Able car/truck to haul a 2 horse trailer?

Question

Hi, well i am going to be getting my first car in a few months. I am wondering what the smallest car/truck can be to haul a small 2 horse trailer safely.

Please tell me the model also, i want something small, but can haul my horse and trailer (around 4000 lbs)

what should i look into?

What model is the smallest, and safest for my horse?

thanks!!

Answer 1

For safety, you should have a vehicle not smaller than a half-ton pickup.  I had a chevy S-10 that I pulled my two horse trailer and two 500 pound calves with.  I had stopping problems.

You might want to look at how much you will really need to haul your horse.  For us, it is cheaper to sell our trailer and hire horse hauling.

The make of the vehicle doesn't matter as much as braking ability.  A full-sized car will have the power to pull the trailer but, its not setup for stopping it.

Answer 2

I drive a 1987 Ford F150 with a straight 300(6 cylinder) in it. Best truck I've ever used and I drive up and down curvy mountain roads. It's not a pretty truck....is rusty in spots...but man I love it..it's the best truck I've ever had...and that is comparing it to the new F150's...lol.

Edit...I'm not sure how much my trailer weighs...I'll look at the registration tonight when I get home and let you know...but I do know that my 6 yr old gelding is 1200lbs and my yearling...600lbs...and the pick-up does great. And I drove it from South Dakota to Georgia hauling a car trailer with my car on it and hay on it...it did awesome! I'll make sure to email you tonight when I get home from work. Oh and when I am hauling I get almost 15 miles to the gallon. When I'm not hauling...I get 17, so it doesn't affect my gas mileage too bad either.

Answer 3

You will need at least a full size Pickup, SUV or Van.  No less than an 8 cylinder engine and make sure the transmission is rated for towing the weight you need to tow.   I wouldn't go any smaller than a Ford F150.  F250 is better.  You do NOT want to worry about the animals starting the trailer to swaying and your vehicle not being able to handle it.  Stopping is a very important issue with too small trucks.  I have a Ford F250 with the brake box that helps monitor the trailer brakes.  I have a two horse goose neck with a dinky tiny tack area and I still wouldn't be as comfortable pulling it with an F150.

I've heard some real scary stories about people towing with too small of a vehicle.  You have to consider the weight of the vehicle versus the weight it will be towing.  Had a friend flip her Chevy Blazer while towing her two horse bumper pull.  The trailer started to sway and then the sway got worse and worse and then the Blazer just couldn't hold on to the road and flipped off into the ditch by the interstate.  Scary, scary stuff.  My horse's are way too important for me to take that kind of a chance.

Answer 4

Please remember that when evaluating the towing capacity, you need to account for the weight of the horse, the trailer, and all your equipment in the trailer. I think you already took that into account, but I thought I'd mention it.

Please keep in mind when you are shopping that some auto dealers will tell you the towing capacity assuming a weight distribution hitch and forget to tell you that you need a weight distribution hitch. Also, most of them do not realize that a horse does not haul like a boat or travel tailer. They shift around and are not ideally (for pulling purposes) loaded to begin with since they are naturally top heavy. So, you don't want to push the limits of your tow vehicle, you want to have plenty of capacity in reserve to take into account the volatility of the load.

Towing capacity is not the only issue. For a short two horse straight pull (basically the smallest trailer), you need at minimum 114 inches wheel base. For a larger trailer, you'd need ever more wheel base. Wheel base length keeps the truck balanced and keeps the tow vehicle from tipping over when the weight of the trailer is added. When you add the tounge weight to the back of a short wheel base vehicle, the front tires can lose traction and you can lose control of the rig. And I know you don't want that!

So, if you can find a car with suffient wheel base and towing capacity, you still need a heavy duty transmission and brakes, and a weight distribution hitch. Frankly, I don't think anything smaller than a 1/2 ton pickup with get the job done safely. Maybe a full size van or Suburban.

Since this will be your first car, I suggest you spend quite a bit of time getting used to it before hauling a trailer. Hauling is a whole new dimension of driving and you need to be quite skilled to do it safely.

Answer 5

i'm looking in to gettning a new car too and all i know is i'm getting a V8 engine

we have trucks but they are all v6's i mean whats thepoint of that honestly?

anyways

truck, suv, or sedan.. it must be a V8!!!!!

Answer 6

I pull my 2 horse stock trailer (12' steel) with my 8cyl. Ford Explorer, with no problem (I do have a tow package).

You need to make sure that the hitch is enough for the weight of your trailer...and it also depends on the length of the frame.

I would recommend an 8cyl. (Ford F150, Chevy 1500, or Dodge 1500) or an SUV that is an 8cyl.

Also have trailer brakes installed in your truck, that will make a big difference on the wear and tear of your truck.

Answer 7

It depends on the indivual car/truck's towing capacity. For example, my dad's Diahatsu Fourtrack looks like a roller skate. However, it will put the @rse end out of my Mitsubishi L200 pickup. Call different manufacturers and get the spec on the cars you're interested in. You should NEVER EVER EVER exceed your towing limit! Ideally you should be well under. For example, if I wanted to tow 4000lbs (as you do) I would go for a car with minimum 4500lbs. Also, you NEED 4 wheel drive - dragging a trailer up a hill with the tiniest coating of gravel without it, and you'll slide.

Also, if you're in the UK you need to pass your Category B + E test to tow a trailer.

ADD: All horse trailers are braked, what the first poster means is that the weight of the trailer bearing down on your car is too much for the car to handle and you have trouble stopping (this, believe me, is scary as h**l). For long distance driving, your horses will be much happier in a wagon. I refuse to tow my horses for more than 2 hours in a trailer. A journey any futher and I hire/borrow a wagon.

Answer 8

I suggest a 1/2 ton dodge 4x4 if you are looking for something that will last and have the power to haul a horse trailer.

IF you are able to spend a little more money I would buy a Dodge 3/4 ton diesel truck - with a horse trailer fully loaded I hardly even feel the trailer on behind it.

A good source would be truckworld.com  - many trucks for sale at a good price and often without a lot of miles.

Answer 9

Big trucks are d**n expensive and the gas they guzzle is even worse.  I doubt that for your first vehicle you could afford an F250 so I'm trying to give you an idea of what I've done in the same situation.  I've pulled my little two horse around with a Nissan Pathfinder.  It has a towing capacity of 5000 pounds (and honestly I wouldn't want to go with anything less than that capacity).  The trailer I have is 2400 pounds (Logan).  It had a bit of a harder time when you put two horses in it, I tried to use the truck if I was hauling more than one horse, but that isn't always an option.  The Pathfinder was fine for just around town and whatnot.  In fact I found it to be quite maneuverable, which is good.  But if you plan on going up lots of hills it has some trouble.  It can go on the highway too but it takes it awhile to get up to speed, and I personally don't like pushing my vehicle that hard.  I would never use it to pull on a distance trip of any sort.

You don't need a truck to pull.  Have trailer brakes installed in the vehicle to help with the braking issue.  You should have them installed anyway for safety in any vehicle you pull a trailer with.

I've seen trailers sway and flip with a 3/4 ton pulling them.  I don't find that to be a big issue at all.  I have another friend that pulls her two horse with a Tahoe, and says it does just fine.  Not all of us can afford huge trucks, nor want to!  There are definitely other options out there for you.