[mkiley]

We have a 2005 Honda Pilot with the Honda tow package and we have traveled about 4,000 miles with our 2720. Bottom line, we are pleased with the performance of the Pilot as a tow vehicle.

I'm far from a physics professor, but here is what I concluded based on our real-world experiance:

1. Tongue weight: it seems that a weight distribution hitch addresses the issue, in that it distributes the weight of the trailer across all four TV wheels, and in doing so properly maintains the tongue weight ratio.

2. Horsepower: We live in Denver and I think Vail Pass is about as steep and high as any freeway in the US. When towing the TM we go much slower than cars up Vail Pass, and can go faster than semi trucks. This is with two adults, two children, a dog, and sufficient food, water, clothes, propane, etc. We have to watch the engine temperature on steep climbs since sometimes the temperature has started to rise. The fix is just to slow down.

3. Braking: The electric brakes on the trailer, combined with the Pilot brakes and intelligent use of the transmission seems to work just fine, even on steep mountain freeways.

4. Gas Mileage: The Pilot gets about 19 MPG doing typical family driving without the TM, and gets about 12MPG when towing. We still saved a bundle on our last trip to CA from CO versus flying the family, renting a car, staying in hotels, etc. The decreased mileage is acceptable to us, especially since we really like traveling in our Pilot.

5. Wear and Tear: Maybe we are shortening the engine life or the transmission or the chasis. Only time will tell. On the other hand, it's a Honda. If the Pilot only makes it 250k miles instead of 300k miles, it's still worth it.