Overwhelmed and worried about safety

[hs4816]

Hi all. I know threads of "can I tow XYZ with my ABC" probably get annoying and I've been reading and reading and reading. But I'm overwhelmed and my partner and I have never towed anything before. This is a major purchase and I'm afraid if we don't have the physics/math sorted out we could buy something that ends up unsafe.

We have a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee with tow package. Unsure if it's a class 3 or 4 hitch, but will need to check that obviously. From what I can tell, the manufacturer recommended 6200 max pounds is pretty much a number to ignore and we should be focusing on tongue weight?

(all the dealers just keep saying we're fine and are pushing bigger/heavier units).

If my partner + me + baby + carseat = 510 pounds (round up to 550 pounds) and the Jeep has a limit of 1050 pounds for passenger + cargo, then that leaves us 500 pounds for the tongue weight (and no room to pack any gear at all in the car). Correct?

So if we are looking at a hybrid travel trailer that weighs 5400 fully loaded and the tongue weight is 10-15% of that (540-810) then that's too big for us. Right? Is there anyway to find out the exact tongue weight of a specific trailer before you buy it??

Or can I assume we will never fully load it and can keep it safely under 5400 pounds?

Also, our plan is to have sway bars, but is there a specific hitch type/brand you'd suggest we look at?

Seems like a tongue weight scale is an important purchase?

Any other thoughts??

[azdryheat]

We all were once new to towing.

[coolmom42]

hs4816 wrote:
Hi all. I know threads of "can I tow XYZ with my ABC" probably get annoying and I've been reading and reading and reading. But I'm overwhelmed and my partner and I have never towed anything before. This is a major purchase and I'm afraid if we don't have the physics/math sorted out we could buy something that ends up unsafe.

We have a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee with tow package. Unsure if it's a class 3 or 4 hitch, but will need to check that obviously. From what I can tell, the manufacturer recommended 6200 max pounds is pretty much a number to ignore and we should be focusing on tongue weight?

Don't ignore the tow rating weight, but understand that it is often not the limiting factor in what you should buy. A good general rule of thumb is to look at dry weights, then add about 1000 lb for stuff in the trailer. You want that total to be about 80% of the tow rating of your vehicle, for a comfortable towing experience.

(all the dealers just keep saying we're fine and are pushing bigger/heavier units).

Most dealers just want to sell you something.

If my partner + me + baby + carseat = 510 pounds (round up to 550 pounds) and the Jeep has a limit of 1050 pounds for passenger + cargo, then that leaves us 500 pounds for the tongue weight (and no room to pack any gear at all in the car). Correct?

Your math is correct.

So if we are looking at a hybrid travel trailer that weighs 5400 fully loaded and the tongue weight is 10-15% of that (540-810) then that's too big for us. Right? Is there anyway to find out the exact tongue weight of a specific trailer before you buy it??

You can assume that you will add something like 800-1200 lb to the dry weight of a trailer when you load it with propane, battery, a few gallons of water, clothing, food and supplies. Some people go lower and some feel the need to pack the entire house. 800 lb is reasonable for a small trailer. So take that total and multiply it by 12%, which is the amount you need on the tongue for good towing.

Or can I assume we will never fully load it and can keep it safely under 5400 pounds?

Use the above math.

Also, our plan is to have sway bars, but is there a specific hitch type/brand you'd suggest we look at?

Others here have more experience, but I can tell you that you will definitely need sway control and weight distribution.

Seems like a tongue weight scale is an important purchase?

Any other thoughts??

Make sure that you have the exact cargo capacity and tow rating for your version of the vehicle. That depends on the exact options you have. A Jeep dealer should be able to help you out starting with the VIN, or if you have the window sticker from the original sale, the info should be on that.

[Artum_Snowbird]

It seems the manufacturers want you to believe that you can actually tow more than your vehicle weighs, and do it perfectly fine too. Realistic experience, you have to accept they are doing this under optimum conditions. You alone are the tow vehicle driver, you want to tow a load of steel with no side resistance, or front resistance.

Now you look at your city, Winnipeg, known as the windy city. Take 20% off for that. Then you look at your real carrying capacity. 1050 - 1270 pounds. That is the driver, passengers, gear, hitch, and tongue weight. Now if you carried that load of steel the way I said, you see where you can, but if you fill the Jeep with stuff, and need a heavy hitch, well it gets exciting pretty soon when a semi blows by you and you feel the push. Then you start downhill through the switchbacks and feel the push from behind, and you need more brakes from the back but your hands are gripping the wheel.... and you run out after that and get a 3/4 ton truck. You feel safe for awhile, then realize with the new rig and the new child you might like a bigger rig... so now you need a one ton.

Better to bite the bullet up front and get what you might need later, but enjoy the ride rather than feel overwhelmed with weight decisions.

[time2roll]

Keep the trailer GVWR under the 6200 pounds and you should be fine.
Forget dry weight.

[camp-n-family]

You should be able to find a much lighter hybrid than what you mention. We used to have a Starcraft Antigua 195ck for example that only weighed 2700lbs dry and was 3800lbs loaded for our family of 4. It was 19’ when towed but opened up to 28’ and could sleep up to 8 people. Tons of room and storage. We towed it with an ‘04 Toyota 4Runner which is similar in size and ratings to your Grand Cherokee. It towed great and something of similar size/weight would easily be towed with what you have and be under your ratings.

As for the hitch, get something with built in sway control. Popular brands are Equil-i-zer, Blue Ox sway pro, and Reese dual cam.

[MitchF150]

I tow a #5000 GVWR (fully loaded) TT with a 13 F150 that has a tow rating of over #11,000..

My TT has a tongue weight of around #650.

There is only 2 of us.

I do load stuff in the bed of the truck too, so that adds weight too.

I'm under my weights with this truck, but when I towed this same TT with my old 97 F150, I was over some of it's weights, but I survived..

So, it's whatever you feel comfortable with in the end.. All the paper weights and dry weights are all fine and dandy, but it's driving experience in the end that gets you down the road..

Good luck!

Mitch

[SoundGuy]

hs4816 wrote:
If my partner + me + baby + carseat = 510 pounds (round up to 550 pounds) and the Jeep has a limit of 1050 pounds for passenger + cargo, then that leaves us 500 pounds for the tongue weight (and no room to pack any gear at all in the car). Correct?

So if we are looking at a hybrid travel trailer that weighs 5400 fully loaded and the tongue weight is 10-15% of that (540-810) then that's too big for us. Right? Is there anyway to find out the exact tongue weight of a specific trailer before you buy it??

You're misunderstanding the difference between tongue weight of an unloaded trailer as it sits at the factory (and as listed in brochures) and the trailer's actual gross tongue weight as it sits fully loaded & ready to camp. Obviously that gross tongue weight will vary, as will the trailer's gross weight, depending on what's in it and what content may be in the holding tanks at any given time ... in other words there's no such thing as fixed gross tongue weight. Recommended gross tongue weight should be between 10% - 15% of the trailer's gross weight but most wouldn't want to tow with as little as 10%, 13% to 14% being a good target to aim for. Regardless, any trailer's actual gross tongue weight will be considerably higher than it's factory listed dry tongue weight, often many hundreds of pounds higher. My own Coachmen Freedom Express 192RBS has a factory listed dry tongue weight of 392 lbs but it's actual gross tongue weight once the trailer is loaded & ready to go camping averages ~ 625 lbs - BIG difference. From the numbers you've quoted you don't have anywhere near enough TV for a trailer of this size.

[Lwiddis]

“manufacturer recommended 6200 max pounds is pretty much a number to ignore and we should be focusing on tongue weight? And the Jeep has either a class 3 or 4 hitch?

Slow down. Actually stop before you make big mistakes. Breathe and start reading. For instance how do you know what the trailer weights before you load it? Again stop!