Do I need a bigger truck for boat hauling??

Thought I would ask the guys at IDO a question that I have seen discussed a lot on the internet, let me know if you have any links to this same discussion. Have a 2.2 4cyl 5-speed manual S10 2WD and a 16 1/2 ft. northwood aluminum boat. Boat/trailer combo weighs 1,000 to 2,000 lbs I think. I pulled it 90 miles without too much trouble, but romping on it going up hills a bit and it will push you pretty good when coming to a stop. Its hard to get going over 60mph on the highway too it seems. Main thing i’m worried about is getting out of boat landings, only done it once so far and squealed the tires but made it out. Anybody pull with a little truck much, and have you got stuck at all? I’m thinking about selling it and been looking at old V6 S10s/Blazers, ford rangers, possibly an older f150 or chevy 1500. I really hate using the stick shift when pulling the boat in and out of the water, and am worried i wont get out of gravel or steep boat launches. Like the gas mileage though, and don’t really want a V8 gas guzzler as my only vehicle either…. what to do??

I kind of think you know the answer to this question.
Yes for all the reasons you stated and more you should get a bigger tow vehicle.
Safety, if you have to work that hard to stop and start. STOP PULLING THAT TRAILER. You will not be able to stop in an emergency.
That little truck is not made for that kind of work
Not enough weight on rear tires to pull boats out of the water.
Keep the little truck for your general driving but get something set up for towing.
My 2 cents. I am sure there is more that can be said but like I said right off. YOU knew the answer.

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I kind of think you know the answer to this question.
Yes for all the reasons you stated and more you should get a bigger tow vehicle.
Safety, if you have to work that hard to stop and start. STOP PULLING THAT TRAILER.

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There are a ton of good used trucks out there right that will meet your needs

You can pull a boat with something a lot smaller than you can safely stop one with. A 4 cyl S-10 was never intended to be a tow vehicle. Do yourself, and the person you will hit in a panic stop situation, a favor and get something bigger and better suited for towing.

I agree a larger tow vehicle would be the best. But if you want or need the smaller size vehicle for some reason you may want to consider a different trailer for the boat that is equiped with surge brakes. IMO you do need more hp and a 4×4 though .

red,

I see that for your location you have MN/WI. If you plan on fishing late into the season you might want to consider getting a 4×4. I have seen a number of occasions when even 4-wheel drive vehicles have had to get help getting up a steep, snowy, or iced up ramp.

Fishing the river nov-april, I wouldn’t be able to get away with rear wheel drive. Just my 2 cents. I would look at keeping you current truck for daily driving and a bigger truck for hauling your boat.

FDR

quite a while back i had to upgrade from my s10 for the same reasons you stated. i had to redo the bumper because it ended up bending because of a sudden stop i had to make. then i notice the clutch was getting sloppy from going in and out of landings. i think you will end up saving fix-it headaches and saftey problems in the future. you will be glad you made the switch once you did. if money allows, buy the bigger truck, and get a small sencond car for running most of the time. doing that will make you truck last countless more years snce you will not be putting many miles on it. good luck–also, if the s10 has more than 100,000 miles on it, that seems like when the problems start happening

Kind of forgot a key problem…. I can only afford to have one vehicle, COLLEGE STUDENT! I’m asking $2,500 for my truck, so if It even sells for that much, I can only spend around 2,000 on a new one. Which means older vehicle, and hoping to find one that is in decent shape still being 10+ years old. So i’m worried ill sell my truck, then not be able to find one with 4X4 and a bigger motor that i can actually afford…. or that will last me very long without needing serious work.

I don’t know how good you are with trucks, but the older F150’s with the straight 6 are a pretty straight forward vehicle to work on, and you can find a bunch of them in your price range.

The straight 6 had a 4.9 and was a really solid motor for many years, and actually had pretty decent power. I had one, and was able to do any of the work that needed to be done at home (with a little help). You can get a Haynes repair manual for about $20 that will walk you through most repairs step by step (except major league stuff).

That’s at least an option. Good Luck

keep your eyes open on Craigs list, Bought the daughter a Thunderbird with 110,000 on it for $1900.
Good luck