I take delivery of my 2021 320s in February. I am concerned that my 2015 Audi Q3 Quattro AWD may have trouble pulling the camper. I will be a solo camper and don’t expect to carry much extra stuff. 320s weighs 1950 lb. My car‘s tow limit is 2200 lb. My car weighs 3650 lb, GVWR is 4900 lb, and tongue wt is 220 lb.
What problems will I encounter? Should I get another tow vehicle?
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There's a lot of people that say you need some beast like a Ford truck for these trailers, but that's truly overkill IMHO. Perhaps if you're in the Rockies and want to be able to overtake vehicles on the uphills, but I'm expecting to be in the granny lane and driving a constant 60-65. If you are too, you should be fine.
Again though, watch that total weight. The cars have a lot of safety margin built into the ratings and assume worst case inclines/max speeds - but you really shouldn't push beyond them. No need to eat into your margin for safety . I bought a tongue weight scale just to make sure I wasn't too heavy..
Just my 2 cents..
2015 Subaru Outback 3.6r (unsafe 200lb tongue weight limit until 2020 models)
2020 Subaru Outback XT
Pacific NW
2018 320S Outback
Draco dormiens numquam titilandus.
Anyways I'm sure this is quite a contentious topic so everyone needs to make the choice they're comfortable with. 100% stay within manufacturer limits. And there're definitely advantages of bigger vehicles beyond safety. Drive safe and sane either way!
@dragonsdofly makes a good point - there's likely a very happy medium between extremes
Additionally, many, many, many Tab owners have found that the overall limit isn’t the problem, it’s the tongue weight. People who buy RVs don’t tend to pack like they’re backpacking into the Grand Canyon, they want to bring ALL their toys. It’s not at all uncommon for people to weigh a 320 tongue and find they’re at 300 lbs or more due to their gear, bike racks, extra battery capacity, and carrying the spare up front. A safe tongue weight starts at 10% of trailer weight, but even at 10%, it is far easier to trigger sway conditions at highway speeds than with a heavier tongue. 12-15% is ideal. 12% of a lightly loaded 320 is 270+ lbs.
But here’s a real world practicality issue with trying to stay right at a specific tongue weight so you don’t go overlimit: My previous Subaru has just a 200 lb tongue weight limit, despite having a 3000 lb overall towing capacity. Certain fellow Subaru + Tab owners told me it was fine. It was not fine, it was stupid, reckless, and dangerous. I later found that most of those owners have never weighed either their trailers or trailer tongues, and having seen what they carried, they are nearly all well over their limits.
My trailer, VERY lightly loaded, weighs just under 2300 lbs. So right off the bat, I couldn’t reach the safety of even the 10% mark, and yes, I experienced sway as a result. I quickly discovered literally anything forward of the axle could put me over that rigidly defined 200 lb limit. Groceries in the fridge for one person for three days was enough to put me over. It was impossible to be absolutely sure I was always below that limit, because there was truly zero room for error. I know this, because I weighed the tongue every single time I towed. I couldn’t add a pair of 6v batteries, couldn’t move the spare tire to the tongue. Just towing the trailer to the dump station from my campsite, I would be 40+ lbs over due to the black tank contents. The OP’s tongue weight limit is dangerously inadequate, full stop. Their vehicle cannot safely tow a loaded Tab 320.
And aside from the very real insurance reasons I listed above, going over-weight on the tongue or overall trailer weight can damage the frame or unibody construction of your car very easily, even if the trailer itself is below the overall towing capacity.
The new Subaru I bought has a 350 lb tongue weight. I can move the spare forward, can choose to have adequate battery capacity with being forced to spend 3x as much on lithium, and can actually carry food in my fridge, which will be a novelty in itself. I’ll be at that 12% ideal...while still having a 75 lb margin of error. I don’t have to worry about damaging my car’s construction or transmission. I can worry a lot less about dangerous sway. I have made myself and others traveling alongside me on the road safer by making a sensible tow vehicle choice.
2015 Subaru Outback 3.6r (unsafe 200lb tongue weight limit until 2020 models)
2020 Subaru Outback XT
Pacific NW
2013 CS-S us@gi
2015 Toyota Tacoma PreRunner Double Cab
2018 320S Outback
To your question on problems you would encounter: A 2,200lb towing capacity limit for a 320 sounds like you would be limited on the grades you could climb (or at least the speed you could maintain on them), and similarly the speeds you could maintain when fighting a headwind. However, the standard newer Q3 has 260ft-lbs of torque, and I've been towing a 320 for years with only 280ft-lbs (though at a lower RPM than a petrol Q3 would likely be at), so the Q3 wouldn't necessarily be a bad choice... if only the allowed tongue weight was higher than 220lbs. That low of a limit may imply the rear subframe is not considered stout enough by Audi to handle the deflection and stress induced by a 200-250lb typical 320 tongue weight. And on bad roads, there's a lot more force being put on the hitch and whatever vehicle frame components it is attached to.
I currently tow with a BMW diesel station wagon good for 3,950lbs, with a hitch/tongue weight limit of 350lbs. Those are European numbers, where I believe the speed limit for towing is 50 or 55mph. I rarely tow faster than 60mph. I could not even find towing capacity numbers for my car from BMW North America when I first bought the vehicle. It's been fine though (aside from the defective tow bar I started with), but I limit my speed to 40-45 mph on steeper mountain grades. I slow down to always keep the instantaneous fuel mileage above 10mpg (to limit the strain on the engine and vehicle in general). My car routinely gets over 50mpg highway driving, and tows between 20-30mpg depending on winds and terrain.
I personally don't like to tow with a vehicle that can handle 2X-6X more than the trailer because of the poor fuel mileage. It hurts the pocketbook, and it harms the planet. And I have frequently towed with a hitch weight of 8% the trailer weight at 60mph without a hint of sway, even when passed at high relative speeds by 18-wheelers... but I keep a hand near the brake controller in those situations just in case. But that is with a relatively long wheel base length. The Q3 wheel base is a bit shorter, and thus may require a 10% or 12% trailer hitch to total trailer weight to dampen sway at that speed. So that vehicle dynamic brings you back to the tongue weight again... with full fresh tank, upgraded battery, maybe a spare in front, or generator or bicycle, to achieve that 12% safety goal... you might need to be at 250-270lbs just to prevent sway. Yes, a friction anti-sway bar may be able to reduce that number back to 10%. But anti-sway bars rely on a stout hitch and a relatively heavy tow vehicle for safety in some situations... which the Q3 is not.
But I understand the folks who shoot for 25-50% more capacity in their tow vehicle than whatever they will be towing, and I think it makes sense in this case. I am hoping to switch to a diesel mid-sized truck in the next month though, but only in anticipation of a future 3000-4500lb dry weight trailer.
Good luck, and let us know what you end up choosing to do.
Former steward of a 2017 T@B S Max
Don't forget...this whole RV thing is supposed to be fun, right!
Do yourself a favor...find a TV that has a comfortable margin WRT tow, tongue, cargo weights for the type of camping you do.
One less thing that "weighs" on your mind (sorry, that was too easy to pass up!).
Good luck and enjoy the journey!
Factory Victron Solar; Norcold 3-way fridge
'04 Chevy Tahoe Z71 DinoKiller
San Diego, CA
www.airbossone.com
https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/owen-ashurst/shop
The frequently asked question " Is my marginally adequate TV OK for towing a T@B?" brings the same spectrum of responses every rehash. Experience teaches it is manageable with careful caution. Inexperience looks for reassurance and verification.
As I have said before:
Keeping in mind that everything you put in your TV including the driver and passengers lowers your towing capacity pound for pound. Then there is the added weight of anything added to the trailer. All these things can easily add up to hundreds of pounds. It is generally considered prudent to have a TV rating about 50% greater than the expected load. This will create a comfortable and capable rig and helps assure even unexpected events are manageable.
Have fun!
Bob
People are mainly unsecure. Try it for yourself and see how comfortable you are. Try shorter trips at first and go further down the road. If you think bigger is better, than you will not regret changing to something better suited for you.
Lots of people have different opinions, doesn't mean they have the absolute truth.
Enjoy your camper!
2018 320S Outback
cheers