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Old 01-08-2022, 09:53 AM   #1
Grace1st
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Default Advice for another prospective buyer

Hello all.

I am also starting my research about coupling a SUV/pickup with a TM. My wife and I currently work overseas (South Africa), but we will be returning to the US in August. At that time, we will purchase a pickup or SUV and a TM.

We are inclined to get a Kia Telluride, as it is very impressive in various ways. It is rated for a 5000 pound towing capacity. It would be easier to drive around town and fit into our garage. But I just am not convinced that a crossover SUV is adequate for pulling a TM, no matter what the rating.

If the SUV doesn’t seem stout enough, we are looking into the 2022 hybrid Toyota Tundra. Won’t be a problem pulling a TM with that whatsoever.

We would be living in New Mexico, but making various trips to Colorado and other locations. Yes, there would be mountains involved, at times.

So, I’m interested to hear first from those who have a midsize or crossover SUV who are pulling a TM. We would also prefer the larger models, as we much prefer a king size bed.
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Old 01-10-2022, 09:39 AM   #2
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Welcome to the forum, I can't speak to the SUV issue but my 2006 2720sl tows like a dream behind my Ford F-150 (5500 lb tow cap). And as for the King bed, we sleep on a CA king at home and the oversized Queen in our TM is more than adequate.
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Old 01-10-2022, 11:33 AM   #3
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Originally Posted by Grace1st View Post
Hello all.

I am also starting my research about coupling a SUV/pickup with a TM. My wife and I currently work overseas (South Africa), but we will be returning to the US in August. At that time, we will purchase a pickup or SUV and a TM.

We are inclined to get a Kia Telluride, as it is very impressive in various ways. It is rated for a 5000 pound towing capacity. It would be easier to drive around town and fit into our garage. But I just am not convinced that a crossover SUV is adequate for pulling a TM, no matter what the rating.

If the SUV doesn’t seem stout enough, we are looking into the 2022 hybrid Toyota Tundra. Won’t be a problem pulling a TM with that whatsoever.

We would be living in New Mexico, but making various trips to Colorado and other locations. Yes, there would be mountains involved, at times.

So, I’m interested to hear first from those who have a midsize or crossover SUV who are pulling a TM. We would also prefer the larger models, as we much prefer a king size bed.
Hi Grace-
It'd be nice to be able to give you a quick answer, but that'd be a disservice...

Instead, I'll offer some advice so you can make an informed decision.

How many people and how much gear will you need to put into your future tow vehicle and your future TrailManor?

Start with that weight and work backwards to determine the size of tow vehicle you'll need.

I have a 2021 TrailManor 2922KB (purchased August of 2020) which I tow with a 2020 Toyota Highlander (V6) AWD.

That tow vehicle/ TrailManor combo works great for us (a couple with a mid size dog).

I live on the East Coast (NC) and have towed my TrailManor on several extended trips (over 400 miles from home).

The last trip was to Maine to visit Baxter State Park (the northern point of the Appalachian Trail) and Acacia National Park. The total towing distance was about 2600 miles and we stayed about two weeks. We had electric and water available for part of the trip, but primarily had access to full hookup sites (meaning that we didn't have additional water or sewer weight, but carried enough groceries for the trip that we only needed to pick up fresh fruit/ veggies once).

As I said, our tow vehicle and TrailManor combo work great for us, but if there was a need for more weight (a couple of kids, etc) we'd be weight and space constrained.

Could we still pull the TrailManor with that vehicle and a couple extra passengers and extra stuff- yes we could, but we'd really have to manage our weights closely and adjust our trip expectations, as well.

I purchased the Highlander specifically knowing that it would fit in our garage, that 90% + of the use of it would be within 30 minutes drive of my home but that it could carry over 5 passengers, if needed, and that it could tow a TrailManor.

What are your expectations for your trips?

If you have more to carry to begin with, you will be at the upper end of what a 5000 lb towing capacity vehicle will be able to do safely and I'd recommend that you consider a larger class tow vehicle unless you're planning mostly shorter weekend camping trips.
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Old 01-10-2022, 09:10 PM   #4
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Thanks for the comments!
I would also, with my wife, be using our SUV mostly for short and local driving. We intend to use the TM to support occasional camping trips and disaster relief efforts. There’s no telling how long we would drive on the DR trips, but I’m just assuming it would usually be over 500 miles one-way.
I am thinking that we would not haul water, as that would be provided upon arrival. We would normally have the two of us and groceries, with very little gear, and a modest amount of clothing.
We would also try the SUV for a year or two and then progress to a better towing vehicle later, if needed. I wouldn’t want to do any damage to the SUV tranny in the meanwhile.
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Old 01-13-2022, 12:45 PM   #5
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Wink It is a personal opinion ... I make a SWAG that you will be OK.

This is SWAG, because I have no experience in towing any Trailer with the Telluride. And the particular model of TM which you would be towing matters a lot: they have different weights, different wheelbases, and different centers of gravity (even before you include CG and weight changes caused by cargo and possible water).

My own older 4Runner SUV does a good job of towing my heavy but small TM 2619. I do need to downshift in mountain situations (both uphill and downhill). In my long history of TM towing, I have created "testing" emergency situations on purpose (in empty parking lots), but also encountered a few on-the-road situations calling for both heavy breaking and sudden avoidance of road debris.

Your Telluride is more powerful than my SUV, and it has an equal tow capacity rating. But it is not a frame-based vehicle. It may or may be able to handle a WDH-attached trailer, without suffering or creating "issues" in the very long term.

My SWAG would be "no problem! with regard to your larger SUV. There are several TM owners with Honda Ridgeline pickups (they are also unibody-based vehicle), and they don't report a lot of issues.
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Old 01-13-2022, 09:24 PM   #6
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Grace, Just my thoughts and experience with D/R "fun". Take you own water,gas and food. Sometimes that stuff is in short, I mean very short supply. If there even is any. When there is no electricity that normally means no water pumps, also hits on sewer systems unless someone uses a cesspool. Yes, there is state and federal aid. However that also takes awhile to get rolling. My state says be self-sustaining for 72hrs. That's a long time after a major disaster- tornado, hurricane, flood, fire, whatever. Sometimes help is across the state, in Texas that could be 500 miles.
It could be weeks or months before all services come back online.
Thank goodness for the people who come out to help in the time of need in the first few hours before "official" help can get there.
Sorry for the long answer.
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Old 01-14-2022, 12:24 PM   #7
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Grace, Just my thoughts and experience with D/R "fun". Take you own water,gas and food. Sometimes that stuff is in short, I mean very short supply. If there even is any. When there is no electricity that normally means no water pumps, also hits on sewer systems unless someone uses a cesspool. Yes, there is state and federal aid. However that also takes awhile to get rolling. My state says be self-sustaining for 72hrs. That's a long time after a major disaster- tornado, hurricane, flood, fire, whatever. Sometimes help is across the state, in Texas that could be 500 miles.
It could be weeks or months before all services come back online.
Thank goodness for the people who come out to help in the time of need in the first few hours before "official" help can get there.
Sorry for the long answer.
I couldn't agree more. I have been to several disaster sites providing additional communication needs (HAM radio) and there is limited or no supplies. You don't want to be a burden on an already stretched system.

When I leave for disaster area I make sure I will take the following:
* As much water as I can reasonable carry (Trailers Tanks full, at least 2 cases of water bottles, and 5/6 5 gallon jugs)
* Several methods of purifying water. (Water filters, bleach)
* Clothing for a week.
* Food for two weeks (Simple easy to prepare foods)
* Lots of hard candy (great for lifting the spirits of kids and adults alike)
* All the power I can muster (Solar, generator)
* All the propane and fuel as I can reasonably carry (Two extra propane tanks and about 15 gallons of gas).
* A means for protecting and securing all of the above. (YMMV)

My plan is to be an island unto myself, providing as much service as possible without taxing any of the limited local resources. Realising that help is always about 5 days away.
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Old 01-15-2022, 12:56 PM   #8
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Kmikesell said “ my 2006 2720sl tows like a dream behind my Ford F-150 (5500 lb tow cap)”

What F150 has a tow capacity of 5500 pounds?
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Old 01-18-2022, 02:37 PM   #9
Kmikesell
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What F150 has a tow capacity of 5500 pounds?
2018 F150 King cab with a 3.3 Litter NON ecoboost.
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Old 02-07-2022, 06:35 PM   #10
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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.
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