Can I tow this? (picture)

[fordexplorerdude97]

Hello

I have a 97 Explorer 4.0 without the tow package, I want to tow this fishing boat once a week or so, to a lake which is less than an hour away. Am I fine by using the regular bumper hitch and without a tranny cooler?

 

[dman726749]

prob be ok, but if you are going to do this regurally, why not invest in the proper gear...hitch and a cooler

 

[ChaoticBastard]

prob be ok, but if you are going to do this regurally, why not invest in the proper gear...hitch and a cooler

I agree.. Hitch and cooler can probably be bought and self installed for under $200 bucks.

 

[fordexplorerdude97]

When I'm towing something is it better to turn off overdrive? what is the advantage to it? will it just make your engine rev higher so you get more power or will it take load of the transmission?

 

[David in NC]

That rig looks pretty tired, shouldn't put much load on your truck. A cooler is a pretty good idea even if you're not towing. Is that a crack in the frame near the bow of the boat? And the hull is deflected where it rides on the trailer. Make sure all bearings are greased and in good shape before taking too long a trip.

 

[CDW6212R]

The overdrive of an automatic is a band inside, the load is almost all on that band. Any band inside of a transmission is far weaker than the clutch packs, they cannot take the high loads like the other parts. Towing in overdrive is a great risk of burning up that overdrive band. Don't do it to save a small amount of gas, the damage potential is too high.

Add another trans cooler and you should be fine, that's a light boat. Good luck

 

[aldive]

I would definately install a "real" hitch as well as a tranny cooler.

Good luck ....

 

[rizzjc]

I'd ALWAYS go for a real hitch, but I think I could probably tow that with my golf cart. Tranny cooler is probably NEVER a BAD idea, but I would probably wouldn't go through the trouble if I didn't already have one, and that was all I was towing.

 

[ronwc]

You will have no problem towing that boat at all - I tow a 18' Sea Ray 2800 lbs almost every weekend with no problem using the bumper hitch (2000 4.0). Your rig is 1/2 of that or less - if you are going a distance and or stop and go driving, just turn off the overdrive -

 

[MountaineerGreen]

Definitely buy a hitch- no question. I wouldn't tow anything on my bumper.

I'm going to move this to the towing sub forum.

EDIT: Yes you can tow that fairly easily I'd say. Looks pretty light to me. Interesting that its a tandem axle trailer for that boat.

 

[CDW6212R]

Those are tiny wheels, and aluminum trailer framing. I bet the whole thing is under 1000 pounds.

 

[fordexplorerdude97]

Thanks for all your answers

I was actually planing to buy that boat in the pic, and while I was on the way to see it, I saw this one near the road that had a for sale sign on it,I talked to the owner and I would like to buy it, this one is a lot bigger and I'm not sure if my car would pull it. its like more than 5000 pounds. With a good tranny cooler and a hitch is it safe to tow it? what is the best tranny cooler? If it will end up breaking something on the car I would rather not buy it. so please let me know my car is a 97 Explorer 4.0

 

[ronwc]

Don't guess at the weight, ask the owner or look at the title - speaking from my experienece, if it is over 3500 lbs or so, it is too heavy for your truck in my opinion - keep in mind it's not just pulling, you also have to stop -

 

[rizzjc]

I'm sure it would get you to the lake and back, but I wouldn't pull 5k lbs with that.

 

[CDW6212R]

Ditto, the hitch, cooler, and towing diff. gears would be mandatory for a heavy 3500+ load. check that weight, and your door tag for the gears that you have. You would want 4.10's over 3.73's or 3.55's.

 

[gijoecam]

Indeed, the Aluminum one in the pic won't be an issue. No need for any extra goodies IMHO.

For a 5000Lb boat, you'll want the extra stuff mentioned above. Also, your Ex isn't going to like it... trust me.

 

[SKYWLKR]

That is NOT an Aluminum trailer that is a galvanized steel.

but it would tow just fine.

 

[glfredrick]

When asking questions about towing with the Explorer or Ranger vehicles, just remember that our automatic transmissions are based on the old Ford C-3, which was designed to go behind the 4 cylinder motor in a Pinto...

The truck itself is a towing wonder -- has plenty of motor and suspension -- but the transmission is the weak link and it will bite you hard if you tow too much, get it hot, run it in OD while towing, etc.

I've towed 7500# with my 92 on occaision, but not for long distances and it sure did cook the tranny. My temps were over 300! Note that I'm running the biggest size RV cooler I can stuff in front of the grill... It is close to 2 square feet...

On the other hand, I regularly tow my "Sploder on a heavy 18' trailer behind our Chevy Trailblazer with ease. It handles the load much better than the Explorer, has a stronger transmission, and a longer wheelbase, all of which make it a better tow rig.

 

[410Fortune]

the boat pictured will not puch much load on your truck

The trans cooler is a great idea, hitch of course, and make sure your cooling system and trans are up to the task

You could tow that boat and trailer with a car, it will not be hard on the Explorer unless you really load it up with gear IMO

 

[boatmoter]

aluminum boat?

what is that? about a 12 foot aluminum boat? small outboard?? I would leave the trailer home and throw that on the roof to haul it...it looks really light..