And yes, you are correct. The 235 dual console and the 236 center consul is the same hull and the whole rig probably weighs almost exactly the same.
Towing a GW 235 with BMW X5?
- Thread starter billbass
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I quite simply felt the Yukon was undermatched for my Grady. Prior to getting the Grady, I had a 18ft Whaler Outrage and the Yukon jerked that Whaler around like it was a dog toy.
I was constantly asking the Yukon to operate at near the max loads while towing the Grady, which is not a good practice for long-term sustainability in my opinion. See the below picture.
I was constantly asking the Yukon to operate at near the max loads while towing the Grady, which is not a good practice for long-term sustainability in my opinion. See the below picture.
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Yukon+GW.jpeg
I understand your "feeling" - and also why you might think it's not up the task basing it on the looks. But looks can be deceiving. It's not a big boat - and the Yukon/Tahoe is VERY WELL suited to pull that weight. As I said, I've done this more times than I can count without a calculator with the same weight as you... less weight... and more weight - including doing this for a living. It's a very good tow vehicle for that.
To compare to a much smaller boat, though - that's apples and oranges.
Back to the picture... looks perfectly fine. Besides, a longer boat (trailer) is BETTER for trailering.
Don't judge a book by it's cover
While YOU may not be comfortable with it (and that's totally fine), it doesn't mean it's not up to the task. Will a larger vehicle pull it better? Sure - but that doesn't mean the Yukon is bad. It's not. I would hop in that rig to tow that boat without even a second thought.Opinions can vary in regards to what someone is comfortable towing. But that doesn't mean the vehicle isn't "factually" a good match for the boat/trailer.
I won't put my family in the Yukon again while towing the Grady.
I grew up at the local airport with my dad flying small planes. I have my pilots license with an instrument rating. My flight instructor was an FAA mechanic and licensed inspector. He taught me to "listen" to the machine. I've operated airplanes in situations that weren't ideal. I have a "two strike" rule that if you encounter two red flags then you need to immediately ground yourself as the third strike and you're out.
I grew up at the local airport with my dad flying small planes. I have my pilots license with an instrument rating. My flight instructor was an FAA mechanic and licensed inspector. He taught me to "listen" to the machine. I've operated airplanes in situations that weren't ideal. I have a "two strike" rule that if you encounter two red flags then you need to immediately ground yourself as the third strike and you're out.
That’s a really beautiful boat! I looked up the towing capacity ratings for the Yukon and the suburban. The Yukon‘s rating is quite adequate, but the suburban is rated for more. The other thing is that the suburban has a much longer wheelbase and that’s always a very helpful feature for pulling any trailer. Your 18 foot outrage weighs 1/2 the 23 foot Grady white! I looked it up. The outrage weighs 2500 pounds with motor while your Grady white weighs 5000 pounds. That’s 200% difference. Those may be more of the reasons for the differences you’ve seen.
Believe me, I am NOT trying to sway you - far from it. It's your rig, your call. You need to do what you're comfortable with.
But I do want to make the point to others reading this that the Yukon is absolutely fine to pull that weight (and who knows, maybe there was an issue with the truck) - but if you don't trust it then you absolutely shouldn't use it because that's all you're going to be thinking about when you're driving... and that's no good. Whether the reason you're not comfortable with it is because of an actual issue or just from not being as experienced really doesn't matter TO YOU. You're the one behind the wheel - you gotta do what you are comfortable with.
enfish
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I'll throw my 2 cents in on this conversation...
Will it tow and launch your boat? Yes, though it's probably close to or slightly over its ratings.
Will it work in a pinch if you're trying to outrun a hurricane? Absolutely.
Are there better tow vehicles for it? Yes
Is the X5 something you want as a daily driver? If so, buy it and try it out as a tow vehicle. If it doesn't work or it's a white knuckle drive, you always have the option of renting a bigger truck for the longer tow days, and you'll always have a vehicle capable of hauling the boat out of the water in an emergency.
Will it tow and launch your boat? Yes, though it's probably close to or slightly over its ratings.
Will it work in a pinch if you're trying to outrun a hurricane? Absolutely.
Are there better tow vehicles for it? Yes
Is the X5 something you want as a daily driver? If so, buy it and try it out as a tow vehicle. If it doesn't work or it's a white knuckle drive, you always have the option of renting a bigger truck for the longer tow days, and you'll always have a vehicle capable of hauling the boat out of the water in an emergency.
Mustang65fbk
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He did mention above that... "Plus the Yukon was humming about 2600-2700 RPM with the tow/haul mode on and in the highest gear - it was working hard to pull the heavy boat." So it sounds as though that was with the tow mode on, which would explain for the higher rpm as I'd think most flat towing roads you'd be closer to the 2k rpm range or so. A 2019 GMC Yukon Denali per Google says that it can tow between 8,100 - 8,400 lbs depending on the model, which is going to be about 1k+ lbs greater than the towing capacity of the X5 that the OP has. Which would make for another reason as to why I wouldn't want to tow the boat with the X5. Also, as mentioned in my first post of the thread, per the GW website they tested the boat out and came to the conclusion that it weighed "6040 lb. (including persons, fuel, water, gear, engines & accessories)." I'd subtract around 400 or so lbs for the persons that are included in that weight but then I'd add another 1k+ lbs for the trailer and likely another 500-600+ lbs for a full tank of fuel and any other gear you might be trailering in the boat as well. Which will put it over 7k lbs, maybe even closer to 7,500 lbs.
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