Nissan Armada Tow

I recommend when looking at the trailer weight you use the GVWR for the trailer to determine how heavy it will be. Most people are closer to that than the dry weight when camping.

mt585633 wrote:
Thanks for the fast responses everyone. The sticker in the door of the Armada says that the cargo and passenger weight can't be over 1433Lbs. all other specs I have in my first post is there any other information needed. I think the 6400Lbs trailer loaded to no more than 8000Lbs that is the max for the trailer. I think that about 95% of the time I feel I can keep the loaded weight of the trailer around 7400Lbs realistically. that is 1000Lbs of gear is that unrealistic?

Thanks Guys

Again-you need a trailer with a dry weight of 5,000 pounds. That's what your Armada can handle.

Determining which vehicle to purchase by its "towing" rating is a common mistake with those who have never towed a travel trailer before. The tow rating is a manufacture's figure based upon pulling a trailer with NO tongue weight, ie: a flat bed with wheels at each corner. An Armada has a wonderful and powerful engine and it will pull that flat bed trailer with 9100 lbs on it easily.

Unfortunately, towing a travel trailer is a totally different animal as it is designed to have its wheels close to the center but a little behind causing the trailer to have additional weight on the front. This weight is typically about 12% to 15% of the trailer's total weight and is commonly referred to as "tongue weight".

Most all 1/2 ton (not all) and even some 3/4 ton vehicles (that include pickups and SUVs) don't have much payload capability as they really aren't designed to haul a bunch of weight. The mfg's try (and in your case, succeeded) to convince the public that they indeed can haul a bunch of weight (9100 lbs) but never do they mention exactly what 9100 lb object they used to determine the tow rating. Each mfg uses its own figures for this rate and are probably very different from each other. I believe only Toyota uses Government figures.

Most 1/2 tons are limited by their payload capacity, RAWR, and GVWR....which will be maxed out when pulling a travel trailer long before they reach their advertised tow rating.

As previously mentioned, get your Armada weighed and subtract that weight from the posted GVWR. That will be your "actual" payload capacity. The total of anything and everything you put in or on the SUV will have to be less than the actual payload rating. Again as previously mentioned, towing at maximum ratings is not fun. It's not good for the vehicle, it's not good for the driver.

I agree with others...look for a much lighter trailer. None of those you listed are a good choice.

Good luck, and I hope this helps.

Ron

Other 'minuses' to that 1433 payload are: 4x4, power seats/windows/locks, AC, ETC

Most SUV's end up at to over their GVWR before hooking up the trailer tongue

Best to actually weigh your TV empty and fully loaded ready to go camping, but
without the trailer hooked up

That is the only way to know where you are in reference to your ratings

mt585633 wrote:
Thanks for the fast responses everyone. The sticker in the door of the Armada says that the cargo and passenger weight can't be over 1433Lbs. all other specs I have in my first post is there any other information needed. I think the 6400Lbs trailer loaded to no more than 8000Lbs that is the max for the trailer. I think that about 95% of the time I feel I can keep the loaded weight of the trailer around 7400Lbs realistically. that is 1000Lbs of gear is that unrealistic?

Thanks Guys

That 1433 lb passenger weight rating, is your payload. Everything and everybody that you put in, or on the Armada, takes away from that number. If you put 800 lbs of people and cargo in the vehicle, you only have 633 lbs left for weight from the trailer, and the WD hitch will take 80 - 100 lbs of that.

You should add up the weight of all your occupants, estimated cargo, and add 100 lbs for a WD hitch. Subtract that weight from 1433. What you have left, is payload available for tongue weight. Divide that available payload number by .13. The result will be a ballpark figure for loaded trailer weight, that will put you at max payload.

Keep in mind, towing at max weight can be quite unpleasant. You may want to look at trailers that don't put you there.

Example:

1433 lb payload, minus 600 lb occupants, minus 100 lb cargo, minus 100 lb WD hitch = 633 available payload... 633 divided by .13 = 4869 lbs loaded trailer weight.


Your question about the 1000 lb of gear, is not unrealistic. 1000 lbs is about average. Pots and pans, dishes, bedding, clothes, BBQ, camp chairs, fishing gear, bicycles, power cords, leveling blocks, water hoses, sewer dump accessories, groceries, water, etc, all adds up very fast.

910 tongue weight is your RV limit. That's about a 7000 pound loaded TT, or 6k dry. 7700Lbs to 8400Lbs dry? Um, no. Those will be 9000-10000 pounds loaded for a long weekend without water with 1100-1300 pounds of tongue weight. That exceeds your receiver rating as well as the rear axle rating. And if you are looking at bunk houses for families of 4+, you will exceed GVWR of the Armada.

It sounds like your wife may want a trailer too big for the Armada. I've been in your situation and can tell you that buying a trailer to fit a tow vehicle can be a costly mistake. If you do this, I recommend you get a steal on a used trailer so you can sell it if you want to go bigger. It may be cheaper in the long run to get a beefy tow vehicle and buy the trailer you really want.

Which model Bullet are you considering? Looking at the weight you list I'm going to guess the 31BHPR which is what I have. Lightly loaded with no water we scale at 7600lbs with just shy of 1000lbs on the tongue.

It's a great trailer but it will exceed your receiver rating and put you over your GVWR. With my family of 4 on board we are 300lbs over gvwr. I'm still comfortable with this as we are under the axle and tire ratings but I am always conscious about the weights. It's what I have and it will have to do for now.

Will the Armada tow it? Sure. Are you comfortable being over ratings? Up to you to decide. The good thing is that you are asking the right questions now before purchasing, while you still have a choice. If I were to do it again I would get a bigger truck or smaller trailer.

I would say a trailer weight of ready to camp at about 5,000 pounds or so. There are PLENTY of ultra lights that fit this bill that are very nice trailers.

Watch out for slides-they weigh 300 pounds a piece.

I towed a 5,000 pound-29 foot trailer 8,000 miles around the U.S. last year and wouldn't have wanted a heavier trailer. Granted your Armada has a bigger motor but the same payload/towing capacity as my half-ton Silverado.

Unloaded/dry weights are pretty misleading.

No one tows an empty trailer more than once - when they bring it home from the dealer. You can add 1000# easily. Dry/unloaded weights usually do not include options either.

6400# dry weight = 8000# or so when loaded for a trip.