Hello All,

Well, here's my situation. I'm already thinking of next season. It's time for a new machine for The Hossman, but I'm keeping the SRX because a> I love it :inlove: and b> I'm going to get the girlfriend addicted to my winter pastime as well. That brings up a whole other issue which has given me many a sleepless night (what sled to buy...), but my most pressing issue is transportation.

I had convinced myself earlier this week that I was going to buy a full size truck and double trailer next fall. I have been only partially delighted with this idea, because while it would serve my occasional towing duties wonderfully, it would really suck to drive the rest of the year. Full size trucks (even in leather trim and all the toys) still drive like trucks and use fuel like it's going out of style. So while it would be great for pulling around sleds (occasionally) it wouldn't be so great as a daily commuter.

Then I see a double-long inline trailer today cruising down the highway behind a mid-size sedan. It didn't seem to be having any trouble keeping up with traffic at about 120km/h on the 400. Why didn't I think of this?? I'd only use it probably a dozen times over the course of a winter, seems like a good compromise.

Has anybody got one of these trailers? Any comments? How do you load these things, it seems like the sled in the front must be way up in the air teetering precariously when you're loading/unloading the rear sled. If anyone out there uses a car for towing duties, please let me know your experiences.

a guy in town has one here, axl snaped on him 3 times, he seems to like it though, it's only a single axle it seems super long for just a single, i dont know if they make dual's or not but tha'ts something i would look into, he tows his with a toyota mini van and dsont seem to complain,

they are expensive.

I had a 98 S10 Manual w/ the V6 Vortec engine and when I was getting 20-23 mph. That will pull a 2 place no problem, you wont' get leather though.

I'd have to say too that a single axel doesn't seem like enough for a trailer that long, but as a tandem it should be nice. I don't think it would be any easier/harder to tow than a regular 2-place though.
Have you thought about a compact truck and a single place trailer?
Personally owning a snowmobile and not haveing a truck just seems silly to me, but as I would own a truck no matter where I lived or what I was doing maybe I'm biased. What can I say, I hate minivans, don't like cars, and (no offence) think SUV's are silly.

IMHO, using small tow vehicles where you'll be running above, at, or even near your tow capacities is a very bad idea. I wish I could afford to have a full size truck and an eco-commuter, but I can't. I commute in a 3/4 pickup. Sure it might burn a little more fuel, but it beats the alternative, trying to haul around a load that's too big for the tow vehicle. If you're doing that, you're a danger to yourself and others. If you're tow vehicle gets blown around like a kite when the wind starts blowing, or when you pass a semi, then it's not big enough, and you're a danger to yourself and others. As mentioned by others, to get an aluminum 2 place inline that could be towed (unsafely) by a sedan, you'd have to spend some major coin. Might as well take that 10K and buy a used full size truck and a 2 place clam-shell trailer, you could probably get both for under 10K and keep your gas-miser to go to work in...

Thanks for the input guys... still thinking about it.

Paul - have you priced a full size 4X4 truck lately? (of course you have... :p )

NB - I owned a compact truck for years before I bought my car last year. It was excellent to throw the sled into the back of it, but pulling a double trailer it was all it could do to keep up with traffic. And the gas mileage was on par with a full-size, so full-size it what I'd buy if I do buy a truck.... Oh, by the way, driving a 15MPG truck all year round when I'd only use it to pull sleds a dozen times seems silly to me.... I like trucks (I've always been a 'truck' guy), but with escalating fuel prices and quite a bit of commuting, a car is definitely a better all round choice.

rampage - I hear you, that's my concern too. I have been thinking about a used truck, but I figure if I invest that much, I might as well go with 'plan A' - buy a decent truck and drive it all the time....

Decisions, decisions.... Man, I thought this would be the easy one - deciding what sled to buy come fall is going to nearly kill me....

:D

I recently saw an add for a Dakota quad cab with a V8 and 4x4 leased for 2k down and $67 a month (24 month). There are some crazy lease deals out there. Of course this is the states and USD.

I own that truck and you can throw one in the back and 2 on the trailer, just don't expect better then the 15 mpg that you were talking about. My gas average for the 25k miles is 14.7mpg and that includes trailering quads, snowmibiles and even wood for the cabin.

Hey Hossman, I understand what you're talking about with the full sized truck, and I've promised myself that my next one would be a full-size, but only because of the space in the cab. I want a full-on four-door.
My Ranger, with a 4.0L V-6 and a 5-speed NEVER has trouble keeping up with traffic, not even towing two Polaris Quads on on 5 place trailer, going up the hill north out of North Bay. It pulls very well, and I suspect your expirience with a compact truck may be based on a 4-banger. I can't say I'm getting great fuel milage either, but a Ranger or a Dakota are certainly viable options to full sized trucks for commuting and towing. I love my truck on the high-way and in town, as it's MUCH easier to park then the Crew-Cab F-350 company truck I've got parked in my driveway. Like I said, if I didn't need more room inside the cab I'd be completly happy with a Ranger sized pick-up.

I think the real issue with inlines, despite the fact that they tow nice, is that they are a b1tch to park, and to find a place to store. They gotta be better on fuel to tow however.

I'm a truck guy also, so I too am biased, but for me a truck w 4x4 is the only way to go for winter sports.

What about one sled in the back of the truck and one on a small trailer. Kind of a pain to load and unload from the truck, but will tow well.

FishHog

:D I think this was addressed a year ago and if i remember right If you are going to tow. You want a tow vehicle with a solid rear axle and leaf spring suspension. The size of the tow vehicle is only material to the weight being towed. Most compact vehicles can tow up to 3000 lbs.
My experience would be to recommend anything over 1500 lbs get a trailer two axles with electric brakes (not surge brakes). An inline trailer will defiantly be my next choice. given the reduction in wind resistance alone will make it easier to tow. (If you are talking enclosed)
If you are talking open then you don't need an inline. The toyota rav4 will tow 1500 lbs The tacoma and 4 runners will tow 5 to 7 thousand lbs. witch is more than enough tor two snowmobiles. and with the v6 you will get decent fuel mileage the rest of the time. You can check the tow capacities of the other small suvs for towing capacity I would not recommend a front wheel drive for towing in the snow. I had a 92 toyota pickup and it would pull three sleds and a 1000 lb trailer just fine
The more weight you tow the more you need the two axle trailer
:) Hope I helped.

If it is an enclosed trailer or one with a big front shield it will be much easier to tow than a double wide.My gas mileage suffers terribly when pulling my double wide with a shield on it.I also have a totally enclosed box trailer that I pull with a flat 4x4 sheet of plywood on the front and I don't even notice it behind the truck.I am definetly going with a double inline on my next trailer.It's no different than towing a boat if your worried about the length. :thumbsup:

A friend of mine had a two place inline enclosed and it pulled very easily behind his 1998 blazer (6 cyl. auto). His was a vinyl enclosure so it didn`t wiegh much. The problem with it is that it is a drive on/drive off but it is a pain to set it up to drive off so you better have reverse or you will be draging the sled all the way out the back. The other thing is it is hard to see in them at night(unless it has lights inside) and this particular one was only wide enough for the sled and didn`t have enough room to walk past the sled so we had to climb over them.
btw you don`t need leaf springs to tow with. I have a full sized truck with coil springs that tows 5000 lbs just fine.
If you are going to tow, buy north american, no one else knows how to make a truck yet

Originally posted by NewfieBullet+Mar 14 2005, 08:40 AM-->Personally owning a snowmobile and not haveing a truck just seems silly to me, 410860
[/b]
right on, how could you own a sled and no truck? there are so many sled related projects that cannot be done without a truck. :wink:

<!--QuoteBegin-The Hossman@Mar 14 2005, 12:58 PM
Paul - have you priced a full size 4X4 truck lately?* (of course you have...* :p )
410929

yup priced a few,,,,yesterday. i was talking about the inline covered
{assuming covered} being expensive. if you did the Newfiebullet trick then you would not need the big trailer.

Well guys,

I still don&#39;t know what to do. My sled(s) will still be parked in Barrie about 200 yards away from an OFSC trail, so trailering isn&#39;t a necessity so much as a convenience (at times). It&#39;d be nice to try riding down in this area of Ontario as well, maybe even hook up with the famed P.Y. for a ride or two... :D

I checked the towing capacity of my car - a measly 1000lbs. So, even a single trailer would be pushing it.... what to do, what to do....

I guess I&#39;ve got all summer to think about it. Thanks for the input guys!