Does anyone have any good insights on heavy towing with the early Bronco's. I have a 24' gulf fishing boat that I need to tow. I have always wanted an early bronco but am unsure how well it would tow something like that.

Any and all thoughts on the topic are appreciated.

bryan

 

The Bronco is not designed to tow something that big. A V8 equipped Bronco has more than enough power to move it, but with the short wheelbase it will be a dangerous handling nightmare.
Depending on the weight of your boat, I would recommend a 3/4 ton or larger long wheelbase pickup.

Jason

 

Definitely not a good idea under any circumstances due to the very short wheelbase and other things. I wouldn't use anything less than a LWB 1/2 ton and maybe even a 3/4 ton depending on the weight.

 

I shall agree....a big no-no.

 

I kind of disagree, I used to pull a 27ft. camper with mine and the only thing I did was beef up the springs and not try to set any land speed records. The trailer had electric brakes on it so there wasn't any problems stopping. I'm sure your boat being in the 24ft. class has some type (or it should) of self contained brake...

 

I towed across country ONCE with my 71. Last time I'll ever do that again. It was a tandem axle trailer with brakes, loaded with a medium sized sedan. Bronco had plenty of power, but when I was headed down a long downhill run on an interstate in west virginia, things went downhill fast (sorry for the pun)

Basically at about 60 mph the trailer must have shifted on the axles and became a little light on the tounge. At that point the rig proceded to pick up the *** end of my bronco and bounce it from one side to the other. the rocking and slamming back and forth proceded to get worse and I thought for sure I was going to become a statistic. Only thing I could do was step on the gas to get the rig to straighten out. It was about 80MPH before it came under control, and I was still going down hill. Luckily the grade change to a gradual up hill and I let the whole thing ease off. That was after about 600 Miles of towing that it did that and it didn't do it again for the rest of the trip.

 

I'm a site sponsor, mostly for the 5th wheel trailer hitches (TrailerSaver). But my company's main product is the Hensley Arrow. It's the only hitch on the market that absolutely eliminates trailer sway, which is what you guys are experiencing in short wheelbase vehicles. We tow 26' trailers with a Jeep Wrangler just to prove it's effectiveness. Trust me, there is no worse tow vehicle out there. But with the arrow, you have no sway, so the short wheelbase is effectively cancelled out of the equation.

Our website is at www.hensley.com. Get the free video. It explains how it works clearly. Or give us a call at 800-410-6580. Promise we won't call you every night at dinnertime.

Ron Estrada

 

Ron, you might recheck that link.

 

Oops. www.hensleymfg.com. Sometimes I get ahead of myself.


Ron

 

Oh my God, have we lost our minds? Even a better towing system does not elimate the reasons why it's bad to tow with a relatively primitive vehicle that was never intended to tow a 24' gulf boat.

I will repeat what anyone with common sense will tell you, including aerobb, who has done it himself, in hopes that someone doesn't take this ill-conceived advice: IT IS A BAD IDEA. Remember, banoel asked about "heavy towing" and only a moron would recommend "heavy towing" with an early Bronco.

 

Good point. I think I caught this thread somewhere when someone mentioned the side to side movement of his Bronco, which is caused by trailer sway. That's where I put in my two cents. Boats are terrible for towing to begin with. The trailers don't help.

An early Bronc and a 24' boat? Where does this guy live? I'll be over Saturday.

 

I towed a a small trailer with maybe three or four thousand pounds in it. when I was going down a hill of a bridge it lifted up my back tire and started pushing the truck down the hill to a red light. it was a pretty crappy situation. I dont know for sure but I am resonably sertain thats not going to be fixed with a trailer hitch. I learn everythang the hard way so I had to try it. Latter I had a trailer hauling a moddle A put me in a ditch in while I was pulling it with a ranger. That is when I bought my f250. I have overloaded that truck too with a trailer that did not have breaks and it performed great, the extra weight of the truck kept the load in check. The brakes were able to stop the load no problem with the assistance of four wheel abs. (some guy cut me off in trafic) Its alot more comfortable feeling knowing that you have full control of what you are towing. Even with the price of desil fuel being what it is I am still glad I bought that truck and I am not a rich man by no means. You cant go wrong towing with a truck that was built with that purpose in mind.

 

I pulled a old heavy 24' travel trailer all over with my 77 Bronco with either the 302 or 351W or 3.50 or 4.11 gears. Never had a problem. Proper equalizer hitch and bars, anti sway bar and a good brake controller. Lot easier to spot with the short wheel base too but I am sure that it exceeded the CGVW. The trailer brakes always straightened the assembly if it got out of wack because of high speeds. NEVER picked up the back of the truck.

Bottom line, use good equipment and you'll have no problem. I also used to flat tow my 75 Bronco behind the 77. Always tie the steering on a towed Bronco.

 

I bought the totaled remains of a Bronco that did just that. Upside down at 60 MPH. Fortunately, no one was hurt.