Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill
Sounds like you will be inside the margin. Good deal! As a quick summary, I would say that if the curb weight is 4825, and you add 500 pounds of passengers and cargo in the vehicle, your vehicle will weigh 5325. If the trailer, packed and ready to go, weighs 4000, then the combined weight is 9325. Since the GCWR is 9760, you have about 400 pounds to spare.
You will need to pay close attention to the GAWR-Rear. Again, a CAT scale is your friend. I would bet that the 3505-pound limit will be exceeded with a simple weight-bearing hitch, so my guess is that you will need a weight-distributing hitch. Yes, a WDH weighs around 50 pounds, and so it increases the total weight that the tow vehicle has to contend with. But it takes weight off the rear axle, which is important in itself, and puts it back on the front axle, where all of the steering and most of the braking happen. Do not succumb to the siren song of airbags, since they do not move weight back to the front wheels.
Some of our members feels that the benefits of a WDH are overstated, and they do not use one. They will chime in, and again, you need to do your due diligence. You can view a couple of articles on why you would use a WDH, and choosing and setting one up, in the Trailmanor Technical Library.
http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...splay.php?f=42
Bill |
I will double what Bill is saying -- especially considering I'm towing in a vaguely similar set-up (Sienna, gas) but with similar ratings. You need a WDH. In fact, I think you will exceed the hitch weight limit without it, I know I did. But, with it, and with a trip to the CAT scale, I was able to adjust the WDH to the point that all my numbers were within the ratings, including (and most especially, according to the Toyota towing guide) the GAWR for both axles (and the TM axle, while you're at it).
Please let us know how it works out for you.