I frequently tow a pair of Yamaha GP-1200 Waverunners. With fuel and
trailer trunk loaded I'd say the rig hit's about #1500. I tow in OD over most
terrain and even on steep hills as it kicks down a gear anyway. There are
certain grade hills which drive my tranny nuts though and those are about 2-3%
grades so I kick off the OD or it bounces back and forth. Just changing the
gears won't help you much there, it'll just change the grade % level that the
tranny bounces around on. With as heavy of a load as you are towing though,
I'd say that you would be better served to change the gears out just for
better take-off and to keep the OD from bouncing around on slight grades (1%
or so). You might be able to move it up to near 2% with 3.92 or even higher
with 4.10 gears (your fuel economy will suck with 4.10's). I'd also want
those gear for yanking the boat up the ramp out of the water. Too low
(3.55's) and you spin wheels a lot, hard on the ol' tires if you know what I
mean. My Dak really doesn't notice the Waverunners are back there when I tow
so I have to be careful to remember I have a mondo trailer behind me!
Shaun H.
Black, '98 Dakota SLT, 318, Auto, 3.92, SnugTop Shell, Firestone Air-Ride, 30"
Tires, Quick-D Intake, Silver-Foil DML Sticker Preformance Enhancement!
---original message---
Date: Tue, 7 Sep 1999 23:44:48 -0700
From: "Sam Parthemer" <srp@home.com>
Subject: RE: DML: Towing Advice: Help!!!
Never said it was a toy (well, it could be a big toy!).
I checked the web page of Air Nautique, and the Super Air
Nautique (http://www.preferredboats.com/super.html) comes
in at around 3000#, vs. the boat on the cover at 2700#.
Figure in full ballast of 400#, and full fuel (350#), you are
in the 3450-3750# range, plus another 1400-1500# for the trailer.
You would be nearly 5200# at max capacity (add in additional people,
icechests, gear, etc.), and your truck (like mine) is rated at
5500#... The truck will handle it with 3.55 gears, but forget
using OD... Expect 9-10 mpg at best, and things will be slow on
the hills. I pulled a 4500# jetboat 2-3 times a year with my '95
SLT, 3.90 gearing 5spd. No problems at all. The 4x4 will have
a little more work cut out for it because of the 3.55 gearing/extra
weight. The 5spd vs. auto is a tough call. The 5spd gives you more
gears to work with, PLUS you can really load the engine on a grade, vs.
the automatic that will kick down at WOT under similar situations. To make
the 4x4 a more reliable hauler, you might want to drop to 3.92 gearing
(front and rear of course) to get better towing power on the grades.
Be sure to post the results once you tow the boat, as it will help
others (I plan on a boat or trailer in the next 12-18 months so I'm
in the same 'boat'--- sorry :)
Sam '99 RT & 4x4
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