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Towing with the SS


DOGMAN

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  • 4 weeks later...

I am a boat dealer selling Eliminator boats. I pull a 26 foot boat behind my SS and it pulls great. :D Makes the suspension sag pretty good though. :shakehead: I'm a little concerned about the breaks on the truck too. :rolleyes:

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I am a boat dealer selling Eliminator boats. I pull a 26 foot boat behind my SS and it pulls great. :D Makes the suspension sag pretty good though. :shakehead: I'm a little concerned about the breaks on the truck too. :rolleyes:

I would want to know what the toungue weight of the boat is your towing first - not too sure what the capacity of the hitch on the SS, but I think it's only 500lbs. That info should be on the label on the hitch. That's what causes the drag in the suspension.

 

If that boat you're pulling is over 2500lbs, then if it were me, I'd have the electric brakes installed. I believe the charges to get added are fairly reasonable. Some states require you to have brakes over a certain amount of weight. Maybe even all of them - you should check on your state.

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Boat trailering laws vary considerably from state to state. North Carolina, for example allows a trailer weight of up to 4000 lbs before requiring a separate braking system, while California sets the limit at only 1500 lbs.

 

Here's a good site which covers the whole US, state by state (you can select regions such as Southeastern, Western, etc., or look at individual states):

http://www.boatus.com/trailerclub/laws.asp

 

And, of course, our wonderful DOT has it's own information (not state specific):

http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/problems/equ...uipment/towing/

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Well, the boat itself weighs about 4400 lbs. The trailer I am using has a mechanical braking system which engages when I use my brakes. So that isn't much of a problem. I just don't like how spongy my brakes feel in general.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I think the truck brakes are a little spongy, also. I towed my 18' boat this weekend - not any real issues - - - but, I am getting ready to test my 7400 pound, 30' travel trailer in a couple of weeks. I spent a lot of time checking out the factory specs, and it is supposed to be O.K. - - but, I am still concerned about the suspension and the braking - - - - and for you non-trailering guys, trailers my size have a very adequate electric brake system. I am mostly worried about the suspension and overall handling.

 

Incidentally, I installed a new brake controller in the SS - - it's a Tekonsha Prodigy model. Cool looking and sexy lighting!

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I have towed a motorcycle trailer about 5000 lbs with it for about 600 miles.

The trailer has electric brakes and I use a drawtite controller.

Averaged 75 MPH, and use only Amaco/BP ultimate.

The SS got 9.5 mpg.

I now am getting about 12 mpg in city driving.

 

It just rolled over 2000 miles yesterday!!!

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