Trailering with a minivan

[ducatichris]

New to the forum as I just purchased my 1st boat, A 2005 outback.

All the literature states the boat and trailer weighs 3600 lbs.

We have a 2005 Toyota Sienna van with the towing package and it states max towing capacity of 3500 lbs.

Does anyone here trailer their boat with a minivan or have any advice for me?

Will I be OK towing it?

Thanks

Chris

[Waynes345]

I've got an Outback and used to tow it with a Buick Rendevouz that was not rated that high for towing. It was tough on some ramps and the brakes got a workout, but as long as I took it easy and watched the temp, I'd get it where it needed to be. Works a heck of a lot better with the Z71 Tahoe I have now.

[ian ashton]

We tow my Outback with a Chrysler minivan, no problems at all.

[zegm]

Well if you do the math then you are 100lbs over your max towing load so now you know that this is an issue with the Toyota. But to put it in another quantitative term you are not quite 3% percent over your limit, so it doesn't sound so bad.
Most likely your rear suspension and the frame where the hitch is mounted are the limiting factors. If the boat trailer has brakes and they are in good condition then this would not be "the" issue.
So with that said the question needs to be asked how far are you towing the boat? And does it feel like the boat is pushing the rear of the Toyota around? Is the back of the van sitting much lower than normal? How is the "seat of the pants" feeling when you tow?
If everything feels OK and you are not towing very far then you can answer your own question. But keep in mind that transmissions and drivelines while not so much a factor in the "feel of how it is being towed" do work very hard and while towing and I wouldn't expect them to live as long as if you weren't towing. And again the question here is how far?

[zabooda]

The 3600 lbs is dry weight and when you add fuel, food and beer (if you chose to haul the latter in the boat) then you are looking at another 300 pounds. I had a mini-van with the large engine and I wouldn't use it mainly because I didn't want to draw a crowd watching me trek on up the ramp. Just get those tires rotated often.

[sandm]

I wouldn't recommend it.

problem isn't the driveline, it's that one panic stop because someone in front of you has an issue. that toyota isn't rated to stop almost 4000lbs.

[zegm]

sandm
while I wouldn't tow it either the fact remains that if he has trailer brakes and they are in good working order they will stop the boat and trailer. That mini van itself weights about 4200 pounds. Again i wouldn't do it but if the distance wasn't very far and I went slow it wouldn't stop me from using if that was all I had at the time.
Just to put this in perspective a Chevy Silverado can weight as little as 440lbs and it is rated to tow 7500lbs. Again it is the strength of the frame and the load rating of the suspension that help determine the load rating.

[ducatichris]

Thank you guys for all responding.
I have not attempted it yet. Not sure if I will or not.
Yes the trailer has the disc brakes on it but won't I need a brake booster installed in the van to operate those correctly?

Our lake is about a 40 min drive.

The towing hitch has the smaller square hitch receiver not the larger one. It also has the flat 4 pin (3 female + 1 male) So I will need to conver that to a 5 pin set up or the big round plug.

Any advice on that?

Thanks again,

Chris
Grand Rapids, Michigan

[maxpower220]

Which Ducati do you have?


Check local auto part stores or your local Toyota dealer for a "in-line" wiring harness with a 5 plug pin. That will eliminate the need to cut or splice wires. However, the 5 pin only adds the Reverse lockout. You or any camper/boating store can wire it up in 30 mins or less.
The trailer brakes are surge brakes, so once the weight of the trailer "pushes" against the coupler, the brakes activate. No need for an in cab booster.

40 mins is a long way to tow a boat. Another point to look at is that if you get into an accident, there is a chance that your insurance won't cover you if your boat exceeds your vehicles capacity. You may want to look at a "better" tow vehicle.

[ducatichris]

I used to race in AMA Pro Thunder with a 748R. (Have since "somewhat" retired from Pro Racing)
I have a '66 Sebring 350, a 748R, 999S, and my newest one is on '08 Hypermotard S.

It actually is 32 miles from my house to the lake.

So you think it is a bad Idea to occasionally trailer it (a few times a season)?

Again thank you for the advice.