Towing capacity of Mazda CX-9?
Hi, I'm new to this forum. I have a 2012 Mazda CX-9 AWD. I am looking into buying an ultra light travel trailer weighing 2700 lbs. it's a Starcraft launch 17b. The dealer is saying that my car can pul...
Forum Discussion
(1) How can you tell if a salesman is lying? His lips are moving.
(2) There are two parts to this puzzle, gross weight of the fully loaded trailer and tongue weight. If your CX-9 can tow 3500 lbs, a 2700 lb trailer (dry weight) is only going to be able to have an 800 lb cargo capacity. IMHO, that is not enough cargo capacity. Load up clothes for everybody for a week, week's groceries, towels and bedding, cooking gear. It all adds up. And what about fresh water going and waste water returning?
The tongue weight also needs to be considered here, as the maximum weight the CX-9 can carry, it's cargo capacity, includes a full tank of fuel, weight of all passengers and their "stuff," and the tongue weight of the trailer. And a WD hitch will not decrease the tongue weight as a component of the cargo, all it does is transfer that weight from the rear to the front axle. If the tongue weight is 400 lbs w/o a WD hitch, it is still 400 lbs with the hitch. You need to look in the owner's manual and see what the total payload capacity is.
To give you an example, my TV's cargo capacity is listed as 1290 lbs. A full tank of fuel is going to weigh 160 lbs, our dog is 100 lbs, my wife and I together weigh 400 lbs, that is a total of 660 lbs. Throw in 30-40 lbs of snacks, books, and the other miscellaneous junk we all haul around, that leaves just about 600 lbs for tongue weight . . . gosh, guess what the TV manufacturer specifies as max tongue weight? 600 lb.
Beyond all that, most folks here are going to recommend that you don't take it right up to the limit. The entire towing experience is so much more pleasant if you only tow about 80% of the max. Less angst climbing hills (getting passed by everybody, worrying about overheating). Less getting tossed around when the 3rd and 4th axles hit that pothole.
As for braking, yeah, that trailer is required by law to have brakes. So, yeah, safe. But safe is less the question than will it be enjoyable.
So, your call. But I think that is a bit too much trailer for your TV.
(2) There are two parts to this puzzle, gross weight of the fully loaded trailer and tongue weight. If your CX-9 can tow 3500 lbs, a 2700 lb trailer (dry weight) is only going to be able to have an 800 lb cargo capacity. IMHO, that is not enough cargo capacity. Load up clothes for everybody for a week, week's groceries, towels and bedding, cooking gear. It all adds up. And what about fresh water going and waste water returning?
The tongue weight also needs to be considered here, as the maximum weight the CX-9 can carry, it's cargo capacity, includes a full tank of fuel, weight of all passengers and their "stuff," and the tongue weight of the trailer. And a WD hitch will not decrease the tongue weight as a component of the cargo, all it does is transfer that weight from the rear to the front axle. If the tongue weight is 400 lbs w/o a WD hitch, it is still 400 lbs with the hitch. You need to look in the owner's manual and see what the total payload capacity is.
To give you an example, my TV's cargo capacity is listed as 1290 lbs. A full tank of fuel is going to weigh 160 lbs, our dog is 100 lbs, my wife and I together weigh 400 lbs, that is a total of 660 lbs. Throw in 30-40 lbs of snacks, books, and the other miscellaneous junk we all haul around, that leaves just about 600 lbs for tongue weight . . . gosh, guess what the TV manufacturer specifies as max tongue weight? 600 lb.
Beyond all that, most folks here are going to recommend that you don't take it right up to the limit. The entire towing experience is so much more pleasant if you only tow about 80% of the max. Less angst climbing hills (getting passed by everybody, worrying about overheating). Less getting tossed around when the 3rd and 4th axles hit that pothole.
As for braking, yeah, that trailer is required by law to have brakes. So, yeah, safe. But safe is less the question than will it be enjoyable.
So, your call. But I think that is a bit too much trailer for your TV.
