Anybody else need TWO tow vehicles? What did you end up with?

I have a scenario where I have TWO things that will need to be towed. My travel trailer, and my soon-to-be-mine moomba. We have decided that buying a daily driver for my wife that doubles as a tow vehicle, like a Ford Expidition would actually cost MORE money than keeping her daily driver honda civic, and buying a second truck and using it only for boat towing duty. I currently tow my travel trailer with a 2012 F150 3.5EB. Does great.

What would you do for a second tow vehicle? Would you have a daily that can ALSO tow? or go with a second truck that only pulls tow duty? I am eyeballing a Tundra with 120k miles for under 17k. Although it SOUNDS strange to have two trucks who's only job is to tow two different RVs 4 months out of the year, it's cheaper than daily driving two vehicles that can ALSO tow enough. (i hope that makes sense)

I have had two full size 1/2 tons pick ups since 2015

Currently
2019 F150
2021 F150

Crew cabs are more useful to me than SUV’s


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Originally Posted by larry_arizona

I have had two full size 1/2 tons pick ups since 2015

Currently
2019 F150
2021 F150

Crew cabs are more useful to me than SUV’s


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But are those limited to tow duties? (and home depot/dump of course)... or do you daily driver them?

I know there are wives who could pull a trailer/boat but my wife isn’t one of them and so I’ll never have a reason to buy two tow vehicles…:-D

That being said I wanted my wife to get a Expedition or Tahoe so we had an optional tow vehicle, but my wife refuses to drive a full size SUV or 1/2 ton truck…she says too difficult to park in the hobby lobby, grocery store, hair dresser, etc parking lot..

don't feel bad if you end up with a garage full of rigs that don't do much :)
we have a '16 silverado z71 that pretty much only tows. it's only logged 4k in the last 2 years and majority was back and forth to the ramp. we also have a 99 f250 superduty that tows and is our landscape/dump rig. along with 2 cars and a kawi as daily drivers(even tho gf works from home).

used cars right now are at an all time high. I'd hold off until next spring and see what the market does since you don't need anything right away. prices are still sky high on used but, along with boats, the market seems to have leveled off and prices have retreated a little. my gut says there will be further drops in used pricing and inventory increases over the next 6 months but my crystal ball broke yesterday so it's all an uneducated guess.

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Originally Posted by CptAmerica

But are those limited to tow duties? (and home depot/dump of course)... or do you daily driver them?

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Both daily rides.

Wife drives the 21
I drive the 19

The 21 is the only one we use to tow the SA


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Originally Posted by sandm

don't feel bad if you end up with a garage full of rigs that don't do much :)
we have a '16 silverado z71 that pretty much only tows. it's only logged 4k in the last 2 years and majority was back and forth to the ramp. we also have a 99 f250 superduty that tows and is our landscape/dump rig. along with 2 cars and a kawi as daily drivers(even tho gf works from home).

used cars right now are at an all time high. I'd hold off until next spring and see what the market does since you don't need anything right away. prices are still sky high on used but, along with boats, the market seems to have leveled off and prices have retreated a little. my gut says there will be further drops in used pricing and inventory increases over the next 6 months but my crystal ball broke yesterday so it's all an uneducated guess.

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Yeah, if I go with my current plan, we will end up with two daily drivers, and two trucks. Both trucks only being used for towing/home depot/dump

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Originally Posted by larry_arizona

Both daily rides.

Wife drives the 21
I drive the 19

The 21 is the only one we use to tow the SA

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This is an easier way to go, but the problem with daily driving a 60k truck, is when it comes time to replace it, it is a nasty hit. I find these vehicles too expensive to put frivolous daily driver type miles on them. We both commute 60 miles a day (30 miles from work).

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Originally Posted by CptAmerica

Yeah, if I go with my current plan, we will end up with two daily drivers, and two trucks. Both trucks only being used for towing/home depot/dump

This is an easier way to go, but the problem with daily driving a 60k truck, is when it comes time to replace it, it is a nasty hit. I find these vehicles too expensive to put frivolous daily driver type miles on them. We both commute 60 miles a day (30 miles from work).

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Just don’t like cars in General. I have a fun car, but just prefer trucks.

Wife prefers a truck too, no issues parking it.

We actually work at the same company and don’t car pool.


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Pitch the pull trailer and get a motor home.

Why not have a 3rd vehicle just for towing? Then pick and drive he/she choices on a daily drivers to log miles and fuel for the daily commute.

I have a tow rig that logs 1-2k miles per year. Used Diesel, so it pulls my boat and car trailer. Plus, when pulling something heavy I like the brakes. New trucks are pretty amazing for towing, but costly.

I have not owned a car as a daily driver for 20+ years. Just does not fit me, but my commute was only to the airport for the last 20 years - every other week. No daily office. Not your situation.


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I have a 2018 f150 4x4 crew that is my daily driver and keep my boat on a lift year round.

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Originally Posted by zabooda

Pitch the pull trailer and get a motor home.

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I agree. My wife drives our class c motor home and pulls our jetskis. I tow our 2020 sl450 with my 20 Sierra Denali. Works great and the kids much prefer to ride in the rv anyways

For a rad double duty vehicle, look into the Durango SRT. 8,700 lb towing capacity, room for the whole family / dogs, plus a 6.4L NA V8 with very nice bilstein adjustable suspension, VF 8 spd, and brembo monoblock brakes.

Recently ditched my Tahoe for one and I can’t stop smiling…

Going out on a limb here but.......I assume you have kids also or dogs that come with you. We have a similar situation and the wife daily drives our Yukon, I drive a cheap work car, and the dually crew cab sits in the barn for real work.

You have a '12 F150 that will easily tow either the Trailer or the Boat so keep it. Wife is driving the Civic and saves money, keep it. Now I would buy a SUV that can tow one of the toys and switch between the truck and SUV as my daily. I'm sure the wife is going to want to drive the SUV several times also, and that is fine.

What weight are we talking about on the trailer? I know the boat is going to be ~7000# once dressed.

FYI...stay away from the Tundra. Very unimpressive when towing long trip. Fuel economy will add hundreds of dollar to your trips.

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Originally Posted by rhouse181

For a rad double duty vehicle, look into the Durango SRT. 8,700 lb towing capacity, room for the whole family / dogs, plus a 6.4L NA V8 with very nice bilstein adjustable suspension, VF 8 spd, and brembo monoblock brakes.

Recently ditched my Tahoe for one and I can’t stop smiling…

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Yeah, but then you have to drive a Dodge.

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Originally Posted by Holdmybeer

Going out on a limb here but.......I assume you have kids also or dogs that come with you. We have a similar situation and the wife daily drives our Yukon, I drive a cheap work car, and the dually crew cab sits in the barn for real work.

You have a '12 F150 that will easily tow either the Trailer or the Boat so keep it. Wife is driving the Civic and saves money, keep it. Now I would buy a SUV that can tow one of the toys and switch between the truck and SUV as my daily. I'm sure the wife is going to want to drive the SUV several times also, and that is fine.

What weight are we talking about on the trailer? I know the boat is going to be ~7000# once dressed.

FYI...stay away from the Tundra. Very unimpressive when towing long trip. Fuel economy will add hundreds of dollar to your trips.

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Yep.. 2 kids and one super tiny dog that takes up no space. My 2012 3.5EB F150 tows the trailer pretty confidently. The travel trailer is 5500 dry, so about 6500 or 7000 when all said and done... Roughly the same final weight as the boat. I don't think it would really tow very much more, it's about at it's limit.

Stay away from the Tundra, huh. I was leaning towards a toyota just to pick up some reliability in an older half ton. What gas miliage do they get when towing? MY EB isn't very good either. Costs a fortune to tow. The good news, is my primary lake is only a little over an hour away, all highway.

I'm not a fan of commuting with my tow rig and have found the savings of having a commuter has lead to multiple tow rigs. When I got my first job with modest salary out of college I set up a car account that was funded even if I had no car payment. I didn't know about the 20/4/10 rule at the time but my philosophy follows pretty close to that except I haven't adjusted the amount that is funded since the start decades ago. Over time we drive an average of 35k miles a year.
We now have 5 vehicles, a commuter car, mini van, Suburban, dmax crew cab 3/4 ton and a 4500 all funded from a very modest account. Everything is very nice, low mileage but may not be the newest model year as it takes time to cycle through replacing all of them. We have been buying new for a long time.

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my old f150 with the 5.3 was 8-10mpg's towing. the superduty is the same with the v10.
our silverado with the 5.3 averaged 13 from wisconsin to utah and 14 here in vegas going from home to the ramp. both routes have many hills and grades.
I have a friend at work with an older stock tundra and he bitches all day long on the crappy gas mileage. another peer had a '20 lifted and they sold for same reason. he was getting 10-12 daily. I don't think tundras are any more or less reliable than the big3 but that's an opinion.

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Originally Posted by CptAmerica

Yeah, but then you have to drive a Dodge.

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Come on... nothing wrong with a big female reproductive organ on your tailgate :p

all kidding aside, their older trucks have some fit/finish and repair issues but their latest stuff.... they weren't picked as a 3 time MT truck of the year for nothing so FCA is doing something right...
I'd look for something full size tho. 8700lbs towing is awfully close to capacity with a newer wakeboat, gear and family. without getting into a long protracted weight debate that's been beat to death on boat forums :)

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Originally Posted by CptAmerica

Yeah, but then you have to drive a Dodge.


Yep.. 2 kids and one super tiny dog that takes up no space. My 2012 3.5EB F150 tows the trailer pretty confidently. The travel trailer is 5500 dry, so about 6500 or 7000 when all said and done... Roughly the same final weight as the boat. I don't think it would really tow very much more, it's about at it's limit.

Stay away from the Tundra, huh. I was leaning towards a toyota just to pick up some reliability in an older half ton. What gas miliage do they get when towing? MY EB isn't very good either. Costs a fortune to tow. The good news, is my primary lake is only a little over an hour away, all highway.

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Buddies Tundra with nothing in the bed or hitch is 13mpg at 70mph. He hooks his 12ft v-nose low boy enclosed trailer to it at 5000# and it drops to 9mpg. Your ~130ish miles trip to the lake and back with be 1/2 a tank of fuel assuming flat driving. You are in the North West, so I know there is nothing flat you are towing through.

I know the whole Toyota reliability thing, but most body on frame vehicles these days are good, and you won't be towing every day.

If you currently do not have car payments, I would look at getting something new or as close as possible in an SUV and then park the truck. Truck becomes dedicated tow/work rig and the SUV is the daily driver tow rig. Depending on who drives the most per day would get the Civic.

SandM beat me to it also. Full size SUV. The trailer and boat are both at ~7000# loaded and the trailer can go more once you fill water tanks (if needed). If you can get air leveling rear suspension....DO IT. Rides so much better towing.

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Originally Posted by sandm

my old f150 with the 5.3 was 8-10mpg's towing. the superduty is the same with the v10.
our silverado with the 5.3 averaged 13 from wisconsin to utah and 14 here in vegas going from home to the ramp. both routes have many hills and grades.
I have a friend at work with an older stock tundra and he bitches all day long on the crappy gas mileage. another peer had a '20 lifted and they sold for same reason. he was getting 10-12 daily. I don't think tundras are any more or less reliable than the big3 but that's an opinion.

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My F150 EB gets like... 10.2mpg towing. GREAT gas mialage when not towing, when i'm out of the boost, but they don't get great gas mialage when youre IN the boost towing.

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Originally Posted by sandm

I'd look for something full size tho. 8700lbs towing is awfully close to capacity with a newer wakeboat, gear and family. without getting into a long protracted weight debate that's been beat to death on boat forums :)

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Yeah, this is a debate I see all over. People see the quoted "max towing" capacity and think anything below that number, and you're fine. I disagree. My current F150 is rated at 11,300lbs. My travel trailer is about 5,500 dry. (7ish loaded) and in my opinion.. I am MAXED out. I don't run airbags, but I do run HD shocks with a great weight distrubution hitch, and it feels like that is about it. The engine is strong enough... the brakes are strong enough... it's really the suspension.

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Originally Posted by Holdmybeer

Buddies Tundra with nothing in the bed or hitch is 13mpg at 70mph. He hooks his 12ft v-nose low boy enclosed trailer to it at 5000# and it drops to 9mpg.

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My 3.5 Ecoboost only gets 10 towing.

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Originally Posted by Holdmybeer

Your ~130ish miles trip to the lake and back with be 1/2 a tank of fuel assuming flat driving. You are in the North West, so I know there is nothing flat you are towing through.

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It's actually MOSTLY flat. There are some small hills here and there, but it's mainly just down the 101 which can be a bit slower and more winding. It's certainly not the same as just rolling down i5... but we're not going up and over the cascades, either.

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Originally Posted by Holdmybeer

I know the whole Toyota reliability thing, but most body on frame vehicles these days are good, and you won't be towing every day.

If you currently do not have car payments, I would look at getting something new or as close as possible in an SUV and then park the truck. Truck becomes dedicated tow/work rig and the SUV is the daily driver tow rig. Depending on who drives the most per day would get the Civic.

SandM beat me to it also. Full size SUV. The trailer and boat are both at ~7000# loaded and the trailer can go more once you fill water tanks (if needed). If you can get air leveling rear suspension....DO IT. Rides so much better towing.

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The problem with a full sized SUV.. is they claim a max tow rating just over 6k. So a 7000 pound trailer sure sounds like it is going to be too heavy, which is why I was looking for a truck with at least 10k. (most half tons are at least 10k). I think SandM is recommending a 3/4... which is an option, but a bit more pricey.

I do have two car payments, my wife's new Civic and my new Camry, but they are ALMOST paid off. I put down ~10k on these cars, and pay $150 extra in principal on both each month, so I turned my 4 year loans into like 2.5. With a (almost) paid off Honda civic that is practically free to insure, and gets 45mpg... I would think the money saved in commuting would be worth giving my wife two vehicles... her honda and a dedicated tow vehicle instead of commuting in a hyper expensive expidition that gets 15 mpg, and may not even tow the boat that well. I am looking at the tow rating for a 2021 Expidition, and it's 6,300 (9,300 with their HD tow package). That's just not enough. What SUV could tow a boat, if not an expidition?

Hellcat Durango!!!!


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Originally Posted by CptAmerica

Yeah, but then you have to drive a Dodge.

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Ha... it's actually a Mercedes chassis platform. Handling characteristics of an AMG with the fit and finish definitely "Made in America."

Towing capacity is bested only by the Expedition in the full size SUV category... I will miss the rear airbags on my Tahoe, but that's about it.

https://i.imgur.com/s93p0JO.jpg

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Originally Posted by larry_arizona

Hellcat Durango!!!!


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Now we're talking!

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Originally Posted by CptAmerica

I think SandM is recommending a 3/4... which is an option, but a bit more pricey.

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absolutely not unless you are going into the 23/24ft premium boats that scale out pushing 9000lbs.
1/2 ton are perfectly fine for most boats even with lead/gear. we towed a tige z3 first then an r23 with a grand in lead and gear with our silverado and it did it relatively easy while returning decent mpg's. never needed or used the superduty for boat towing.

keep in mind with any wakeboat, most of the dry weights on trailer are before any options/liquids and not sure today, but back in the day, towers were an "option" and were not included in dry weight. sure that has changed in todays world. we easily add 500lbs to any dry weight for options, gas/oil/antifreeze and any gear we have added sans lead. those 4 rev10's and amp? there's an extra 100lbs. amp/sub? another 50-75. it all adds up.

I would think any of the large suv's would tow it when equipped with tow pack. tahoe, suburban, expedition.
reality is our 2020 camaro with the 6.2 would tow the boat. question is whether it'll stop with it. the frame says "no!".

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Originally Posted by larry_arizona

Hellcat Durango!!!!

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No dodge :D

My Wife's Yukon XL (same as Suburban) is rated at 8,300. My Mojo with lead and fuel is ~6700. Yukon has the rear air leveling and it did great in the mountain of Norris Lake. I was getting 12-13mpg until I pulled off the highway. Terrain around the lake dropped it to 9-10mpg.

The Durango is now on a full frame again and not unibody construction and would be fine. However, the Hellcat version sits so low, not sure how well it would do towing.

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Originally Posted by Holdmybeer

My Wife's Yukon XL (same as Suburban) is rated at 8,300. My Mojo with lead and fuel is ~6700. Yukon has the rear air leveling and it did great in the mountain of Norris Lake. I was getting 12-13mpg until I pulled off the highway. Terrain around the lake dropped it to 9-10mpg.

The Durango is now on a full frame again and not unibody construction and would be fine. However, the Hellcat version sits so low, not sure how well it would do towing.

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Still sporting the same unibody since the 2011 redesign...

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Originally Posted by Holdmybeer

My Wife's Yukon XL (same as Suburban) is rated at 8,300. .

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That's really pushing it for a #7,000 load...

I'm so looking forward to the 10k plus tow capacity in some 1/2 ton trucks working there way into the Suburban, Expedition Max and Yukon XL. I was looking for a mint Excursion with V10 or diesel for a long time. Found one right after we bought the Suburban, they are out there.

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Do any of you use weight distrubution hitches with your boats trailers?

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Originally Posted by CptAmerica

Do any of you use weight distrubution hitches with your boats trailers?

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I probably should and you can get WDH’s that allow backing up, but I don’t.

The Boatmate dual axle trailers do well at mitigating tongue loads as well as braking.


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Originally Posted by larry_arizona

I probably should and you can get WDH’s that allow backing up, but I don’t.

The Boatmate dual axle trailers do well at mitigating tongue loads as well as braking.


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My solid bar WDH used with our travel trailer is pretty amazing. The anti-sway is built into the bar system, and can be backed up without touching it.

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Originally Posted by rhouse181

Still sporting the same unibody since the 2011 redesign...

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I have been wrong before....thanks for this.
I swore they went back to a BoF configuration. Had to go back and check myself, and they did not.

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Originally Posted by CptAmerica

That's really pushing it for a #7,000 load...

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I do not think so at all. The Durango would work (8700 rating) but you do not want a Dodge.

Just say go full size vs mid-size. A 4runner, Honda Pilot, etc. is rated at 6000# max. I would trade the Yukon for an X7 but the max rating is 7000# and that is pushing it.

3/4 ton is not needed for either toy you have but would be easy to load and forget about ratings.

Since you have 2 commuter cars and a truck already and you have 2 car payments, it is very hard to tell someone to just get another truck or suv. Being responsible would be to either ditch 1 of the cars for a truck/SUV and daily drive it, or ditch the trailer and buy a Class C motorhome that can tow the boat.

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Originally Posted by CptAmerica

Do any of you use weight distrubution hitches with your boats trailers?

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never used one on any of our boats and don't see many that do use them. Larry is right from boatmate. they build a pretty nice trailer but even our old metalcrap trailer out of SLC towed our 22ve real nice loaded down.


I forgot that you live out west. might look into length of travel trailer and boat. if you are lucky, might be able to ditch the truck, pick up a diesel and tow both. pac nw has some pretty liberal towing requirements for long loads. I know a few in the nw that have done that the few times a year the entire caravan goes. some states require a permit to do it but pretty easy to get.

we might be married to the same person. Lol

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Originally Posted by larry_arizona

I probably should and you can get WDH’s that allow backing up, but I don’t.

The Boatmate dual axle trailers do well at mitigating tongue loads as well as braking.

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That might increase the risk of sway, ya? My travel trailer is REALLY heavy on the tongue. I've never encountered even the slightest hint of trailer sway with it. I think I need airbags, even with the WDH.

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Originally Posted by CptAmerica

That might increase the risk of sway, ya? My travel trailer is REALLY heavy on the tongue. I've never encountered even the slightest hint of trailer sway with it. I think I need airbags, even with the WDH.

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Bags will level your truck, but they won’t add weight back to the front axle. The WDH will add weight to front axle and trailer axles


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Originally Posted by larry_arizona

Bags will level your truck, but they won’t add weight back to the front axle. The WDH will add weight to front axle and trailer axles

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Yeah, my F150 wouldn't be able to safely handle my travel trailer without the WDH. What ball size is needed for these boat trailers?

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Originally Posted by CptAmerica

Yeah, my F150 wouldn't be able to safely handle my travel trailer without the WDH. What ball size is needed for these boat trailers?

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Boatmate uses a 2”.

I think 2-5/16 on the bigger Supras


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2021 Makai has 2" I was surprised it was not bigger.

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