Tow Vehicles

[Harhir]

I have a 2002 Viking. The trailer weighs about 2000 lb. GVWR = 2200lb. My towing vehicle is a 2004 Toyota Sienna.
The GVRW of the Sienna is 5689 lb. The towing weight is 3500lb but the GCWR is limited to 7770 lb.
This leaves actually only 2000lb for towing when the van is fully loaded. With my trailer I am right in this limit.
One thing I strongly recommend are brakes on the trailer no matter what the local state law is.

[TBthwacker]

3200lb Flagstaff 625d with Trailblazer 5.3 V8 DOD 6100lb towing.
Nice package for comutting, and heavy pup hauling.

[Sandman 605]

I have a 08 Viking 1906ST with a 99 Dodge Durango 5.9 V8.   When I hook up and hit the road I don't even know I'm pulling anything, but I'm looking at getting a newer TV (not sure what though).

[TBthwacker]

I recommend what we have.   The body on frame suvs are soon to be history across the board. 

[Jenlew74]

Hubby just bought me a 2010 Toyota Sequoia with a 5.7 liter V8.  I towed our Utah last weekend and I didn't even feel it behind me. It towed like a dream!

[K9Sergeant]

Our 2010 Honda Pilot with the stock tow packace (Tranny/PS coolers installed) tows our 2406 Starcraft great.

We recently drove across the mountains of Maryland and had no problems at all!  The 265hp engind with the 5 spd automatic managed about 14mpg which was better than I expected!

[MicroCamper]

Car rig is a 2010 VW Golf 2 door TDI (2.0L Turbo Diesel) with 6 speed manual transmission pulling a 2010 Quicksilver 6.0 with the A/C option.  Tows great plus it gets 32MPG with the camper!

Bike rig is a 1995 BMW K1100LT pulling a 2005 Roll-A-Home "Wide Bed".  Uses about as much fuel as the car rig.     The camper is 4' wide, 6.5 feet long, and 3 feet high when closed, but has a king size bed, 4x6.5 feet of carpeted floor space, and A/C when set up.  Plus, there's lots of storage space in the bottom.  It's an amazingly compact unit.

Both campers are small and very basic, but quite comfortable.  No kids, so only one bed is fine, but A/C isn't an option in the deep south!   

You can tow with just about anything.  You just have to find the right camper for the vehicle.  Extremely light campers aren't particularly easy to find, but they're out there and there are more to choose from than you would expect.

How you camp doesn't matter, just get out there and have fun!

[thebakers]

4WD TrailBlazer (L6 Engine) 4.10 Axle Ratio - Max Trailer Wt. 6,200 lbs, GCVWR 11,000 lbs

1990 Starcraft Starliner (GVWR 2668); Actual Wt. loaded = 2200 lbs
Trailer brakes

Tows very nicely. Not too good on gas mileage when towing, but liveable. We even have a little room to spare should we decide to upgrade the PUP in the future.

[05TurboS2K]

The solution to these small trucks etc that are automatic and towing is to just add a tranny cooler!!!

For around $35 bucks you can buy a unit that'll cut your tranny temps and is very very easy to install.  If you can change headlight bulbs, oil, and spark plugs you should be able to install it.

http://www.amazon.com/Flex-lite-4112-TransLife-Transmission/dp/B00029J3VQ

Now... I actually would recommend a $50-60 dollar unit made by B&M.  http://www.amazon.com/70255-SuperCooler-Automatic-Transmission-Cooler/dp/B000CIGE96  This is a fantastic unit, very common among jeep enthusiasts and race fans.

Essentially it's just a matter of cutting your current oil cooler line (usually the smaller radiator infront of your main radiator) and putting this unit in line with the system and zip tying or what not to the larger main radiator for coolant.  Some google searches of "tranny cooler install" should help anyone who needs it.

http://www.txchange.com/heatchrt.jpg

NOTE THAT TRANNY TEMPS HAVE EVERYTHING TO DO WITH HOW LONG YOUR TRANNY LASTS! 

***** PLEASE BE AWAERE... if you live in a place with very very cold temps you may want a bypass for this cooling system, these do come with the nicer kits, I live in southern cali so I'll never worry about this************

[pupateer]

I would add that changing your transmission fluid regularly (every 20,000 - 30,000 miles) is important as well.

[xJoey Dubsx]

my two tow rigs.


What they will be towing....

[On The Lam]

I'm in the camp of, "Just because it CAN tow something, doesn't mean it SHOULD".  Fortunately, our lifestyle and activities in general have always lended themselves to slightly oversizing tow vehicles, or buying purpose-built tow vehicles.  I cringe when I hear the statement, "I don't even know it's back there" even though it's generally intended to imply that a vehicle is well-suited to towing.  I WANT to know something is back there, so I don't ever have the possibility to forget, not even for a second.  By all means, read your owner's manuals and understand your vehicle's limitations.  When in doubt, load it up as if you were going camping, drive it to a certified truck scale and have it weighed.  Tim.

[05TurboS2K]

my two tow rigs.


What they will be towing....

Man..... none of your friends told you that your truck is a dodge?  Sorry to break the news.






 

[CaptainObvious]

1990 Ford E-350 - The Astroblaster!
5.8L V8 towing a 1979 Starcraft Starmate



The looks we get driving this are priceless. Every time we go somewhere, people want to take a picture of our van. Tows anything great. The only time you can tell the trailer is behind is when I load the four wheelers inside the van, and then drive up a steep hill.

[Malena]

Captain Obvious wins.