The "Recommended Tow Vehicle" list

[Bill]

The issue of "the tow vehicle list" on the Trailmanor website comes up now and again, and has recently done so again. It seems worthwhile to address this in its own thread, so here goes.

THERE IS NO "RECOMMENDED VEHICLE" LIST !

The Trailmanor site simply provides a link to Trailer Life Magazine, which in turn publishes a summary of the tow ratings claimed by car/truck manufacturers. Trailmanor does not "recommend" vehicles. Trailer Life does not "recommend" vehicles. The fact that a vehicle is on the Trailer Life list does not mean that it is suitable to tow a Trailmanor. It also does not tell you anything about the configuration of the vehicle doing the towing - in particular, the need for a factory-installed tow package, transmission cooler, extra wiring for the brakes, etc. And it does not tell you anything about restrictions on how you load the trailer or the tow vehicle.

When thinking about a tow vehicle, there are many things to be considered, and the list does not address any of them. In particular, the total weight of the vehicle plus it contents (including people!), plus the weight of the Trailmanor, plus the weight of the Trailmanor factory options, plus the weight of everything you will put in the Trailmanor, are at the top of the list of critically important things to consider. It is common for a ready-to-camp TM to weigh 1000 pounds more than the "dry weight" that appears on the TM website, and this is reflected in the "payload" number that appears just below the dry weight on the TM website. And it is common for enthusiastic campers to add anywhere from 500 to 1000 pounds of people and cargo to their tow vehicles. The addition of these loads can present a potentially dangerous problem for a lightweight tow vehicle.

If you have anything but the heaviest tow vehicle, it is important to get your rig loaded up in the camping configuration, and then get it weighed. CAT scales are everywhere, and cheap to use. Far better to be safe than to risk disaster.

Bill