Towing with a 2014 Traverse

[husky family]

Hi everyone, I'm new to this site and this is my first post. We're in the process of buying a new 2014 Roo 233S and plan to tow it with a 2013 Chevy Traverse with towing package and I'll be using an equalizer sway control hitch. Rated towing capacity on the Traverse is 5200, and the dry weight of the Roo is 4600. I know the weight is close to stated capacity, and I understand all the weight adders (water, clothes, food, etc.). I'm just wondering if anyone out there is towing a 233S with a Traverse or GMC Acadia...and what your experience is. Thanks!

[5 hole]

I towed my 4300 lb Scaled dry weight TT ( not 'published' numbers), with my 4.6 V8 ford F150 and sold that truck ASAP. Personally, I think you will be dissappointed and be eating Tranny's up...

[Rrickim63]

I agree with above. I tow with a 99 Silverado with 4.8 and tow package. I can feel it and i don't think a traverse will tow well. It's too close on limit and you will probably run out of payload (carrying ) capacity long before tow capacity. Strongly recommend a different tow vehicle or trailer.

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[MegaTracer]

I've towed a landscape trailer with about 3,000lbs of bricks with my wife's Acadia, it was strugling pulling up small inclines. Being unibody construction and the small V6 I think you would be very unhappy pulling any farther than a couple miles. I really don't understand how they rated it for 5,000lbs.

[bikendan]

i don't know of anyone towing that large/heavy of a hybrid, with the Traverse.
my sister has a Traverse, so i'm very familiar with the car.

now, the 5200lbs. towing capacity is rated with ONLY a 150lb. driver in it. anymore(passengers and cargo) in the Traverse, lowers that 5200 number.

i also think the the actual tongue weight of a loaded 233S, will exceed the hitch capacity of the Traverse.
may also exceed the Traverse's payload max, once you add the passengers, cargo and the weight of the Equalizer WDH.

your 4600 number sounds like the UVW yellow sticker weight of the 233S. that's the actual weight when it left the factory, including options.
so, add 40lbs. for the battery and 40lbs. for the propane, now it weighs 4680lbs. before water and cargo. subtract the 100lbs. for the Equalizer and this leave you only 420lbs. for water and cargo in the trailer, IF you only have a 150lb. driver in the Traverse.

bottom line, with a family of four, for example, you'll easily be at or over the Traverse's specs, even if you load conservatively.

[RamsFan1]

I am towing with a 2011 Traverse which has the same towing capacity as yours. Our TT is a 2014 Palomino Solaire 147x which has a dry weight of 3100. The GCWR is roughly 10500 for the Traverse. I have not yet been to a scale but I estimate the trailer loaded with propane, battery, a little water, bikes, etc. is about 3700# and the TV at 5300-5500# with my stuff, DW,DD and DS.
This puts us at about 9000#. We do fine pulling this but I can' t imagine going any heavier.
I really like the trailer you are looking at but would only consider it with a TV that is much bigger as others have suggested.
If you do decide to go this route however, I would be very interested to see how it goes for you!
Good luck!

[hockeytownmom]

We were looking at the Traverse for towing the 183 which is lighter than the 233s and decided that was a terrible idea and wouldn't work. Quick answer, it's not going to be a good choice. I'm towing a 233s with a 1500 Suburban and can't wait to upgrade my tow vehicle. The 233s GVWR is over 5000lbs.

[Shado]

I wouldn't try it. We were looking at the Explorer as a new vehicule and wanted the 233S (originally thought the 183)-+. We got the trailer but bought an F150 instead. Even with the F150 with almost 12k towing capacity I know the Roo is back there. I personally would not want to tow it with anything smaller. Expecially a smaller wheel base.

[Zwicker]

I tow a 183 with a 04 Envoy. It works good. But that is as big of a trailer I would haul. If I had a 233 I would get a 1/2 ton truck with the larger motor. My buddy has the smaller motor in his GMC and is not happy! Traverse and Envoy are comparable. Remember though, that the Envoy has a truck frame not unibody.

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[ryand]

Have you signed on the line for the Roo? If not I would possibly take a look at a lighter weight trailer possibly a Pop up might be better suited for the Traverse. another option is an A-Frame.

[dado39]

We tow our roo 233s with an 08 Saab 97x 4.2 with equlizer wdh the saab has full frame and air bag rear suspension tow package 3.73 rea end tow rating up to 6500 lbs I would not go with anything smaller are you buying from a dealer ? When we bought ours the dealer ckecked out the tv to make sure it would work

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[Talonman]

Just to echo what others have said.

You need to check your tongue weight, the trailer is too heavy as well but a WDH does not remove tongue weight.

From what I have read and my research into the Lambda platform was guys were towing in 4th gear to hold speed, you will be over your GCWR as well.

I am not in the weight police club and take all the factors into consideration but even I think this is a bad idea.

The only way you can do this is to tow mega lite and dry, you will also need to go easy on stuff in the car as well and see if you can get the weights down and make sure you can balance out the tongue weight as well.

[dustman_stx]

Originally Posted by Talonman

Just to echo what others have said.

You need to check your tongue weight, the trailer is too heavy as well but a WDH does not remove tongue weight.

From what I have read and my research into the Lambda platform was guys were towing in 4th gear to hold speed, you will be over your GCWR as well.

I am not in the weight police club and take all the factors into consideration but even I think this is a bad idea.

The only way you can do this is to tow mega lite and dry, you will also need to go easy on stuff in the car as well and see if you can get the weights down and make sure you can balance out the tongue weight as well.

I agree with your statement, but wanted to point out that, while technically a WDH doesn't REMOVE tongue weight, it does shift a portion of it to the trailer axles, thereby reducing the amount of tongue weight that TV is carrying.

[rockfordroo]

husky: I have a 2012 Roo19. A LOT lighter than your 233S. (My dry weight 3383lb, GVWR 4470lbs.) I started with a 2011 Traverse. Tow capacity 5,200lbs. I was NOT happy. Since it's just the wife and I, I figured I wouldn't really push the GVWR, so I'd have at least 700 lbs margin. It ran at 3000 rpm in 4th gear at 60mph on flat level ground. It would only RARELY shift into 5th. I couldn't get it to shift up even with the manual shifter. The problem was not the weight, but the drag from the huge sail that the front of the TT makes.

As I said, this was with just the wife and me, no kids and all their stuff. Your GVWR is around 5,764lbs per my 2012 brochure, so you'll definitely be going over the Traverses limit. So you're going to have both weight AND drag issues. There are folks on the Traverse forum who are definitely overloading their Traverses and they don't seem to mind, but not me.

So I bought a used Silverado (7,500lb capacity). I'm a LOT happier. If you end up doing the same, be careful. (You probably got here because the RV dealer told you your Traverse could pull the Roo "no problem" right? All they told you about was the 4,351lb dry weight, right? They'll also tell you, "Oh, any 1/2 ton can pull this.") But, not all pickups are created equal. My Silverado owners manual lists 99 (yes, 99) versions of the 1500 with towing capacities from 4,000lbs up to around 13,000lb, depending on cab size, engine size, bed size, rear end gears, transmission, etc. You need to make sure the one you're buying is the right one.

[urocav2001]

Sorry I don't think that traverse stands a chance.. The trailer is way to heavy for it :/

[Dave Lyon]

Originally Posted by urocav2001

Sorry I don't think that traverse stands a chance.. The trailer is way to heavy for it :/

X2

I'm towing as much as I want to with a full size 1/2 Ton V-8 pick up. That 233S is a heavy trailer.

Friends in our group have a 2013 Traverse and tow a 19' ROO.......and the're at the max with it.

my two cents.

[ChooChooMan74]

There is someone on the Jayco Forums towing an X213, similar to a Roo 23RS, with a Traverse.

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[Dave Lyon]

Originally Posted by ChooChooMan74

There is someone on the Jayco Forums towing an X213, similar to a Roo 23RS, with a Traverse.

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23RS......wow, even heavier. I would want to be WELL ahead of him on the highway!

[ChooChooMan74]

I am not saying it is right or not. Here is a pic.

http://i1132.photobucket.com/albums/...s/DSC02801.jpg

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[Cowracer]

Originally Posted by Talonman

I am not in the weight police club and take all the factors into consideration but even I think this is a bad idea.

I have no problems being the 'weight police'. I was a volunteer fireman for 13 years until I responded to a traffic accident where 2 children died. A 13 year old and an 8 year old. That was in 1994, and I am still, to this day, haunted by the image. I could not face it anymore and resigned the FD. For the record it was just an ordinary car wreck, no trailers were involved.

I do not wish to see anyone die like that again. I do not wish to see any brother firefighters or police officers have to live through that, or face the.. well "nightmares" is too harsh a word, but how about "reliving it in your dreams over and over"

There are people who will tell you its a bad idea because it will eat up your transmission (it will), or that your fuel mileage will suck (it will) or that you will come to dread even the slightest hill (you will). I could care less about that. What I worry about is that by the time you pack everything you want to bring and actually roll out in the road, you will most certainly be overweight.

Even if you are just under the limit, the margin for safety is razor thin. If everything goes perfectly, you would theoretically be fine. But what if you blow a right front tire on the Acadia? What if a deer jumps in front of you? What if you blow a fuse on the brake controller? Every percent you get closer to the max towing weight is a percent of safety you are giving up. My Exy is rated at 11,000# on the bumper. My total loadout is roughly 7000-7500 lbs. That's not a bad situation to be in.

You are getting good advice here. You would be wise to listen carefully

Tim