Anyone tow with a Nissan NV 3500 van?

5800lb is a fairly beefy rear axle...good job Nissan.

bmanning wrote:
5800lb is a fairly beefy rear axle...good job Nissan.

If they were calling the van a 1500 model,
5800 lb RGAWR would be worthy of ALOT of praise! :B
But, they're calling it a 3500 model, in which case,
5800 is just below the expected norm (6000+) for a 1-ton.
Nissan is just barely squeaking into the 1-ton category here....

I guess I just had low expectations for the RGAWR, LOL.

Having low expectations is a very underrated and under-utilized key to happiness in life. :B

bmanning wrote:
5800lb is a fairly beefy rear axle...good job Nissan.

E350 and Chevy 3500 vans some with either a 6400# or 7800# rear axle. Of course, both of those are actually limited to 6080 pounds because of the 245 tires.

bmanning wrote:
Having low expectations is a very underrated and under-utilized key to happiness in life. :B

That's the truth right there.

We tow with a Chevy Express 3500. Looked at the Nissan NV 3500, but couldn't find one in stock at the time. Still can't. Looks like a nicer vehicle overall, but the Chevy has it beat in the drive train, tow rating, capacity, and interior volume. Still, if Nissan puts a diesel in the next version and doesn't charge an $11k premium for it (ala GM), I would have to give it a closer look.

SoCalDesertRider wrote:

bmanning wrote:
5800lb is a fairly beefy rear axle...good job Nissan.

If they were calling the van a 1500 model,
5800 lb RGAWR would be worthy of ALOT of praise! :B
But, they're calling it a 3500 model, in which case,
5800 is just below the expected norm (6000+) for a 1-ton.
Nissan is just barely squeaking into the 1-ton category here....

True I guess that's is squeaking ... my 3/4 ton rear GAWR is about 6000. Still I was somewhat surprised that it was so "high" compared to their Titan.

IIRC the NV 3500 rear axle is tire limited, I looked up the load ratings for the LT245/75R17 and they seem to align with the NV axle rating.

TriumphGuy wrote:

SoCalDesertRider wrote:

bmanning wrote:
5800lb is a fairly beefy rear axle...good job Nissan.

If they were calling the van a 1500 model,
5800 lb RGAWR would be worthy of ALOT of praise! :B
But, they're calling it a 3500 model, in which case,
5800 is just below the expected norm (6000+) for a 1-ton.
Nissan is just barely squeaking into the 1-ton category here....

True I guess that's is squeaking ... my 3/4 ton rear GAWR is about 6000. Still I was somewhat surprised that it was so "high" compared to their Titan.

IIRC the NV 3500 rear axle is tire limited, I looked up the load ratings for the LT245/75R17 and they seem to align with the NV axle rating.

Most 3/4-ton and 1-ton SRW trucks/vans/suv's rear axle weight ratings are limited first by the tires/wheels, second by the springs, thirdly by the brakes, and lastly by the axle itself. This is especially true of SRW trucks using Dana 70's, Dana 80's, Ford 10.50", AAM 10.5" and AAM 11.5" axles, all of which have far higher ratings for the axle itself, than for the tire/wheel and spring ratings the truck is equipped with.

So in reality how many of the van manufactures truly build what "I" would call a 1 ton van....ie a DOT class 3 truck with a gvwr of 10001-13500? most of the vans being discussed here are DOT class 2, ie between 6001-10000 gvwr, or you can split this what I call 3/4 ton category into the LD and HD with under 8400 LDuty and over heavy duty.

Seems to me the NV3500 is a pretty decent van from a gvwr/engine standpoint. No it will not as of yet do what the E350 with a V10 will do, but if you look at this from a gvwr badging standpoint, it is in the mix of ALL the other manufactures of vans with similar engines and remainder of the drivetrain.

Marty

blt2ski wrote:
So in reality how many of the van manufactures truly build what "I" would call a 1 ton van....ie a DOT class 3 truck with a gvwr of 10001-13500? most of the vans being discussed here are DOT class 2, ie between 6001-10000 gvwr, or you can split this what I call 3/4 ton category into the LD and HD with under 8400 LDuty and over heavy duty.

Seems to me the NV3500 is a pretty decent van from a gvwr/engine standpoint. No it will not as of yet do what the E350 with a V10 will do, but if you look at this from a gvwr badging standpoint, it is in the mix of ALL the other manufactures of vans with similar engines and remainder of the drivetrain.

Marty

This may be true now, but I bet it may change once they start putting the V-8 Cummins in it. Heck even Freightliner has signed a deal with Cummins to use a slightly different version of the same V-8 in some MDT chassis.