Tow vehicle question
Registered User
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 236
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From: Parkville Missouri
I have a 04 Nissan Titan that I tow my 20 foot enclosed trailer with. Tow rating of the Titan is over 9,000, and my trailer with the S2K and spare tires and a few tools, is about 7,300. Without the trailer, I get about 14-15 mph with the truck......with the trailer 9 to 10,
Living in the Kansas City area, I have not towed in the mountains. And if I were, i would be looking at a Diesel truck. Probably look at the Duramax Diesel Chev, or the Power Stoke Ford. I also would be looking at the 3/4 ton models, and maybe even a dually.
One thing that I have that I would recommend, is to get a Weight Distribution Hitch with a sway bar. For more info on these, do a search for Weight Distribution Hitch, then look for the ones that have the Sway bar. These type of hitches are a huge help with control in windly conditions.
Joe
Living in the Kansas City area, I have not towed in the mountains. And if I were, i would be looking at a Diesel truck. Probably look at the Duramax Diesel Chev, or the Power Stoke Ford. I also would be looking at the 3/4 ton models, and maybe even a dually.
One thing that I have that I would recommend, is to get a Weight Distribution Hitch with a sway bar. For more info on these, do a search for Weight Distribution Hitch, then look for the ones that have the Sway bar. These type of hitches are a huge help with control in windly conditions.
Joe
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 4,766
Likes: 8
From: Queens, NY
Here's an idea I've had when considering getting a car & trailer. What do you guys think about this:
Instead of buying a truck which means payments, insurance, oil changes, storage, etc. how about renting something like a full size van from a place like Enterprise Rent A Car?
If you're running a 10 race season and you leave Friday and return Sunday, you'll rent it for 3 days, which totals 30 days for the season. At roughly $50 per day for the van, you'll pay $150 for the weekend or $1,500 for the season.
Certainly cheaper than buying a new or 2yr old truck just to tow the racecar, plus you don't have to worry about all the ancillary expenses. Just a thought.
Warren
Instead of buying a truck which means payments, insurance, oil changes, storage, etc. how about renting something like a full size van from a place like Enterprise Rent A Car?
If you're running a 10 race season and you leave Friday and return Sunday, you'll rent it for 3 days, which totals 30 days for the season. At roughly $50 per day for the van, you'll pay $150 for the weekend or $1,500 for the season.
Certainly cheaper than buying a new or 2yr old truck just to tow the racecar, plus you don't have to worry about all the ancillary expenses. Just a thought.
Warren
Registered User
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 4,467
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From: Davie, FL
Originally Posted by WarrenW,May 24 2006, 11:12 PM
Instead of buying a truck which means payments, insurance, oil changes, storage, etc. how about renting something like a full size van from a place like Enterprise Rent A Car?
Administrator
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 20,274
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From: Toronto, Canada
How about buying a used one?
Anyway, with gas prices what they are diesel makes good sense. Not that you require a diesel to tow 7000lbs but you'll get almost 30% more mileage vs. gas.
Get a 3/4 or 1 ton commercial pickup (Ford 250 or 350 Super Duty or GM 2500HD or 3500HD or Dodge whatever). These are built to go 500,000 miles so a used one with < 200K miles is still going to get you where you want to go for a long time. IMHO avoid the "personal" models of big trucks which have a lot of consumer doodads, tits and knobs and shit that will break or fall off over time. They are great for a couple of years but after that become nightmareish. I'd suggest getting something with a towing capacity 50% larger than what you expect to tow. For a 6400 lb rig get a 10000lb towing truck which is about max for a hitch.
Anyway, with gas prices what they are diesel makes good sense. Not that you require a diesel to tow 7000lbs but you'll get almost 30% more mileage vs. gas.
Get a 3/4 or 1 ton commercial pickup (Ford 250 or 350 Super Duty or GM 2500HD or 3500HD or Dodge whatever). These are built to go 500,000 miles so a used one with < 200K miles is still going to get you where you want to go for a long time. IMHO avoid the "personal" models of big trucks which have a lot of consumer doodads, tits and knobs and shit that will break or fall off over time. They are great for a couple of years but after that become nightmareish. I'd suggest getting something with a towing capacity 50% larger than what you expect to tow. For a 6400 lb rig get a 10000lb towing truck which is about max for a hitch.
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 17,288
Likes: 39
From: Nashville
Definately stay away from the early 6.0L Powerstrokes (late 03, early 04)... I had an early 2004 F250 crewcab that got 8mpg towing at 80mph......
I have a 2006 V10 4x4 F250 crewcab now....cost me $30k, looks great, lights up the tires instantly (unlike turbo diesel lag), doesn't stink, isn't noisy, will start easily in the winter, etc......easily pulls my 20' enclosed trailer with a 3200lb car in it.
I use it for rental hauling stuff and family hauler at times.....
I have a 2006 V10 4x4 F250 crewcab now....cost me $30k, looks great, lights up the tires instantly (unlike turbo diesel lag), doesn't stink, isn't noisy, will start easily in the winter, etc......easily pulls my 20' enclosed trailer with a 3200lb car in it.
I use it for rental hauling stuff and family hauler at times.....
Thread Starter
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 2,571
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From: Redmond, Washington, USA
The problem for me is that my family has no need for another vehicle, larger or small, so any tow vehicle I buy will sit unused the vast majority of the time. So it's not possible to justify spending real money on one. I've got a line on an '89 Heavy Duty 7.3 Liter diesel F250, which has adequate towing capacity for the task, and which has a price tag with which I can deal. I'm a bit concerned about maintenance, but it is low mileage, and recently had the transmission rebuilt. And I won't be putting a lot of miles on it. I'm also a bit concerned about the kind of mileage it will get, but I figure that spending only $3500 to get the truck would fund a good deal of lower mileage.
Registered User
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 22,888
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From: Covington WA, USA
Originally Posted by 124Spider,May 25 2006, 08:36 AM
I'm also a bit concerned about the kind of mileage it will get, but I figure that spending only $3500 to get the truck would fund a good deal of lower mileage.
