Can it tow it?

Im looking at buying a 05 Malibu WSLSV 23 and own a 02 Dodge ram 1500 Quad Cab do you think i will have any problems towing?

A lot of factors will contribute. I have a 97 dodge truck with a 360 and it tows my V215 better than my 98 suburban with a 454 in it. It just depends how many hills you have to pull. Good suggestion would be to get a transmission cooler if it doent have one and maybe some helper springs in the rear to keep from sagging too much. Also check your weight rating should be at least 5000 pounds which should be enough for that boat which I'm guessing about 4500 pounds.

hemi or 4.7 ? Either will get the job done but the Hemi will tow it much better !!! I tow a VLX with a 05 Dodge Ram Hemi and it pulls it better then anything except a diesel.

yes, it can tow it. But people tow horse trailers with BMWs in Europe and I wouldn't recommend that.

I think it depends on how often and how far you tow and does it have the factory tow package which should include a transmission oil cooler. My concern would be how long will it last, especialy the transmission. Dodge isn't known for the greatest transmissions.

I have a 05 Malibu VLX and a 05' Ram 1500, QC, 4x4, with the 5.7L Hemi and 3.93 gears. It does pretty well with the VLX, much better with a Vride. My problem with it is the gas milage when towing and the how much I feel the trailer behind me. I have a HD single axle trailer; I'm sure I would feel it less with a tandom axle trailer which I would suggest for a LSV.

The Hemi has more power than the Magnum series of V8 engines that I believe Dodge used in 02'. Either way, you won't be near the max tow rating for the truck. I see 3/4-ton diesels towing bass boats every day though and I think if I had it to do over again I would buy a diesel or atleast a 3/4-ton.

I have an '02 quad cab with the 4.7 and I tow my SAN without to much trouble. It can get kind of fun on the ramp though, I only have two wheel drive.

I have the 5.9 liter non hemi and only 2 wheel drive. I think it came with the transmission oil cooler. I just got scared ever since reading one of the forums where there were pics of trucks in the water. That would be horrible.

Chad pretty much nailed it. You'll be able to tow that around but it depends on where you plan to go.

I pulled my supra lauch 22 ssv with a '00 extended cab silverado for a year. While it would get the job done it did gear hunt alot and when I loaded it down with camping stuff and 3 other people for a weekend trip it was pretty strapped.

This year I upgraded to a diesel and can say if you plan on any roadtrips do it! Towing a 5k boat is nothing for one of those and it takes a bit of stress out of the drive.

Should do fine.

Jesse- You need to determine the TAW total allowable weight rating which is a combination of the weight of the vehicle and the weight of what is being towed. My vehicle is rated to tow up to 9600lbs, but has a TAW of 17000lbs which means that my vehicle cannot weigh more than 7400lbs loaded with passengers, fuel and equipment if I am at the max rating. Basically you cannot generally tow what the max rating states. Do some research and avoid worrying about what you CAN tow with while you concern yourself with what you SHOULD tow with. Good luck.

What Barefooter is referring to as TAW is actually called Gross Combined Weight Rating GCWR. You can find the GCWR of your truck on the sticker on the end of the driver's side door or in your owners manual.

What motor is in your truck??? if its the magnum 318 or the 360 your fine make sure your trailer breaks are in good working order... because its not getting to speed that is the problem its STOPPING.
I towed my 21'Lavey Craft with a chevy s10 and a 4.3ltr v6 for years without any problems over grades and some very long trips not the best idea but its what I had at the time. I have also pulled with a 2001 ram 1500 with a 318 not much differant than the s10 just stopped better
JJ

Jesse, I tow my 06 LSV with an 05 Ram, but I have the diesel. No worries at all with that hoss. I had an 97 Ram with the 360, great engine, towed great, would not hestitate to put my LSV behind it if I still had it.

2 things. I hate boat ramps and 2WD trucks. Too many of the ramps we use are steep with lot's of algea. People lose it going down more than coming up. That is the fault of tires. If you put a good tire with a slightly aggresive tread on yours, you will have no problems.

Second thing, gearing. For whatever reason, DC has a habit of gearing @wd trucks numerically lower (or higher) than 4WD. I just tore down an 03 Ram QC 2WD. Had 3.55 gears. 4WD would have been 3.73. If you tow for a while and feal you need more power, you can always go with a lower (read higher) gear ratio. Since you only have the rear axle to worry about, doing a swap from a 4wd truck would be easy. you could add a LSD at that time.

BTW - towed the LSV with the wife's Commander (HEMI) last weekend. Never again, just too light a vehicel for that much boat.