Dinghy Question

First... Is that 5,000 based on MAX GCVW-Motor home weight or is that the hitch rating?>

And will your hitch line up without a drop/rise adapter or are you going to need to drop/rise?

In my case my max tow is 4,000 but the hitch is rated for 5000 with a straight pull

But if you use a drop or rise adapter that 5000 drops like a rock due to torsion load (not designed for it) so I tow 2500 pounds.

k9dad wrote:
Currently towing a 2010 Honda CRV (3,400 lbs.) with my 2011 Fleetwood Southwind V10 gasser. Towing capacity for the RV is 5000 lbs. Am considering a 2014 Ford "Edge" that is about 4,400 lbs. Should I be concerned that the Ford will be over 90% of the towing capacity? Is this vehicle too heavy? Will my already 7 mpg be less?

Actually towing capacity will be 5K or be the GCWR minus the rig's actual weight and could be it's GVWR if loaded to the max.
Either way, not much to be concerned with here and especially not with being at 90%, when most get concerned with being 10% or more over.
Most report fuel consumption with towing, to be between .5 and 1mpg.
Again, the least of your concerns with RV ownership.
Depreciation per mile is the greatest cost and even though we're past that with ours, there's still the inconvenience and cost of repairs from time to time.

I previously towed a 2003 Honda CRV and now tow a 2013 Edge - I see absolutely no difference in gas mileage. There are probably too many other variables, such as terrain (and speed), running the generator and how much water/fuel and cargo I'm carrying to make any noticeable difference.

Chris

We towed a 2009 Edge and later a 2013 Edge behind our 2011 Fleetwood Southwind for five years without any problems. The 2013 continues to follow our Excursion. The Edge has been a great dingy as well as a great daily use vehicle.

I would not be concerned. We tow a Ford Flex with a 35 foot Itasca Sunrise (gasser). The Flex weighs about the same as the Edge. We have experienced no problems.

I can see any concern at all.

Just because a vehicle weighs 4400 lbs does not been you are pulling that amount unless you are climbing a vertical hill. At most you are pulling the rolling resistance plus some small aerodynamic drag.

Tongue wt is virtually nonexistent..just the receiver wt.

For climbing hills figure for every 9 degrees of grade you are pulling an additional 10% if the cars wt.

Make sure which model Edge you get. Not all are towable. Our 2012 tows very nice. Mileage may drop .5 mpg but do slow down.

Are you concerned with filling a 50 gallon gas tank more up to the 44 gallon mark rather than the 34 gallon mark?

I see no reason to be worried about the extra weight, provided the tongue weight and combined weights are within spec (which I suspect is the case). I doubt there will be any significant change in mileage, though there may be a tiny bit. As enblethen said, slowing down a little will probably do far more for your gas mileage than altering your toad's weight by a thousand pounds.

If you worry about mileage that much, you'd better not buy it.

I would not be concerned.
Yes, you may see a little change in your mileage. You may change your driving habits and get better mileage. Locate where your engine, differential and speed gives you the best mileage. Dropping speed a little could change mileage.