Upgraded our tow hitch... :)

[Guma]

Ok we upgraded the whole vehicle. This will be the wife's new daily driver, it is an '06 Cayenne S Titanium Edition. Now she is just as excited to get home and pick her new truck as I am to pick up our new boat.

A few more pics...







Towing package installed it is rated at 7700lbs. More than enough mmmph to pull the 22Ve if she lets me drive it!

[dingleberry]

The big question I have is: Can it take a Smart Car in a drag?

Dizzang, man. Wish I had that kind of vrooomm and mmmph combined... Enjoy!

[wallacmc]

Guma, sounds like you and I are on the same page. same color boat scheme if I remember right, new rig to go with new boat. We just went and got ours today.

[Guma]

Very nice! I couldn't talk her into a red one to match the boat, she had to get blue...LOL

[ajholt7]

Damn, you guys are dropping some serious coin recently. Who said the economy was bad?

[kerlee]

Very nice, you will enjoy.
Let me say sorry up front for the long diatribe below but it is my pet peeve that the manufacturers list a towing capacity but leave out some of the small details. I always wondered why a 3/4 ton truck pulls better than a 1/2 ton truck or SUV, could it all be due to the engine, brakes etc...

Your tow package rating is 7700 lbs. We see those ratings all the time but do we really know how they are calculated and what they mean? Those numbers are typically based on an empty tow vehicle with only a 150lb driver pulling the max amount, not what we usually take to the lake. There is something called a "gross combined weight rating (GCWR)" this number is the maximum weight of the vehicle, occupants, full tank of gas, trailer, boat, etc... For the Cayenne the weight rating is 12628lb. Sounds like a lot, lets break it down two ways. The first way will be with a 7700 lb towing capacity, that leaves 4928 lbs. The vehicle completely empty weighs 4762 that leaves 166lbs for driver weight. The second way to look at the GCWR is to try to use actual real life weights. Start with the same GCWR of 12628 lbs now lets subtract the "gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR)" which includes the vehicle (4762lbs) plus the maximum rating for the vehicle of occupants, gas, and cargo (1731 lbs). It is 6493lbs and probably is more realistic for how much the vehicle weighs when going to the lake. This would now leave 6135 lbs for the boat/trailer/gas/gear. The 22Ve Tige weighs 3982 lbs, gas weighs 47 gal (6.25 lb/gal) equals 300 lbs, I am guessing the trailer is a 1000 lbs. Add it all up and subtract from 6135 lbs and you have 853 lbs left before you have reached your GCWR. Which allow for some more gear, coolers etc... in the boat.
As you can see you are quickly approaching the GCWR... be careful don't overload it, empty any ballast sacs before you put it back on the trailer, etc... You may also want to get a more accurate weight of the trailer from the manufacturer, it could be 1500lbs which would leave you with only 353 lbs for gear in the boat.

When I first bought our Tige last year, I could definitely tell it was back there when we were pulling it compared to our previous boat. We used a Escalade (GCWR - 14,000lb). Sometimes you would think the boat was pushing the truck and you could occasionally feel trailer sway. I did the above research and realized that 3/4 ton trucks pull boats better than 1/2 ton trucks and SUV's because their GCWR's are much higher for several reasons one being a stiffer frames/ suspension. That is why they don't feel like they are being pushed down the road or have any sway when pulling the bigger boats. Your engine can definitely pull the boat, your transmission may run a little hot but tow packages typically include a transmission cooler and your brakes may wear a little quicker. Stopping and starting are fine it is the solidness of the pull that will be different which is due to the stiffer frame and suspension. That is how I convinced the wife to let me buy a Ford F250 (GCWR- 23500 lbs). Got the boat first then needed the truck to pull it. Sorry for the long diatribe on this subject, hope it helps somebody get a new truck. Below is a link for an explanation of GCWR and manufacturers list of GCWR or you can check the manufacturers website.

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/auto-p...hicle/gcwr.htm

[wallacmc]

Damn, you guys are dropping some serious coin recently. Who said the economy was bad?

Both of ours are used. His is an '06 and mine is an '07. They just are really sweet plus about 50,000 miles.

My advice: be like me and get a sugar mama

[wallacmc]

Very nice, you will enjoy.
Let me say sorry up front for the long diatribe below but it is my pet peeve that the manufacturers list a towing capacity but leave out some of the small details. I always wondered why a 3/4 ton truck pulls better than a 1/2 ton truck or SUV, could it all be due to the engine, brakes etc...

Your tow package rating is 7700 lbs. We see those ratings all the time but do we really know how they are calculated and what they mean? Those numbers are typically based on an empty tow vehicle with only a 150lb driver pulling the max amount, not what we usually take to the lake. There is something called a "gross combined weight rating (GCWR)" this number is the maximum weight of the vehicle, occupants, full tank of gas, trailer, boat, etc... For the Cayenne the weight rating is 12628lb. Sounds like a lot, lets break it down two ways. The first way will be with a 7700 lb towing capacity, that leaves 4928 lbs. The vehicle completely empty weighs 4762 that leaves 166lbs for driver weight. The second way to look at the GCWR is to try to use actual real life weights. Start with the same GCWR of 12628 lbs now lets subtract the "gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR)" which includes the vehicle (4762lbs) plus the maximum rating for the vehicle of occupants, gas, and cargo (1731 lbs). It is 6493lbs and probably is more realistic for how much the vehicle weighs when going to the lake. This would now leave 6135 lbs for the boat/trailer/gas/gear. The 22Ve Tige weighs 3982 lbs, gas weighs 47 gal (6.25 lb/gal) equals 300 lbs, I am guessing the trailer is a 1000 lbs. Add it all up and subtract from 6135 lbs and you have 853 lbs left before you have reached your GCWR. Which allow for some more gear, coolers etc... in the boat.
As you can see you are quickly approaching the GCWR... be careful don't overload it, empty any ballast sacs before you put it back on the trailer, etc...

When I first bought our Tige last year, I could definitely tell it was back there when we were pulling it compared to our previous boat. We used a Escalade (GCWR - 14,000lb). Sometimes you would think the boat was pushing the truck and you could occasionally feel trailer sway. I did the above research and realized that 3/4 ton trucks pull boats better than 1/2 ton trucks and SUV's because their GCWR's are much higher for several reasons one being a stiffer frames/ suspension. That is why they don't feel like they are being pushed down the road or have any sway when pulling the bigger boats. Your engine can definitely pull the boat, your transmission may run a little hot but tow packages typically include a transmission cooler and your brakes may wear a little quicker. Stopping and starting are fine it is the solidness of the pull that will be different which is due to the stiffer frame and suspension. That is how I convinced the wife to let me buy a Ford F250 (GCWR- 23500 lbs). Got the boat first then needed the truck to pull it. Sorry for the long diatribe on this subject, hope it helps somebody get a new truck. Below is a link for an explanation of GCWR and manufacturers list of GCWR or you can check the manufacturers website.

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/auto-p...hicle/gcwr.htm

I hear you, but I thik there are things that help, including the premo boatmate trailor that came with the boat. I towed it today in high winds and it handled pretty well. The terrain, however, must mostly flat. Next weekend we head down to Norris Lake through the kentucky and Tennessee hills. This will be a good test.

[Carter13]

Just buy a SRW 1 ton truck and be done with it.
With mine I still feel the boat back there. I cannot imagine what you guys are feeling towing behind those two SUV's?

[Iwndr]

Excellent explanation Kerlee

[AdaminMN]

My Jeep loves pulling my Tige' down the freeway at 70 MPH...

Seriously.

The Jeep only cost me twenty grand back in '96. I still get about 15 MPG pulling the boat. I usually get around 18-20.

However, I am determined to kill this vehicle, so far my attempts have failed. 235,000 miles and still counting. I put over a thousand miles on last summer pulling the boat alone. Still she want to keep on going. Will I ever get a new truck?

BTW, The Cayenne is a beast. I'd love to get one.

[kerlee]

I am not trying to stir up a whole lot of controversy. Just sharing what I learned that others may have not realized. For the 10 years before we got our TIGE I used SUV's to pull 18 to 20 ft boats and they did fine, like mentioned above. The transmission temps were a bit hotter even with a t-cooler but I never really noticed the boats were back there. You could not go roaring up inclines but we made it to the lake no problem. When we hooked up the 22ft boat last year, it was a noticeable difference. Two feet more of boat does make a difference, it just bigger in so many aspects. I borrowed a friends F250 to try and pull it, what a difference. He explained the suspension/frame etc on the 3/4 ton and bigger trucks were designed to pull. Those trucks ride like truck they are nowhere as smooth a ride as the cayenne, etc... It is all a trade-off in terms of comfort, price, etc..

[KonaKing]

I pull with a GMC 2500 Duramax with and Allison 6 speed. My mileage does not change and I hardly even know the boat is back there, stopping or accelerating. Now when I hook up the 11000 lb 5th wheel its a different story. Next truck will be a dually. I have with many vehicles and the dmax is hands the winner in my book.

[Wake Bandits]

Nice clean install.

[91Terminator]

Guma that is really sweet man. Cant wait to see it when you come to pick up the boat.

And for all the rest of you not trying to start anything but......I have a 2005 F150 SuperCrew i tow boats every day, all week, every month, and i dont ever feel them, they never push me or pull me, dont ever have problems stopping them, dont really get much sway, BUT I GUESS THAT IS WHY ITS THE #1 TRUCK FOR ??????????????????? 33 STRAIGHT YEARS!!!! You dont need to do any calculating GCWR, GRW, trailer weight, boat this, truck that, GET ONE EXPERIENCE IT.