Must-haves for Van or SUV as tow vehicle?

[Tortiemctortiep]

Thanks to all of your excellent advice, I have decided to find either a full size van or SUV to pull a travel trailer (I am thinking around 20’) for my cross country trip this summer, primarily because of all the pets and needing to have somewhere to stay with them in the event of a breakdown.

What needs to be on my list of “must-haves” when I’m looking for a tow vehicle that will be able to reliably carry me and my menagerie over a variety of landscapes and conditions, mountain passes, etc?

I’m assuming I should only be looking at something with a V8 engine?

When I’ve been searching I have been narrowing my searches to vehicles already with a tow hitch with the assumption that this would mean that it’s equipped to tow, but I’m wondering if that is incorrect... must the vehicle have been originally manufactured with an official “tow package” or can an otherwise capable vehicle be outfitted with a trailer hitch after I buy it?

Would an older vehicle with low miles and no major mechanical problems after an inspection be reliable, or should I really try to find a newer vehicle? For example, I found a 2007 Ford E350 with a tow package and only 60k miles on it for $8500, and I am interested in it but hesitate because of its age.

Any thoughts on these vehicles that have come up in my searches, pro/con or something else I should be looking for entirely?

SUV - Nissan Armada, Dodge Durango, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Toyota Sequoia or Land Cruiser, Chevy Tahoe or Suburban, GMC Yukon, Ford Expedition, Lincoln Navigator

Vans - Nissan NV, Dodge RAM Promaster, Chevy Express, GMC Savana, Ford E150/250/350

Thank you so much for any advice!

[DrewE]

The difference between class C and class A motorhomes are what sort of chassis they're built on.

A class A motorhome is built on a bare chassis or a dedicated bus chassis. The coach builder creates all the bodywork for the vehicle.

A class B motorhome is built inside a cargo van, with the van maker supplying all the outside bodywork (except possibly for a raised roof).

A class C motorhome is built on a cutaway chassis or cab-and-chassis, with the vehicle chassis manufacturer supplying the cab portion of the bodywork and the coach builder the rear house part of the bodywork. Most but not all class C's have a cabover bunk or entertainment center area, giving them a somewhat distinctive look from the side. Most if not all of what are sold as "Class B+" motorhomes are technically class C motorhomes; class B+ is nothing more than a marketing term.

A (very) few oddball motorhomes don't neatly fit into one of the three classes.

[Tortiemctortiep]

I do need to look into class A’s... for some reason I had it in my head that they were all really big so I had ruled them out. I’m not sure what the difference between a’s and c’s are, so I’ll have to do some research. Thanks for the suggestion!

[Grit_dog]

Since you’re back to motorhomes, don’t rule out small class As IMO.
Find the best deal you can with the lowest miles and best maintenance prioritized over your “ideal” floor plan.
Agree, with no towing experience, a single large vehicle will be safer and more comfortable for you to drive

[Horsedoc]

"cite the law"

bikendan is right . Will this suit you oklahoma?

https://dps.georgia.gov/sites/dps.georgia.gov/files/imported/vgn/images/portal/cit_1210/12/14/162466...

[dodge_guy]

okhmbldr wrote:

bikendan wrote:

okhmbldr wrote:



Yes, the V6 can handle a long trip. I can only speak from my own experience. I have a 2014 GMC Acadia that I ordered with the "trailering Package". It included the 4-pin wiring harness, hitch, larger radiator and transmission cooler. I have pulled a 5000# trailer with no problems. My normal hwy gas mileage is about 22-24, pulling the trailer dropped to 16. The V6 produces almost 300 hp, so it works well at pulling. The tow capacity with the towing package is 5100#. Without the tow package the same vehicle is limited to 3500#.

How do you tow a 5000lbs TT with a 4 pin harness, since 5000lbs trailers have electric brakes. By law, you're required to have a brake controller to power the electric brakes, which requires a 7 pin harness.

Cite the law.

Every state has a law requiring brakes on anything over X amount of weight. As well as a breakaway system. At 5k lbs you are far over even the minimum weight of some state requirements at around 3k lbs. It's even in the owners manual. Do you run a Weight Ditributing hitch? I'm sure your 5k trailer has more than 500lbs of Toungue Weight!

[okhmbldr]

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[bikendan]

okhmbldr wrote:



Yes, the V6 can handle a long trip. I can only speak from my own experience. I have a 2014 GMC Acadia that I ordered with the "trailering Package". It included the 4-pin wiring harness, hitch, larger radiator and transmission cooler. I have pulled a 5000# trailer with no problems. My normal hwy gas mileage is about 22-24, pulling the trailer dropped to 16. The V6 produces almost 300 hp, so it works well at pulling. The tow capacity with the towing package is 5100#. Without the tow package the same vehicle is limited to 3500#.

How do you tow a 5000lbs TT with a 4 pin harness, since 5000lbs trailers have electric brakes. By law, you're required to have a brake controller to power the electric brakes, which requires a 7 pin harness.

[Tortiemctortiep]

So I have been doing some thinking, and I think I’m putting a Class C back on my list of possibilities... I’m honestly more attracted to the class c idea for the simplicity of not moving pets back and forth between a tow vehicle and a trailer, and I feel more comfortable with the idea of driving an ambulance sized vehicle with something little behind in comparison to a potentially large tow vehicle towing something even bigger behind... I’m sure I could learn either system though... so I’m back at my original drawing board of older class c vs tow vehicle/ travel trailer combo... so I must continue my research.. I still welcome any advice and am so thankful for everyone’s words of wisdom so far!!!

[Tortiemctortiep]

dedmiston wrote:

Tortiemctortiepants wrote:
Very close, dedmiston! I’m impressed! Just subtract 1 cat and add 1 dog, 2 birds, and a bunny. 😄

I'd better start taking notes. :B

For what it's worth, I'm enjoying your research, and I appreciate your tenacity. With some of the advice you've been given, I would have ditched the plans already.

I admire your commitment to your critters. I'd do the same for mine.

Haha! Thanks! I am pretty stubborn once I get an idea stuck in my head... which can be a good or a bad thing! 😄

Your critters are lucky to have you 🙂

[dedmiston]

Tortiemctortiepants wrote:
Very close, dedmiston! I’m impressed! Just subtract 1 cat and add 1 dog, 2 birds, and a bunny. 😄

I'd better start taking notes. :B

For what it's worth, I'm enjoying your research, and I appreciate your tenacity. With some of the advice you've been given, I would have ditched the plans already.

I admire your commitment to your critters. I'd do the same for mine.

[John_Burke]

There are a lot of rental returns out there.
Ford has not made the E350 since 2914. Chevrolet still makes the 3500 Express short and long wheel base. One thing to be careful when looking at Ford and Chevy vans is rear axle placement. The Ford axle is quite a bit farther forward than the Chevy. Too much van body hanging out behind the rear axle on the Ford. MUCH less stable, one of the reasons Ford quite making them was all the lawsuits from crash's. Too many schools (the vans are rated at 12 or 15 passenger so the driver does not need a CDL to drive them) having rollover accidents with them.
I have had 4 3500 Express's pulling campers and trailers and have had good luck. The 6.0 with a 6 speed transmission is a good combo. When not towing I get 16-17 mpg and when towing (my camper weighs in at about 11,500 Lbs. and is 38ft long) I average 9.5 mpg.
Some of the rental places use these vans and get ride of them at about 20,000 miles. I just got a 2019 long wheel base with 21,500 miles well loaded for $23,600.00. Bought from a Chevy dealer, still has warranty until 36000 miles.
I install my own hitch, brake and light wiring and brake controller. I add a heavy gauge, fused wire from the battery, run to the trailer plug to charge the battery's better.
Many places will mount the hitch and wiring so no big deal. Hard to find a van with trailer option on it.
I like the long wheel base because I take 2-4 grand kids, two big dogs, all the bikes and other stuff with me so we like the space. Unlike a pick-up my stuff is inside of of the weather and locked up. I take out the last two seats for more cargo room.
For what you want to use it for a short wheel base with the two rear seats out will give you LOTS of room.

[valhalla360]

Tortiemctortiepants wrote:
It is the 5.4 liter V8, would that be adequate?

If you keep to a small (20ft) trailer as you mentioned, it should be fine.

I would go for the vans. Especially the small/medium size SUVs are likely to be overloaded.

Ratings to look at:
- Tow rating: This is mostly about horsepower and braking. Usually, this doesn't limit you.
- GVWR: Gross Vehicle Weight Rating. This is the most the vehicle can weigh fully loaded. There is a separate number for truck and for trailer (CGVWR - Combined GVWR Truck+Trailer max which is typically less than the two added together). When looking at trailers, this is number makes a good starting assumption as you can't load up the trailer and take it to the scales to be sure. Most people are shocked how much weight they load up in the trailer.
- RAWR: Rear Axle Weight Rating. As you load most cargo in the back and the hitch weight goes mostly on the rear axle, this often maxes out before the GVWR.
- Payload: This is how much weight the truck can carry (not pull). It includes passengers, cargo and anything bolted on like running boards...along with the hitch and hitch weight. The trailer has a payload also but typically called CCC (cargo carrying capacity)
- Hitch Rating: IGNORE THE BROCHURE HITCH WEIGHT. This is how much of the trailer weight will rest on the hitch and thus counts against payload. The hitch weight should be around 12-15% of the fully loaded weight (NOT EMPTY BROCHURE WEIGHT). If you get a weight distributing hitch (I would recommend), your hitch rating is typically higher.

As far as engines...depends. The 4.5-5.5L range in Naturally Aspirated engines is OK for smaller trailers but particularly in mountains is marginal as you lose 3-4% of your power for every 1000ft of altitude, so you will have to drop down a gear or two and the RPM will be high (if in good shape, not an issue other than noise). Bigger V8/V10 engines will have more than enough HP for your proposed small trailer that even with the losses, it's fine. Alternatively are the newer Turbo engines. They will have smaller displacement (Ford Ecoboost is the big name but others have started to follow). By force feeding air into the engine, they can compensate for the thin air at altitude and much smaller engines can stay up with the old style V8 engines.

A 2007 is not a big concern. I might take it to a mechanic for a compression check and once over to make sure you aren't getting a lemon but otherwise, no big concern. FYI - We bought a 2008 a couple years ago with 170k on it. We did a 5000ft 6% climb 2 days ago and she performed like a champ. Just dropped down a gear and got in line with the semis, even passed a few.

[okhmbldr]

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[Grit_dog]

It’s obvious that you’re 1000% new to this. You’ll get some decent advice here, but otherwise, read my previous post and if you don’t know what a trailer hitch looks like, find someone to walk you through this, or you have a steep learning curve ahead of you.