H23.5 Towing Advise

[Tom L]

I'm looking for advise or opinions on towing my h23.5 about 7 miles from the boat ramp to the storage lot. This is in O.C. MD and the biggest hill is the boat ramp. My minivan is a '96 Plymouth Voyager, 3.0L, 6 cyl., front wheel drive. I am not sure but I would guess that I don't have a transmission cooler. My worries are the boat pulling the minivan into the drink instead of the other way around , or losing the transmission. I am probably going to play it safe and just rent a truck, but that is just a bit of a pain. But the $75 is probably worth the peace of mind. I just gotta ask and hear someone tell me I would be a fool to try it. I also found that U-Haul thinks it is OK for my minivan to tow a 3900 lb. car.

I would have posted on trailer sailors but I'm hoping Crazy Dave might dispense some wisdom.

Thanks all, Tom

 

[dcfleming]

Your vehicle's owner manual should tell you the towing capacity of your vehicle. I've always heard stay with 80% of those limits and you'll be fine. 7 miles isn't much either way, you could get away with 100% towing limit capacity without much worry. Staying in a lower gear as you drive slower helps safe guard against transmission damage.

 

[Tom L]

I know I would be exceeding the towing capacity. The owners manual says it is 1700 lbs. I wasn't even thinking about it until I was looking into using a UHaul trailer to tow a broken down car and their web site said it is OK to tow a 3900 lb. Neon with my Voyager. I'm doubtful but I thought maybe I could stretch it by removing the seats and lightening the boat, using a low gear and driving under 35mph.

I'll just rent the truck, but I thought I would see what others have to say.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

tom;

send me your phone number and location to davecondon@mindspring.com and I will call as there is a lot to be discussed.

crazy dave

 

[kenkindy1]

I'd think the tow capacity would be higher than 1900 lbs. I towed a Hunter 240 with a 3.0 Liter Ford Ranger v-6 on flat ground with no problems. The tow capacity on the Ranger was right at 4000 lbs. The Ranger was by no means heavily built.

 

[Brian M H23]

1st off, there's no way a neon is 3900 lbs. Period.

Other than that, you'll definitely be fine launching with the tounge extended. Pulling the boat out with the water ballast tank full, that's going to be borderline.

Where in OC are you launching? I go there every year..never seemed to be a good place for a sailboat.

 

[Rick Webb]

Not Sure I Would Endorse doing So

But I would not hesitate to do it myself. Keep it slow and stay out of overdrive. If that one trip zapps your transmission it is going to go soon anyway, those transmissions are notoriously weak.

 

[jblersch]

I used to tow my 240 Short distances with a 2002 Grand Caravan (3.3 V6) which was rated at 3,500 lbs capacity. It was tough getting it up the ramp with ballast tank full, but once I got the tank empty, no problems.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

What most do not realize, the 23.5 is lighter in dry weight and when the boat is on the trailer, I use to move up just a little so the water could exit out of the ballast tank and a little more to finish emptying with a Dodge Caravan 6 cylinder and it is a 2005 automatic and is still going strong which I bought for use in my dealership. Even towed a 260 but was some struggling but took it very easy. I will be talking with Tom L today on what and what not to do. Good advice not having the automatic transmission in overdrive.

crazy dave

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

I spoke with this gentleman last night for a long time on dos and dont's and have left my phone numbers with him in the event that he runs into a problem on Saturday retrieving the boat. It sounds like we have the same pulling power and I advised if he puts it into low gear while pulling out letting the water drain with the boat still on the ramp before pulling it up all the way. Since he has no brakes, I advised him further on some techniques of tie down and towing.

crazy dave condon