Ford Explorer for towing

[Chaos]

We just bought a new travel trailer. Manufacturer spec is 4,000 lbs dry weight. Now we need a tow vehicle. We are considering a 2006-2010 Ford Explorer with V8 engine and class IV WDH. Does that sound adequate, with some left over? I know that GVWR, GAWR and GCWR all come into play but I haven't gotten that all figured out just yet. I also want to be sure we aren't maxing out the system and unnecessarily putting excess strain on the TV.

[moose44]

There has been a debate that has been going on for YEARS in Touareg forum about the ban on weight distribution hitch and tongue weight. Neither sides quite won out that debate. All I know is that I am pretty happy with my setup.

[moose44]

V10 Diesel Touareg weights 6,000 pounds Because of the heavier iron block engine upfront, it is front heavy. By adding 300 pounds to the back, it can have 50/50 balance front and back. What I mean by this is first 300 lb of the tongue weight actually makes my SUV achieve perfect balance. After adding two adults on front seat (400 pounds or so) and putting on additional 410 lb of tounge weight, I think my Touareg is pretty well balanced. Therefore, I don't think there is any need for WDH when each tires are getting more or less even load and tow vehicle and trailer are perfectly level.

[Chaos]

VW actually prohibits weight distribution on the Touareg. You must use Their drawbar and Their ball in Their specified position. Better hope that your trailer matches the specified ball position. 616 lbs tongue wt max, weight carrying.

[BarneyS]

moose44 wrote:
call me crazy but I might upgrade to 33 ft. trailer. why do I need WDH when my trailer is perfectly level and my tongue weight is 13% of the trailer weight ( per scale ) and that 13% of the weight and all in vehicle does not exceed max veh load.

The above is all well and good but that is not what determines the need for weight distribution or not.

As mentioned, your receiver is rated for a certain amount of tongue weight without and with weight distribution. Take a look at the sticker on it and see what it is.

In addition, when you place a load on the truck four or more feet behind the rear axle, you are going to unload the front axle and possibly cause handling and braking problems. The WD will restore the weight removed from the front axle of the truck and make the rig tow much more safely and comfortably.
Barney

[steeleshark]

moose44 wrote:
call me crazy but I might upgrade to 33 ft. trailer. why do I need WDH when my trailer is perfectly level and my tongue weight is 13% of the trailer weight ( per scale ) and that 13% of the weight and all in vehicle does not exceed max veh load.

I am pretty sure that your owners manual for the TV will say a WDH is required for towing over 5000lbs. Also, it will male your front end lighter and make your setup dangerous going down the road.:h

[moose44]

call me crazy but I might upgrade to 33 ft. trailer. why do I need WDH when my trailer is perfectly level and my tongue weight is 13% of the trailer weight ( per scale ) and that 13% of the weight and all in vehicle does not exceed max veh load.

[Dadoffourgirls]

moose44 wrote:
I have Passport 30 ft trailer that weights 5,000 lb I did tow it with Toyota Tundra 5.7L briefly but just did not want to drive a truck. What I ended up with is VW Touareg. I can not only keep up with traffic but I am the guy passing them on the left. Mine is 2006 model with V10 twin turbo diesel. It has 560 lb ft of torque. It actually weights more than Suburban. You should check out VW Touareg. They are pretty capable tow vehicles. Bonus is that mine has self leveling air suspension so I don't even have to have WDH.

Can you let us know when you are traveling, and the route. I will be sure to plan a different route.

Hauling a 30ft trailer and passing others without WDH has me taking a different route.

[moose44]

I have Passport 30 ft trailer that weights 5,000 lb I did tow it with Toyota Tundra 5.7L briefly but just did not want to drive a truck. What I ended up with is VW Touareg. I can not only keep up with traffic but I am the guy passing them on the left. Mine is 2006 model with V10 twin turbo diesel. It has 560 lb ft of torque. It actually weights more than Suburban. You should check out VW Touareg. They are pretty capable tow vehicles. Bonus is that mine has self leveling air suspension so I don't even have to have WDH.

[Fordlover]

Explorer works well for my needs, however I wouldn't go any larger.

[steeleshark]

Nissan Armadas are great Tow vehicles for the money with a nice payload without forking the extra money for a Yukon or Suburban. They are built on the Titan frame.

[Mickeyfan0805]

I think you are discovering that a small SUV will not be able to handle your needs. Your payload needs are very high. If that's what you need, you are in 3/4 ton range. Either the SUV's listed above, or a pick-up.

I would, however, suggest the reconsideration of that payload. We are a family of 5, with a dog, towing a trailer that is 8k loaded - and our payload isn't that high.

[Wishin]

I think the most common application of the 80% rule is when people are not going to account for a worst case scenario or don't want to physically weigh their trailer, vehicle, tongue weight etc. but still want to be reasonably confident they won't be over any of their ratings. For you, you are assuming a worst case scenario where the tongue weight is 15%, trailer is at GVWR etc. and you are then adding 20% on top of that. The only harm in doing that is that you're severely limited your SUV choices, they will not be newer vehicles, and most of them are not very fuel efficient when not towing. A 3/4 Suburban/Yukon XL from 2000-2006 would just meet your requirements. Some of the later years of Excursions could likely handle them as well. Earlier years of Excursions the hitch was only rated for 1000 lbs of tongue weight I believe. I think that is about it. If you don't mind a pickup truck you have many more options, still generally going to require a 3/4 ton however.

I think if you're assuming a worst case scenario with the trailer weights and you know the actual weight you'll put in the vehicle in addition to the tongue weight you should be fairly safe just sticking to 100% of the vehicle ratings or if you want to play it safer go down to 90-95% but using 80% is driving you beyond what is necessary unless you plan to use this vehicle for towing only and don't plan to drive it much otherwise. If it is primarily a tow vehicle and noting else, then overkill isn't such a big deal beyond the upfront money to buy it. At least it isn't draining your wallet for gas every day.

On most suv's the limit ends up being the suv GVWR or tongue weight rating of the vehicle hitch, many of which are not replaceable hitches so you are stuck with what the manufacturer put on at the factory for a hitch. Good luck.

[Chaos]

bikendan wrote:

Chaos wrote:

bikendan wrote:

APT wrote:

Chaos wrote:

I've calculated needed TV specs as follows:
Payload 1980
Trailer wt rating 7600
Tongue weight 1140

The only SUVs that can handle those specs are V10 Excursion and -06 Suburbans.

those aren't the specs of the trailer the OP is talking about, if it's the 26RS.

Those are calculated needed specs based on the 26RS and a 20% margin.

trying to understand where the 1140lbs. tongue weight comes from, if the "dry" tongue weight is only 332lbs.
course, i question the accuracy of that number. it's awful low for a 27' TT, even with the rear bed slide.

6332 GVWR for the trailer. 15% of that for tongue weight. 20% for margin.
6332*.15*1.2= 1140

[APT]

As a card carrying member of the weight police, towing that TT with a 3/4 ton is overkill. Not that there is anything wrong with overkill. The towing experience will be beyond comfortable.

I cannot see exceeding any limits/ratings of the most capable half ton SUVs. I might even recommend the 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Diesel or VW Touareg TDI depending on hitch weight.