I have been towing boats since 1984 with everything from a Toyota 4 cyl truck to a 1 ton 6L. Here is what I have learned ,if possible get a 3/4 or 1 ton with a strong tow package most 1/2 tons are just cars with a bed. You will never regret having too much vehicle. Towing with a short wheel base small engine economy vehicle can differently be a white knuckle experience. It can also be dangerous especially when the unexpected happens. Remember stopping is even more important than towing. Its also very hard on the equipment and will cause more frequent breakdowns. Your choices are PU trucks, SUV s or full sized vans all are built on truck chassis. Go as heavy duty as you can over kill is always best for a tow specific vehicle . I chose a 2005 GMC 12 passenger savana van 3500 6L 373 rear gear HD tow package. It has the ability to tow about anything and the inside space to haul 12 passengers or remove the seats and haul a ton of cargo. It was cheap because the PUs and SUVs are in and vans are the red headed step child now. Not pretty but tows and hauls great. It also gets better gas mileage towing than the 6 cyl I used to have . You don't need a Diesel they tow great but with the added cost to purchase higher fuel and high maintenance most never even hit break even over their gas counterparts. They do have the wow factor but it comes at a cost. What ever you get make sure it has the added towing equipment like trans cooler and HD suspension to handle the load.