looking at an old s10 with a v6. curious if it would be capable of hauling a small trailer big enough for my 7

heres a link to the said s10 i was checking out

http://muskegon.craigslist.org/cto/2086333172.html

 

i wouldnt go any smaller than an F-150 or chevy 1500. both should have a V8 and a hitch. i have an 88 F-150 with a 5.0 V8 and a 5 spd trans as well as a very nice aluminum trailer and even with the 150, i feel the weight of the load (trailer and car). i can't imagine the S-10's frame is designed for towing anything greater than a couple thousand pounds and maybe up to one ton.

 

I used to tow a 97 Audi A4 with my 87 Jeep Comanche (pretty much a Cherokee with a bed) all the time. And that car weighs at least 3,200 lbs. No issues. I towed a full lifted CJ5 with a 2001 Mercedes ML320 with a full dual axle trailer. Not to mention, I towed the Comanche with the Mercedes for a 2.5hr trip on a dual axle trailer through the mountains. No issues again.
I think you will be fine if you are careful.

 

This.

 

I wouldnt worry about it!! I have used my 2007 Jeep Wrangler MANY times to tow my 18' trailer and the Mazda. It has a V-6 and 6 speed manual.

In the past I used my Mazda 4X4 with a 2600 4 cylinder to pull same trailer and cars.

Just take your time and know you are not pulling with a Super Duty!!!

It amazes me around here (Texas) how these rednecks will buy an F-350 King Ranch Powerstroke just to pull their flat bottom boat around!!!

 

"All hat, no cows," Jim?

 

the rule of thumb is that the truck needs to be bigger than the trailer+ car. think of throwing a dart, the heavy end needs to be in front, if the heavy end is in the rear, it will be unstable. with cars you can go slow, and it'll be fine, but if you want to go freeway speed, it needs to be right.

so we've towed rx7's trouble free for years with a small trailer and a tacoma but the enclosed trailer and honda is close enough to the same size as the expedition, that we can't go over 60.

we learned the hard way too, hit a bump in a turn and the trailer changes lanes!

 

Oh don't get me wrong... Having more "***" is always better! I now tow with an Old School Suburban and it is great!!! Cheap too! I paid $2000 for a 1991 Suburban with 80,000 original miles. Bought it from an estate sale.

 

The difference with a Jeep Wrangler, is that they arent fast at all, but they are very torquey. They are pretty much made with the intentions of hawling stuff behind it. Honestly, by looking at the body of that s10 and the size, i wouldnt think about hawling anything with it.

 

My 93 s10 Blazer runs the 4.3 Vortec, I think it can handle a couple tons (as in two at most)

 

thanx for the feed back guys. i think im going to reconsider the s10, here in Michigan highway speeds are 70mph and from what i'd gather it would be a tough haul..

 

I'd take things in consideration, how often do you intend on towing and what is the terrian like? (hills, Mountains or flat ground cruising) Will you ever be towing in snow?

I would consider the braking ability of the tow vehicle and make sure your trailer brakes work correctly so you are not being pushed say down a hill by the trailer. The trailer tongue weight can be adjusted by moving the vehicle on the trailer.

I have towed in town with a small Nissan pickup to my current DD and your needs will help you as to what "you" need.

But for all around towing I'd suggest atleast a 1/2 ton full size truck, if a Ford between the 4.6 vs the 5.4 go with the 5.4 you'll have more power and get better milage the GM 4.8 is peppy and fine as long as you don't go over board and well unloaded decent fuel economy, but mind you I'd stay with towing smaller vehicles. The largest I've towed in the last year (actually the only thing that was not powered by a rotary) was a full size chevy pickup 8 ft bed and all but ideally like someone else said you want the tow vehicle to be larger the the towed, yes I was using my bigger vehicle .... but don't hual around flat bottom boats lol ... usually a rotary

well I have entered the ramble mode lol

 

A related question. I am looking to tow my 7 to a couple hours to a track and back. U Haul says that the smaller front wheel trailer is for front wheel drive cars only. What is the reason for this? Do I really need to disconnect the drive train? I can see that this might be needed for a rear wheel drive with automatic transmission, but for a manual? The trip is highway, 70 mph.

 

Why not just rent a proper car trailer?

 

The reason being all the fluid in the trans will run to the back of the casing and you'll have no lubrication on the gears. They'll heat up quickly and boom goes the trans. You can tow from the rear wheels with the front on the ground, but I wouldn't recommend it for obvious reasons. You could get skates for the rear wheels like they have on tow trucks. Unless your car isn't registered or completely unstreetable you might as well drive it to the track instead.

 

I have towed with one of these a lot. Put the car on backwards. Point the front wheels straight and lock the steering wheel.

This works even though some say not to do this!