If you're gonna pull a popup/small camper, the bigger the better. You want whatever you're towing, hitch, all gear, people and all weight in vehicle to stay under 75 percent of your towing capacity. So if your capacity is 3500, top towing weight should be 2625 lbs. That is not enough for any camper.
This is good advice, never get close to your limits.
Towing capacities of vehicles are based on several factors including the vehicle frame type (unibody or frame), engine, transmission, rear end gear ratio, tires/load range, engine cooling capacity, transmission cooling capacity, alternator capacity as well as several other things. You are going to have to do a lot of studying and downloading of manufacturer towing guides to get all the information. Folks on the internet will tell you vehicle X can tow Y pounds and leave it at that. The problem is that to tow "Y" you have to have a properly equipped vehicle. Don't fall in love with a vehicle that you find for sale until you determine the exact towing capacity of that specific vehicle. As has been pointed out you need to remember what different people's roles are in this equation:
- Your role is to get the tow vehicle you need to keep your family safe
- The sales persons role is to separate you from your money and sell you they vehicle they have in stock now, not necessarily the one you need. I know I'm going to paint with a very wide brush here, but most folks selling RV's and used cars have a propensity to say what you want to hear so they can make the sale. I can't stress this enough - don't believe a salesman's word on the the towing capacity of a vehicle unless you saw him take out a pencil/paper and figure it. It is never a "this vehicle can tow that" answer!!!
Now, another thing to keep in mind is how the vehicle manufacturer figures their tow ratings. Many of them base the rating on a vehicle with only 1/2 tank of fuel, a 170 pound driver, no passengers and no luggage. Any weight you add to the vehicle reduces the capacity that can be towed. Oh, hubby weighs more then 170, thats a reduction. You want more passengers (like bringing the kids along?), more reductions. Luggage, food, a full tank of gas, more reductions. I think you get the picture.
You say you want to tow a pop up in the future? How big? I've seen pop ups that can safely be towed by a motorcycle (neat, actually) to mine that I only feel comfortable towing with a full sized pick up equipped with a diesel engine! (See my numbers below, 3,500 lb towing capacity aint going to do it!)
There are many other things to think about, do you want to look at weight carrying hitches or weight distribution hitches? Brakes, electric or surge?
You have to start studying what you want and figuring out what it will take to tow it. Well meaning folks on the internet can give you great ideas, but they are not going to do your homework.
Just as an example, here are my numbers. While is seems like overkill, once I load the trailer to near capacity and load the truck with the wife, 2 German Shepherd Dogs and all our camping stuff I can get close to the limits.
Camper:
Box Size (Inside Length) 14'
• Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR), (lbs.) 3770
• Unloaded Vehicle Weight (UVW), (lbs.) 2890
• Unloaded Tongue Weight (UTW), (lbs.) 255
• Cargo Carrying Capacity (CCC), (lbs.) 620
Tow vehicle:
GCWR 20,000 Lb
GAWR (Front) 5,200 Lb
GAWR (Rear) 6,830 Lb
Trailer Weight Range 0-10,600 Lb
Trailer Frontal Area* 60 sq. ft.
Horsepower 325 @ 3300
Torque 560 @ 2000
*This is the total area in square feet that a vehicle and trailer exposes to air resistance. Obviously, the frontal area of the trailer will not really apply to pop up campers, but for travel trailers and hybrids you may want to pay attention to this figure.
