Separate vehicle for towing?

[nclex2011]

I love boating, want to get a pontoon boat, one that's probably in the 2000-2500 pound range. The boat itself I would use around 4 months per year around summer time.

Here's the issue... My car is old and in need of a replacement. When I do buy a new car, I planned on buying a small compact car with an efficient engine. I really can't perceive buying a large gas-guzzling towing capable vehicle as a primary vehicle when 95% of my driving will be done WITHOUT the boat towed to the back.

This made me think of the idea of buying a very cheap used SUV or Truck (something no more than $3K) with a high tow capacity, register it, insure it, and use it basically only for boat, or any other needs I might have for it (moving furnature, etc).

My main question is, is this a reasonable thing to do? I have a feeling it's not so reasonable, but then again, how would buying an SUV or truck which is very inefficient going to be reasonable when I use it for it's purpose so infrequently. Has anyone ever done this? It might cost alot in purchasing the vehicle, but after that, I feel like the long term costs will begin to balance out. Also not a bad idea to have backup vehicle in the yard.

 

[dockwrecker]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

If you've got a spot to keep an extra vehicle, it makes good sense. My buddy and I bought a Suburban for $3000 with a 454 and 4.10 rear gears that we kept for towing toys. It was a total POS to look at, but had plenty of grunt. Kept it 12 years until his wife no longer would stand the sight of it. Burned lots of gas and oil, but otherwise was very reliable. We got $1500 for it when we sold it, so for about $110 per year, it was really a heck of a deal!

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

Depends really how far you are going to be towing and how reliable the vehicle you buy turns out to be. If you get a good one then it is a great idea. I just got a 2007 Trailblazer as our tow vehicle and our 4WD winter vehicle for snow etc. It was the replacement for a 98 Jimmy that I bought for primarily the same purpose as you. Bought it for $2,500 3 years ago and sold it for $2,000 after 3 years use. Only reason for selling was the dubious upcoming reliability on long hauls and the amount of money that I would have to put into it to keep it running for another couple of years.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

People get all wrapped around the axle with second vehicle purchases and the "gas guzzling" nonsense. My Mother told me many years ago that she needed a new car because her current one burned too much gas. At the time she was in her mid seventies and upon checking the odometer, she drove less than 3500 miles a year. So much for needing a new car. The same goes for tow vehicles. If you buy a toy that needs towing, you obviously need a tow vehicle. You baby car certainly can't tow it so you have two choices. Don't buy the boat or buy the boat and the necessary tow vehicle. Since you tow infrequently, and apparently not great distances, you don't need a large truck. A mid size will do nicely with a good size V6 or small V8. If you are putting on very few miles gas mileage is not a factor.

 

[can-amsledder]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

^^^Good post! ^^^


I guess it all depends on how many miles you put on. Figure out the difference in fuel cost between let say a v6 SUV and the compact you are looking at. If the cost savings warrant buying two vehicles then go for it.

 

[98Shabah]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

If your primary (fuel efficient) vehicle got 30mpg combined and you drove the national average of 15,000 miles a year at $2.49 a gallon you'd spend $1245 that year for gas.

If your primary (and tow) vehicle only got 16mpg combined and you drove the same national average of 15,000 miles a year at the same $2.49 a gallon you'd spend $2334 that year for gas.

So if your primary vehicle were also a tow vehicle you'd be spending a little over $1000 a year more for the extra gas but you'd only have one vehicle.. Seems cheaper than having a tow only vehicle + it's gas + it's maintenance + insurance + it's purchase price...???

 

[JimS123]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

Personally, I think a dedicated tow vehicle is the way to go. I bought my gas guzzler brand new during the first "energy crisis". I got it for a song because nobody wanted the big barges. We used it as a second car for a few years, then bought a more economical ride. I now run it about 100 miles a year, 60 of which are towing the boat.

My annual costs are less than $500 a year for the towcar. Cost aside, it does perform as a second car when the primary vehicle is in the shop, or just for a fun Sunday drive. Could I save money by having only 1 car that does double duty? Sure! But I prefer to drive a sportscar every day and that won't cut it pulling a boat.

Just my preference.

 

[Titanium48]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

If you buy a 2500 lb boat, you will be able to pull it with a vehicle that gets decent fuel economy when not towing. Not as good as a small car, but probably within 5 MPG. On the other hand, a dedicated tow vehicle can also be an extra / backup car.

 

[security6]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

If your boat only weights 2500 lbs, you should be able to get by with a "cute-ute." For example, the Toyota Rav4 with the v6 is rated to tow 3500 lbs, and gets 19/27 mpg. Most car manufacturers have something similar.

On the other hand, a dedicated tow vehicle shouldn't cost much if you can do maintenance/repairs yourself. If you get something old, you will need liability insurance only. Given that the vehicle is not driven much, insurance will be very cheap (assuming you have insurance on a primary vehicle). Your real issue is the up-front cost. A decent tow rig will probably cost at least $2k up front, and maybe more.

You could do what I do - get married. I get to drive the sporty car every day, but we still have the big SUV to tow the boat and be my wife's primary vehicle (her preference).

 

[642mx]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

There is nothing wrong with having dedicated vehicles to do the job. I've got a 2008 Tundra for pulling the boat, pulling the enclosed motorcycle trailer, and to drive when I need to haul something big. We also take it out to eat and drive it on nice days.... in short, its my baby.

I have a 60 mile day commute, so I bought a 99 Mazda B2500 (same as Ford Ranger). Its got a 4 cylinder thats easy on gas & the a/c works so its perfect for a "work truck".

In my case, I bought a $3000 truck to save my $36,000 truck. Both have their purpose.

If you like your daily driver and need something cheap to pull a boat, then go for it!

 

[dingbat]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

At one point our tow and grocery getter where one and the same. The large size and excess mileage on an expensive 4 wheel drive truck was a bigger issue than the fuel economy.

 

[can-amsledder]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

There is nothing wrong with having dedicated vehicles to do the job. I've got a 2008 Tundra for pulling the boat, pulling the enclosed motorcycle trailer, and to drive when I need to haul something big. We also take it out to eat and drive it on nice days.... in short, its my baby.

I have a 60 mile day commute, so I bought a 99 Mazda B2500 (same as Ford Ranger). Its got a 4 cylinder thats easy on gas & the a/c works so its perfect for a "work truck".

In my case, I bought a $3000 truck to save my $36,000 truck. Both have their purpose.

If you like your daily driver and need something cheap to pull a boat, then go for it!

That?s the route I should go! I have a 75 mile round trip commute and my 07 Avalanche already has over 75 thousand miles on it. A little truck like yours is what I need.

 

[642mx]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

That?s the route I should go! I have a 75 mile round trip commute and my 07 Avalanche already has over 75 thousand miles on it. A little truck like yours is what I need.

Yep! It keeps the miles off the "good" truck. My Tundra only has 11K miles on it. The little Mazda has over 100K.... but thats what I bought it for, to rack miles up and save me $$$.

 

[riptide09]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

My tow vehicle and commuter was an '03 Tundra V8. The gas savings for a separate commuter with good gas mileage does not cover the cost of registration, taxes, maintenance and insurance and that does not count purchase price of the second vehicle. You can try and justify a second vehicle anyway you want but when it comes down to savings/money alone there is no justifcation.

OK. Now that I have said that last fall I got a commuter and the Tundra is pretty much used only for towing and other times when I need a truck. My mother was getting to old to drive so we took her car away. I ended up with an '01 Subaru Outback with on 38k miles for free. There are advantages to having the second vehicle that make up for the additional expenses.

 

[cobra99]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

I would get another vehicle for towing because of the type of boat that you are planning on getting. A pontoon may not weigh very much but it is like towing a parachute. I would look for something like a truck with a long wheel base to help against the wind. The other factor is that you will have many more friends if you buy a truck and a boat for things like moving.

 

[capt sam]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

I used a seperate tow vehicle for years, mostly because of the salt water here, even if you don't put the vehicle in it, the ramps are always wet with it and your wheels sling it up under the body causing rust.

 

[JoLin]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

People get all wrapped around the axle with second vehicle purchases and the "gas guzzling" nonsense. My Mother told me many years ago that she needed a new car because her current one burned too much gas. At the time she was in her mid seventies and upon checking the odometer, she drove less than 3500 miles a year. So much for needing a new car. The same goes for tow vehicles. If you buy a toy that needs towing, you obviously need a tow vehicle. You baby car certainly can't tow it so you have two choices. Don't buy the boat or buy the boat and the necessary tow vehicle. Since you tow infrequently, and apparently not great distances, you don't need a large truck. A mid size will do nicely with a good size V6 or small V8. If you are putting on very few miles gas mileage is not a factor.

Exactly- I've thought long and hard about buying a second vehicle. Driving a 10 mpg monster for the sake of an occasional tow, seems counter-intuitive.

When I run the numbers, however, it doesn't make any sense. Between purchase price, fuel, insurance, maintenance and repairs on a second car, I'm way ahead of the game if I don't do it. I currently drive only about 8K miles per years- I'd have to drive more than 30k miles for 4-5 years just to break even on the cost, let alone the aggravation of having yet ANOTHER mechanical device to take care of

My .02

 

[Subliminal]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

Some other things to consider...you can shoe a honda civic for $200, while it cost $900 to shoe my truck. An oil change in a civic probably uses about 3 qts of oil...my truck uses 4 gallons. A clutch job for a small car is cheap, where it's expensive for a big truck.

I drive my diesel every day, but I do it because I enjoy it. I paid $5k for the truck, another grand(ish) for tires and then the transmission blew up on me so i dropped another $1k on a donor truck and changed it to a manual. It cost me $400 a year to insure, and another $50 to register. It gets right at 18 MPG empty around town.

We also have a summertime fun car: A 91 VW Cabriolet. It's got 160k on it, is a nightmare to work on, but when it runs it runs great. Costs $400 a year to insure, $50 to register and gets right at 25 mpg around town.

But, if the vw needs new tires or a new axle or something like that, it's peanuts in comparison to the truck, and because of the girth of the truck, it needs maint. more often on things like tie rod ends, bearing and ball joints.

So there's all sorts of factors, but considering this is a toy forum, it all comes down to personal enjoyment. If you can justify driving a larger vehicle every day, and can afford it, more power to ya!

 

[steve6]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

I have a vw jetta diesel for a commuter/daily car, and a 99 cadillac seville sts as a tow vehicle.. having one bigger vehicle would bankrupt me in fuel costs. Some things i do to make it more manageable is i don't carry collision coverage on the second vehicle, i also don't have 'rental car' coverage on my insurance, i have a second vehicle for such instances.. The second car needs very little maintenance, an oil change once every 6 months, the odd repair.


but i also use my 'tow' vehicle in the winter to tow snowmobiles around.. so i get summer and winter usage out of it. Its also a nicer car to take more than 4 people in as opposed to the jetta...

 

[F14CRAZY]

Re: Separate vehicle for towing?

2000-2500 isn't that much. A Subaru Forester (which I own) normally gets 27-28 mpg with hard freeway driving and is rated to tow 2400 lbs. An Outback can tow 3k lbs and mileage would be similar.

Are you considering buying new or used? A new V6 Chevy Equinox, Ford Escape, Kia Sorento...there's lots of small-midsize crossovers that can safely tow that much and get respectable mileage. Keep minivans in mind too.

A '90s Caprice, Roadmaster, Fleetwood, or Custom Cruiser have ratings up to 7k lbs and are rated like 25 mpg hwy.