Travel trailer questions from an RV newbie
Hi Everyone, My husband and I are contemplating purchasing a travel trailer in which to tour the U.S. with our baby and our cat. We'll be traveling for an indefinite period of time. Initially we we...
Forum Discussion
You need to visit some RV dealerships, go to RV shows, act out living in various size trailers (and or motorhomes) to figure out just what it is that you need for the way you want to live in it. You don't have to buy new, but before seriously shopping, you need to figure out what kind of space your RV lifetyle needs.
Your mid-size SUV, if upgraded for towing, has limitations beyond "maximum tongue weight" and "maximum tow weight" figures, as the tongue weight has to fit along with people and stuff into the "maximum cargo capacity" of the SUV and there will often be tradeoffs between what you can carry and what you can tow. Even with one-ton full size van, I can carry 3000 pounds or tow 6500 pounds, but can't do both at the same time. At max tow, payload is down to a little over a ton.
A further, often neglected, limitation on tow capacity of cars, SUVs and light trucks is the "frontal area" assumption, which is often a number close to the frontal area of the vehicle, with no formula for how a larger area should reduce "tow capacity." For the Honda-built SUVs, vans, and more powerful luxury sedans, there is a history of the automatic transmission not being up to the loads that can be imposed; I know earlier models got included in a settlement for extended warranty, don't know how this applies to 2006 model year. I do know my daughter had to have transmissions rebuilt early on her 1999 and 2006 model year Honda minivans, but that didn't keep her from buying yet another one.
What you can reasonably expect to tow would include molded fiberglass "eggshell" trailers in the 13-17 foot range, with max weights under 3500 and frontal areas around 50 sq ft (rather than 75-96 sq ft of typical box-shaped TTs) but these are pretty small for extended living. I do know people who do this, and others that even live extended times in folding trailers, but they've greatly simplified their lifestyles, and often combine the small TT with a tow vehicle having good cargo capacity, like a pickup with a shell or a full size van.
We have one couple in our RV club who pulls a 19-foot Amerilite with a V-6 Highlander, but they don't pull it very far (few hundred miles a year) or live in it very long (3-5 days at a time).
BTW, I pay $9.95 for oil and filter change, and vehicle inspection, on my (daily driver) one-ton passenger van, at the Ford dealer. Some other places will do it for about $20, Honda dealer wants at least $25 for the oil change on the Fit I tow behind my motorhome from time to time. Expensive service has more to do with diesel vs gas, than capacity of the light truck.
Your mid-size SUV, if upgraded for towing, has limitations beyond "maximum tongue weight" and "maximum tow weight" figures, as the tongue weight has to fit along with people and stuff into the "maximum cargo capacity" of the SUV and there will often be tradeoffs between what you can carry and what you can tow. Even with one-ton full size van, I can carry 3000 pounds or tow 6500 pounds, but can't do both at the same time. At max tow, payload is down to a little over a ton.
A further, often neglected, limitation on tow capacity of cars, SUVs and light trucks is the "frontal area" assumption, which is often a number close to the frontal area of the vehicle, with no formula for how a larger area should reduce "tow capacity." For the Honda-built SUVs, vans, and more powerful luxury sedans, there is a history of the automatic transmission not being up to the loads that can be imposed; I know earlier models got included in a settlement for extended warranty, don't know how this applies to 2006 model year. I do know my daughter had to have transmissions rebuilt early on her 1999 and 2006 model year Honda minivans, but that didn't keep her from buying yet another one.
What you can reasonably expect to tow would include molded fiberglass "eggshell" trailers in the 13-17 foot range, with max weights under 3500 and frontal areas around 50 sq ft (rather than 75-96 sq ft of typical box-shaped TTs) but these are pretty small for extended living. I do know people who do this, and others that even live extended times in folding trailers, but they've greatly simplified their lifestyles, and often combine the small TT with a tow vehicle having good cargo capacity, like a pickup with a shell or a full size van.
We have one couple in our RV club who pulls a 19-foot Amerilite with a V-6 Highlander, but they don't pull it very far (few hundred miles a year) or live in it very long (3-5 days at a time).
BTW, I pay $9.95 for oil and filter change, and vehicle inspection, on my (daily driver) one-ton passenger van, at the Ford dealer. Some other places will do it for about $20, Honda dealer wants at least $25 for the oil change on the Fit I tow behind my motorhome from time to time. Expensive service has more to do with diesel vs gas, than capacity of the light truck.
