Towing a t@b

YorkieMom2

I would really like a t@b .... Found out my crossover
only can tow 1000lbs.... I thought t@bs could be towed by any car.... I saw pictures of a vw bug tow one!!!

Nomad

Well, there's "can be" and there's "shouldn't be"
Highly unsafe if the vehicle isn't rated for the weight. An accident waiting to happen.
Now, there are small teardrops that can be but a T@B is about 1,600 lbs dry. Sure it was a T@B and not a smaller, lighter teardrop the bug was pulling?

mawebb

Today I saw a Volkswagen Tiguan towing a 3,700 lb (dry weight) / 5,500 lb GTW Lance trailer. I just did a quick look on the Internet and the Tiguan and the North American specs appear to be 2,200 lbs towing capacity. In another article I found from GB, it listed the towing capacity as 4,850 lbs.

Several weeks ago I saw a Volvo Wagon towing an Airstream, and it wasn't a Bambi, it looked like a 23' Flying Cloud.

This seems similar to what has been commented on for other vehicles, such as the Honda CRV.

So from a legal perspective, it would be prudent to not exceed the towing capacity for the country for which the vehicle was intended. However, there are those that are towing based on European specifications, and they are comfortable with how the combination handles.

There are other threads on this forum that discuss why the difference between North America and other jurisdictions, and it seems to be largely based on limiting your speed when towing a large load with a smaller, short wheelbase vehicle.

Rad

I can relate to the disappointment.  We looked at the T@B, decided we wanted to buy so I went to have a hitch put on my 09' Honda Odossey, could not be done.  Why, well, my wife has MS and uses a power chair often and our van is  highly modified ramp van.  This means the frame is cut out from the firewall back to the rear seats and dropped 12 inches.  The gas tank is then moved behind the axle, therefore prohibiting the attachment of a hitch.

We were very bummed.  Fortunately I drive an F150 (really it just sets in the driveway as I ride my motorcycle or bicycles) so we adapted by creating a step to help her enter the truck with my help and her wheel chair folds up behind the passenger seat and her walker behind the drivers seat.

You would not be the first person that had to purchase a different tow vehicle in order to haul something around.

As my buddies wife says "if it is a problem than can be solved by writing a check, it is not a problem"


Good luck.  

DurangoTaB

Many of us have seen that pic of the VW...but my guess is it's from Europe and is a diesel...

Kats

We had to switch from a CRV to a Pilot because even though the CRV pulled our T@B just fine, our insurance company would not have covered us for anything if we had gotten into an accident due to the tow rating of the CRV (1500). At first it was kind of a drag, we loved our old CRV (it was even a manual transmission, which I love driving); but the Pilot is a great vehicle and tows the T@B like it isn't even there. Plus it turns out that it is a much more practical vehicle for us since we can transport bikes, dogs, kayaks, fully strung fly rods, skis... just a better fit for us. 

mawebb

We did the smae thing. 

What I do find with the pilot is the T@B seems to rock front to back a bit more than I would like. I have a 6" drop on my hitch and went ith a tow bar that was fairly short (8 3/4"). 

I have bought the Timbern suspension kit for the rear of the Pilot, but have not had it installed yet. I hope is will take some of the softness out of the Pilot rear suspension once it's installed. 

JodellR

Catching up late to this discussion, but can weigh in on the Tiguan pic and towing. In rest of world, Tiguans can tow up to 4400 lbs mostly due to the way the hitch is mounted on on the overall car frame. Engine should definitely be a diesel, or at least a Turbo.  There are several discussions surrounding towing on the Tiguan boards, so I read a ton before getting my Tig to pull my previous camper.  US towing capacity for a Tiguan is 2200 lbs. I pull my T@b with my Tig, but know I could be pushing it due to the tongue weighing another 160 lbs, and anything I put in the trailer, plus in the tow vehicle increases the overall load.  Another note is looking at the length of the trailer, versus the length of your car, and then looking at the weight of your tow vehicle, versus the your trailer's weight.  Physics law tells us if trailer is bigger and longer than tow vehicle, stopping, as well as the climbing can create issues. 

As much as I enjoy the movie the Long, Long Trailer, I would never want to reenact any of those scary trailer scenes.