help: travel campers/weights--what does it mean??

[Lisa loves Pooh]

My van can tow 3000 pounds. We would love a pop-up...but I'm afraid of the part where the transmission falls out if you tow too much weight.

They give 3 #'s: Tongue weight, camper weight, total weight and another one.

Now--I stink at guestimation--so how much do you figure once you load supplies and your luggage (or other container option for our stuff)---how much does this all weigh?

Thanks...

We've been around to the camping websites--but looking into a familiary land for some helpful hints, tips, and answers to the questions.

 

[bigdisneydaddy]

Those questions are debated regularly on camping forums, heres my $.02

You have established that your vehicle will tow 3000#. I fell you should leave 20% below this for the TOTAL weight of your trailer. Be careful when comparing trailers. Most mfg will state the weight of the "base" unit with few or no options. It is important to find out exactly what the one you are looking at weighs, if they dont know, ask them to weigh it. You must also include the weight of any cargo in the trailer, this would include food, cooking supplies, bedding, etc etc etc it adds up fast.

The tongue weight should be shown for the unit also. This can change depending on how the vehicle is loaded with supplies. I believe 15% (someone will correct me if I am off) is desirable.

Your tow vehicle (TV) should have a number for gross combined vehicle weight "GCVWR" this figure will be the maximum combined weight of TV, trailer and all cargo including fuel and occupants.

Be suspicious of any RV salesperson who tries to sell you more trailer than you can pull. They arent all looking out for your best interest. Ask other Rvers who they deal with, word of mouth is helpful.

twoing changes everything about the way you should drive. If you want to do it safely you have to pay extra attention. starting and stopping distances increase dramatically, handling is effected. try short trips around your home before taking a long interstate highway trip. My wife drove around a big parking lot and did some backing before she pulled on the highway, it helps to get a feel for the difference with the trailer connected.

You should keep your TV maintained regularly. Towing puts a big strain on the vehicle. You should maintain the manufacturers maintenance schedule for oil AND transmission changes.


Thats a start, hope it was helpful.


Scott

 

[lovethemouse]

When we were looking to buy a camper 3yrs ago, all we had was a mini-van. The books says it will tow 3000lbs. But what we came to understand was , that weight also INCLUDED the vehicle weight. We would have only been able to tow the smallest of pop-ups. We ended up getting a used 3/4ton suburban and bought a TT. You're smart to look into this before you buy your camper, not only to save your transmission but for your family's safety. Good luck

 

[JCJRSmith]

As BigDisneyDaddy said, your vehicle will have a GCVWR. Subtract from this the weight of your van. This weight is the amount of weight the van can move in addition to its own weight. Subtract from that the weight of all passengers, cargo and gas. What is left over is the amount the vehicle can tow (at sea level on a flat level surface), and most (like me) would caution you to reduce this value by 20% to be on the safe side. Consider this you Max Towing Weight

When you purchase a trailer, it will have a weight rating. This is the weight of the trailer with no water in its tanks, no Air Conditioner on the roof, no waste in the holding tank, an no gear in it. When you add all those things to the trailer, the total should be less than the Max Towing Weight you came up with above.

 

[VAN]

We have towed a pop-up from Michigan to Florida with a mini-van for the past 11 years. We started out with a Dodge Grand Caravan and a small pop-up which was just 900 lbs empty (no electric brakes). We recently have upgraded to a 2001 Honda Oydssey with the optional tow package. This allows us to tow 3,500 lbs. We upgraded to a new camper which weighs 1,800 empty (and has electric brakes).

Our van's owner's manual gives quite a bit of information regarding towing ... I believe it outlines that the 3,500 tow weight is in addition to the van weight and 2 passengers. You may want to check your manual. It also says that they recommend using Premium gasoline when towing to give better performance.

Having purchased the tow package gave us the bigger cooler, etc. and added 1,000 pounds to the weight you can tow (for the current total of 3,500).

We have also had to experiment with how our camper is packed ... where the heaviest items are placed. We try to keep the back of the van fairly light, because we usually will have at least one of our older teens in the back which adds weight. We found that the camper will pull down the back of the van if the weight is off. Our RV place, says that a weight distributing hitch would help this. My husband didn't want to spend the money so we didn't get one, but I found that packing some of the heavier items just behind the camper wheels helped this situation quite a bit. Every camper is designed differently, so you may need to experiment a bit before you get it right.

I have found that our current set up works fine. When going to Florida, however, I do not have water in the tank and I don't take anything heavy (such as bottled water) that I can buy down there. We usually get the pop-up set up and then make a trip to the grocery/Sam's Club to get our beverages. My goal is to keep everything as light as possible while still taking what we need.

Good luck!!

 

[reeeoga]

My 3.599 cents (adjusted for inflation).

I have a 2100 lbs. pop-up. Fully loaded I assume 2500 lbs. My Jeep CAN tow 5000 lbs. With everyone and everything loaded, the jeep/pop-up handles very well. I also only get a 3 MPG reduction in fuel on the hwy with mid/high grade gas. I like to max out at 1/2 the tow vehicle max for a good safety zone, but I am also paranoid about some things.

 

[bradisgoofy]

Good advice above.

If the trailer you are looking at offers electric brakes, GET THEM. If your TV doesn't have a tow package ( heavy duty trans cooler, heavy duty flasher ) get one installed at UHaul or an RV dealer.

We started out many years ago with a tent camper ( tent on a trailer shell ) and have owned just about every type of camper/RV since. Currently we have a 36ft Carriage fifth wheel pulled by a one ton Dodge Quad cab Turbo diesel. And we do on occasion tow a 7x10 enclosed trailer behind the fifth wheel with our Harleys in it.

Have Fun.

 

[bigdisneydaddy]

You are a brave person pulling doubles on todays roads.

 

[John VN]

A note that everyone should consider...

GET WEIGHED!

Far too many people are driving RVs over the recommended weights of TV and/or RV. Doing so puts everyone on the road at risk of injury or worse. The charge at a Flying J is usually around $8.00 to $10.00 and it is well worth it.

John

 

[bradisgoofy]

You are a brave person pulling doubles on todays roads.

Especially on Michigan roads, right ?