Maybe off subject but.. hitching a 4 cylinder car for tow?

[zar]

Towing maybe 200-300pounds on 4 cylinder engine? bad idea?

I've been thinking about getting a little dingy boat but I'd have no way to get it around. I heavily weighing in the direction of getting a porta bote which folds up and can be strapped to the roof of a car, but I just wanted to get opinions. The boats I've look at are around 150lbs.. id guess a trailer would be 100lb at least. My car has a little over 100k miles which makes it less appealing.

 

[rhenderson]

How does the car perform with a couple of additional 200 lb people in it?


The real question is what would be total load you'd be towing - boat/trailer/motor?/ gear/beer/additional passengers.

The car should be okay with the weight as far as the engine is concerned but all towing impacts acceleration and braking. As small boat - (12 foot aluminum with six horse motor or electric torlling motor should not be a problem.

As for the car topper rack - it usually takes two people to put a boat on it simply because of the size boat and lifting it on to the rack. If you are not concerned about your car's appearance you may be able to lean it against the trunk and slide it up onto the rack.

 

[dave1959]

Towing maybe 200-300pounds on 4 cylinder engine? bad idea? I've been thinking about getting a little dingy boat but I'd have no way to get it around. I heavily weighing in the direction of getting a porta bote which folds up and can be strapped to the roof of a car, but I just wanted to get opinions. The boats I've look at are around 150lbs.. id guess a trailer would be 100lb at least. My car has a little over 100k miles which makes it less appealing.

Check the owners manual... I would use that as a guide..

 

[GWguy]

Something that lightweight won't be an issue. It's not recommended to tow with a front-wheel drive, but a couple hundred pounds is ok. I used to have a Subaru BRAT, 4 cyl front wheel drive, I think it was 65HP. Used to tow a full 16' wood boat with an old, heavy 40HP outboard with it. Went thru a clutch and brakes pretty quick.