Towing 3800lb TT- Highlander-Pathfinder?
I am looking at buying a Pop up tent (Rockwood) that has gross weight capacity of 3800 lbs. (dry weight 3000 lbs). I am thinking of a Pathfinder or Highlander, which both list 5,000 lbs capacity. Do...
Forum Discussion
popupcamping had a lot of great observations in his posts.
I pull a highwall with a 4Runner, the slightly bigger brother for Highlander. The Highlander stands about 68.1" tall and the HW277 is 71" plus air conditioner height, if equipped. So the PUP will stand just a smidge taller than the tow vehicle. This will be the frontal wind profile.
My HW unit has a factory unloaded tongue weight of 290. With gear, battery and two LP tanks, it is about 520 pounds the last time I weighed it. It doesn't take much to get that TW up quickly.
With whatever TV you decide to go with, if there is a factory tow package available, get it. There were three trim lines available for my 4Runner. While the Limited had nicer creature and ride comforts, the Sport Edition (SE) really was the tow package with larger disc brakes than the other two trims, transmission cooler and upgraded factory hitch. As configured, it is rated to tow 7,000 pounds. The hitch is rated for 500 pounds but can go to 700 pounds with WDH, which I truly need to do.
I say all of this to say pay attention to the fine details with whatever TV you decide to get and that there may be big differences within the same model based on options. One or two thousand dollars more can make a big difference in handling and longevity of the vehicle.
As for the PUP, get the biggest one your TV can capably handle. However, I really do like having a large capacity on the TV and not pushing to the upper range or limit. My first TV/PUP combo was a vehicle rated for 3,500 pounds and the PUP was about 2,300 pounds loaded. The TV struggled to pull up hills and relatively quickly burned out the transmission with OD off and trying to baby it up the mountains. That's 1,200 pounds under the TV's capacity but it just was not set up for towing. This is just one person's experience.
If you're looking to do any offroading, personally, I would recommend the Pathfinder, assuming it meets your needs for a TV. I have seen some stock Pathfinders doing quite well in even some half-decent rock crawling.
I pull a highwall with a 4Runner, the slightly bigger brother for Highlander. The Highlander stands about 68.1" tall and the HW277 is 71" plus air conditioner height, if equipped. So the PUP will stand just a smidge taller than the tow vehicle. This will be the frontal wind profile.
My HW unit has a factory unloaded tongue weight of 290. With gear, battery and two LP tanks, it is about 520 pounds the last time I weighed it. It doesn't take much to get that TW up quickly.
With whatever TV you decide to go with, if there is a factory tow package available, get it. There were three trim lines available for my 4Runner. While the Limited had nicer creature and ride comforts, the Sport Edition (SE) really was the tow package with larger disc brakes than the other two trims, transmission cooler and upgraded factory hitch. As configured, it is rated to tow 7,000 pounds. The hitch is rated for 500 pounds but can go to 700 pounds with WDH, which I truly need to do.
I say all of this to say pay attention to the fine details with whatever TV you decide to get and that there may be big differences within the same model based on options. One or two thousand dollars more can make a big difference in handling and longevity of the vehicle.
As for the PUP, get the biggest one your TV can capably handle. However, I really do like having a large capacity on the TV and not pushing to the upper range or limit. My first TV/PUP combo was a vehicle rated for 3,500 pounds and the PUP was about 2,300 pounds loaded. The TV struggled to pull up hills and relatively quickly burned out the transmission with OD off and trying to baby it up the mountains. That's 1,200 pounds under the TV's capacity but it just was not set up for towing. This is just one person's experience.
If you're looking to do any offroading, personally, I would recommend the Pathfinder, assuming it meets your needs for a TV. I have seen some stock Pathfinders doing quite well in even some half-decent rock crawling.
