[Question Answered - not going to risk it] Seafarer 228 w/ 7,000 lb towing capacity?

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Shamgar

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Looking for input on whether it would be prudent to tow a 2003 Seafarer 228 behind a GMC Canyon w/ 7,000 lb towing capacity (3.6L V6, 2WD, limited slip rear diff., towing package). By my napkin math, fully gassed w/ 1500 lb trailer and 500 lbs of gear would put me at ~6200lbs. Would be trailering in Florida, so hills aren't a problem, but very fast interstate traffic may be.

I see a lot of people here recommend a 1/2 ton pickup at least for the 228, but I do think that midsized trucks have become more capable since those 6-7 year old threads I reviewed. Sorry for re-hashing, but thanks for your input.
 
I think you will be OK. The key thing to watch out for is excessive trany temps. Note that the towing capacity of your vehicle is reduced by any gear/tools etc and passengers in the truck. At least at first, keep your speed at a reasonable rate until you learn how the load handles, especially when braking.
 
Looks like when you did your "Napkin Math," you hadn't pounded very many Bud Lites. Your weight calculations are real close...My Seafarer was 5800-5900 lbs loaded with fuel & gear.

RE: Your Tow Vehicle;

I agree with Seasick; you should be good if you take it easy and drive at reasonable speeds. Can you lock out overdrive? Shifting in-and-out of overdrive heats them up....
 
magicalbill said:
Looks like when you did your "Napkin Math," you hadn't pounded very many Bud Lites. Your weight calculations are real close...My Seafarer was 5800-5900 lbs loaded with fuel & gear.

RE: Your Tow Vehicle;

I agree with Seasick; you should be good if you take it easy and drive at reasonable speeds. Can you lock out overdrive? Shifting in-and-out of overdrive heats them up....
Click to expand...
Yes, I have the option of "Tow/Haul" mode or manual gear selection (8 speed).
 
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You can make the numbers work on paper. It's getting them to work in the real world that counts. It really drpends on your experience and confidence in towing. I am a retired truck driver. Spent the previous few years pulling a toyhauler around that was at the limit for my 2500 hd if stock. I always up grade my tow vehicle's tires. A wider foot print with thicker sidewalls makes a world of difference. Sometimes the suspension needs a little help also. If you look at camping forums, the majority ask if their 1/2 ton truck will pull their new camper that really needs a 3/4 ton truck. All that being said do what your comfortable with.
 
BobH1 said:
You can make the numbers work on paper. It's getting them to work in the real world that counts. It really drpends on your experience and confidence in towing. I am a retired truck driver. Spent the previous few years pulling a toyhauler around that was at the limit for my 2500 hd if stock. I always up grade my tow vehicle's tires. A wider foot print with thicker sidewalls makes a world of difference. Sometimes the suspension needs a little help also. If you look at camping forums, the majority ask if their 1/2 ton truck will pull their new camper that really needs a 3/4 ton truck. All that being said do what your comfortable with.
Click to expand...
If I have limited towing experience, what kind of margins would you recommend?
 
Make sure your trailer has brakes on one of the axles because speaking from experience that rig is a lot of weight to stop. I would prefer 4WD over 2WD based on all of the slippery boat ramps I've seen in Florida that show up on TheQualifiedCaptain Instagram page. And personally I would want a bigger engine to tow the Seafarer but keep in mind that feedback is coming from a guy towing a 2007 Seafarer 228 with a tow vehicle that has a 510HP supercharged V8 under the hood :cool:

https://www.greatgrady.com/media/2007-seafarer-228-on-trailer-at-shelter-island-san-diego-bay.403/
 
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Shamgar said:
Looking for input on whether it would be prudent to tow a 2003 Seafarer 228 behind a GMC Canyon w/ 7,000 lb towing capacity (3.6L V6, 2WD, limited slip rear diff., towing package). By my napkin math, fully gassed w/ 1500 lb trailer and 500 lbs of gear would put me at ~6200lbs. Would be trailering in Florida, so hills aren't a problem, but very fast interstate traffic may be.

I see a lot of people here recommend a 1/2 ton pickup at least for the 228, but I do think that midsized trucks have become more capable since those 6-7 year old threads I reviewed. Sorry for re-hashing, but thanks for your input.
Click to expand...
6,200 lbs isn't even going to be close at all, especially if the rest of your figures are even remotely in the ballpark. I just bought a 2004 Grady White 228 Seafarer last October, of which the one and only time that I've been out on the boat after trailering her back from Maryland, I launched at a marina that uses a lift. When they took my boat off the trailer to put in the water, they said that the weight of the boat by itself was 5,300 lbs, and that was with less than a half of a tank of fuel and next to no gear on it... just 2 downriggers, 4 fishing poles and a tackle box. Your boat fully loaded just with fuel alone is going to be around 5,500 lbs and if your trailer is actually 1,500 lbs then that right there will put you over the maximum tow rating for your vehicle. I'm not sure what kind of trailer you have, are you sure it's 1,500 lbs? Is it galvanized? I've got an aluminum I-beam trailer and mine says 975 lbs on the registration/title. Whether that's accurate or not, I'm not exactly sure? But that's what it said. Your towing weight is only going to go up if you add more gear, coolers, ice, food, water, beverages, bait and anything else on top of it. As mentioned above, having RWD isn't going to help you out either, especially if you typically launch at a ramp that is steep, wet, sandy, has a lot of seaweed and so forth, and furthermore it's going to be quite bad if you're already over your towing capacity. My tow rig is a 2010 Toyota Tundra 5.7l with 4WD, it has a tow rating of 10,200 lbs and it's very easy to trailer the boat with. I wouldn't want to personally tow a boat with your rig, especially since it is RWD only and if you're going to be going long distances, traveling on the highway, have sketchy ramps that you're launching at and so forth. I'd honestly consider a different tow rig as you're going to be roasting tires trying to get your boat in and out of the water, and you'll probably end up on the Miami Boat Ramps page of YouTube. It's not worth your truck sliding back into the water and being a total loss because you want to tow something over its tow rating. Driving just down the road on a long, flat, level road and having the boat taken off the trailer on a lift would be a completely different story. Especially if you only did that a few times a year.
 
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I tow mine with a Land Rover Discovery 3. 2.7L V6 Turbo Diesel Full time 4wd. 7000lb towing capacity with no issues. On the highway I'm having to watch I don't go too fast. I think you will be fine.
 
Per the numbers, you're fine. But trailering really isn't about the ability to pull the load... it's about the ability to stop it and possibly do an emergency swerve. Try this... start slow and easy and work your way up to get a good feel of how the truck handles things... find a nie stretch of empty road and get going about 45MPH. Hit the brakes hard. Now, do it again and hit the brakes even harder. Do it again harder. Next, do an emergency lane change while also hitting the brakes start with light brakes and progress. You really need to get a good understanding of how it reacts in emergency situations BEFORE you're in one... and maybe you can save yourself from being in it in the first place.

You need brakes on both axles. Ideally EOH, but surge are OK, too - especially since the weight of the rig is still on the lighter side.
 
My 2013 228 with hardtop and I beam aluminum trailer with some fishing gear and full tanks of fuel and water weighed 3100 kg (6820 lb) , if you have a hardtop and Galvanised trailer yours will be close to mine as well. The older hull is a little lighter but the gal trailer makes up .
I tow with a 4.5lt TT diesel Landcruiser, I have EOH brakes and for long distances I wouldn't want anything lighter ( LC weighs 2750 kg empty or 6050 lb).
 
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For another data point, my Seafarer and trailer weighed in at just over 5,500 pounds at certified truck scales when I had it shipped from East Coast to West Coast:

  • 2007 Seafarer 228 with hard top
  • Yamaha 250HP 4.2L (2018)
  • Aluminum trailer
  • Next to zero gas, water, or gear
IMG_3856.jpg
 
If it was a short distance to a local ramp and you had 4wd I would say go for it. However, you are 2wd and plan to take it on the highway. At that point I would be looking for a 1/2 ton or full-size SUV with higher tow cap. (LC like I and wrxhoon have, Tahoe, Durango, etc.).
 
I tow my 228 all over with a f150 eco-boost and it does great. Yes, I wish I had a F250 but the F150 does great. It is also equipped with the towing package.
 
Towing is easy. Stopping is the hard part.

I don't know Jack about your truck but I know something about towing .

Towing starts with your trailer. Is it the right fit for the boat and others mentioned brakes. I would say get a trailer with brakes on all axles ..get a trailer equipped with Kodiak or Deesmsx stainless steel calipers and backing plates at a minimum. If the trailer that comes with the boat doesn't have stainless Deesmax or Kodiak brakes spend the money and upgrade those components. My previous trailer was a Venture and after one tire failure after another from heat build up of dragging calipers , I spent the money and took off all the Tie Down garbage and put Kodiak brakes on it. Night and day difference.

Tires for trailers. I tow several thousand miles a year and I have experienced more tire failure than you can shake a stick at . Between calipers seizing and just interstate travel I have had many cheap Chinese tires delaminate leaving me stranded as it were. Since 2017 I have been running Good Year Endurance load range D or E ( my current Owens trailer I put on 15 inch rims with load range E tires) . I did an 8,000 summer road trip with my camper in 18 and the Endurance tires were flawless.

Most trailer tires in the 14 inch rim size are either load C or D and most of those are only speed rated to 60 or 65. Heat kills tires and ozone and trailer tires have about 5 year reasonable shelf life . So if your tires are older than 5 years on that trailer buy good year endurance load D if they are 14 inch rims.

I carry a a trailer towing tool box even if it's a local tow. In that box are a small flood jack, grease, spare hubs with bearings , a DeWalt Half inch impact driver , vice grips, spare cotter pins, dust caps , giant channel locks, mallot, hammers , breaker bar , gloves, tags, go jo hand cleaner, and such. I can change a tire all the way down to the hub . My old trailer had pressed bolted spindles my Owens they are welded in .

If you are towing any highway travel be it 3 miles or 300 miles I cannot emphasize enough about the brakes , tires and proper inflation of the trailer tires. Don't fly down the road at 70 or 80 and leave plenty of distance in front of you. Towing is easy..stopping is the hard part especially on I-95 going from 65 to sudden stops.

I tow my 228 with a Tundra. I go to Florida a few times of the year from the NC Smoky Mountains to the Keys or to Port Canaveral or somewhere in between. It's a great boat built for Adventure if you ask me. Enjoy it.
 
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For some reason all my pics are too large to download......
Anyway. For my tow vehicle and daily driver up in Delmarva, 2019 Chevy 2500HD duramax 4×4 that I leveled, put Nitto grappler 295/60/20 tires on Black Rhino rims. I have airlift airbags and cold air intake. Largest trailer pulled was 39' toyhauler at 14k#s.
My opinion..... truck too small for comfortable towing. Can it pull it? Yes. Comfortably? Not in my opinion. I would want 4×4 for ramps. Not needed most of the time but......
Love the torque of my diesel.
 
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Towed my Seafarer back from Boston to NY when I bought it, with a Silverado 1500. The trailers brakes did not work. Just leave plenty of room , you'll be fine.
 
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