New to RVs

After the deep breaths get a good brake controller so you can stop this critter!

Tekonsha Prodigy P2 or P3. Nothing less. Since the dealer sold you a too-heavy trailer I expect he'll push his "best selling" cheap time-delay brake controller on you too. Don't take it.

You'll need a weight distribution hitch (WDH) too. Search here.

-- Chuck

Thanks for all the input guys. I should have come here first. You did "scare the bejeebers out of me":) but that's a good thing. I'm not normally an impulsive person and tend to over-research before making even a minor purchase. I have been in contact with the dealership and this is what they are willing to do for me: I can take a test tow of a very similar trailer and go over some local hills with it to see how it feels. I plan to put some weight in the mini-van for this test. If I am not comfortable they are willing to let me purchase something else. I'm feeling much better. If I do feel comfortable with it then I will complete the purchase and most likely be in the market for a new tow vehicle late next year.

Sigh...deep breaths...

With careful planning and weight management you will be able to do short trips. Some people feel minivans are grossly under rated. You should include a tow vehicle upgrade in future plans. All problems can be overcome with planning and more money. Now that we have scared the bejeebers out of you I know you will go over every detail as you should to ensure you do it right.

You'll be buying a tow vehicle. I'm towing less trailer with a V8 halfton and it just barely satisfies me.

But don't let this change your mind, embarass or get you down. We all have a learning curve. Some more expensive than others. :)

You were duped by the dealer. This is more than a common newby mistake, it's deliberate dealer misleading just to sell a trailer to someone who should not be towing it.

We still don't know what minivan is being used. Chrysler transmissions are notorious for failing in this service.

Maximum towing capacity is just that, maximum. It is not a planning number, it's a Do Not Exceed number. Use the Gross Vehicle Weight as the planning number which in this case is 4500 pounds a half ton more than your minivan's maximum towing capacity if the van is empty -- which it won't be.

There are a myriad of "towing rules." A simple one is the 1000 Pound Rule: The tow vehicle should have 1000 pounds more maximum towing capacity than the trailer's gross weight. For this trailer I'd not tow it with less than a 5500 pound rated tow vehicle. This accounts for loads in the tow vehicle. Passengers and their stuff can easily exceed 200 pounds each. Toss in the typical 60 pound Golden Retriever and it gets heavier.

For safe towing I'd not tow more than a 2500 pound gross weight popup with this minivan. That's one of the smaller popups.

-- Chuck

dwright1969 wrote:
Now I'm worried. Did I screw up? I have not taken delivery yet but I am under contract. Should I try to get out from under it?

you've made a common mistake by newbies, looking at the "dry" weight, which is a fictional number made to draw in unsuspecting and uninformed buyers.
here's a quote from KZ's website:
"UNLOADED VEHICLE WEIGHT (UVW) - The typical weight of this trailer as built at the factory. The UVW does not include cargo, LP gas, fresh water, options or dealer-installed accessories."
this means that the 3220 "dry" weight does NOT include the weight of so-called "options". such as: microwave, awning, spare tire, air cond., and so on. my Roo weighed 400lbs. more than its "dry" weight when it left the factory, due to the weights of these things.
so, that trailer will easily already weigh over the 3500lbs. max of your minivan, before you add cargo, propane, battery and water.

same thing goes for the tongue weight, which is already over your minivan's max, especially when you add the weight of the WDH.

so, unless you plan on getting a bigger tow vehicle, then IMHO, YES!

dwright1969 wrote:
Yea I know I'm pushing it with the weight. My tow capacity is 3500 lb on the minivan. The dry weight of the trailer is about 3100 lb. I'll just have to be careful how much I weigh it down. On the KZ web site the GVWR includes everything the trailer can hold including people. Also, for the near future my caping will mostly be within a couple hour drive of my house.

Thanks,

D

Well first of all, I hope you are not carrying people in the trailer. Just joking - we all know you can't do that.

You have to remember that 3,500 lbs is max towing, with a 150 lb driver and nothing else. You will need to subtract from the 3500 lbs additional passengers as well as cargo and the WDH hitch.

Before you even add a package of crackers to the trailer you will likely be over your tow vehicles weight rating.

that being said, I have seen folks around here towing mid sized hybrids with minivans. They take is slow and hope they are not travelling into a head wind.

My TV was a 5,000 lb max Ford Explorer towing a 3,500 lb trailer plus people and gear and we did not feel overly comfortable in it. It did the job, but we did notice going over hills, it really worked hard. I just upgrades this week to a 2013 F150 - first tow is this weekend. I am sure the new vehicle will tow much better and it will be like the trailer is not even there.

You will not be happy towing that big a trailer with a mini van.

Now I'm worried. Did I screw up? I have not taken delivery yet but I am under contract. Should I try to get out from under it?

Yea I know I'm pushing it with the weight. My tow capacity is 3500 lb on the minivan. The dry weight of the trailer is about 3100 lb. I'll just have to be careful how much I weigh it down. On the KZ web site the GVWR includes everything the trailer can hold including people. Also, for the near future my caping will mostly be within a couple hour drive of my house.

Thanks,

D

You will likely need to do some upgrades to the minivan; trans cooler, along with the TBC, 7 pin wiring, etc..... The HTT will weigh all of that 4500 GVWR and TW may exceed 550 lbs which will eat up a lot of the MV payload