Tow Vehicle

[Chulo]

I am in the process of getting a new (probably used) car. Of course, it has to be able to do duty as a tow vehicle, too. Here are my contenders:

1. Nissan Pathfinder Armada
2. Toyota Sequoia
3. GMC Denali
4. VW Toureg V8


Anyone with experience in any of these (good/bad) would be appreciated.

Thanks!

[Dantilla]

Depends on what you are going to tow.

I'm a firm believer in overkill for towing. I tow with a 3/4 ton truck with 4:10 gears, big brakes and a tranny cooler.

[Chulo]

Originally posted by Dantilla
Depends on what you are going to tow.

I'm a firm believer in overkill for towing. I tow with a 3/4 ton truck with 4:10 gears, big brakes and a tranny cooler.

Probably an open, aluminum trailer with an 88 Carrera. I think any of the above would be overkill, no?

[charleskieffner]

OVERKILL is a CHEVY 1-TON DUALLIE LONGBED 4-DOOR 4X4 w/built to the hilt BIG BLOCK! and fiberglass shell and winch w/dual batteries and 8 hella lights! your next step is a peterbuilt and a 40 ft trailer with lifts to hold 4 cars. 2 people and this rig will carry both your kitchen sinks, more beer than you can fathom drinking in a day, entire wardrobe, spares, and best of all................2 drop dead good looking women if you find them either in BAJA or your local race track. and you can sleep in the back(after you clear all the crap out you stuffed in!) gas mileage...............WHO CARES ITS RACING!

[cashflyer]

I retired by Ram 1500 when I bought my car trailer. It pulled it "okay", but I wanted something that would pull the load with very little effort. Especially since I may upsize in the near future.

So I bought a used Ram 3500. It's a 1 ton, dually, quad cab with a 24v Cummins turbo diesel with a manual trans. Believe it or not, it gets better fuel economy than my 1500 does with it's 5.2 Magnum and AT. So far, it seems very win/win to me.

[charleskieffner]

another view in BAJA cool thing is we got this from original owner w/97k on it. ran car fax-never wrecked for 13K (YES $13,000) did valve job water pump flushed radiator new optima batteries new tires new bilsteins new brakes/bearings. 1/4" alum skid plate from front past tranny/transfer. extra capacity finned rear diffy cover. flushed all fluids, fixed a couple of FOO-FOO thangs and installed throttle body,MAS,K&N filter, lights bumper winch AND IT RUNS LIKE A RAPED APE!

the only PITA............i have to remind myself to drive it to charge the batteries every month! it is not a daily driver and sits waiting for the next race ONLY! the only way to cruise towing ANYTHING.have towed alot of trailers in our days, and this is outstanding!

GAS VS. DIESEL debate...........try and find diesel in the middle of BFE BAJA! we always carry octane booster for the poor gas we seem to find some trips in BAJA !

so in ending the price of a new tow vehicle is through the roof.......35K - 45K for a dura-max. buy a used gas tow rig, dump some cash in it and you are still ahead big bucks!

[Chulo]

Originally posted by charleskieffner
another view in BAJA cool thing is we got this from original owner w/97k on it. ran car fax-never wrecked for 13K (YES $13,000) did valve job water pump flushed radiator new optima batteries new tires new bilsteins new brakes/bearings. 1/4" alum skid plate from front past tranny/transfer. extra capacity finned rear diffy cover. flushed all fluids, fixed a couple of FOO-FOO thangs and installed throttle body,MAS,K&N filter, lights bumper winch AND IT RUNS LIKE A RAPED APE!

the only PITA............i have to remind myself to drive it to charge the batteries every month! it is not a daily driver and sits waiting for the next race ONLY! the only way to cruise towing ANYTHING.have towed alot of trailers in our days, and this is outstanding!

GAS VS. DIESEL debate...........try and find diesel in the middle of BFE BAJA! we always carry octane booster for the poor gas we seem to find some trips in BAJA !

so in ending the price of a new tow vehicle is through the roof.......35K - 45K for a dura-max. buy a used gas tow rig, dump some cash in it and you are still ahead big bucks!

That's some rig... Mine will be a daily driver, and I frequently go into Chicago, so I need sometime a little more tame. I think I am leaning towards a Denali or an Armada.

[charleskieffner]

parking sometimes can be a challenge................thats when we just push vehicles out of the way! LOL! make calcs on weight of car, weight of alum trailer(the only way), how much crap your gonna bring, how many people, and then add a 1000 pounds and youll have figured out what vehicle will work. nothing worse than being underpowered and going 35mph on single lane uphill. people get pissed and throw things at you!!!!

[turbo6bar]

Originally posted by charleskieffner
so in ending the price of a new tow vehicle is through the roof.......35K - 45K for a dura-max. buy a used gas tow rig, dump some cash in it and you are still ahead big bucks!

So I suppose buying a used Duramaxi is out of the question. Compare a used Duramaxi vs. new gas tow rig.

[charleskieffner]

didnt say that. comparison was used gas vs new duramax. used duramax obviously will be less than new. but if YOU EVEN THINK OF EVER GOING TO BAJA and getting out into BFE, plan on bringing drums of diesel fuel with you! we have had to use t-shirts to strain gas out of 55 gallon drums via hand crank pump to get fuel before.

the days of pulling up to airstrip in baja and getting AV gas are long over due to every drop of AV gas being accounted for and signed off to "N" number on fueselage of plane due to drug running. airstrips that sell AV gas are checked weekly by federales for fuel sales. example (1) plane takes on 100 gallons and airstrip has 1000 gallons week before, airstrip BETTER have 900 gallons the next time federales show up to check!!!

dura maxes are great engines for stateside towing, but when in baja it can really ruin your day trying to find diesel.
as far as buying anything new................sure if you want to pay killer insurance, killer taxes, killer reg. tags/plates etc. if you only use it a few times a year............i'll go with used anyday save the bucks and dump it into porsche!

[JeremyD]

I really like my armada - torque for days = I tow a boat and you hardly know it's there - towed the 911 with ease too. I didn;t like the width of the GMC/Caddy.

[juanbenae]

here is a currebt thread in the AX/track section with some good commentary >>>>when to trailer

[charleskieffner]

have done both. drive to track/races and trailered. trailer is my cup of tea. dont have storage or security issues. have 1 1/2 acres of rattlesnake dezert. if snakes dont git 'em...........my HK will! there is the PITA aspect of trailer...........lights-brakes-electrics-wheel bearings-spare tires(2 in baja)-wind etc. always bring spare bearings / races and grease/spare lug nuts/tie downs /bulbs etc. trailering isnt for the light hearted it is a GIANT PITA always. you just have to stay ahead of it and be prepared!

having had bearing failure on trailer at 2AM outside of kingman,AZ on way to gold coast 350 HDRA race in vegas and following morning was tech and race ........................SURE WASNT FUN W/OUT spare bearings! we did get it fixed, made tech, and actually finished 8th in class..............but man that was one long night changing out bearings on side of I-40!

[jrdavid68]

I vote for the Touareg, but then I am biased. Stay away from the '04 Touaregs - too many first year glitches.

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

Ben,

Think long wheelbase for your tow vehicle, it will be steadier and more capable of controlling your load. Make sure your vehicle is FACTORY equipped with the towing package. This will include sturdier springs, factory tow bar, electrical wiring, transmission intercooler (VERY necessary for distances more than a few miles). I suggest electric brakes instead of a load activated trailer brake (one that is attached to the hitch and brakes when the trailer gets closer to your vehicle, this is not the break away brake which is for a runaway trailer), these types of brakes are required by law in most states for loads over 3,000 pounds.

Just because it is an SUV does not mean it is capable of towing. Go to the manufacturer's web sites and check on the maximum towing capacities in several different situations. I know the Nissan claims to be able to tow 9,000 pounds, but that is on a straight road with all proper equipment installed at the factory. Get on a hilly road and the load capacity goes way down.

I use a Ford F250 Diesel with a 3.73 rear end and factory towing package but I tow loads approaching 11,000 pounds. For our smaller loads we used to use a Chevy 1/2 tonne, 5.7 liter with a 3.73 rear end. The 4.10 is a great rear end, but gets lousy fuel economy so there is always a trade off.

I think the Nissan and Toyota have a maximum towing capacity of 5,000 pounds when properly equipped and on "average" terrain (not flat). Don't know about the others.

[MotoSook]

I have a 18ft aluminum trailer for the '89 911 or the '76 Bastard 911. I pull it with a Jeep Cherokee (4.0 inline 6). Works well. I'd go with something bigger but I like the compactness of my Cherokee. And it's got torque and HP...enough anyhow to tow my cars to the tracks in the midwest w/o issues.

If I were to get anything bigger, it'd be because I need interior space for my tools (I take a lot of crap to the track) and for sleeping in when the track event is overnight.


...all that said and of your four listed vehicles, the TOyota will likely hold it's value better than the others.

[charleskieffner]

Originally posted by Chulo
That's some rig... Mine will be a daily driver, and I frequently go into Chicago, so I need sometime a little more tame. I think I am leaning towards a Denali or an Armada.

this will HAUL ALOT OF TOOLS AND BEER! the trailer you see in corner was 36ft toyhauler w/buggy in it and quads and a ton of crap plus crap stuffed into duallie(doolie). 75mph down highway all day long..............but i am telling you IT WAS A HANDFULL! and we have the TOW PKG and sway mts! we did stay down that time 2 weeks so it was worth it, but that is alot of crap to haul! my buddy has 3/4 ton diesel ford and is now either going for a ford or chev 1-ton. but he hauls that damn thing all over SW.

[JeremyD]

[Chulo]

Originally posted by JeremyD
I really like my armada - torque for days = I tow a boat and you hardly know it's there - towed the 911 with ease too. I didn;t like the width of the GMC/Caddy.

I have driven a Denali, and am going to "borrow" an Armada for the weekend tomorrow. My gut tells me the Armada is gonna be the one. Also, with all of these SUVs being of substantial weight, they make for a great tax deduction.

[kaisen]

The Armada is bound to be a good value used since they sell so poorly new (esp the Infinity Q56 twin). The 5.6L feels very healthy and the 5 speed automatic helps.

The Denali is tried and true, but is still a half ton. Consider a 2500 Suburban or Yukon XL (same 6.0L V8) that has the heavier duty chassis.

The Toureg is small, expensive, and unibody. While it will pull just fine, it is not up to the same tow cycles as a framed truck.

The Sequoia is small, expensive, and underpowered. Toyota deserves its great reputation but you pay for it up front. They haven't made a great full sized truck - YET.

Both the Denali XL AWD and Armada LE/SE 4x4 with 30-35K miles should be readily available for under $30K. The Denali will have more equipment if you care about bells and whistles. New GM parts are cheaper than Nissan, and since literally millions were built used parts availability and price helps the GMs.

A similar Sub 2500 LT 6.0L 4x4 will save you a couple grand, get the same fuel economy, and have a MUCH higher capacity, even if it is *reserve*.

Better safe than sorry when towing.

E