I have a 91 Chevey S-10 with a v-6 in it and I was wondering if it could pull an Alumacraft 175 Navigator. It is only 2WD. Will I have trouble pulling it out of ramps or anything like that? Any opinions are welcomed. Thanks
Tony
i had a 93 with a 2.8 and it was one of the best i’ve had. mine was a manual. if you play it smart and take your time, you should do fine.
The V6 will do a fine job. When I pull my boat on family trips I use our minivan which has a 3.4 V6.
As far as 4WD goes you will be OK on “improved” landings 99% of the time. I had to use 4WD on one occasion when I dropped my rear tire off of the concrete ramp and onto gravel. The differential allowed the tire that was sitting on gravel to spin while the tire that was on concrete stayed stationary. In a pinch, you could relaunch the boat, reposition the trailer on the ramp, then reload and you would be OK. If you plan on launching in non-improved ramps without concrete base then you might want to make sure that somebody can pull you out in a pinch.
I think it would be ok too. Over a long period of time though you may experience some transmission problems if its an auto. Power wise, you’ll get by. You have to make do with what you have and I wouldn’t wait a second.
Tony, I towed my old Lund Rebel with a 1989 Ford Tempo car with a four cylinder motor for eight years. Before that I towed a 14ft Alumacraft with a Plymouth Horizon with a four cylinder motor [small car]. You should do find on most ramps. Best to stay away from real steep ramps like Genes-the back channel ramp on pool 4, and some ramps that are all dirt/mud/sand like a few are in the Fairbault area but most over there are half way decent and more flat. My Van has a six cylinder and Nates truck has a six cylinder. I had a tranny cooler put on my Van to help keep it cool automatic tranny]. Lake Zumbro and pool 4 are close to where you live too so that also helps you with towing as you aren’t towing hundreds of miles to get to where you fish. Trucks are geared better for towing than cars are.
Thanks, Bill
Its not very often you see a tempo pulling anything. 
But it reminds me of that movie “Gone fishin” I can’t remember who the actors are but they pull their 14 footer behind an old baracuda. That is the dumbest movie but I still watch it. The black guys name in the movie was Gus I think.
Who are those to actors? Was it Danny devito?
Here is a picture of Bill hauling lumber home.
I’m cryin! I’m cryin! Thats funny rite ther…I don car who y ar!
Vortec 4.3 is a very good engine, with more than adequate torque. I’d worry about braking distance more than anything…
You may have some trouble on some of the tougher ramps. If you have a roller trailer and can keep your rear tires dry and out of the muck you should be okay on most ramps. I’ve seen guys get their boat on the water and then not be able to get it back on the trailer at the end of the day. Choose your ramps carefully and don’t take unnecessary risks. My 2 cents…
Don’t even try to launch it on icy ramps. Use a roller trailer. Keep it out of overdrive. Downshift to 2nd gear when going up steep hills. Leave extra space for stopping, especially if the road is wet.
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Here is a picture of Bill hauling lumber home.
That tempo looks in better shape than mine was, lol. As for Daves comments a person needs to allow for those things in any vehicle. The V6 in my Van pulls great. I tow in 3rd most of the time instead of Drive as it has alot more power. Just put in ramps that are decent. You could ask Nate about doing a test pull in your truck with the boat being towed.
Thanks, Bill
Matt, I dont know if i want to admitt i know this but it was danny glover and joe pecsi in Gone Fishn
Allot of good advice here Tony, just use common sense and you will be fine. So did you get a new boat this year? If you want to hook up for some fishing sometime we could use my truck and your boat. 
Tony
My truck only has a 3.0 6 cylinder in it and it tows the 175 navigator just fine as far as 4 wheel drive goes I rarly use it didn’t even have to use it at the last two tourneys don’t get me wrong on very nasty days where we shouldn’t even be on the water it does come in handy but steve at Everets keeps his ramps so clean 2 wheel works just fine
as far as a couple people suggested a roller trailer. TRUST me on this one you do not want a roller unless you want a ton of problems. bunks are the way to go if a guy can afford it.
and say I will get back to your PM here this weekend.
Hey Nate,
Could you elaborate on why the 175 Navigator has problems with roller trailers? If launching at poor, shallow, or slippery ramps a 2WD may not be able to back in as far as a 4WD. In those situations you may need to crank the boat up from very shallow water. With bunks this may become very difficult, or next to impossible (been there, done that). Although if you never use poor ramps then this is not even a concern
Dave it is not the just the 175 Navigators that have problems on roller trailers its every boat. after switching to a bunk 4 years ago I will not go back to a roller ever.
I just got sick of the boat not loading right everytime and having to push the boat over or taking more than one attempt to put it on the trailer.
I myself have never had problems loading or unloading my boats in shallow ramps with my bunk trailers and in 2 wheel but I do see where you are coming from Dave and I can’t believe that anyone is dumping there boat in that poor of a ramp to have that be a concern but heres another solution just incase there is someone launching there boat in that situation. They make a Silicone Lubricant spray that you can spray on your bunks but be careful becuase that boat will slide on and off that trailer easier than a roller trailer.
so Dave I hope this answeres you questions and like I said the main reason for my self going to a bunk is so I have no problems loading the boat I just get fed up with it when it doesn’t go on perfect everytime and on the first attempt. like I believe it should especially with the amount of money we put into these rigs
I have had roller trailers on the three boats that I had before the Lund that I have now. The first trailer was a homemade one that had so many rollers on it that I could just walk out to the end of the trailer and with one hand pull the boat up the trailer with ease. The boat was a small narrow 14ft boat and was very light. The next boat had a regular roller trailer and it didn’t load right, close but not right. The next boat, the Lund Rebel that I had for eight years, had a trailer that didn’t load as good as I wanted it too so I traded trailers and got one that had twice as many rollers as the first one and added guide-ons and the trailer was wider so it loaded alot better but not nearly as nice as the bunk trailer I have now. The trailer I have now on my red Lund Mr. Pike 16 is an Eagle bunk trailer that I just love. Eagle makes their trailers to fit the haul of your boat. If you don’t let off the gas as a old habit from having to do that on a roller trailer you will drive up onto the trailer with no problems. If you back off automaticly [habit] like you had to with a roller then you will need to give it alittle gas to get the rest of that 6 inches to a foot up the trailer. The differnce is you trying to load the boat unto the trailer verses letting the trailer load the boat for you. On my jon boat I have a bunk trailer but on those jon boat trailers the bunks are turned up sideways, weird, but thats how they are. I am so use to driving my boat up unto a trailer that I also drive up on with the jon boat trailer too. To my surprise it worked very well. I have just recently added a pair of guide ons to this trailer to make sure it stays going up unto the trailer ok too. I plan on using the jon boat alot for short fishing outtings and for some good o’l backwater crappie, walleye and bass fishing. Its alot of fun to drive, I love a tiller motor, and gets into shallower water than a big boat and is very cheap to run [equals more time on the water 
] plus saves some wear and tear on the bigger boat as I plan on keeping it for a long time.
Thanks, Bill
Guys,
I too used to have BIG problems loading my Lund onto my roller trailer…but no more…I was told to leave the back rollers just under water and drive it right on…slides right up the middle with out a problem and DOES NOT roll back down…I have a Shorlander Trailer and really like it… 
guide ons are key to keeping the boat centered. My old boat had 5 keels on the bottom and tended to stay centered pretty well. My crestliner is as smooth as a baby’s bottom underneath and as a result, nothing to keep the boat centered on the rollers other than the front center roller which is notched for the keel. I put guide ons on my trailer and it works great.
ecnook
glad that works for you bud but I have tried it all and no matter with what brand of boat I load it does not go on a roller trailer correct the way it should. and I have had to help to many people push there boat over on the trailers I just don’t see how people can settle for this,
but just my opinion.
I had a bunk trailer befor this boat, and no doubt a ton easier even if I might have had a couple adult type beverages …My next rig will have a bunk system for sure
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