Recommendation towing capacity advice 3500 lbs

It's possible. But you will be towing right up to your capacity and perhaps over if you don't weigh the loaded trailer and van. You may not want to tow in mountains or long trips though. Another issue is frontal area. When we towed a small hybrid with a minivan, it was only 7ft wide. Yours a 1/2 foot wider. That can add a lot of stress to the tow vehicle. There should be a frontal area square foot rating for your van.

Over the years I have twice towed very close to my rated capacities. Both times I knew what I was getting into and what the limitations would be. The first was like yours, a 3500# GVWR hybrid with a mini-van (summer of '03). The second time was with our X20E (4750# GVWR) and a Chevy Trailblazer (summer of '13). I would describe both experiences as adequate at best. Both times I knew that towing in mountains would be out of the question. However I was setup properly and never felt unsafe or had "white knuckle experiences". In the case of the mini-van we replaced it after the first season for 2 reasons, we really hated owning a mini-van, and we wanted to tow on long trips, and in mountains. We just sold the Trailblazer because it had 160k on it and I really didn't want to spend any money on it anymore. In both cases, prior to towing close to capacity we towed trailers with those same vehicles that were well within capacities and with plenty of spare capacity. Our new to us Sierra in my sig doesn't even sweat towing the X20E.

That said, there is a definite difference between towing up to your limit and having spare capacity.

We had an option on our old Kiwi 17a for an oven, we chose the microwave instead. Our X20E was bought off the lot and came with an oven. We use it for cookware storage.

Start looking at Popups. Most minivan tow specs also have frontal area restrictions which will rule out TT's, and Hybrid's.

I tried towing a tent trailer that was 2100 lbs with a mini-van and friends who towed a small hybrid with a Honda Odyssey. Neither worked very well. We both ended up with trucks as we camp alot. (and after the trucks came bigger hybrids :)) After talking to alot of campers over the years and a few transmission guys, mini-vans are not made to tow. if you do be very careful.

you won't be able to tow this because the actual loaded hitch weight is over your van's max.
the 18RBT has a "dry" hitch weight of 336lbs. the max of the minivan is 350lbs. that "dry" weight rating doesn't include the 40lbs. of the battery, the 20lbs. of propane in the single tank and water and cargo.
just adding the battery and propane weight, puts the trailer's hitch weight at nearly 400lbs.(50lbs. over the max of 350lbs.) and that's before you add water and any cargo in the trailer.

the only one that will have a loaded hitch weight under the max of your minivan, is the one canvas end 13FKT.

second issue is what all trailer in the 3500lbs. GVWR class have, POOR cargo carrying capacity.
with a CCC of only 804lbs., this have to account for the battery, propane, water, options and cargo.

a quote from KZ's website:
"UNLOADED VEHICLE WEIGHT (UVW) - The typical weight of this trailer as built at the factory. The UVW does not include cargo, LP gas, fresh water, options or dealer-installed accessories."
these so-called options are the awning, microwave, a/c, oven, spare tire and a few other things. the weights of these come out of the CCC of 804lbs, along with the battery, propane and water also coming out of that.

when it's all said and done, you're likely to only have 200-300lbs. left over for cargo.

you'll be restricted to only the smallest of hybrids with a minivan.

I would fing anything with a 3500 GVW rating or lower. Jayco make some good units IMO..

You probably should add an extra trans cooler, and possibly an oil cooler.

You will need a weight distribution hitch.

2500 lbs empty jayco here.

http://www.jayco.com/products/travel-trailers/2014-jay-feather-slx/16xrb/

Any one of the SLX units will do since none are over 3500lbs..

http://www.jayco.com/products/travel-trailers/2015-jay-flight-slx/floorplans-and-prices/

Check the maximum frontal area recommended by the manufacturer. I bet that any hard sided trailer will exceed it.

lawrosa wrote:
I would fing anything with a 3500 GVW rating or lower. Jayco make some good units IMO..

You probably should add an extra trans cooler, and possibly an oil cooler.

You will need a weight distribution hitch.

2500 lbs empty jayco here.

http://www.jayco.com/products/travel-trailers/2014-jay-feather-slx/16xrb/

Any one of the SLX units will do since none are over 3500lbs..

http://www.jayco.com/products/travel-trailers/2015-jay-flight-slx/floorplans-and-prices/

With a 350lb max tongue weight I only see the 16v as a viable option. Maybe a 16xrb, but it would be pushing it. I'd look at a new PUP, but beware the highwall units, they are pretty heavy too.

Having towed our 2500 lb pop-up camper for 5 years with our 2006 sienna, I would not go any bigger in weight or height.

In my opinion; anything larger is pushing the limits of a safe combination.

We ended up buying an F150 before graduating to the hybrid and I am glad we did. A much safer combination for towing.

Things to keep in mind if you do decide to tow anything with the sienna:
1. Make sure you have a tow package, if not get one. (Transmission cooler, etc...)

2. You will need to get a break controller installed if the trailer is over 2000 lbs (cargo included).

3. Make sure the hitch receiver you have/get is really rated for the tongue weight. Our factory one wasn't.

4. Fully read and understand all the cautions in your owners manual starting on page 394. Exceeding these could cause a safety hazard for you and others around you. These numbers and calculations can get confusing so if you have any questions just post them here and I know that some one will be able to help.

5. In regards to what you can tow, don't believe anything that the RV sales person tells you. I am not saying that they they all lie, but it has happened in the past.


I don't want to be a downer, but I do want you to have a safe and comfortable camping experience.

3Wheel

The Sienna doesn't have a maximum frontal area recommendation.

MOST 17 foot hybrids, and a few of the 19 foot hybrids are within range for the Sienna - not a lot else. (My trailer is no longer made, and I made changes to it to make it lighter - removed the AC and microwave and a few other oddities - and load very carefully.)

Toyota's recommendations are: Use 4th, not over-drive, service the vehicle according to the heavy-use maintenance schedule (which largely amounts to more frequent transmission fluid changes and cooling system flushes), and check the maximum recommended towing speed in your manual (I tow at 60 mph - tires on the trailer are very likely going to be rated for a maximum speed of 65mph anyway).

The Sienna has a cargo capacity in the range of 800 lbs (exact number depends on how fancy your Sienna is - I got the base model so that I would have more of that available for cargo). The tongue weight of the trailer will use about 350 lbs of that, so you'll want to keep the weight of stuff inside/on top of the Sienna itself to around 450 lbs (this includes the weight of humans).

My recommendations: Use a good WD/anti-sway hitch, don't tow with full water tanks (except the very short distance to the dump), and pack light. Remember that water in food is just as heavy as water in the tank (we buy groceries at our destination). Double check now and then: load up for a trip, and stop at a Cat scale and have the trailer weighed (including the hitch).

If you don't mind being anal about the weight of EVERYTHING that goes into the trailer (like I am): Look for a trailer with a dry weight of about 3000 lbs, then make sure you don't put more than 150-200 lbs of stuff in it. That leaves enough extra for the hitch and propane. (Fully loaded my trailer consistently weighs around 3350.)

If you don't want to have to be quite so careful: Look for a trailer with a dry weight of around 2500-2600 lbs. Jayco, Coachmen, Lance, R-Pod, and a few others have them. (Lance's smallest trailer has a fold-out back-bunk option that's somewhat hard to find on their web site.)

We have a pop up but it has had problems with leaking.

If this is your worry, you may want to reconsider getting a hybrid, they are notorious for leaking. Haven't seen or heard of one yet that hasn't leaked at some point. Usually the slanted front bunk into the cargo area below. Our old one never leaked when set up, just when it was closed up.