Anyone use Odyssey or Pilot as a tow vehicle?

My husband and I have considered a Trailmanor for several years. The thing that is holding us back is whether or not our tow vehicle is adaquate. We are looking at several different models--3023, 3124KS and 3326King. We visited the factory and saw the owner pull out with the largest Trailmanor being pulled by a Honda Odyssey. We currently have an Odyssey but are considering buying a 2007 or newer Honda Pilot because of our concerns about weight. We don't want to be right at the maximum weight allowed. Does anyone have either of these vehicles and pull one of the campers we are considering and can give us any recommendations? Thanks so much! We hope to be happy owners of a Trailmanor soon!

See these posts in this section

Things to consider about your tow vehicle when looking into a Trailer Purchase
Have Question About Purchasing TrailManor

There is a lot more to the answer than the specified towing capacity in the manual.

[Wavery]

Originally Posted by ohioerrn

My husband and I have considered a Trailmanor for several years. The thing that is holding us back is whether or not our tow vehicle is adaquate. We are looking at several different models--3023, 3124KS and 3326King. We visited the factory and saw the owner pull out with the largest Trailmanor being pulled by a Honda Odyssey. We currently have an Odyssey but are considering buying a 2007 or newer Honda Pilot because of our concerns about weight. We don't want to be right at the maximum weight allowed. Does anyone have either of these vehicles and pull one of the campers we are considering and can give us any recommendations? Thanks so much! We hope to be happy owners of a Trailmanor soon!

I am sure that you will be able to find people that tow TMs or similar weight trailers with just about anything and they don't see a thing wrong with it.

Please use caution.....just because someone is doing it and hasn't had a problem doesn't mean that limits your risk or liability.

Please do a "Search" for "tow vehicle". There have been several informative threads on the subject lately. I would advise doing your own research. Don't get yourself into a position where you are saying, "But other people do it", after you've had a problem. I suggest getting the hard facts (in writing) about the 1 single vehicle that you are considering then move on from there (ratings vary wildly between vehicles of the same year and model sometimes). My '99 S-10 has a tow rating of 6500# but there are '99 S10s with a tow rating of 2000#.

BTW......trailer tow ratings mean very little. (In most cases) All they tell you is the maximum weight that the vehicle can tow with no passengers and no cargo. For every 100# that you add to the TV, you must subtract 100# from the trailer. At some point, you may be going camping in a trailer with no roofs, bumper, spare tire or anything else. In some cases, just the cargo and passengers in the TV may eliminate your towing capacity all together. That's how TM gets away with their advertising. They tell you what a base trailer weighs and give you a chart listing the maximum towing capacity of several vehicles Max tow rating is always given with the TV being empty or near empty....that's how they achieve a maximimum weight figure). Yes.......you may be able to tow the TM home empty (if you are the only one in the vehicle) but what do you do when you want to load the trailer and TV with passengers, fuel and cargo?????

-------2007 Honda Pilot, 4dr Front-wheel Drive LX - figures from Cars.com....actual figures may vary-------

Curb weight 4,264 lbs.
GVWR 5,952 lbs.
Front GAWR 2,865 lbs.
Rear GAWR 3,155 lbs.
Payload 1,322 lbs.
Towing capacity 3,500 lbs.
GCWR 9,700 lbs
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GCWR (Gross COMBINED Weight Rating) max your TV plus trailer passengers and cargo can handle.

GCWR 9700# - TV Curb weight 4264# = Extra GCW 5436# for the fully loaded trailer plus cargo fuel & passengers (not to exceed the Max tow capacity).
That's actually a lot higher than I would have thought. Although, you are still bound by the max towing capacity of 3500#. I also notice that vehicle has a payload rating of 1322# (weird). The tongue weight on the TM is over 400# and would be part of your "Payload". That would leave around 900# for passengers, fuel, cargo & luggage.

If the Tow rating of 3500# is correct, that would tell ME that this vehicle has a specific towing deficiency. Manufacturers know that lower tow ratings mean lower market share. They don't take those figures lightly and a lower # indicates that there may be towing issues. With a GCWR of 9,700 lbs, this vehicle is rated to handle a lot of weight....just not towing....HMMMMMM and the payload is only 1322#.

That GVWR of 5,952 lbs bothers me a bit..........something doesn't ad up. that's why it is best to operate from ACTUAL figures.

My TM2720 tips the scales at just over 4000# (4103 if I remember correctly). That could be an issue.

HOWEVER.....check the actual figures on the actual vehicle that you are thinking of purchasing. It may have a lot higher tow rating........you don't know until you check.

You're looking at the larger TMs (which also means a lot more "Stuff") and I would think that you would want a minimum tow capacity of about 5000# with at least this same amount of extra GCW.

Remember.....the weights that TM lists their trailer at are "Empty" and GVWR......you should be looking at the GVWR figure. The empty trailer means nothing. No one goes camping with an empty trailer.

[Bill]

That's how TM gets away with their advertising. They tell you what a base trailer weighs and give you a chart listing the maximum towing capacity of several vehicles Max tow rating is always given with the TV being empty or near empty....that's how they achieve a maximimum weight figure.

Easy there, Wayne. What TM does is provide a link to the Trailer Life compilation of tow vehicle manufacturer's specifications of trailer tow ratings. In other words, if a tow vehicle manufacturer says that their vehicle will tow 5000 pounds, then Trailer Life repeats that rating in their list. And TM links to that list. TM does not test or endorse any of the numbers.

To their credit, TM quotes a "dry weight" for each trailer, and then in plain language warns you that you should plan on having your ready-to-go trailer weigh 500-1000 pounds more than the dry weight.

There is enough confusion about tow ratings and trailer weight already. We on this board won't help by initiating a round of finger-pointing and accusations. Let's try to provide facts.

Bill

[Wavery]

Originally Posted by Bill

Easy there, Wayne. What TM does is provide a link to the Trailer Life compilation of tow vehicle manufacturer's specifications of trailer tow ratings. In other words, if a tow vehicle manufacturer says that their vehicle will tow 5000 pounds, then Trailer Life repeats that rating in their list. And TM links to that list. TM does not test or endorse any of the numbers.

To their credit, TM quotes a "dry weight" for each trailer, and then in plain language warns you that you should plan on having your ready-to-go trailer weigh 500-1000 pounds more than the dry weight.

There is enough confusion about tow ratings and trailer weight already. We on this board won't help by initiating a round of finger-pointing and accusations. Let's try to provide facts.

Bill

How is that different from what I posted????

All I'm saying is consumers tend to look at the information that they want to look at instead of really studying the facts. Like the original poster stated, "We visited the factory and saw the owner pull out with the largest Trailmanor being pulled by a Honda Odyssey.". 10 to 1, the guy looked at the dry weight of the trailer and the max towing capacity of his vehicle and said, "Hey....I can do this"..The GVWR on a 3326 is around 5000#. In fact, the dry weight (3520#) exceeds the tow rating of the Odyssey. That guy is asking for real trouble if he plans on towing that thing camping with that Honda Odyssey IMO.

My beef with TM is that they advertise "In fact, their 3500 lb. tow rating is well above what’s needed for one of our 30-foot trailers."
http://trailmanor.com/WebDocs/Campin...-vehicles.html IMO, That's a stretch......

I have no problem with the Trailer Life link. What I have a problem with is the insinuation that a vehicle can tow any TM CAMPING (that's what these things are sold for you know.....not towing around empty) with a 3500# tow rating and that's exactly what most people think. IMO, that's risky thinking on the part of an owner or manufacturer. I'll bet you that, someday, their advertising will come back and bite them.

No need to scare anyone away, but they need to be aware. I tow a 2619 with a Highlander (5000# tow rating) and think I'm pushing the limit a bit. Mountains are tuff! I personally wouldn't tow the bigger TM's with a Odyessy. But that's just me........

If the numbers are close, I'd ask the dealer for a test tow.....won't hurt.

I enjoyed your comments Wayne.

Although John's comments(redhawk,towing 2619 with 5000# tow rating)were opinions and not facts, I put a very high value on them. After all that's what this forum is about, sharing experiences. Robert

[Wavery]

Originally Posted by robertkennel

I enjoyed your comments Wayne.

Although John's comments(redhawk,towing 2619 with 5000# tow rating)were opinions and not facts, I put a very high value on them. After all that's what this forum is about, sharing experiences. Robert

With all due respect, redhawk's comment was a fact. He said, "I tow a 2619 with a Highlander (5000# tow rating) and think I'm pushing the limit a bit." The fact is, that's what he thinks and he has had experience towing with that vehicle. He's not saying that he thinks that just because that's his opinion based on someone else's research. I feel that his thoughts have a lot of merit and are based on the fact that he has done it. That's actually quite a rare admission. Most people that tow with a certain vehicle and don't want to give it up, will tell others, "Hey, I tow with that vehicle and I think it's fine"

I have the same feeling with my S-10. It has a tow rating of 6400# but there is no way on this earth that I would tow that much with a Chevy S-10....and that's a fact. In fact, I feel that I may be pushing it with my 4000# TM2720.

Generally I agree with Wayne, but I wouldn't go as far as specifically saying someone is trying to get away with something. All companies do this, whether it's a trailer, car, boat, computer, camera, etc. It's basic sales "smoke and mirrors".
I recommend that you simply do your own homework for your planned TM, your TV, your terrain, etc.... and factor in how much you value your family's life. Pulling a 3326 behind a Odyssey is plain nuts... I'll go on record saying it.
If the TM factory is doing this kind of demo, it's a dangerous one.

Most consumers don't educate themselves before a purchase of any kind.
They buy a computer simply because of it's color, etc... (but you can't kill people with a blue computer.)

Driving a dangerously overloaded vehicle is deadly for you and everyone around you on the highway. I don't mean to offend, but I do hope to scare.
Do your homework before you blunder down the highway. Don't take anyone's word if your setup is safe. Figure it out for yourself, as you are ultimately the responsible party, no matter who told you what.

Originally Posted by ED-n-KEL

Driving a dangerously overloaded vehicle is deadly for you and everyone around you on the highway. I don't mean to offend, but I do hope to scare.

I find this comment rather timely.

Yesterday we left camp and I failed to confirm that my trailer brakes were working properly. I was on a narrow paved road with no opportunity to pull over for 10 miles.

Fortunately, my 2500HD can tow the 4,100 pound TM just fine without under those circumstances.

When I had the opportunity, I resolved the issue and continued on my merry way.

The campsite was a full hour drive to the nearest repair facility, had I not been able to resolve it myself. Because nearly all of our camping occurs in the sierras, far from service facilities, I feel so much better knowing what I can and can not do with inoperable brakes.

For many other drivers, they would have blocked the road, walked out to where a cell phone works, then call a tow truck and waited several hours. As long as you do not go places like I do, and always stay on major roads in relatively flat areas then you do not need a backup plan like I do.