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Towing 3,000 Pounds

esjay
Explorer
Explorer
I need to buy a new tow vehicle, preferably a pickup, to tow our 3,000 pound Casita travel trailer.
Our Requirements:
1. Comfort, power heated seats
2. Plenty of interior room (crew cab)
3. Safety (good crash protection)
4. Economy, would like something that gets mid 20s mpg on highway not towing and maybe 16-17 mpg towing
Am I asking for too much? Any suggestions?
63 REPLIES 63

tatest
Explorer II
Explorer II
for a Casita, it doesn't have to be a full size pickup, any midsize pickup or V-6 midsize SUV should do the job. Two of my Casita owning friends pull with minivans. I would probably go with a full size van, but not 'HD' or 'SD' been holding off on Econoline and Epress to see what comes of Transit and Ram Promaster.

You are most likely to find the luxury fitments you want in SUVs, but they will be packaged with other goodies you might rather not pay for. Heated seats, particularly, tend to be packaged with moonroofs, rear seat entertainment systems, climate control, onboard navigation, and full function computers in the dash.
Tom Test
Itasca Spirit 29B

Francesca_Knowl
Explorer
Explorer
Caddywhompus wrote:
Drink more Kool-Aid and buy what the commercials tell you.
I thought accusations of "Kool-aid drinking" are supposed to be limited to trailer tire discussions here...;)

That aside:
I see you didn't bother to look at the link- it's not a commercial, it's a thread posted on a user Forum very much like this one.

Caddywhompus wrote:

Tongue weight limits are SPECIFICALLY a function of the hitch. As long as the tongue weight you are carrying doesn't overload the GVWR or GAWRs, nothing else matters besides the hitch and it's attachment to the frame/chassis.

I s'pose it won't do YOU any good if I point out that you contradicted yourself there, but for the sake of others viewing I think it useful to do so. AS YOU NOTE (and as I said before): There are other considerations that dictate hitch weight limits, not just the capacity of the hitch itself.

Caddywhompus wrote:

The aftermarket hitch on my Forester was made of much better steel, attached in 4 places with huge bolts and backer plates to protect the chassis, and had it's mounting points spread out far enough to support a WD hitch.

Yeah- I've seen that setup. Four bolts through sheet metal. And you added W/D too, despite Subaru's cautions against it. I can see why you got rid of the Forester at only a little over 100,000 miles. I'm just glad I wasn't the person that wound up getting stuck with it!

LAST BUT NOT LEAST:
Caddywhompus wrote:
In Australia, you can get a Class III hitch on a Subie from the factory.

This is my favorite, because it exactly proves the point I made earlier. The Australian hitch is installed in almost EXACTLY the same way as the Subie factory hitch sold here in the U.S.A.: It has multiple connection points, and utilizing the internal frame channels etc.

Link to Australian Subaru H/D hitch install.

Here's a couple of pics showing the part that slides inside the right-side channel, before and after insertion:



" Not every mind that wanders is lost. " With apologies to J.R.R. Tolkien

Caddywhompus
Explorer
Explorer
Francesca Knowles wrote:
Caddywhompus wrote:
Francesca Knowles wrote:
Redsky wrote:
A Subaru wagon will pull a 3,000 lb. trailer and without the trailer it will get 30 MPG on the freeway.


Dunno which "wagon" you're referring to, but I doubt that any Subaru except possibly the Tribeca is capable of towing 3,000 pounds of travel trailer. Limiting factor is tongue weight- limited to 200 pounds on just about every model. You can't tow a 3,000 pound TT safely with such a low tongue-to trailer ratio. The "high" number really only applies to boat towing- due to differences in design those can be towed with a 5-7% ratio.

Again excepting the Tribeca, Subaru max tow limits are between 2,000 and 2700 pounds...And let's keep in mind that the weight of everything in the car except a 175 pound driver has to be taken off that number in order to stay under max GCWR.
This tongue weight limitation is for the Subaru factory hitch, which is only class II. The aftermarket makes class III hitches for most Subarus that can handle higher tongue weights, as well as WD hitches.


That is not correct, though VERY commonly believed. Putting a "higher capacity" hitch on does not raise tow limits on any vehicle. A hitch itself is only one of many design considerations, and the numbers stamped on a receiver reflect only that component's capacity. As for aftermarket W/D, Subaru warns against their use on any/all of its vehicles.

Also, aftermarket hitches are very often inferior to those supplied by the manufacturer- never more true than with that supplied for the Forester. Below is a picture illustrating just ONE major difference. The pic is from a very detailed discussion, complete with illustrations, of an install of a factory hitch on a Forester at this link. It shows the bumper removed to expose the engineered channels into which part of the factory hitch slides. NO aftermarket hitch supposedly "designed for a Forester" does that.



Furthermore, here quoting from that discussion
Post number 28 wrote:
The OEM hitch connects to the body/frame in 12 places in a design that is engineered specifically to interface with the design of the Forester versus only four connection points (two of which require drilling) for any of the aftermarket hitches that are a standard design. Despite taking a little bit longer to install and roughly $100 more expensive, the superior design of the oem hitch is more than worth it to me. Hitches have the potential to apply extreme forces to the body/frame of your car, and on my car, I would rather have one that has 3X the number of connection points.


None of that, of course, will stop folks from doing just as they please, but as someone who's in the market and having looked at a lot of used cars I can tell you that the effects of using inferior equipment and/or ignoring mfr. limits does show "down the road".
Drink more Kool-Aid and buy what the commercials tell you.

Tongue weight limits are SPECIFICALLY a function of the hitch. As long as the tongue weight you are carrying doesn't overload the GVWR or GAWRs, nothing else matters besides the hitch and it's attachment to the frame/chassis.

Interesting to note that the factory hitch is SO tough that is must slide into the frame and be bolted in 12 places, yet is still so weak to carry a 200 pound TW limit and no WD use permitted.

Yet the aftermarket hitch on my Forester was made of much better steel, attached in 4 places with huge bolts and backer plates to protect the chassis, and had it's mounting points spread out far enough to support a WD hitch. The factory hitch I took off was a joke trinket in comparison.

I am not alone in my knowledge of what can be SAFELY towed with a Forester. Thousands of others around the world already know by experience, not internet hearsay or supposition by people who bought too much truck. In Australia, you can get a Class III hitch on a Subie from the factory.

P.S. Note my signature, I have plenty of options to tow with. For light-duty towing under 3000 pounds, the Subaru was clearly the best.
  • '11 Ford Expedition XL 5.4L (Primary tow vehicle)
  • '04 Mercury Grand Marquis 4.6L (Backup tow vehicle
  • '04 Ford Freestar SES 3.9L (another Backup tow vehicle)
  • '97 Lincoln Mark VIII 32v 4.6L (another Backup tow vehicle)
  • '95 Ford Ranger XLT 4.0L (final Backup)

Road_Ruler
Explorer
Explorer
rjstractor wrote:


A small, low torque engine with economy gearing makes it difficult to get a load rolling on a hill. The transmission has a rather tall 2.95 first gear, and is not designed for towing duty, reflected by the manufacturer's 1000 pound tow rating. Payload is very low, less than 1000 pounds. Tongue weight on that trailer would be about 350-400 pounds, leaving you unable to carry much in the way of passengers and luggage without overloading. These are the reasons why I would not want to tow 3100 pounds with this car.

Now, if you were towing a very stable, low profile popup and packed very light and never had to back up a steep hill (reverse has a 2.14 ratio) it might might make good tow vehicle.


All good info and thnxs for posting but number's can be misleading and don't tell the whole story.

I can relate as our car has similar numbers yet because of the pro set up it has worked great now for over 7 years. Note our trailer is not a light weight pop up.:)

Lessmore
Explorer II
Explorer II
esjay wrote:
Most of the V6s offered in pickups will tow my trailer with no problem. Problem is, we want leather, heated power seats, NAV, etc., in other words a pretty much top of the line model. You apparently can't get a Tundra Limited, RAM Laramie. Sierra SLT with a V6. I'm forced to buy a 5.7, HEMI 5.7, or a 5.3. At least 50% of the time I won't be towing anything, so I will be sucking a lot more gas than necessary. RAM is coming out with a small V6 diesel that may be available in the Laramie, but I am a little afraid to be one of the first test monkeys for a Chrysler product. We prefer Toyotas from years of experience with Chrysler, GM, and Toyota vehicles. Wife (past GMC owner) probably won't even consent to buying GM no matter how good they are.
Do any of you guys tow with a Tundra? What mileage are you getting towing and not towing?
By the way, I am currently towing with a 1995 Toyota T100 3.4 V6. It's rated for 5,200 pounds and tows great, just too old for long trips we want to make. It's dependable, but wife wants luxury. Lexus has spoiled her.


Toyotas aren't any better than other makes. We have a 2007 Toyota, Bought new. Had problems with the electronics etc.. Not sure I would buy another, at this point. Also issues with ergonomic designs that cause me concerns over period of ownership.

But back to vehicle choice. I would make a list of what you want in a vehicle, what you don't want. I think this list should include small details like ease of entry, shoulder, leg room, seat comfort, interior ergonomics, larger details like amount of power, what kind of tow rating do you need, ease of service, dealership you've been happy with.

Do you want a pickup...or an SUV, etc.

Francesca_Knowl
Explorer
Explorer
Caddywhompus wrote:
Francesca Knowles wrote:
Redsky wrote:
A Subaru wagon will pull a 3,000 lb. trailer and without the trailer it will get 30 MPG on the freeway.


Dunno which "wagon" you're referring to, but I doubt that any Subaru except possibly the Tribeca is capable of towing 3,000 pounds of travel trailer. Limiting factor is tongue weight- limited to 200 pounds on just about every model. You can't tow a 3,000 pound TT safely with such a low tongue-to trailer ratio. The "high" number really only applies to boat towing- due to differences in design those can be towed with a 5-7% ratio.

Again excepting the Tribeca, Subaru max tow limits are between 2,000 and 2700 pounds...And let's keep in mind that the weight of everything in the car except a 175 pound driver has to be taken off that number in order to stay under max GCWR.
This tongue weight limitation is for the Subaru factory hitch, which is only class II. The aftermarket makes class III hitches for most Subarus that can handle higher tongue weights, as well as WD hitches.


That is not correct, though VERY commonly believed. Putting a "higher capacity" hitch on does not raise tow limits on any vehicle. A hitch itself is only one of many design considerations, and the numbers stamped on a receiver reflect only that component's capacity. As for aftermarket W/D, Subaru warns against their use on any/all of its vehicles.

Also, aftermarket hitches are very often inferior to those supplied by the manufacturer- never more true than with that supplied for the Forester. Below is a picture illustrating just ONE major difference. The pic is from a very detailed discussion, complete with illustrations, of an install of a factory hitch on a Forester at this link. It shows the bumper removed to expose the engineered channels into which part of the factory hitch slides. NO aftermarket hitch supposedly "designed for a Forester" does that.



Furthermore, here quoting from that discussion
Post number 28 wrote:
The OEM hitch connects to the body/frame in 12 places in a design that is engineered specifically to interface with the design of the Forester versus only four connection points (two of which require drilling) for any of the aftermarket hitches that are a standard design. Despite taking a little bit longer to install and roughly $100 more expensive, the superior design of the oem hitch is more than worth it to me. Hitches have the potential to apply extreme forces to the body/frame of your car, and on my car, I would rather have one that has 3X the number of connection points.


None of that, of course, will stop folks from doing just as they please, but as someone who's in the market and having looked at a lot of used cars I can tell you that the effects of using inferior equipment and/or ignoring mfr. limits does show "down the road".
" Not every mind that wanders is lost. " With apologies to J.R.R. Tolkien

Caddywhompus
Explorer
Explorer
Francesca Knowles wrote:
Redsky wrote:
A Subaru wagon will pull a 3,000 lb. trailer and without the trailer it will get 30 MPG on the freeway.


Dunno which "wagon" you're referring to, but I doubt that any Subaru except possibly the Tribeca is capable of towing 3,000 pounds of travel trailer. Limiting factor is tongue weight- limited to 200 pounds on just about every model. You can't tow a 3,000 pound TT safely with such a low tongue-to trailer ratio. The "high" number really only applies to boat towing- due to differences in design those can be towed with a 5-7% ratio.

Again excepting the Tribeca, Subaru max tow limits are between 2,000 and 2700 pounds...And let's keep in mind that the weight of everything in the car except a 175 pound driver has to be taken off that number in order to stay under max GCWR.
This tongue weight limitation is for the Subaru factory hitch, which is only class II. The aftermarket makes class III hitches for most Subarus that can handle higher tongue weights, as well as WD hitches.

I towed upwards of 4000 pounds with a 2003 Subaru Forester, properly outfitted. I was surprised how stable and composed it was, and with the 2.5 liter 170HP flat-4 engine and manual 5-speed transmission, I had plenty of power and gears for any challenge the road could throw at me. One detail most don't know about, is Subaru rates their cars for towing assuming the vehicle is already loaded with people and gear. No need to deduct for every butt-in-a-seat like other trucks. On other shores, Foresters are rated as high as 3800 pounds towing. The only real limitation in North America is the class II hitch, which is easily remedied. I would highly recommend a Subaru. In fact, I miss mine. I put 110k miles on her before trading it in, trouble-free the entire time despite the towing. Overall mileage was 28-ish open road, 25-ish around town, 20-ish towing a 4000 pound popup.
  • '11 Ford Expedition XL 5.4L (Primary tow vehicle)
  • '04 Mercury Grand Marquis 4.6L (Backup tow vehicle
  • '04 Ford Freestar SES 3.9L (another Backup tow vehicle)
  • '97 Lincoln Mark VIII 32v 4.6L (another Backup tow vehicle)
  • '95 Ford Ranger XLT 4.0L (final Backup)

rjstractor
Nomad
Nomad
Road Ruler wrote:
The HHR would weigh well over 2 tons when ready for travel. Why do you think it would not do well towing a properly set up 3,100lb trailer??


A small, low torque engine with economy gearing makes it difficult to get a load rolling on a hill. The transmission has a rather tall 2.95 first gear, and is not designed for towing duty, reflected by the manufacturer's 1000 pound tow rating. Payload is very low, less than 1000 pounds. Tongue weight on that trailer would be about 350-400 pounds, leaving you unable to carry much in the way of passengers and luggage without overloading. These are the reasons why I would not want to tow 3100 pounds with this car.

Now, if you were towing a very stable, low profile popup and packed very light and never had to back up a steep hill (reverse has a 2.14 ratio) it might might make good tow vehicle.
2017 VW Golf Alltrack
2000 Ford F250 7.3

Road_Ruler
Explorer
Explorer
bikendan wrote:
rjstractor wrote:
Monaco Montclair wrote:
we have a hhr--chevy, 3100--works for us, now it all happy-camping


You tow 3100 pounds with an HHR and you're happy with it????


:E:E:E


The HHR would weigh well over 2 tons when ready for travel. Why do you think it would not do well towing a properly set up 3,100lb trailer??

Passin_Thru
Explorer
Explorer
I'd go with Toyota also.

bikendan
Explorer
Explorer
rjstractor wrote:
Monaco Montclair wrote:
we have a hhr--chevy, 3100--works for us, now it all happy-camping


You tow 3100 pounds with an HHR and you're happy with it????


:E:E:E
Dan- Firefighter, Retired:C, Shawn- Musician/Entrepreneur:W, Zoe- Faithful Golden Retriever(RIP:(), 2014 Ford F150 3.5 EcoboostMax Tow pkg, 2016 PrimeTime TracerAIR 255 w/4pt Equalizer and 5 Mtn. bikes and 2 Road bikes

tragusa3
Explorer
Explorer
Congrats! Hope you have many years of enjoyment!
New to us 2011 Tiffin Allegro Open Road 34TGA
Join us on the road at Rolling Ragu on YouTube!

rjstractor
Nomad
Nomad
Monaco Montclair wrote:
we have a hhr--chevy, 3100--works for us, now it all happy-camping


You tow 3100 pounds with an HHR and you're happy with it????
2017 VW Golf Alltrack
2000 Ford F250 7.3

Monaco_Montclai
Explorer
Explorer
we have a hhr--chevy, 3100--works for us, now it all happy-camping