I'm in the process of buying my first trailer and have read that I should be sure to leave a buffer between the weight of the trailer and the max towing weight of the vehicle. I have an SUV rated for 3,500lbs and am looking at 16-18' trailers in the range of 2,800 to 3,200lbs dry. What would be the max dry weight I should consider?

Never consider the dry weight. Instead focus on the gross weight (GVWR) of the trailer, which, in your case, is the 3500 pound rating your SUV can handle. If you can find a suitable trailer that is less than 3500 GVWR then you should be OK.

I have a 3,600 lb tow rating. What I found was the smaller single axle trailer can have a pretty high tongue weight. You likely have a 350 lb max tongue weight receiver hitch. Basically, you are limited like I am to pop ups, A-Liners, small KZ sportsman's, and fiberglass egg trailers. 2400-2600 lbs dry was what I was looking for before deciding my family needs more trailer. Good luck in your search. Thanks!Jeremiah

Another thing you will be told.You will likely run out of "payload" capacity before you run out of towing capacity.What you can Carry & what you Pull are two different things.

The more important issue will be the maximum hitch weight allowed for your SUV, probably 350 lbs. Figure that most trailers' tongues in that size range will weigh about 100 lbs more than the quoted dry hitch weight by the time you add the LP tank, battery, and normal cargo. So you're looking for a TT with a max dry hitch of 250 lbs. That means your TT will probably have to weigh no more than about 2000 to 2400 lbs.Have a look at the Escape (of Chilliwack, BC) 17 foot trailer. http://escapetrailer.com/trailers/the-17-foot-escape/ Not sure how much bed space you need, but this should tow nicely behind your SUV. I know several folks towing this with a Toyota Rav4. Another possibility is a Taylor Coach trailer. They will have more frontal area than the rounded Escape, but I've heard that the Taylors are well made and you can see from their specs that they are lightweight plus light on the hitch.

rexlion wrote:The more important issue will be the maximum hitch weight allowed for your SUV, probably 350 lbs. Figure that most trailers' tongues in that size range will weigh about 100 lbs more than the quoted dry hitch weight by the time you add the LP tank, battery, and normal cargo. So you're looking for a TT with a max dry hitch of 250 lbs. That means your TT will probably have to weigh no more than about 2000 to 2400 lbs.Have a look at the Escape (of Chilliwack, BC) 17 foot trailer. http://escapetrailer.com/trailers/the-17-foot-escape/ Not sure how much bed space you need, but this should tow nicely behind your SUV. I know several folks towing this with a Toyota Rav4. Another possibility is a Taylor Coach trailer. They will have more frontal area than the rounded Escape, but I've heard that the Taylors are well made and you can see from their specs that they are lightweight plus light on the hitch.The Safari Alto might be a good one, too, but I can't find their hitch weights so not sure.

Maximum Tow Weight For SUV | Good Sam Community

20 Replies

DaveF-250SD
Explorer
Mar 31, 2015
Your RX350 is a CUV, not an SUV. Basically, it is a Camry station wagon. Car based vehicles are CUV's. A different vehicle, capable of towing safely would be the way to go if you want to tow even a small travel trailer. If you are dead set on not buying an American vehicle, the Toyota Sequoia will be a much more capable platform to tow with.
bus25682
Explorer
Mar 31, 2015
Thank you for the feedback. Much appreciated.
rexlion
Explorer
Mar 31, 2015
I think that Starcraft would be over the limit, or at very least pushing the limit. Yep, if you want to have more and better trailer choices, trade it for a GX460 or a Sequoyah. You don't want to exceed the hitch weight and risk having the hitch receiver detach at highway speed. :o
bus25682
Explorer
Mar 31, 2015
I've since asked for the stickker weight of the specific trailer I am looking at. Regardless of the classification of the RX350, will it be safe to tow a trailer with the sticker tow weights below.

Dry: 2880
Payload: 358
Hitch: 262
GVWR: 3500

We are only planning on 250 to 500 km 3-4 day trips so I am not overly concerned about exceeding payload.
BenK
Explorer
Mar 31, 2015
PAThwacker wrote:
Your first mistake is calling the RX 350 a SUV. Marketing has some potent koolaid
Most of the current car based utility vehicles are missing key attributes a SUV had: Tow ratings, class 3 hitches, transfer cases, and the ability to go off road.

Spot on...a RX350 is a CUV. 'Crossover Utility Vehicle' derived from the
Camry...AKA "Toyota K Platform". Same class as the CRV (Civic), Rav4 (Corolla),
Highlander (Sienna), Pilot (Odyssey), etc

Think of towing with a Camry and you will be closest to the mark

There are differences and mainly in the suspension
PAThwacker
Explorer
Mar 31, 2015
Your first mistake is calling the RX 350 a SUV. Marketing has some potent koolaid
Most of the current car based utility vehicles are missing key attributes a SUV had: Tow ratings, class 3 hitches, transfer cases, and the ability to go off road.
ib516
Explorer II
Mar 31, 2015
Depends on how far you plan to tow it. Short distances pretty close to home, you can go closer to the 3500 limit. If you're planning on towing long distances (like into BC or the USA), I'd consider lighter, smaller RVs.
bikendan
Explorer
Mar 31, 2015
bus25682 wrote:
The trailer I was considering is a 2009 STARCRAFT TRAVEL STAR 18RB.

This is the manufacturers weight info:

Dry: 2490
Payload: 711
Hitch: 262
GVWR: 3500

as was said, you need to look at the factory weight sticker. in 2009, i believe the yellow sticker was out yet. it was a white sticker on the inside of an interior cabinet door.

you don't seem to know how fantasy brochure/website "dry" weights work.
a common problem that new owners find out about the magic 3500lbs. GVWR trailers, is that the actual payload amount is lower when the trailer leaves the factory.
that's because that "dry" number is for a stripped-down version of the trailer. doens't include the weights of things common. like the oven, a/c, microwave, spare tire, awning and so on.

you'll probably find, after looking at the factory weight sticker, that the actual payload could be around 411lbs.
and then you have to subtract the weight of the battery and propane, which puts it down to around 340lbs. for cargo and water.
this is a common issue with these 3500lbs. GVWR TT's made for the CUV and minivan crowd.
VERY POOR CARGO CAPACITY.
APT
Explorer
Mar 31, 2015
Here's the problem for naturally aspirated V6s like in your SUV. It takes a lot of power to pull two sheets of plywood through the air at 65mph. You'll be cruising at 3000ish rpm and higher on hills. So while the vehicle may be happy and just consume more fuel, most people especially those who have little towing experience are not pleased with performance.
marquette
Explorer
Mar 31, 2015
Are the weights from a brochure or from the the yellow build sticker on the door frame? Does the trailer have electric brakes? If it is a single axle it may not and that would be a concern.