I occationally tow my friend's 21' LX Ultra jetboat. 454,
with Dominator jet, etc.etc... Tandem axle trailer, with
hydromatic brakes (straight in plunger in the tongue).
The brakes on that trailer are pheonominal.... I've had
a couple of 75-25 mph slappers (people pulling out
in front of us while we were freighting up the grade from
the desert), and I slower QUICKER pulling the boat
than I would empty. Same thing down hill.. Most people
are jamming into lower gears, or worse (riding their
brakes) down the 13 mile 6% grade... With my Dakota,
I can drop to 4th gear, and with minimal braking on my
part, the trailer brakes slows you down nicely all the way
down the hill... to the point that I can run 50-55 mph on the
winding road confortably, without touching the gas and only
occationally touching the brake... The exhaust note sounds
like a nascar pace lap, and people get out of the way :P
I went with the 3.90 to get the best towing... On the flat
we run 65-70 and use 5 gear (5 spd)... Anything below 60
mph, then it's 4th gear... I like to keep the RPMS below
3000 rpm, when running for extending periods of time...
65 mph in 4th is a little much (except when climbing a hill,
then you go for it)...
As far as brakes go, here in CA. you must have brakes on a
trailer over 2000#..... Why most boat trailers don't, is beyond
me. My friend's boat/trailer combo weighs in at 4500# when
fuly fueled (40 gallons 92 octane, case of coors, case of coca-cola,
1.75L of Captain Morgan, and 3-10# bags of ice). I couldn't
imagine trying to stop that setup without trailer brakes!!
Sam '95 SLT
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