Towing with RXV

[jmauld]

I’m looking at getting a little Jon boat or skiff and was wondering how much the RXV can safely tow? Have any of you tried to pull about 500-1000lbs up a boat ramp?

[BobBoyce]

Originally Posted by jmauld

I’m looking at getting a little Jon boat or skiff and was wondering how much the RXV can safely tow? Have any of you tried to pull about 500-1000lbs up a boat ramp?

I towed a 1 ton Dodge van up my driveway with my stock 2012 RXV several years ago.

[jkredman]

I use my RXV to Shag a pair of Sea-Doo GTI 155son a side by side trailer in and out of the garage.

I’m probably just under 2000 pounds.

The cart handles it just fine. Just know it’s relatively level concrete and i’m Using the cart to move the trailer about 25 feet. The reason I use the cart is because when the trailer is centered between the door posts, I’ve got about 4 to 6 inches max. It’s a lot more nimble than trying with my Chevy 2500HD with it’s Allison transmission and Duramax Diesel....

[jmauld]

I’m looking to use it to launch and retrieve the boat.

[kernal]

The RXV owner's manual (pg 42) allows for towing of up to 3 carts. ~3000lbs or so.

[jkredman]

Pulling up a boat ramp is probably not a problem. Pulling out of the water is where I fear you could have an issue. You’ll have two concerns:

1) The trailer frame in the water is going to have a lot of resistance. So even 1000 pounds is going to feel a lot heavier until you get the axle & tires out of the water.

2) If the ramp is wet, you have a rather light weight tow vehicle; you could possibly spin tires and not go anywhere.

Finally if something goes wrong and you get the backend wet you could be setting yourself up for problems with the motor and brake. The back of my RXV is water resistant, but it’s a long way from waterproof.

I’m not saying the RXV can’t do it, I just know getting the rear axle of my truck wet won’t hurt anything, and on a real wet ramp, I put it in 4WD. (I also have a 28 foot Chaparral that with trailer checks in at just under 13000 pounds.)

Really the one thing you need to consider is this: How steep is the ramp?

[HiTechRedNeck]

NOOOOO!!!!!!! no brakes on front wheels... slick snot on boat ramp=RXV swimming lessons (spoiler alert---- big $$$$$ controller replacement at a minimum)

used to live in Florida... All boat ramps were slick...

[BobBoyce]

Originally Posted by HiTechRedNeck

NOOOOO!!!!!!! no brakes on front wheels... slick snot on boat ramp=RXV swimming lessons (spoiler alert---- big $$$$$ controller replacement at a minimum)

used to live in Florida... All boat ramps were slick...

I remember those days... The tail end of my IROC-Z got wet on more than one occasion. But it was a freshwater lake so I wasn't too concerned. It wasn't like some I had seen where entire vehicles went for a swim, dragged in backwards by their boat trailers. I remember a guy with a pickup truck climbing out the drivers window and standing on the hood of his truck asking if anyone had a chain and a 4X4 to pull his truck out. The trailer had fallen off of the end of the ramp to the lakebed below.

[jmauld]

Originally Posted by HiTechRedNeck

NOOOOO!!!!!!! no brakes on front wheels... slick snot on boat ramp=RXV swimming lessons (spoiler alert---- big $$$$$ controller replacement at a minimum)

used to live in Florida... All boat ramps were slick...

I’ve been thinking about putting front brakes on this thing anyway. I don’t like the small delay between pressing the brake pedal and the controller switching to brake mode. It makes me feel a little uncomfortable.