Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

[chambers1517]

I saw a Jetta pulling a 210 Sea Ray yesterday. I recently bought a truck to pull my boat and I went by my insurance agent (State Farm) to give him the Vin. I asked him about the jetta and he said there are lots of idiots out there but it was perfectly legal. He said if that was one of his clients and there was an accident State farm would pay. There is no disclamer for vehicle tow rating. He also said there would not even be a ticket from the police. I asked how this was possible. He asked if the police should dismantle every vehicle in an accident and make sure it is safe to drive. Lots of vehicles with bad brakes or other safety issues that are involved in an accident. He said a Honda Odyssey is a better tow vehicle than a 1 ton diesel with bad brakes and slick tires. I don't know.

 

[agallant80]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

Hey there is some guy out there towing a 24 foot Yamaha with a G35 coop.

 

[Starcraft5834]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

I saw a Jetta pulling a 210 Sea Ray yesterday. I recently bought a truck to pull my boat and I went by my insurance agent (State Farm) to give him the Vin. I asked him about the jetta and he said there are lots of idiots out there but it was perfectly legal. He said if that was one of his clients and there was an accident State farm would pay. There is no disclamer for vehicle tow rating. He also said there would not even be a ticket from the police. I asked how this was possible. He asked if the police should dismantle every vehicle in an accident and make sure it is safe to drive. Lots of vehicles with bad brakes or other safety issues that are involved in an accident. He said a Honda Odyssey is a better tow vehicle than a 1 ton diesel with bad brakes and slick tires. I don't know.

unless someone is killed......police dont generally tear vehicles apart and inspect breaks and such....its a money issue unfortunately....policy

 

[Brian 26]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

My brother in law (I've ragged on his boating techniques on here before) has a 21' searay he tows with a Chevy Tahoe. All good right? Wrong. He is using a ball that is only rated for 3,500 lbs AND does not fit the shank hole in his hitch. EVEN THOUGH I'VE TOLD HIM MULTIPLE TIMES TO SWITCH IT.

So I guess I can see what you're agent is saying. The guy with the Jetta might be safer than my guy.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

on the other hand don't forget that his expertise is in SELLING insurance.... He may well be right but he could give bad info just as easily as anyone else.

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

I asked him about the jetta and he said there are lots of idiots out there but it was perfectly legal. He said if that was one of his clients and there was an accident State farm would pay. There is no disclamer for vehicle tow rating.

on the other hand don't forget that his expertise is in SELLING insurance.... He may well be right but he could give bad info just as easily as anyone else.

Disclaimer, I used to work in insurance, and it was NOT selling insurance either. (was in IT) I've been saying the exact same thing in every thread where tow rating comes up... It is not illegal (if you are not commercial), and your insurance will pay without batting an eye. If you have multiple at-fault claims, you will probably get dropped at renewal. (regardless of overweight or not)

I have never once seen a civil lawsuit where an overloaded tow vehicle was a deciding factor. Not once. Surprisingly, the guys who were towing way over their limit rarely had claims, you tend to drive much, much safer if you have lots of weight pushing! All the claims came from guys who had tow rigs big enough that they didn't notice the load behind them.

Lastly, insurance agents also carry insurance on themselves. Its called 'errors and omissions' (E&O) insurance, and it covers them for things like that. In this case though, the insurance agent was absolutely correct.

Towing is 99% driver, 1% vehicle. Far too many guys buy a new shiny boat and a big truck to pull it, without any experience whatsoever pulling anything. You gain that experience by towing in less than optimal conditions and learning to deal with it, safely, slowly, and cautiously.

 

[KD4UPL]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

I guess I don't get the concern. Why should a guy pulling his boat with a Jetta get a ticket? It's not illegal.
What's the problem? It's his tow vehicle, his boat, he's (presumable) paid all the tags, insurance, inspections, etc. on the tow vehicle and the trailer. The trailer must have properly functioning brakes and lights or it wouldn't pass inspection.
So the weight is over the tow limit. That likely means it will be pretty slow accelerating and pretty slow up hills. Big deal. The tongue weight of a 21' boat on a trailer is likely much less than the passenger load you could put in a Jetta. I would think the rear suspension would be more than up to the task.
I just don't see the reason to be so concerned. I'm far more worried about drivers tailgating, weaving in and out of traffic, being drunk or on drugs, etc. Some guy towing something a little to heavy just doesn't seem like a big deal.
And yes, I do tow above the rating of my diesel dually truck. It's been working fine for many years.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

the "BIG DEAL" is when I am sitting at a cross walk on my motorcycle waiting for someone's grandma to cross the road and this retard with a boat 3 times what he should be pulling with his car plows into me and grandma killing one of us and crippling the other....


THAT'S the "big deal"

 

[dan02gt]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

It might be legal to tow with the vehicle overloaded, but if he hit me with that crap by the time my lawyers got done with him I would have his boat, car, house, and everything penny he has to his name. It's extreme negligence at best.

My ex wife owned a Jetta and couldn't imagine towing anything other than a small lawnmower trailer with it. Unfortunately this is the type of guy that kills the family of four and walks away without a scratch.

 

[chambers1517]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

It is normally the guys with big trucks pulling huge loads who scare me. These guys often pass me doing 85 down the interstate. I guarantee the jetta pulling the sea ray at 50 is safer than a one ton dually pulling a huge load at 85, at least I know which one I would rather be hit by. Semi trailers are another thing, why are they allowed to run the interstates at 85 when they have no chance to stop short in an emergency situation?

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

II guarantee the jetta pulling the sea ray at 50 is safer than a one ton dually pulling a huge load at 85

A Jetta towing that boat at 10MPH would make me more nervous.

 

[chambers1517]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

Yeah but which one would you rather have a crash with?

 

[GA_Boater]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

Yeah but which one would you rather have a crash with?

None of them!

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

And if I was forced to drive either of those 2 rigs for the conditions you stated, I would drive the one ton dually in a heartbeat.

 

[chambers1517]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

Me too. I had a ford excursion that had a wander I could not get rid of. They are known for this. I pulled a 21' boat with it for a year and it was nerve wracking. I bought a 23' boat and pulled it 800 miles with my wifes sorento. Easy as pie and the insurance doesn't care either way.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

I bought a 23' boat and pulled it 800 miles with my wifes sorento.

Isn't the max tow rating on that vehicle 3500 lbs?

I hope its a light 23' boat!

 

[chambers1517]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

Yep and I would pick it over the excursion any day. The excursion is rated to tow 11000. Look up ford excursion wandering and look at the complaints. The kia is lighter with bigger brakes and when I tried slamming them on it stopped fast. The excursion would dart. The kia was rock solid. I did buy a truck but the kia was all I had at the time.

 

[chambers1517]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

Oh yeah. Take a 1 ton truck and put a big cruiser behind it that is a little under the limit for the truck. I bet the kia with my boat behind it will out stop and out handle the much bigger rig.

 

[agallant80]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

Yup my tow vehicle is a 2001 Excursion and it likes to wonder. Hope when I hook up the WD hitch it will help a bit....

 

[chambers1517]

Re: Pulling Sea Ray 210 with Jetta TDI

I did like my excursion. I had a trailer and a tractor I pulled with it (8500 lbs) and it actually did better with more weight.