Tow info please

[Caroline-FUN]

I was told by experts in the field not to exceed 80% of the vehicle’s tow weight. This allows you extra pulling power when at high altitude as well as going over mountains and steep grades.

 

[LJAZ]

I agree with the 500 lb limit on hitch weight but the total GVW cannot be exceeded by installing a WDH.

That's correct. The 5000 lbs is a maximum that can be towed without a WD hitch. All of the other factors GVWR, payload etc. still apply.

 

[RipVan]

I agree with the 500 lb limit on hitch weight but the total GVW cannot be exceeded by installing a WDH.

Nor does it allow for the payload capacity of the tow vehicle to be exceeded!

 

[LJAZ]

All too often people just look at the max tow rating and assume they can tow a trailer with that much weight without taking into account the other limits.

 

[Steve079]

Thank you all for the input, even the derails are informative.
I was able to use the Curt brackets on the new trailer, for some reason I had looked at them and thought they weren't going to work, the frame rails on this unit are bigger then on our 17, but that wasn't the factor I though it might be.

Got it hooked up to the Unicorn, (family nickname for the Dodge) and the rear suspension dropped less then 3/8". All set for the first run since purchase last February.

 

[Roger-FUN]

I'm 80, never towed a trailer before, bought a 2010 X-189FBS in OR, hitched it to a Tacoma just to get home to PA during COVID without staying in inns, set out on Labor Day, forest fires closing in. I knew nothing about RVs, still don't, but other than a trailer flat on 80 in Iowa, it towed beautifully, with sway bars. I'm in awe of the '19 Tacoma--and the Fun Finder. 10 MPG in the mountains, closer to 13 in the mid-west. And the long bed was loaded, too. But now, done, and home, both are for sale!

 

[JimboFunFinder]

Glad to hear of your good experience! One is never too old to camp (I am an example).

 

[Waltzing Matilda]

ProfDant139 wrote “ (My trailer is too small to handle a WDH -- only 12 feet.)”

We have the same trailer- do you use a sway bar only?

 

[profdant139]

Yep. Sway bar only. Works great!

 

[usanor2018]

Wondering if we can tow an '05 Fun Finder Shadow Cruiser T139 using an '07 Ford Explorer 4.0L V6? Believe the trailer has a gross weight of 1960 and it says the Explorer can tow 3500lbs? Tow package needed? Would be drag going up hills and such? We're rethinking our tow vehicle because of age.

 

[JimboFunFinder]

Wondering if we can tow an '05 Fun Finder Shadow Cruiser T139 using an '07 Ford Explorer 4.0L V6? Believe the trailer has a gross weight of 1960 and it says the Explorer can tow 3500lbs? Tow package needed? Would be drag going up hills and such? We're rethinking our tow vehicle because of age.

I would say you are okay so long as you use a WDH but keep in mind that 1960 is probably the dry weigh with the tanks empty. I wouldn't fill the fresh water with any more than you need to get where you are going and would empty the gray/black before you return.
You might consider adding (or increasing) the transmission cooler as nothing kills a transmission faster than heat. In fact if you haven't changed the trans fluid in more than 50K miles you might consider changing it before your trip.

 

[Roger-FUN]

I towed a 189FBS from OR to PA with a 2019 Tacoma V6. The truck worked hard until Cheyenne. I got 10MPG, then about 12-13 the rest of the trip.
I bought the truck to tow the trailer but thought I should have picked up a used Tundra V8 instead, just to make scaling the Rockies a little easier. Still, the Tacoma did very well. I had the bed loaded with moving stuff and even extra in the trailer. I did not have fresh, grey or black water.
I think I'd recommend a V-8.

 

[Dakota 1120]

All too often people just look at the max tow rating and assume they can tow a trailer with that much weight without taking into account the other limits.

That is EXACTLY what the salesperson attempted to do when I first went looking for a camper. The camper (empty) he tried to sell was at my max tow rating for the 1/2 pickup I had at the time.

I never went back to that dealership.

 

[LJAZ]

That is EXACTLY what the salesperson attempted to do when I first went looking for a camper. The camper (empty) he tried to sell was at my max tow rating for the 1/2 pickup I had at the time.

I never went back to that dealership.

Makes you wonder if the sales people are just plain ignorant or if the really don't care about putting people in potentially dangerous situations.

 

[Roger-FUN]

Let's go with ignorant while assuming that a moral person wouldn't intentionally put another in harm's way just to make a buck.

 

[Dakota 1120]

I would not want to speculate but ignorant is possible as is someone who doesn't care as long as they can make a buck.

I once worked in a auto repair shop and saw the shop foreman convince a customer they needed new shocks on their vehicle and talked the guy into buying 5 lifetime guaranteed shocks, 4 put on the vehicle and one in the trunk for a spare.

The shop foreman was paid a base plus commission. He was fired about a year later for returning 'cores' to the parts house and pocketing the refund cash instead of having the amount credited back to the shop account.

It's been said: "There is a sucker born every minute........... and two to take 'em"

 

[profdant139]

Napoleon said, "Never attribute to conspiracy that which can be explained by incompetence." That does not mean that conspiracy and ill intent are impossible -- only that they are much less common than misteaks.

 

[usanor2018]

Yeah, we decided to stick with the F150.