Off roading and towing

[Ron Burgundy]

I've been wanting to get back into some off roading, and I also want something that can tow my 20' pontoon boat on occasion. Has anyone used a Jeep Wrangler (or CJ series) to tow your boat? Is the short wheel base a real safety issue with towing a pontoon boat, or do you just have to be more carefull when towing?

[Ron Burgundy]

I can get something like this for under $5K which is about my max budget.

[Rangercd]

What is the towing capacity of the jeep?
My biggest concern would be the weight of the jeep compared to the boat/trailer. Knowing that most braking systems on boat trailers now a days are surge brakes on one axle, I'd want my towing vehicle to at weigh more then what I am towing if I'm going out on the highway with it.
The center of gravity also on a jeep would scare me pulling a 20 foot pontoon. I think making a quick swerve could send the whole thing on it's side???
Just quickly thinking about this, it's my opinion. No experience trying it.

[Ron Burgundy]

Not sure, but found this on a website


Capacity
Jeep Wranglers have a towing capacity of 3,500 to 4,000 lbs towing capacity. This means that the loaded weight of your trailer (weight of trailer plus all gear) should not exceed this weight range.

They also addresses the issue of sway and weight control.


Weight Distribution and Sway Control
Adding weight distribution to your trailer helps to keep your Jeep and trailer level and distributes the load you are carrying more evenly. Adding sway control can help your trailer withstand gusts created by sharing the road with large trucks or towing in strong winds. Sway control is particularly helpful with enclosed trailers that have a large surface area.

[Ron Burgundy]

Found this on another website...

Ever heard of 'the tail wagging the dog?' think of the jeep as a lap dog and stick the tail of a great dane on there and start wagging... thats why towing with wranglers generally isn't the best idea.

[Ron Burgundy]

Maybe an Expedition would make a better tow vehicle. Anyone have one? The suv's in my price range have pretty high miles in the neighborhood of 125,000 and up usually. Do they have enough life left to make it a decent purchase?

[jlbutl]

Ron, I tow with a Yukon XL which is just a little smaller than the expedition and it does pretty well. Can't get above 60-65 without the trailer starting to sway, but don't feel comfortable towing an 8 1/2' x 34' trailer behind me at those speeds anyway.

[Ron Burgundy]

Yeah, I don't need to go too far but I would like to be able to haul out the boat if there is a hurricane or I need to do some maintenance. There are some lakes nearby also, and a bunch of spots up and down the coast that I want to explore. I think the trick is finding a good quality used truck that has been well maintained.

[Ray Jr.]

I have 2 Expeditions, a 98 with 200,000 on it and it still runs like a champ, averages 14-15 mpg on rural roads lots of hills, 8-9 when pulling the toon.
We just picked up an 09 and it averages 19-20 on the same roads, 12-13 pulling the toon.

[Ron Burgundy]

That's about the mpg I expected. That would hurt the pocket book if it was my daily driver, but I'll take my car to work and just use this on the weekends or when towing the boat somewhere. I was thinking about an Explorer also because my wife will probably drive it to her work which is only 1.5 miles away. I think she would be able to park it better because it's smaller, but not sure if it would pull the 'toon as well.

[jlbutl]

Ron, we have a lot of them for sale up here around my area. Its actually funny that you posted this, because Saturday morning on the way to the gun range we saw a decent looking one for sale by owner on the side of the road. After I saw your post, I looked it up on craigslist and it appears to be a good deal. I know its a bit far for you, but hey, you can at least us it for comparison....

http://pensacola.craigslist.org/cto/2566189679.html

[Ray Jr.]

Ron, we had an 06 Explorer that we traded for the 09 Expedition, it pulled our toon pretty well it had the 5800 lb tow rating and 4.0 v6, to get the heavy tow package they use a lower rear gear. It got 17-18 mpg regularly but only 9-10 towing. the only prolem towing with it was if you got a heavy cross wind it would move over a half a lane or more on the road. with your boat that could be less of a problem. The Expeditions don't move at all in a cross wind.

The 98 Expedition has the 9500 lb tow package (low rear gear and part of the reason for the lower mileage)
The 09 Expedition has the light tow package 5500 lbs and the higher gear so it gets the better mileage. we are up hear in the White Mountains of NH so that also hurts MPG, with FL being pretty flat you should be able to get a little better mileage.

[badmoonrising]

I have an '09 F-150 (basically the same mechanically as an Expedition). Great truck, not single problem with it so far other than maintenance.

137,000 miles so far. The F-150 tows several thousand pound more than an Expedition though.

[The_Hellbilly]

NOTE: I didn't take the time to read the entire thread ( I know, shame on me )

I did have a buddy put his 4 winns in yesterday with his Jeep Wrangler. He was backing down the ramp, hit is breaks, but the weight of the boat continued to drag his Jeep down the ramp. He quickly put it in drive, the boat floated off, and everything was ok.

I'm just pointing out that weight is something to consider.

[Ron Burgundy]