What can I tow?

[Paul Fore]

We are looking at RV's and need some help on what we can tow. I have a Jeep Comander with a 5.7 Hemi engine. It also has a tow package and indicates it will tow up to 7400 pounds. Question, we are looking at the Suveyor SV264 trailer but not sure if the jeep would do a good job pulling that unit.

Does anyone have any towing experience with this model Jeep and that size RV??

Thanks

[MtnGuy]

As far as the drive-train, if you have a low final drive ratio (3.73 or so?) and the towing package with the transmission cooler you should be fine.....that is a pretty hefty engine.

But there are more things to consider. Check out the GVWR (gross vehicle weight rating) of your Commander. Then add up your Commander weight, passengers, cargo, and tongue weight of the SV264 to see if that is in the GVWR of your Jeep. The SV264 is the sister ship of my SV 263, and my tongue weight is right around 800 lbs. Now, some of that would be offset by a WDH (weight distributing hitch) putting some weight back on the trailer axles, but you are still talking a 500 to 600 lb. addition to your Jeep with just the "adjusted" tongue weight alone.

If those figures come out OK, then check out the GCWR (gross combined weight rating) of your Jeep. That would be what you figured up previously, plus the projected weight of your travel trailer and gear in that. You might not carry up to the gross weight of the trailer every time, but you could use that figure as a heaviest case scenario.

Check out the stats on your hitch receiver to see if it will handle the load. There should be a sticker somewhere on that with the information.

Does the Commander have a frame, or is it uni-body? Some uni-body manufacturers do not want a WDH used when pulling a trailer. With this vehicle and trailer, you would definitely want a WDH with integrated sway control.

And since I seem to be a length policeman on this forum, check out this "suggested" chart on vehicle wheel base vs. overall maximum trailer length.

110" 20' ******* 150" 30'
114" 21' ******* 154" 31'
118" 22' ******* 158" 32'
122" 23' ******* 162" 33'
126" 24' ******* 166" 34'
130" 25' ******* 170" 35'
134" 26' ******* 174" 36'
138" 27' ******* 178" 37'
142" 28' ******* 182" 38'
146" 29' ******* 186" 39'

As you can see, there is a lot more too it than just what the figures that you gave suggest. Let us know some of these figures (GVWR, GCWR, wheelbase, hitch receiver wieghts) and maybe members can help you figure this out.

BTW.......

[NWJeeper]

Excellent information from Mtnguy there and I can't really add too much to it except to point out that SUVs usually come from the factory with shock valving that is different and suspensions that are tuned for a soft cushy ride around town vs what an equivelent truck would have. You can not tell just by looking at the shocks or springs what the rate on them is so you might get a much different feeling when towing with an SUV vs a truck.

We have a Jeep Liberty which is rated for 5000lbs towing and I pull a bass boat that weighs in at between 3700 and 4000lbs depending on how it's loaded and will tell you it is much different than towing with a small truck. I would definately not want to pull 5000lbs with the Jeep even though it says it can.

Strongly heed the information on wheelbase vs trailer length, this has nothing to do with the rated capacity of the tow vehicle but rather the handling in an adverse situation you may encounter. Personally I see way too many trailers being towed out there with rigs that just aren't adaquate for the job even though the vehicle may be "rated" for the weight being pulled. There is just too much more to consider than just the weight of the trailer.

[TulsaSteve]

I'll add that you should NEVER trust a dealer to tell you what you can / can't tow. The best ones will tell you they don't know, the worst will have you driving down the road with a 5th wheel duct taped to the roof of a Ford Focus.

There are simply too many combinations of RV and tow vehicles for anyone to know enough to advise you, except for someone who already owns and tows your exact mixture of tow vehicle and RV.

You may also want to check out some of the Jeep forums. Jeeps and RVs go to together like Peanut Butter and Jelly!

[rockwood06]

Originally Posted by Paul Fore

We are looking at RV's and need some help on what we can tow. I have a Jeep Comander with a 5.7 Hemi engine. It also has a tow package and indicates it will tow up to 7400 pounds. Question, we are looking at the Suveyor SV264 trailer but not sure if the jeep would do a good job pulling that unit.

Does anyone have any towing experience with this model Jeep and that size RV??

Thanks

I do not have a Jeep and I am not sure about the size of the camper you are looking at but I may be able to give you an examble of what I had.
I had a 1997 GMC Suburban 3/4 ton 5.7 engine with a 4:10 rear, 130" wheel base rated to tow 7,500 lbs.
I have a 2006 Rockwood 8314ss Dry weight 6,600 lbs with a full load capacity at 7,940 lbs and a tongue wieght of 660 lbs and the camper is approx 34' long. The hitch system I use is a Reese Dual Cam Weight Dist And Sway Control System. I had no problems at all with this combination. As long as the hitch system is installed correctly it is a great way to go, but that for any hitch system. One thing I do is that I carry all loads in the camper not in the tow vehicle just people and pets and I try to keep the large loads over the axles.

[Bama Rambler]

Here's my take according to the numbers. Your TV is rated to tow 7400 lbs and the particular RV you're looking at has a GVWR of 7481, so by convential "RV forum" wisdom you'd be over weight and you should shoot for an RV with a GVWR of 5920. However, the unit only has a UVW of 4179 lbs and a CCC of 2698 lbs. Which is a lot of CCC.

So if we figure that you're a normal camper and pack 1500 lbs of stuff that brings your LRVW (Loaded RV Weight) to 5679 lbs which is below the recommemded 5920 lbs. In fact you could fill the FW tank and still be within the "recommended" limit.

You'll definitely want a good WDH with sway control. Either the Resse Dual Cam or Equal-i-zer will fill the bill.

[Palomino_G210]

I have a 21 ft Palomino, 3600 lbs dry, trailer and I used to tow it with a 2005 Grand Cherokee, 6500 lbs capacity. That combination was OK until there were cross winds or trucks going buy. The trailer was then causing the the GC to weave enough to want to make you more attention.. This becomes tiring after a while and you don't want to tire too early. It is your vacation after all. This combination was just outside the wheelbase to trailer length, 110"/21ft, chart even though Jeep said I could tow a 30ft trailer. I now have a new tow vehicle 140" wheelbase, real truck suspension(stiffer), lower profile tires and expect that the rig will be more stable on the road.

Don't believe most of the dealers, they want to make the sale. I had one who didn't want to sell me the trailer I wanted because there wasn't enough weight margin with my proposed setup. I found a dealer who did want to sell me the rig I wanted and I was sorry I didn't listen.

[Paul Fore]

Folks, thanks for all the input and it will certainly help me make a more informed decision. Again, thanks

Paul

[cfsoistman]

Originally Posted by TulsaSteve

I'll add that you should NEVER trust a dealer to tell you what you can / can't tow. The best ones will tell you they don't know, the worst will have you driving down the road with a 5th wheel duct taped to the roof of a Ford Focus.

LMAO, now that's some strong duct tape.

[MightyMike]

Originally Posted by cfsoistman

LMAO, now that's some strong duct tape.

Yeah, but I bet you're laughing cause you already know a salesman like that!! LOL

[kz08h5]

I have a Jeep Commander with 4.7 v8. The rated tow capacity is 6500 lbs. I tow a V-lite 26WRB with it. I use an Equil-I-Zer hitch and a Hayes brake controller. The trailer weighs 5400 lb empty, and I probably have 700 lbs of stuff in it. It took me several trip but I finally got my sway under control. The Jeep pulls with now problem, with a 5.7 you will have no power problems. I have had no problems with braking. I hate the brake controller I have and will be replacing it with a Prodigy proportional controller. If you don't get the tongue weight high enough and your hitch adjusted correctly you will go gray really fast. I live in Indiana and have towed my trailer to Wyoming, Montana, and Florida a couple of times. It has done well in the mountains but you need to be on your toes. Trucks did bother me quite a bit, but now I get just a little sway when they pass. The proper set up makes all the difference in the world. Good luck.

[Paul Fore]

Folks, we decided against the duct tape, but considered the 200 mile an hour stuff. We traded for a 2010 Tundra with the 5.7 engine, standard bed with a towing package. That now gives us the correct wheel base as suggested. Again, thanks for taking your time to help and I think we should have a safer and happier time camping. It's always good to hear from folks that are not trying to sale me anything. Also the experiences many of you have is really helpful.

Paul