We have a 2012 Town & Coountry (72K miles) with max tow rating of 3,600 lbs. We have trailer brake installed. Family of 4 (me, wife and 2 grade school kids). looking at a 2016 Jayco x17z - GVWR of 3,500 lbs, with a hitch weight of 400lbs. Is this too much for our minivan? Owners manual drops max Gross Trailer Weight to 3,350 if you have 3-5 persons and luggage and reduces another 100 since we have stow and go. THat's now 3,250 lbs. I've also heard of 'Frontal Area' this camper is 10ft x8ft, thus 80 SF. that would exceed the 40 SF limit, correct?We've pulled a 2003 Carmel popup for two years with not many problems, though I did have brakes replaced all around this fall.

Not even getting to the front surface drag, your vehicle will be overloaded before you even get in it.

I believe the 2012 has the 3.6 engine and 6 speed transmission. If so you should be able to pull a 3500 pound trailer fine. Keep your speeds reasonable, your loads light, and pull shorter distances until you become comfortable with it. It may be at or over the published recommended GVWR or GCWR guidelines, but if it were mine, I'd use it and enjoy it. Even with only 400 pounds, I would use a proper rated weight distribution hitch with sway control.

Minivans, except for the Astros/Safaris, are limited to trailers of no more than 3500lbs GVWRs.Nearly all of these trailers, have VERY low Cargo Capacities. This limits the amount of stuff you can take.

joharnisch wrote:We have a 2012 Town & Coountry (72K miles) with max tow rating of 3,600 lbs. We have trailer brake installed. Family of 4 (me, wife and 2 grade school kids). looking at a 2016 Jayco x17z - GVWR of 3,500 lbs, with a hitch weight of 400lbs. Is this too much for our minivan?No, this is not too much. I would recommend weight distribution due to the 400 lb tongue, but this is not a problem.

You'll have enough power, so that's not an issue. The issue is a family of 4 towing a trailer that's already going to be maxing the capacities of the van. Keeping in mind that the kids are growing and so will their need for more toys. We towed a similar trailer with a mini-van for a family of 3, and our daughter was in her teens at the time. Not too bad really but you have to watch what you pack. But when we got a bigger tow vehicle it was a night and day difference. The ability to take more things with us and not be limited on things we could buy on a trip was well worth it.

2012 Chrysler minivan towing? | Good Sam Community

lgarcia
Explorer
Feb 25, 2016
Since you are camping 1 to 2 hours away, I would suggest two vehicles.

Rest of the family in the other vehicle with as much stuff as is safe for driving in it.

You tow with your van and haul as little as possible.

Pack with weight in mind. Take light camping stools instead of heavy zero gravity chairs. A deck of cards weighs a lot less than a horseshoe set. Razor type 200 mm wheel scooters instead of bicycles take up less space and weigh 10lbs instead of 30 lbs.

I have similar style trailer and a vehicle with more towing capacity, and I still pack the TT as lightly as I can.
rexlion
Explorer
Feb 25, 2016
How would this be a safe rig? 400 lb hitch dry weight means it'll likely be 500 lbs or more once he gets it loaded for camping. With the soft rear suspension of a minivan and a receiver attachment that's probably rated for 350 lbs max, this is an accident waiting to happen! What if the receiver breaks loose from the van and the trailer careens across traffic and hits someone head-on? Or he's going around a curve and something in the suspension breaks, propelling the whole rig in the wrong direction?

That Pentastar is not a magic wand to make all the problems go away. All that frontal area will make the tranny hot as heck, too.
joharnisch
Explorer
Feb 25, 2016
Thanks for the feedback everyone. I think we are leaning towards giving it a go. we do mostly local trips 1-2hr drives, fairly flat. Anything more than that and I'll probably borrow my Dad's truck. If the tow experience is bad, our other vehicle (small SUV) is due for an upgrade and I wouldn't mind a truck, but was enjoying no car payment for the moment.

Is it summer yet! :-)

Joe
jerem0621
Explorer II
Feb 24, 2016
I tow that load all the time with my family of four. 3,000 lb pup, 3500 lb enclosed trailer, 1500 lb utility trailer...no problems at all.

Air the tires up to max psi...use a WD hitch and enjoy the tow...my pentastar is fantastic and tows great.

Just be careful not to overload the hitch. These 3,600 lb rated vans are awesome TV's with the Pentastar V6 (285 hp)..

I do keep it in 4th or 5th gear depending on the road. I stay out of 6th.

Thanks and good luck!

Jeremiah
Mortimer_Brewst
Explorer II
Feb 24, 2016
APT wrote:
Stick to low walled trailers, AKA popups.

X2
APT
Explorer
Feb 24, 2016
Stick to low walled trailers, AKA popups.
Campfire_Time
Explorer
Feb 24, 2016
You'll have enough power, so that's not an issue. The issue is a family of 4 towing a trailer that's already going to be maxing the capacities of the van. Keeping in mind that the kids are growing and so will their need for more toys.

We towed a similar trailer with a mini-van for a family of 3, and our daughter was in her teens at the time. Not too bad really but you have to watch what you pack. But when we got a bigger tow vehicle it was a night and day difference. The ability to take more things with us and not be limited on things we could buy on a trip was well worth it.
Fast_Mopar
Explorer
Feb 24, 2016
joharnisch wrote:
We have a 2012 Town & Coountry (72K miles) with max tow rating of 3,600 lbs. We have trailer brake installed. Family of 4 (me, wife and 2 grade school kids). looking at a 2016 Jayco x17z - GVWR of 3,500 lbs, with a hitch weight of 400lbs. Is this too much for our minivan?

No, this is not too much. I would recommend weight distribution due to the 400 lb tongue, but this is not a problem.
bikendan
Explorer
Feb 24, 2016
Minivans, except for the Astros/Safaris, are limited to trailers of no more than 3500lbs GVWRs.
Nearly all of these trailers, have VERY low Cargo Capacities. This limits the amount of stuff you can take.
dshelley
Explorer
Feb 24, 2016
I believe the 2012 has the 3.6 engine and 6 speed transmission. If so you should be able to pull a 3500 pound trailer fine. Keep your speeds reasonable, your loads light, and pull shorter distances until you become comfortable with it. It may be at or over the published recommended GVWR or GCWR guidelines, but if it were mine, I'd use it and enjoy it. Even with only 400 pounds, I would use a proper rated weight distribution hitch with sway control.

Forum Discussion

2012 Chrysler minivan towing?

About Travel Trailer Group

Related Content

Towing with a minivan

Towing Minivan with car dolly

Chrysler Town and Country Towing

Chrysler UConnect

Minivan Towing Questions - Sedona, Odessey, Sienna, Et al