considering upgrading tow vehicle
Hello - We have a small camper - the 16 foot Amerilite, which only weighs 2300 pounds. We are currently towing with our 2011 Nissan Quest minivan (which is a v6). We have always felt that the mi...
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Horsepower numbers don't lie. Yes, more HP will do the work faster and better. But will use the same amount of fuel (roughly), unless you go with diesel which has more energy per gallon.
I learned the same thing with my 270 HP Toyota Highlander towing a 16' x 7' wide, 2700 lb. KZ Escape. Towing up a long grade at mile high altitude into a headwind, that thing struggled; I had it in 2nd gear at 38-40 mph. And a few times on my trip from OK to Yosemite and back, the transmission temp light came on. I decided, no more of that.
For now I've sold the KZ and purchased a used Aliner popup. But soon I hope to buy a new Jeep Grand Cherokee; besides the options of 3L diesel or a 360 HP V8 Hemi (I'd prefer the latter), the Jeep also has an actual tranny temp readout in degrees rather than a simple idiot light. If they didn't make the Jeep, a Ford Explorer Sport with Ecoboost would be my next choice. Either of those will tow anything I'd want to pull (I like small, maneuverable trailers anyhow so I can go to small, out of the way NF CGs). Sorry, I'm not a GM person so I can't comment directly about those.
I learned the same thing with my 270 HP Toyota Highlander towing a 16' x 7' wide, 2700 lb. KZ Escape. Towing up a long grade at mile high altitude into a headwind, that thing struggled; I had it in 2nd gear at 38-40 mph. And a few times on my trip from OK to Yosemite and back, the transmission temp light came on. I decided, no more of that.
For now I've sold the KZ and purchased a used Aliner popup. But soon I hope to buy a new Jeep Grand Cherokee; besides the options of 3L diesel or a 360 HP V8 Hemi (I'd prefer the latter), the Jeep also has an actual tranny temp readout in degrees rather than a simple idiot light. If they didn't make the Jeep, a Ford Explorer Sport with Ecoboost would be my next choice. Either of those will tow anything I'd want to pull (I like small, maneuverable trailers anyhow so I can go to small, out of the way NF CGs). Sorry, I'm not a GM person so I can't comment directly about those.
