towing questions....

[James Brant]

seems the more i look into it, the more i read, the more complicated and mathematical towing becomes.....

i got my first boat last fall, a 16' Silver Streak open challenger. it's been podded and arched, has a kicker. according to SS website it says 'tow weight 1726 pounds'.
so let's say 2000. i have a Nissan xterra with v6, weighs about 4400 pounds give or take. so far i've towed the boat mostly short distances around the Campbell River launches, including Browns. i have little other experience with towing. everything seems pretty good so far, of course i'm more cautious and careful driving and early braking, and it seems 'normal', but i wouldn't want to tow much more with my vehicle even if it says it's rated for more.

anyways, i've got a trip planned to the interior, trout hwy in the summer. i'm concerned about the Coq and bigger mountain hwy driving and wondering if my set up is up to snuff. single axle trailer, no trailer brakes, no special load hitches, just the basics. i'm probably over thinking it but i see these videos of trailer sway and holy bejebus, **** goes sideways fast with a trailer and it looks scary AF.

i have never checked tounge weight. the rear of the ute sags a few inches and i do have an extra leaf in the springs. prior to summer travels, i'll make sure brakes are tip top, may replace front pads. anything i should be thinking about or doing to make trailering as safe as possible? do people add trailer brakes aftermarket? i'd rather not spend money, and if i was only going to always be local probably wouldn't do anything extra, but like i say, i don't have a lot of experience with this.

 

[chris73]

Check the tongue weight - should be around 200# for your setup. Make sure your car brakes are good, tires good, trailer wheel bearings good and off and go and have some fun!

 

[pescador]

I wouldn’t drive the Coq without trailer brakes. If you ever get uncontrollable trailer sway, it’s the trailer brakes being applied that correct it. And it normally will happen going down a hill. Often when a large vehicle passes you creating a bow wave sucking you into their lane. Once it starts it’s hard to stop without trailer brakes being hammered on. The Coq has the mother of all hills. Secondly, what’s your vehicle gross combined weight and max trailer towing capacity? You’ll need to do math to figure this out, and you need to confirm that tongue weight is approx 10% of trailer weight, in your case say 200lbs. Take it to the highway scales in your area and weigh everything. It helps getting things figured out. I’d weigh the front and rear suv axles note weight then boat axle too all with your normal load. If you can disconnect the trailer and weigh the tongue too that’ll give you a start point to make sure you’re balanced. It’s a bit of trial and error, but, when you get it right you’ll feel it when you drive it.

 

[Flashman]

Big hills like on the Coq can also be very very hard on automatic transmission when towing. Heat is a major killer of automatic transmission. Depending on how your vehicle is configured, might want to consider a larger transmission cooler. They not expensive or hard to install.

 

[kaelc]

How many people travel with you while towing and how loaded are you with gear? If you are solo travelling light I would send it, but if you are already questioning then you are not me in my young and dumb days. Good on you for thinking ahead.

If it’s 3-5 people packed to the gills on the trip get surge or electric disk brakes on that trailer before the trip. I had a Nissan frontier v6 with factory tow package and it towed an 18 foot hewescraft and a lot more with no problems, except I did have an extra leaf pack installed.

Weight the boat, on a highway scale, wouldn’t be surprised if it was 2500lbs tanks topped up, downriggers on, a cooler with ice and cannonballs etc.

 

[James Brant]

it will be just me and my wife, moderate gear. i reckon about 2500 as well with all gear in boat and full cooler. i think i'll get everything weighed and see if Boatland or someone has a tounge scale. it seems extreme to get into major modifications on that little trailer but who knows. one challenge with the xterra is that it's a very short wheelbase. this is great for every day driving, but it's inherently less stable than a frontier as the wheelbase is at least a foot shorter.

 

[Corey_lax]

You’ll be fine

 

[pescador]

it will be just me and my wife, moderate gear. i reckon about 2500 as well with all gear in boat and full cooler. i think i'll get everything weighed and see if Boatland or someone has a tounge scale. it seems extreme to get into major modifications on that little trailer but who knows. one challenge with the xterra is that it's a very short wheelbase. this is great for every day driving, but it's inherently less stable than a frontier as the wheelbase is at least a foot shorter.

Remember wheel base is all the leverage you have against sway. It’s the single biggest contributor to loss of control based on research I’ve done. The distance between ball hitch to Center of trailer axle should not be more than 2.5 of your tow vehicle wheelbase. Look for short hauls all the rules can be bent a little …..maybe. But long hauls on highways, towing is serious. I know because I got into a serious sway problem back in 2008 on the Malahat that almost got me into an accident. After that I did a lot of research bought a new longer wheel base vehicle put on a weight distribution hitch and always carried lots of spare parts. And I always made sure my tow capacity was 20% greater than what I was towing.

 

[Squire]

Sage advice in both of pescador’s posts. I would add though that the further the distance behind the axels you place weight, the greater the influence on sway as well. I always cringe at the outside racks on the back of travel trailers for this reason.

And I have experienced an automatic transmission overheating in a 2001 Dodge Dakota. I was climbing the hill up from Little Fort toward Bridge Lake with a family of four towing a small utility trailer with a 12’ tinny on top and loaded up with camping gear. I had to make a couple of cooling stops and as soon as we levelled out we were ok but it was dicey for a bit.

 

[N2013]

For a trip like this, I think you're going to run out of space with all the gear you'll need. In addition to the personal gear you guys will have, You're going to need to be self reliant should you have a mechanical issue. At least 2 spares minimum, replacement hub, bearings, grease, jacks, misc tools, safety cones, cribbing, leaf springs, the list could go on and on. If you can keep the weight out of the boat during the major sections of the trip, I think you'll be okay. Worst thing you could do would be run with the boat loaded with gear & fuel. Stay in the slow lane, use you 4 ways when climbing the hill, expect and plan for things to wrong. Use a travel cover for the boat. Last summer drivingt to Penticton from Van, we passed at least 6 trailers having mechanical issues along the way. No thanks. That's a long way to go for a bunch of catch & release. Epic trip though.

 

[tubber]

Go for a loaded rip on hwy to Comox. You'll know if there is sway or unease during braking.
Enter the fishing hwy from 100 Mile to avoid the Coq and the climb up from Little Fort .
I tow a similar weight load without brakes, but with a half ton over the coq and 97C several times a year.

 

[James Brant]

yeah i figure a fully loaded trip to Comox would be a good idea. looking at the map i'll avoid the Coq entirely. will get further mechanical advice.

no catch and release, the goal will be to take home legal limits of kokanee and bows from the lakes we'll be fishing. always wanted to experience this fishery. will only know if it was worth it in terms of effort and wear and tear driving if i do it at least once. i don't think i'll go quite so far as carrying 3 or 4 spares, sets of leaf springs a garage full of tools etc. i mean, who would even bother with travel if that's the case?

 

[pescador]

yeah i figure a fully loaded trip to Comox would be a good idea. looking at the map i'll avoid the Coq entirely. will get further mechanical advice.

no catch and release, the goal will be to take home legal limits of kokanee and bows from the lakes we'll be fishing. always wanted to experience this fishery. will only know if it was worth it in terms of effort and wear and tear driving if i do it at least once. i don't think i'll go quite so far as carrying 3 or 4 spares, sets of leaf springs a garage full of tools etc. i mean, who would even bother with travel if that's the case?

Driving from Victoria to Gold River over a 30 times with my boat in tow I’d never leave home without; a jack, a jack stand, spare trailer light, a pre packed wheel bearing/spindle, grease gun,tire chocks, multiple 2x8 pieces 12 inches long, spare leaf spring, spare tire, air compressor, impact wrench (battery type), crow bar, heavy hammer and a full set of tools with coveralls. I’ve seen grown men crying on the side of the road between GR and Campbell River because their trips were ruined because of a broken spring or burned bearing. No cell service, no way to get towed without leaving it to drive into town. Heat , poor planning and maintenance are the enemy. Just one mans view.

 

[N2013]

yeah i figure a fully loaded trip to Comox would be a good idea. looking at the map i'll avoid the Coq entirely. will get further mechanical advice.

no catch and release, the goal will be to take home legal limits of kokanee and bows from the lakes we'll be fishing. always wanted to experience this fishery. will only know if it was worth it in terms of effort and wear and tear driving if i do it at least once. i don't think i'll go quite so far as carrying 3 or 4 spares, sets of leaf springs a garage full of tools etc. i mean, who would even bother with travel if that's the case?

Years back, I Passed an America guy & his boat around Woss who had be there from the previous night after getting 2 flats. They Disconnected the boat and wife took the truck back into town to get their flats fixed. Personally, I’ve blown a couple bearings, a broken leaf spring, and have had enough trailing issues to know what I need to bring when I trailer my boat to deal with a mechanical. Yes it seems overboard when loading it all, until you need to replace a bearing or a flat on the driver side of the trailer on a road with little to no shoulder. It’s also worth getting BCAA or else check your boat insurance policy and see if trailer towing is covered.

 

[bigbruce]

“You picked a fine time to leave me loose wheels…”. Just outside Sayward on the way to Alder Bay. Thank BCAA RV Premium coverage towed me back to Royston.

 

[James Brant]

maybe we should just take the canoe....

 

[N2013]

@James Brant just letting you know worst case scenarios. I’m sure most of us are very meticulous about preventative maintenance but sometimes you can do everything right and the worst will still happen. I’ll 2nd @bigbruce and BCAA RV Premium coverage.

 

[Bryan Allen]

“You picked a fine time to leave me loose wheels…”. Just outside Sayward on the way to Alder Bay. Thank BCAA RV Premium coverage towed me back to Royston.

Agree 100% about getting BCAA. RV Premium. They have bailed me out a couple of times.

 

[kaelc]

Anyone try the goodsam coverage? I could get clarification from either they would tow a truck with a slide in camper. Not to derail this thread but yeah take the canoe, save a thousand towards fuel and two footitus

 

[chille51]

maybe we should just take the canoe....

Many of the lodges on the fishing highway have pretty good rental boats for reasonable prices. Usually a 14' tinny with an outboard, or something like it.