New camper towing

Just some more really world experience.

We had an 2009 AWD Traverse. No tow package. Added a hitch and towed a similar sized pop-up. No trailer brakes either. Didn't add a trans cooler or anything else.

Did not have any issues. Pulled great, stopped great, transmission didn't hunt, ran at normal temps. This even included pulling a few grades (at least as much as we get on the east coast)

We really liked the Traverse while we had it.

Florida:

FS316.24.3.c

wing_zealot wrote:

mr_andyj wrote:
Legally, if your trailer has brakes, no matter how light the trailer is, you must have a working brake controller,...

Please provide a citation for your assertion.

Turns out he's not wrong, at least here in Ohio.

https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-4513.20

Does seem a little over-zealous and unenforceable though; the trailer may be light enough that it's not required to have brakes and still be within the capabilities of the tow vehicle, but if it happens to be equipped with brakes you MUST NOT TOW unless you have a brake controller installed. If you go remove the brake hardware, then you're A-OK. That's silly. I knew the breakaway switch was required if it had trailer brakes, but that doesn't depend on the tow vehicle.

I'm sure everyone around here gets a brake controller installed, seeing as how my popup did not originally have brakes (they were an option), but the exact same model now has them as standard equipment.

Lots of good misinformation and lack of providing actual info by the OP, who apparently has tired of the discussion and moved on.
Or at very least isn’t furthering their potential solutions by way of this discussion.
Quite common on this forum...

mr_andyj wrote:
Legally, if your trailer has brakes, no matter how light the trailer is, you must have a working brake controller,...

Please provide a citation for your assertion.

Legally, if your trailer has brakes, no matter how light the trailer is, you must have a working brake controller, and you must have a working battery on the trailer connected to the emergency break-away device.

Cops not likely to check for a brake controller, but they will test the battery for voltage in some cases.
If you have an accident then you will incur liability for not having the legal set-up.

Either take the brakes off or install controller, or at least have a battery for the break-away device.

If you plan to tow a lot of miles then the "proportional" controllers are way, way nicer than the "timed" ones and well worth the extra money. It is so much nicer, but the cheap-o one will do the job, it is just more jerky and annoying.

GOOD CONTROLLER, PROPORTIONAL

CHEAPO-O CONTROLLER, it will work

I had a Traverse (2010) without the tow package. The package added the heavy duty radiator, transmission cooler, wiring harness for the brake controller and trailer wiring, tow/haul switch to change the shift points, and the hitch. I towed my 2000 pound popup with no trouble. Yours will weigh a little more. If you visit the Traverse forums, there are folks who have added most of the equipment to get those features. You might have to buy the wiring harness to add a brake controller though, there's no easy way to get a brake signal without splicing into the wiring. There's no brake light switch on the brake pedal, trust me. It uses a brake pedal position sensor and the body control module provides the brake signal for the brake light and trailer harness.

I had brakes on my popup since I had previously towed it with a Honda CR-V, but never got around to installing the brake controller on the Traverse. I just used a T connector from eTrailer that installed behind the taillights to get the trailer lights.

Thank you for all the great info!

we had a traverse a few years ago. i didn't come with a tow package but with an add on hitch it hauled my 2500lb boat like it wasn't even back there.

When i looked into upgrading everything it became a cost issue to tow our TT. trans cooler is different, fuse box is different due to lack of brake controler wiring, no tow haul mode ect. its a $400 option to get the tow package but its a couple thousand after the fact to upgrade. Its cheaper to get one with the tow package. Theres alot of info if you google "traverse tow package". Ours was a lease so it wasn't worth it to me. with a tow package they can haul 5000lbs. without its significantly less.

My traverse was ok to tow 5000#, and handled a pop-up well. The towing package included hitch, transmission cooler and tow/haul mode, not sure what else. I guess you can add the hitch and maybe the cooler?? If towing in flat areas, you may be ok.