Taking Terns -
When thinking about tow vehicles, many of us concentrate on Horsepower and Pulling Power. That is, unfortunately, an error that makes Rules of Thumb almost useless because Rules of Thumb don't state the assumptions behind them. But it makes car and trailer manufacturer really happy because they DON'T WANT to state the assumptions behind their towing and weight ratings. I still think there is a lot of value in the post at
http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...41&postcount=5
No, it won't give any rules of thumb, but I hope it will make you think about you expectations and assumptions.
As an aside, I am really pleased with the members of this board. Three years ago, the "What can I pull ...?" questions were ALWAYS about horsepower, and nothing else. We have all learned together about other aspects of trailer-towing, including the things you are reading about now - things like wheelbase, dry vs wet weight, frontal area, the effects of altitude, per cent grade, braking, transmission cooling, and so forth. Much of this wisdom came from Rocky Mtn Ray, who shared hundreds of thoughtful posts with us. These days, most of the members of this board can (and do!) provide answers to towing questions that are much better informed than they were three years ago. Hooray for all of us.
Bill