"Pete McKinney" wrote in message
om...
I know I will be buying a boat in a few years and I'm considering what
I will need to tow it. Currently, I own a Toyota Sienna and am about
to replace my other vehicle. The Toyota website says the Sienna has a
towing capacity of 3,500 pounds. Is this enough to pull a ski boat?
One of the vehicles I'm considering is the Tacoma, which also lists a
capacity of 3,500 pounds.

Would there be a towing difference between the two vehicles, or should
they perform about the same?

Like others have said, it depends on many factors. I own a 2002 Tacoma (6
cylinder automatic) for towing because with a sedan (93 Taurus 6 cyl), and
on windy days, the car didn't have a stiff enough suspension to not be
jerked around by the trailer at high speeds. Now, if this problem only
existed for short drives, I'd put up with it, but much of the time, I'm
towing for 2-6 hours. That's more time than I want to be putting up with a
swaying tow vehicle at 65 mph. By the way, my boat & trailer weigh about
1500 lbs, so a larger one would make matters worse. The Tacoma is rock
solid.

Now....is it worth it? For me, yes, in terms of peace of mind. But no matter
WHAT anyone tells you and regardless of how efficient Toyota motors are, the
Tacoma gets 17-18 around town, so I'm burning more gas than I'd like to when
I'm not towing. If most of my towing was local, I would've gotten a
different tow vehicle and modified it a bit.

If your Sienna has been well maintained, there's no reason not to tow with
it. Specifically, you should be AHEAD of the maintenance schedule for
changing TRANSMISSION fluid & filter. Shocks should be in good shape, not
just "passable". And, you might consider air shocks for the rear, if you
find that the vehicle sags under the weight of trailer, luggage and
passengers. I believe your car is front wheel drive, right? That's another
reason to keep the trailer from taking weight off the front wheels,
especially when it's raining hard.

If your manual's like mine, it'll define "towing package" to include a
different fan clutch, which is denoted by a colored band on the fan's hub.
You may not want to change the fan clutch, but at least be very attentive to
cooling system maintenance. The best mod you could do would be to add a
transmission cooler, which is like a small radiator installed inline with
the tranny fluid. U-Haul advertises this service, but I'd lean toward having
it done by a trusted mechanic or the Toyota dealer. It's not rocket science,
but you don't want your tranny fluid draining out on the highway because
some hack used a rubber band instead of a hose clamp.