Lexus RX 350 tow question

We have a 2007 Lexus RX 350 that came with tow prep package. The wife and I are thinking of buying a small travel trailer now that we are retired. Trailmanor site shows we could handle a 2619 or 2720 unit. Anyone have any experience with this type vehicle. Any recommendations on hitch and/or brakes?

[Bill]

There have been a number of threads about towing with various models in the Lexus line. Did you do a search on the term Lexus to turn them up?

Bill

[rickst29]

Exact same crossover SUV, at least for these purposes. Some people feel that it's alright, but I wouldn't use a vehicle that small (it's the wheelbase and the track, not the engine and drivetrain). But I'm chicken.

Better a living Chicken than a dead Duck, I feel.

I've been towing with the Lexus RX300 since Dec 2006 pulling the 2720SL.. I have stayed mainly in the flatlands with some driving in the foothills of North Georgia. Never had a single problem even with several panic braking situations. I would not recommend pulling in the high country or trying to make a panic stop on a downward mountain road. The wheelbase issue is key in this case... I attribute the great towing ability to Trailmanor for a fine engineering design and the equal-i-zer hitch system. It's a winning combination and we will be back on the road heading to the Dixie Chapter Rally in October... Hope to see lot's of TM owner's around the campfire...

[Brutus]

You'll be fine with a Lexus. We had a similiarly designed Nissan Murano and didn't have any problems towing. Note however we began to smell "burnt tranny smell" after a while and traded it off like a hot potato! My advice from experience: If you're gonna tow with a car-based SUV near its top of 3500# (of course 2008 Highlander and MDX are 5000#), make sure the tranny stays under warranty! ...and remember, 3500# includes passengers and cargo.

You will not have a problem with your Lexus SUV towing a TM 2619 provide your vehicle is equipped with the tow package and you use a suitable WDH. Do not have doubts put in your head by those who only promote large trucks with long wheel bases as safe for TM towing. I have covered thousands of miles with my Toyota Highlander (identical spec to your Lexus) and TM 2619 including a round trip to Alaska and visits to Colorado and New Mexico. This is the most stable rig that I have owned and I have been up and down steep mountain passes both with good and gravel surfaces without the slightest hint of instability. I am sure that you will use good driving techniques including engine braking for long down hills and lower gears and higher revs for(to keep the engine cool) for long climbs. My Highlander and TM2619 is not as fast up hill as some of the large V8 trucks but generaly I use much less gas and pass most large RV's on long hills.
Geoff Card

[rickst29]

The issue for which wheelbase and track really matter isn't pulling in a straight line, or stopping in a straight line: It's when you're making an emergency move within a turn, or recovering from a skid, and the trailer's momentum is offset from the direction your SUV is traveling. The trailer will REALLY, REALLY want to keep going in the direction it's already moving.

The tail wags the dog, and maybe the dog looses. The three things which a tow vehicle has, to resist being "controlled" by the trailer, are (1) mass; (2) track width; and (3) wheelbase. A long wheelbase and wide track help you to maintain YOUR skid-free contact with the road when the Trailer tries to pull you into a skid. I can't imagine a more sickening sight than seeing the side of my trailer trying to take off in a different direction than my tow vehicle, or even trying to PASS as I get dragged into a skid-- because the next thing I'd probably see would be the world upside down.
- - - - -

If you STILL think I'm talking about what gear you need to pull up a hill, or how fast you can go, or stopping in a straight line, you simply DON'T GET IT. Please read again. It has nothing to do with "engine braking", "higher revs", or up and down. On mountain passes, it's about the switchback turns where some idiot might loose his line and force you to make an emergency maneuver. There's lots of idiots out there, and they do that a lot. If you're coming down, in the turn, and it's been raining....

But yes: some people NEVER get challenged in this way. And also, my 4runner might get dragged off the road too. (It's a question of degree. Yeah, a Tundra would do better in such a situation.) You choose your level of risk. Just please stop pretending that there isn't a possible problem, OK?

Thanks for the info.

[Mr. Adventure]

A wise man once said that it's not how fast you can go in an RV, it's how fast you can stop that counts. All vehicles that pull trailers need to be driven with caution, and the heaver they are, the more caution that's appropriate. Even if you've got great antilock brakes (like the Toyota Highlander/Lexus), you'll probably want your speed well under control before you find out what happens "If you're coming down, in the turn, and it's been raining...."

One more thing...
The good news is that a tow vehicle with antilock brakes stops better than the trailer. It's also the bad news, because if your trailer brakes ever lock up, it will choose a side and go there. For this reason, avoid brake controllers that keep adding more oomph, based on how long you hold the brake pedal. Your stopping distance will ALWAYS be longer when towing, and towing on a wet surface requires special caution!

(I'd rather have my Highlander as a TV than the full sized vans and mini-vans I used to have in the good old days, because its traction control and anti-lock brakes can keep the TV steering in situations where those older vehicles would have been skidding)

Mr Adventure, you are indeed a wise man... the sole purpose of Rving... is to slow down and smell the roses... I have always told my friends, it's not how fast I can get to my destination, but having fun along the way... this country has so much to offer and the TM let's me see it in all it's grandeur... Happy TMing and stay safe....