2013 Chrysler Town and Country

[jrhughes]

We currently pull a tent trailer, I'd say it's maybe 2000 lbs all in, and we've installed the trailer brakes. Now we want to move up to a TM3124, hubby says we are fine, Chrysler says 3600 lbs, or really 3500 because we have stow and go seats. Hubby says we just won't fill it with water before we leave home. I'm more cautious and wondering if we are asking for trouble. He says drive it using gears like a truck. I think even though it came with a factory hitch maybe we should consider a transmission cooler. I see most TM owners are using trucks or SUV's but the TM atttraction was that we could pull it with our current vehicle. Are we mad?

[ShrimpBurrito]

There is lots of discussion on this sort of topic, and it largely depends on where you pull (mountains, flatlands, etc.), how you're going to provision your TM, and how much stuff you're going to have in your vehicle.

I tow in the mountains, and often go from sea level to ~8,000 (and sometimes 10,000 feet) over the course of maybe 200-250 miles, so there's some significant climbs in there. I also travel with the TM full of water (but only a 20 gal tank; some TMs have a 40 gal tank), food, and other camping gear. The dry weight on my 2720SL is 2,800 lbs (the 3124 is a few hundred pounds heavier), and our wet weight (ready to camp) is around 4,000 lbs (I've weighed it on a scale).

Our Toyota Sequoia has a tow rating of 6,000 lbs. We're not jam packed by any means....there's 3 of us, 2 boxes of firewood, another 12 gallons of water, a few bags of grocers, a camp stove, camp grill, and that's about it. With those loads and where we go, I personally would not want to tow anything significantly heavier -- and that's with a 2,000-lb margin.

I think you will be hard pressed to safety tow a 3124 with a minivan with a 3,500 lbs rating anywhere. IMHO. It has a dry weight of ~3,100 lbs, and that doesn't include things like an air conditioner, awning, battery(s), or propane, all of which would add at least ~200 lbs. So you're really at 3,300 lbs, but add a weight distributing hitch, which you would undoubtedly need, and you're more or less at the max rating without loading so much as a pair of underwear.

There are some members here who report being comfortable towing smaller TM models with minivans. I don't know what the tow ratings of those vehicles are, but they may chime in with their input.

Dave

[Larryjb]

You need to look up the GCWR. This will tell you the absolute maximum weight your TV can handle. This number was in my owners manual, not on the door of my truck. The 3600 lbs doesn't include all the stuff you're packing in the back of your minivan.

Also important are the individual axle ratings. You can be under the 3600 lbs, under the GCWR, but still overload the rear axle. This is surprisingly easy to do.

check out http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...ead.php?t=9655

[br2_wdc]

Originally Posted by jrhughes

Are we mad?

Originally Posted by ShrimpBurrito

There is lots of discussion on this sort of topic, and it largely depends on where you pull (mountains, flatlands, etc.), how you're going to provision your TM, and how much stuff you're going to have in your vehicle.

I think you will be hard pressed to safety tow a 3124 with a minivan with a 3,500 lbs rating anywhere. IMHO.
Dave

Dave did an excellent job of breaking down the numbers, and I agree with his opinion: I would find a better tow vehicle (TV). When you are at or exceed the manufactures number for tow rating, you start to test all the limits of your vehicle including braking and handling which directly effects the safety of your vehicle and the occupants; essentially you have no margin for error.

The best example I can give would be a simple physics equation where the weight of the trailer on rear of your vehicle will push the front up higher then normal. You'll most likely see a "sag" at your tow hitch because you are at or exceeding the tow rating/tongue weight for your minivan. The effect on the front end will be less contact with the road which will degrade your steering and braking on flat roads, let alone any sort of hill.

The point of this is not to scare anyone or say you can't use it as a TV, but to make you aware of the risk you may be taking when you are at the very limits of your TV.

So are you "mad" for wanting to use it as a TV? I would say no, you're not, but IMHO maybe a little crazy ...

[Bill]

You really should look up the towing spec for the Town and Country. As you pointed out, it says 3500/3600 pounds, but there is also an asterisk that you didn't point out. That asterisk says "When properly equipped". Most tow vehicles come with a similar asterisk, and the manufacturers are always a bit coy regarding what it means. However, the first thing that it means is that 3500/3600 IS NOT the tow rating of the base vehicle. You must add something to the vehicle (equip it) to reach that rating. The "something" is usually called a towing package, which usually includes at least an auxiliary transmission cooler and beefed-up rear suspension, and may include different gear ratios. A 7-pin wiring connector is usually part of it, too, though that has no effect on towing capacity.

Remember that every vehicle with an automatic transmission has a transmission cooler. But in addition, the towing package contains an additional transmission cooler called an auxiliary. The fact that you apparently don't have an aux cooler says you do not have the towing package, or any of the other things in it. A garage will tell you they can install an aux cooler - and they can - but in order to sell you the aux cooler they will tell you that you do not need the other things.

So like the other posts above, I am skeptical of your proposed rig. As Shrimp Burrito pointed out, the vehicle manufacturers always describe towing capacity with a single number (3500), but it should be apparent that a single number cannot apply to both flatland towing and mountain towing. So you can bet that the mfr is putting his best face on it by using the flatland number. Beware of mountains unless you have a lot of margin!

Bill

[[email protected]]

I pull a 2619 with a 2011 town and country but haven't been to Colorado where I used to pull a popup over 12000 feet with no problem. Btw my popup was only 500 lbs lighter and I pull empty (no water)

[Padgett]

My load rating was on the door jam and I suspect yours is also but one way to tell is the size of your hitch receiver if factory. a 1.25" receiver is too small and a 2" receiver may work. Biggest thing is that when towing too much with too little, everything under the hood will be strained, MPG in particular and you will need to learn how to "drive gentle".

That said the Pentastar V6 is certainly capable, the question is the rest of the vehicle.

BTW I think the current ratings are based on an SAE standard but do not know when they went into effect. Also the GVWR does not include the total trailer weight unless the trailer does not have brakes. Have to see the manufacturer's tow rating if you have the factory tow package for that (my rating is 5,000 lbs. which would make the max rig weight over 9,000 lbs and that is not on the sticker. Regardless, I keep the trailer weight even with brakes under that of the tow vehicle.

[jrhughes]

I am so new at this, and my husband is out of town, so please bear with me. The TM has it's own brakes, yes? So we can hook it up to the van with the gismo that's in there now for the tent trailer, I assume. Also, I am re-thinking the big TM, but really like the king bed layout, maybe the 2417 is safer for us.

[Bill]

Yes, the TM has its own brakes. To use them, you need a 7-pin electrical connector on the tow vehicle near the hitch. The TM 7-pin cable matches this connector.

It would be helpful to know a bit more about the "gizmo" (undoubtedly a brake controller) before pronouncing it good. Can you give us a manufacturer's name (like Tekonsha) and a model name or number?

Bill

[jrhughes]

Thanks for your patience Bill. When I'm in the van (or when I find my husband) I'll post the details on the gizmo.

I feel like we've come full circle, buy a new TV or new trailer? Old trailer is a pop up tent trailer which actually has lots of room, is lightweight, and serves our purpose. But I'm not the one who crawls around under it when we set up Also the tear down during the rain is a real pain.

Little hard body trailers seem so small. We only just bought our Town and Country and we really love it.

Sorry to ramble. I sure love the idea of the TM, but perhaps the reality is that it is still too heavy for us. I really can't see us climbing over each other in a queen size bed, a king is really our only option.