Hooked Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 Thinking about purchasing a boat in the next year or 2. I want something small anyways, not that I have a choice, but will be looking for something around 14' and a deep V. Since my car's towing capacity is only a 1000lbs, Ford Focus Wagon, what kind of weight can I expect with a 14' boat, 15 to 20hp motor and a trailer? And at what point should I consider getting a tranny cooler? Any help would be appreciated.
Dutch Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 You should be able to pull a 16 footer with a 30-40 with that vehicle. Braking is probably more important than towing capacity. Make sure your brakes are in good shape and leave extra room to stop. Also make sure your hitch is at the correct height, ensure the trailer is level.
Jonny Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 14' deep vee, plain interior - about 250 lb 20-25 HP motor - about 150 lb max Trailer - no more than 300 lb. You should be good to go. Nice thing about an outfit like that is that it's pretty light in weight. Make sure you have decent tongue weight on the hitch, and if the trailer has 12" rims, it should pull like a dream.
Fish4Eyes Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 Your lookin at 1000lb. Keep in mind battery, full tank of gas. If your driving locally that focus can handle it, but if your intentions are to go up north as well, your gonna easily be pulling 2000lbs, especially considering you will have passengers and all your equipment and camping needs. I have done this with a jetta, and it just doesnt have the power. For example: full camping gear, 2 passengers, and the boat going up the skyway in 3rd at full throttle, and I can only maintain 100km/h. Although, your Focus does have a little more power than a jetta. I find even my 4Runner really has to work to get up the hills. If I could take it back I would of got a 8 cylinder vehicle. Your call
Sinker Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 Get a tranny cooler for sure. I just put one in my Forester. Its rated to tow 2000lbs. My rig is well under, but for $50 + the time to install it, its money well spent. A lot cheaper than a new tranny, and its even cheaper than a tranny flush which I also had done. S.
smally21 Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 there is a big difference between CAN you do it and SHOULD you do it. economy cars get great mileage because they are designed to barely pull their own weight. pick ups get terrible mileage because they are built to carry another one on their back. After about 6 years in the marine transport/trailer manufacturing business i came to the conclusion there is no safe load for a small car to tow down the highway. you also need to consider pulling this boat package up a crappy gravel boat ramp by your favorite little river. just my opinion of course because lots of guys pull small trailers and they are not littering the sides of the highway! a rule of thumb i used when deciding what was too big to tow was to look in my mirror, if there is a line of traffic behind you you're pulling too much. you should be able to keep up with traffic flow regardless of what you are towing. keep your vehicle in top shape and beware of hidden loads - i pulled almost 400 lbs of crap out of my tool box in my chevy once!! you gotta do what you gotta do to get out on the lake - good luck in your search!
Uncle Buck Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 If I could take it back I would of got a 8 cylinder vehicle. Your call H'mm where did i hear that before remember when you wanted to buy the VW "truck" Ted, get a tranny cooler installed, no point of risking killing you car... better safe then sorry...
pikehunter Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 (edited) Check your owners manual over carefully and read what GVW and CGVW means. When you add up what your combined gross vehicle weight rating totals you may be surprised as you will probably be over the limitations allowed. Such as total weights of: Driver, passengers, luggage, gas in the car's tank, fishing gear, boat's gas tank, trailer, motor, gear and whatever other stuff you have on board. You will probably find that you are going to exceed the combined capacity very quickly. I looked but could not find any mention about a 1000lb towing capacity, it probably does say somewhere but I couldn't find it. In the owners manual you will see that it states this: TRAILER TOWING WARNING: Never tow a trailer with this vehicle. You vehicle is not equipped to tow. No towing packages are available through an authorized dealer. Focus Manual Towing Guide That said yes I have witnessed quite a few small cars on the HWY dragging a trailer of some sort behind them. I had a buddy when I was a kid who's father used to drag the 3 of them north every summer in an old '64 VW Beetle with a 12' boat strapped on the roof, a motor in the trunk plus, their gear and luggage. So do what you want but be aware of your limitations. Edited July 16, 2009 by pikehunter
Jonny Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 Your lookin at 1000lb. Keep in mind battery, full tank of gas. If your driving locally that focus can handle it, but if your intentions are to go up north as well, your gonna easily be pulling 2000lbs, especially considering you will have passengers and all your equipment and camping needs. True enough. I was thinking more along the lines of two guys out for the day. A full load on a long trip would be more strenuous. But I think back to the days when my Dad towed a heavy plywood boat with a 15 HP Evinrude on a heavy home-built trailer (with axle and wheels off a '36 Ford) with a 36 HP VW Beetle. Plus Mom and I and all our gear. And he did it for years. As long as I didn't exceed load weights (and if the car really has a 1000 lb towing capacity) and it has a tranny cooler, I wouldn't worry if I could maintain 90 kph. Nowadays even if you drive the speed limit you're going to have TONS of people on your tail. That's their problem. Those big land yacht motor homes often travel 90-95 and they don't worry about anybody. Heck, even if you drive 100 to 105 in a 90 you still have tons of people passing you.
Raf Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 i would say no. today's 4 cyls are torqueless, gutless wonders that need to be revved in order to make any kinda power. definately not designed for towing anything that a small trailer.
John Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 Check your owners manual over carefully and read what GVW and CGVW means. When you add up what your combined gross vehicle weight rating totals you may be surprised as you will probably be over the limitations allowed. Such as total weights of: Driver, passengers, luggage, gas in the car's tank, fishing gear, boat's gas tank, trailer, motor, gear and whatever other stuff you have on board. You will probably find that you are going to exceed the combined capacity very quickly. I looked but could not find any mention about a 1000lb towing capacity, it probably does say somewhere but I couldn't find it. In the owners manual you will see that it states this: TRAILER TOWING WARNING: Never tow a trailer with this vehicle. You vehicle is not equipped to tow. No towing packages are available through an authorized dealer. Focus Manual Towing Guide That said yes I have witnessed quite a few small cars on the HWY dragging a trailer of some sort behind them. I had a buddy when I was a kid who's father used to drag the 3 of them north every summer in an old '64 VW Beetle with a 12' boat strapped on the roof, a motor in the trunk plus, their gear and luggage. So do what you want but be aware of your limitations. Well said Harry. I think that in the case of an accident you may also be facing insurance woes!
scugpg Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 I have a v6 sedan with a 200hp motor and upgraded brakes, no tranny cooler yet but have a tranny temp gauge. I tow my boat no problem (600lbs loaded with the trailer), but it really comes down to weight distribution on the trailer as well how it stresses the car (tongue weight, tire size, trailer levelness etc) . Always stick to what your owners manual says!
Hooked Posted July 16, 2009 Author Report Posted July 16, 2009 Well....thanks alot for this information, very informative everyone. I will give my manual a review again, but I definately seen 1000lb towing capacity, but I now know there are some other things I must consider. I tremor the thought of towing even a small trailer...and with the ac on, hmm, might just have to wait for my next vehicle? Thanks again. btw, I have a 2003 Ford Focus Wagon ZTW (not sure how much it differs from the other trims?)
Fish4Eyes Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 True enough. I was thinking more along the lines of two guys out for the day. A full load on a long trip would be more strenuous. But I think back to the days when my Dad towed a heavy plywood boat with a 15 HP Evinrude on a heavy home-built trailer (with axle and wheels off a '36 Ford) with a 36 HP VW Beetle. Plus Mom and I and all our gear. And he did it for years. As long as I didn't exceed load weights (and if the car really has a 1000 lb towing capacity) and it has a tranny cooler, I wouldn't worry if I could maintain 90 kph. Nowadays even if you drive the speed limit you're going to have TONS of people on your tail. That's their problem. Those big land yacht motor homes often travel 90-95 and they don't worry about anybody. Heck, even if you drive 100 to 105 in a 90 you still have tons of people passing you. I talked to a ministry officer, and he said he would pull you over if he noticed you were slowing down traffic because your vehicle is under powered. Police would do the same, your delaying traffic. Big rigs, and oversized loads are an exception.
Fish4Eyes Posted July 16, 2009 Report Posted July 16, 2009 Oh and another thing, ask Unclebuck how many times he has had to push down on the front end of my jetta so i can get some traction to make it out of the launch. Absolutely hilarious sight if your watching, frustrating being me though. I am proud of making it out of a sand launch on jack lake though
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