More on Unloaded Vehicle Weight

Gdetrailer wrote:

GrandpaKip wrote:
Lots of responses concerning UVW start with "UVW means nothing..." Or something to that effect. I have to disagree. I am researching for a newer camper. I know the floorplan we want. I also know what my present camper weighs, empty and loaded. So, while I am perusing the net, looking at all the offerings, I make note of the UVW to see if it fits with what I am comfortable towing. I also check the yellow sticker when looking at them in person.
If you understand the relationship between the UVW, Gross Vehicle Weight, and the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating, the UVW is very useful in determining possibilities and eliminating others.

My 2 cents. (Probably a nickel now)

While YOU may know to the exact ounce of what you put into your trailer many do not.

The problem I see with using UVW as your determining point of what trailer you can buy is many see it as a way to buy HEAVIER than they should for their vehicle.

Pretty much ignoring the fact that once they add in several passengers plus some gear to the vehicle AND add a lot of silly stuff like food, drinks, pots pans, dishes silverware, clothing bedding then comes all the entertainment stuff they are under the TRAILERS GVWR but hey have now exceeded the CARGO weight of their VEHICLE..

Also not listed on the UVW is the battery, propane tanks and propane.. That is nearly 200 lbs of weight completely ignored..

Yeah, I get it, there are trailers out there with huge cargo weight ratings which exceed 2K or 3K lbs but not all of them have such large cargo weights.

Also folks like to justify a questionable combination by using the UVW, near as I can tell it is the majority of thinking among the RV community.. Sure, you can hook a 32ft 8K lb UVW trailer to your 1/2 ton.. But by the time you fill it up and account for the battery, propane and all your gear you are now up to 9.9K lbs and just ounces away from being over your vehicles cargo weight.

Seems to me instead of having to decide just how many potato chips you are able to take with you it is nicer to use a simple rule of GVWR of the trailer as the max you can possible tow..

You see, that gives you HEADROOM to work with instead of having to decide which of your children must stay home...

YES, my view of this is unpopular and I EXPECT a lot of hateful responses to my view, but it NEEDS to be said..

I will not consider buying a trailer using strictly the unladen weight.. NO ONE EVER TOWS EMPTY..

You WILL PUT STUFF IN THE TRAILER.

I would like to meet the one single person that buys a 32ft trailer and does not have clothing, food, pots and pans, entertainment stuff when they go camping.. That would make for one heck of a boring camping trip..

I completely agree with your assessment and you have correctly IMO pointed out the one "wild card" and that being those few trailers with really excessive CCCs in the 2.5K to 3K and above along with some THs where even Lucy couldn't take enough rocks to reach their GVWR.

I have to laugh when I read a lot of these threads where folks are trying to estimate what they will add and almost without exception are not just being overly optimistic, but unrealistic .... like in only adding 800 lbs for a family of 4. I've been doing this for over 40 years and have raised two childern from birth to college RVing in a TT including multiple coast to coast trips with the TT being our only home for up to 2 months at a time. My experience is things add up quickly and many trailers have just too much great room to not take that little extra that you did w/o the last trip out. I've almost never heard of a TT getting lighter over time only heavier.

Larry