Towing a FWD Highlander with a Chatau 28A E350 chassis

[crh3002]

Hi All, I am new to RVing. I have a 2010 Fourwinds 28A. I want to tow on a dolly my Toyota Highlander. The motor home is a 350 chassis with the V10 motor. Later I plan on purchasing a small car, but have to wait a while. Is this too heavy for the motorhome? Also What is the difference between the E350 and E450 chassis? The only difference that I see are slide outs, I don't have any.. Mechanically I can't see to many differences.
Thanks for any responses.

[crh3002]

The tow dolly has surge brakes,,, we should be ready to go
thanks

[Groover]

I suspect that your coach brakes don't have a lot of extra capacity. If you don't have brakes on your dolly be sure to allow extra room to stop be very careful in the mountains.

[crh3002]

Problem solved, picked up a Chevy Cruze..Just a shade over 3000lbs.
Hitch is rated for 5000lbs...Plenty of room..
Thanks to all..

[crh3002]

Thanks Ron, Our tow dolly is a Tow Master. I think I am just going to hook it up with the Highlander and go...I'll know before too long if its too heavy.

[lanerd]

Have you weighed the Highlander or just going by mfg specs? When you tow the Highlander, will you put anything in it? You might want to think about a lube pump so that you can tow four-down. Not for me.... but it might work for you.

If you get a very lightweight dolly, you should be ok.

When we were looking for a new toad, the RAV4 and Highlander were 1 and 2 on our list as we are Toyota freaks; but alas, no Toyota is towable four down and I'm not going to put up with a dolly or trailer or do any mods to a brand new car that might jeopardize the warranty. Hence, we chose the GMC Terrain. I was very hesitant to purchase anything other than a Toyota, but I have to admit (surprise, surprise), the Terrain has turned out to be an excellent vehicle.

Ron

[crh3002]

Thanks for the responses, The hitch is rated for 5000lbs.and the highlander is 3900, Since I bought the motorhome used, I have a down loaded generic manual that covers several motorhomes,,, I will do more research, I was hoping that someone would respond that had a similar setup,, thanks

[michelb]

Looks like the FWD Highlander is a bit over 4000lbs.

As Ron said, you really have to check your hitch rating (if it's 3500 lbs it's not enough, if it's 5000lbs, you're probably okay). You also need to check the GCWR on your chassis and ideally get your vehicle weighed or otherwise compare it to your GVWR (as long as you're not overloaded - most mhs usually have the hitch rating equal to GCWR - GVWR).

Hope this helps

[lanerd]

Depends upon what your hitch is rated for. Being an E350, more than likely it is only rated for 3500 lbs. However, even if it is rated for 5000 lbs, the Highlander and the tow dolly will be over this amount by quite a bit.

What does your mh's owner's manual say for towing?

Ron

[Beverley_Ken]

There are big differences in the chassis ratings for the E350 and E450. The GCWR 18500 to 22000 for the E450, tow ratings are based on that and the MH (Four Winds) ratings for there frame extensions. You would also need to know the weight of your Highlander and the tow dolly.

Beverley and Ken