[Wavery]

KIA is building some really great vehicles. I especially like the 8-speed transmission.

In your research, I recommend staying away from any vehicle with the CVT transmission. They really aren't good for towing and I suspect a very short transmission life if you do.

Pretty well ignore "Tow Ratings" on any vehicle. As mentioned previously, start out with the fully loaded weight of your tow vehicle and fully loaded camper (GCWR -Gross Combined Weight Rating). For instance, our TM2720SL fully loaded weighs 3520# on the scales. Add the fully loaded weight of the TV (including passangers) and you have your GCVW.

If that does not exceed the rating, then move on to your "Payload Rating". That's the weight that the tow vehicle can carry fully loaded, including trailer tongue weight. If you are OK there, move on to the individual axle weights and be sure that your rear axle is not over-weight when fully loaded with passangers and trailer attached. That is where a lot of vehicles fall short. That may be able to be corrected some with a WDH (Weight Distribution Hitch).

After you've done all that, then you should check the "Tow Rating". If the vehicle falls short on any one (and possibly some that I haven't mentioned), give that vehicle a miss.

Manufacturers are very clever in the way that they market vehicle tow ratings. Most of the time, the tow rating is the maximum weight that a vehicle can tow with a 150# driver and 10G of gas. Absolutely NO payload. That is a useless rating unless you are planning on towing a boat to the lake and someone else is carrying the passengers and gear in another vehicle.

EDIT: One other thing to consider...... Stay away from vehicles with a short wheel base (110" would be considered fairly short for towing a TM2720, 120" is better). Some SUVs may have a very short wheel base and handle poory in the mountains and high winds.