tow vehicle

barkleydave

barkleydave

Well-known member
This will probably shake a few up... A CHEVY TRUCK !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OUCH!!!

For discussion. I currently have a 2005 Ford Explorer with V8.

I am looking for an aluminum tilt bed trailer to haul my 29 CC PU.

There a lot of tours in Kentucky but many are 200 or more miles away to get to the jump off point. I figure I will haul 6 or more times per year.

I wish Ford built a smaller truck or SUV that could pull the A. I love the Expedition however they are now way out of my budget! I owned one for 180K miles and it was a great hauler with the 5.4.

I have looked at the new Chevy Colorado It looks nicer than most Chevys have for years. It is rated for 7000# towing.

Figure the trailer weight 1,300# Truck 2,300# =3,600# rough guess.

Is my Explorer enough to tow? Or something Else. I do not want to get into a F150 just do not need that much vehicle 95 percent of the time.

Opinions, Suggestions encouraged.

Thanks
 
I tow my '29 CCPU on a 20' aluminum tilt trailer with '13 Grand Cherokee or a 24' Unity MH. I do load it backwards to eliminate any chance of having the visor damaged. With tools, a winch and battery, my trailer runs about 1900 pounds.
 
I would think the Colorado isn't much different than your explorer. I would recommend a light trailer and at the minimum an F150 or Chevy 1500.
 
I wouldn't hesitate to tow that kind of load with my 2005 Aviator (essentially the same vehicle as your '05 Explorer with a V8). I think the Colorado wouldn't be as much a vehicle as the Explorer you already have.

Even my '04 Explorer with a V6 would do OK.

I'm with you on a F150 or Expedition. Just too big for 98% of the use I give it.
 
I, too, am looking at the Chev Colorado as a tow vehilce. Just like Barkleydave, my trailer weight 1300# and I also have a 28 CCPU and a 31 coupe to tow around. Currently I have a 1999 GMC Sierra (1500) with that itty bitty 4.8 liter V-8. It has towed my A's all over the country with NO problems. I just dont try to drive 75-80 mph with the load behind me. Take my time and thet samall V-8 does just fine.

Point. The Colorado has more horsepower and torque than the GMC 4.8 V-8 and the weight of the Full size GMC verses the Colorado is less than 500lbs. The 2015 Coloraado will have better brakes. (rear Disc vs Rear drums on the GMC.difference
 
I have towed my Model A's several times for many miles with a 2003 Explorer with a 4.6 V8 and an 18 ft trailer weighing 1800 lbs or so. No problems. The manual says to take the Explorer out of overdrive. Most Model A's weigh 2200-2600 lbs. I always use a weight distributing hitch on the loaded trailer and not on an unloaded trailer. I never tow the cars backwards because they can become unstable. A trailer brake controller is a must also.

The trailer was great for hauling long sheets of drywall also.

Good luck,
Vic
 
FYI the new colorado is the same size as the 90's fullsize trucks and cost just as much as a new fullsize truck so keep that in mind if you think its going to be too big....

for towability the more gears your trans has the better, also factor in the cost of adding a real transmission cooler for the automatic (such a shame you cant get a manual trans in a fullsize anymore...)
 
also i have no idea how they figure out what a vehicle can tow - my 2002 chevy blazer says it can tow 6,000#, sure it could move it no problem with the 4.3L v6 but it would be extremely scary to try to stop that much considering its got the wheelbase of a jeep wrangler...
 
Thanks guys!!!! All good points. I did pull my truck on a VERY heavy steel industrial equipment trailer for 40 miles. The Explorer actually pulled it ok but was touchy... No Coffee mugs recommended!

As it turned out the electric brakes were not working which I checked before trailering the truck. I took it slow but it was not fun!

I used a new Ford F150 Ecoboost to tow the rig and truck the other 300 miles. I was surprised how well it handled the load.

I need to find a trailer and I think I will stick with the Explorer for awhile. After pricing other vehicles... OH MAN... way out of my budget!!!!!!!
 
I have a 2002 Explorer with a V8 and the trailer towing package, it is a fine tow vehicle, has the weight and the power to get the job done, especially pulling an A with a reasonable weight trailer, without going out and buying a new 35K PU. I also recommend the suggestion of not towing in OD, whatever vehicle you are using.
 
I have a 1989 Ford F150 w/ the straight six and 5 spd manual. Using an open car trailer, four wheel with electric brakes, I pulled a 1940 John Deere, (A) from Oklahoma City to Danville, CA with no problems. Same setup pulled two doodlebugs from Mc Alister, OK to here, with a two wheel trailer sans brakes, pulled a 29 Model A pickup to San Diego from Rio Rico, AZ, then on to Danville, CA via 101. The ones with brakes keep the heart out of the throat, though stopping was okay, I worried about it. with the brakes, hardly gave it a thought, even in Texas where 85 is the normal traffic. Gas milage wasn't much of 16 or 17 though. I would do it again with any of them.
 
Just for the 'heck of it', another opinion, free, and not worth it...
In my family, we've had various tow vehicles, including Explorer, Grand Cherokee, F-150, F-250, C-20, and currently a 09 Yukon. (Also regular cars, in older days). Our problem has always been the TRANSMISSIONS. Most of them are junk. I'm a little sensitive because I am currently facing a $4500-5000 transmission for the Yukon. This, after only one towing trip. And, on the largest trans GM has, 6-speed, HD, with trailer towing feature.
The Explorer, Cherokee, and older car transmissions were especially junk. The TH 400, and C-6 trans' both were excellent with respect to durability, but were quite inefficient. (Our C-20, with almost 46 years and 300 K mi, has never had the TH 400 apart)
My best wishes to those of you who are successful with lighter duty vehicles.
Just opinion...
 
Last edited:
bobH said:
Just for the 'heck of it', another opinion, free, and not worth it...
In my family, we've had various tow vehicles, including Explorer, Grand Cherokee, F-150, F-250, C-20, and currently a 09 Yukon. (Also regular cars, in older days). Our problem has always been the TRANSMISSIONS. Most of them are junk. I'm a little sensitive because I am currently facing a $4500-5000 transmission for the Yukon. This, after only one towing trip. And, on the largest trans GM has, 6-speed, HD, with trailer towing feature.
The Explorer, Cherokee, and older car transmissions were especially junk. The TH 400, and C-6 trans' both were excellent with respect to durability, but were quite inefficient. (Our C-20, with almost 46 years and 300 K mi, has never had the TH 400 apart)
My best wishes to those of you who are successful with lighter duty vehicles.
Just opinion...
Click to expand...

they probably all bit the dust because they dont have a true seperate trans cooler radiator. most cars just run a tube zig zaged a few times inside the already hotter than normal regular coolant radiator. if you plan to haul anything and want the trans to last you must install a seperate little radiator for the trans that sits in front of the regular radiator.

or just get a vehicle with a manual trans:D
 
Use your Explorer. We had one like yours and used it a few times. Worked o.k. Drive like you are pulling a trailer; think ahead.

Neal
 
I have been towing large boats(30+ ft) tractors, campers etc for over 50 years. I know where you are coming from. I think about some of the loads I hauled years ago on trailers with no brakes or non working brakes and scares me now.

I never tow above 65 MPH and that is only on flat ground on a nice highway (which is hard to find these days!) Explorer MPG towing sucks but I can buy a lot of gas for what a new tow vehicle would cost to tow less than 5000 miles per year

First time I towed a load with properly working electric brakes...I was sold! Surge brakes are ok on boat trailers because you are submerging them in water launching. Still hate them.. most the time they work poor and are not properly maintained. Backing up hill with them... well that's another tale!

Next Question: Tilt bed trailer? Or Ramp?
 
My Son towed my 1930 pickup over 100 miles with an open trailer with his 2014 ford Explorer equipped with an ecoboost V6 .. It sailed down the road with no problems..
 
What ever you purchase, get one with the heaviest trailer tow package available for the vehicle. They do not add much in the way of the price, but save you a lot in the long run by keeping the transmission oil cooler, heaver radiator for the engine, better frame mounted hitch, slightly lower gear ratio in the rear end( or both if 4 wheel drive) and it is all wired up only need to add brake controller. This is the way have purchased the last three Jeeps and have never had a transmission problem along with changing the transmission fluids ever 30k miles. Pulled a lot of trailers a lot of miles.
 
I pull our model a sedan and CJ2A jeep with a 2013 toyota hylander. Its a V6. It's got a 5K towing capacity and has been fine. At highway speeds I lock it out of overdrive, but it pretty much stays out on it's own. I get 18mpg all day towing the car.

I guess if you have money to burn a big truck would be nice, but since we haul the car maybe twice a year it doesn't make sense to drive that beast the rest of the year. The toyota gets about 22mpg average empty and is very car like, both in handling, size and price tag.
 
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