs, having 3000 or less behind it wont be an issue. It wont be as fast, will take longer to stop, but shouldnt be a problem, especially for an ex truck driver...

Also to note the car wil weigh a lot more than the boat. Figure a loaded up Magnum will be a 4100-4200 lb car, stick 3000 lbs behind it, and I don't see wind throwing it around that much. After al how many 5000-6000 lb trucks out there tow heavier boats and dont get tossed around.

I stick with the theory if your smart about it and have the safety stuff required, you can tow to the limit without being too concerned. After all thats a manufacturers limit, someone who is being very conservative to cover their *** if something happens.

 

[mickjetblue]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

I was looking into a Magnum, nice car, until I saw that it is definitely
not recommended for towing anything.

 

[fishrdan]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

That's an odd tow combination and I doubt many owners of those vehicles tow 3000+#, especially Iboat folks. You would be better searching for your answer at a Dodge Magnum forum if your looking for specific details.

Couple of questions;

Will the rear suspension handle 3-400# tongue weight?

Is there an auxillary transmission cooler on the car?

Does the car have heavy duty cooling?

Texas to Utah is a long haul driving through mountainous terrain. Not something I would look at lightly if the vehicle is not equipped properly for this type of abuse. I tow 3200# through Utah with a 4.7 Durango, but it has HD cooling and HD suspension, needed for pulling long grades in 100+ degree weather and rough interstates.

 

[fishmen111]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

I understand your question and the replies so far are your answer. You will not find too many folks towing with cars period. Lack of wheel travel will probably have you bouncing off your axle snubbers pretty good. The stock rear suspension on cars is built for comfort, not towing. Put a set of helpers on and you will be OK...not great...just OK. To simulate ride heigth, stand on your rear bumper with another person and see how low you sink. Can you...sure. Should you...I wouldn't. If you can't afford the gas for your truck's intended purpose, get rid of it.

 

[Rancherlee]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

I've towed my boat and 3 atv's on a trailer behind my Lincoln Mark VIII and it does good, my car sits at ~3900# curb weight and does good with 2500# loads. I'm not sure if the Dodges have air suspension though, my car compensates for the extra tongue weight automatically with the air ride.

 

[wildspeed]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

The Magnum will be find to tow.

As much as I love the Iboat community and the precious help from the members, I mostly disagree with there answers about towing with car.

North America is the only place in the world that you need a truck to "safely tow". doesn't matter what you are towing. Cars are used all over the world to pull campers, boats, trailers.

Most of the car sold in Europe have towing specs far superior than the same car sold in the States...go figure. I guess some people around here want you to buy gas guzzler...

 

[BigB9000]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

my caprice is rated for more than that. it sags with a 200 pound toung.

A lot of stress on the car...

anyway, what gears are in the rear end?

what porponition valve does the braking system use?

any air rid assist or air bags?

 

[scrobo]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

I have a friend in Saskatchewan who bought a Magnum last year. Uses it to pull his dirtbikes and snow machines around. Went in for service at the dealership and lost his warrenty as soon as tey saw the hitch installed. Their reason behind it: It is not a vehicle made for towing. And they didn't recommend towing with it regardless. Not to say it won't...

Of course I thought it was fine to tow a boat with a LeBaron convertible. Maybe MHO isn't exactly the best.

 

[wildspeed]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

I have a friend in Saskatchewan who bought a Magnum last year. Uses it to pull his dirtbikes and snow machines around. Went in for service at the dealership and lost his warrenty as soon as tey saw the hitch installed. Their reason behind it: It is not a vehicle made for towing. And they didn't recommend towing with it regardless. Not to say it won't...

Of course I thought it was fine to tow a boat with a LeBaron convertible. Maybe MHO isn't exactly the best.

How could Dodge void his warranty since the Magnum have a 1000 lbs base towing capacity and 3800lbs for the R/T with towing package and that mopar sell an hitch for the car....

From the mopar website :

Designed as a one-piece welded assembly for added strength, Mopar Hitch Receivers match your vehicle's towing capacity. Covered with two-layered, E-coated paint finish to resist rust.

Hitch Receivers Out of sight design 3,800-lb tow rating, 380-lb tongue weight rating with weight distributing equipment; otherwise 2,000-lb tow rating, 200-lb tongue weight rating; 2 opening, Hitch Ball sold separately. Use adapter 82208643 $220.00.

 

[sbbamafan]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

Lets look at it from another perspective. Older rear drive body on frame cars in the 60's and 70's towed boats and other trailers all the time without incident. My dad used to tow an 18' skiboat with my his oldsmobiles all the time. He had a 1969 Olds 98, a 1970 Olds 98, a 1977 Olds 88 that towed weekly sometimes just a few miles, sometimes a few hundred. The first two had 455 CI engines, the '77 had a 350 CI. I don't know what they were rated for. There seems to conflicitng info as to what the 300/Magnum/Charger is rated for. I can say that knowing that these newer, more modern cars have comparable weight, superior brakes, steering, frame rigidity, transmissions and a real 'mofo' of an engine, I can only assume that they would be superior tow vehicles to those of the 20-30 years ago. I also think current tow ratings are much more conservative than back then. If 300/Magnum/ Charger got better mileage than my 4Runner (that I love) I would consider buying one.

 

[JCF350]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

Judging from what a friend tows with his R/T (has the hemi). You oughta be okay.

 

[dave11]

Re: Anyone tow their boat with a Dodge Magnum?

Nice car. I nearly bought one when they first came out. As I recall, the only Magnum recommended for towing is the one with the Hemi. If you have the Hemi, you should be fine.