Posts: 1663
Location: Kodiak, AK | All good points that I was going to make and I'll chime in because I just went through a similar thing, when thinking about getting another 1/2 ton or going up to a 3/4 ton, when my boat and trailer sit right in the middle of decision-making land. I went with the 3/4 ton. It's like an outboard or a trolling motor...get as much as you can afford and there is no such thing as too much power. That said, I really think the "there's more to towing capacity than the number" really applies to a vehicle like a Traverse. There's things that a truck will just have that a Traverse won't, even though they may be the same listed capacity. Examples- spring rate, overload springs, transmission cooler, transmission temp guage, frame vs unibody, overdrive "off" ability, weight distribution of the vehicle...hell, can you open the Travere's back hatch with the boat hooked up? Stuff like that. And then, distance and frequency of towing. I remember a long time ago I had a ZR2 Chevy S10. Not a tow vehicle! But I towed my buddy's huge boat, like 7,000 lbs from time to time, a few miles and it did fine! That said, that was no highway, maybe a handful of times per year and I was able to take it slow and just take my time. Highway, frequent towing, demanding towing (hill country), then yeah, you'll want an actual tow vehicle and not what is basically a beefed up 4x4 car. Not knocking the Traverse...my parents and in-laws have one each. They're cool. I just don't consider them a tow vehicle for much of a boat. Its like when you see a Corvette or a Mustang with a tow hitch...cool car, but what the hell? |
