Maximum Tow Weight For SUV

bus25682 wrote:
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?

you're making one of the top two newbie mistakes, using "dry" weights.

you probably have a CUV, not a SUV. CUV's, along with minivans, will usually have the typical 3500lbs. towing capacity.
those "dry" weights are for a stripped down trailer without the normal things trailers come with: oven, a/c, spare tire, microwave and so on.
so you can often find the actual weight of the trailer, when it leaves the factory, is actually 300-400lbs. more than the "dry" weight.

what vehicle are you talking about and does it have the factory tow package. and have you checked the owners manual for frontal area limit? many vehicles with the 3500lbs. capacity, have a frontal area limit that a trailer will exceed. the Ford Escape is one example.