Towing Capacity

[MoniB0827]

Hi all,
Its my first time buying and RV. I want to buy a 2020 Dutchmen Coleman Lantern LT 202RD. Says dry weight is 4383, hitch 586, payload 3217. I would use my 16 Yukon 4WD to tow. GM site says towing capacity 6300 but when I pull up the info by Vin it’s says Wt. distribution Hitch Max trailer Wt is 8200. GCW is 14000 and curb weight is 2772 front ans 2773 back. I live in AZ with a lot of mountains and hoping to take ti to Colorado. I get confused with the 6300 then 8200, which is true? Will I be safe towing my family of 4?

 

[SpencerPJ]

I pull a trailer similar to the 2020 you are looking at. I use to pull it with a 2005 YukonXL with tow package. I had the 5.3L. Good engine, a bit under powered, and the 4spd transmission was dated. Give us more info on your Yukon. What engine? tow package? and what is the 'carry capacity' weight listed on the yellow sticker in the drivers door? (aka .. payload)

 

[donn]

Your first mistake is the same one so many people make. Listening to the salesman and looking at published dry weight. Both can get you into a lot of trouble real fast. Look at the trailers GVWR. This can be found on a tag placed outside on the left side very,near the front. As for tow vehicle capacity? Load up family and everything you might carry and go to the scales. With an accurate ready to travel weight look on the drivers door post and get the SUVs GVWR. Subtract scaled weight from GVWR. That is your available payload. 15% of the trailers GVWR is your tongue weight. When you add that to the SUVs scaled weight are you under or over your cars GVWR? That is your immediate answer.

 

[Unom]

Will you be safe? It depends (lol). The numbers and specifications have to be satisfied (good advice above) but then its really about the driver. Do a realistic assessment of your skills and confidence. Do you white-knuckle the steering wheel going 20mph straight in a deserted parking lot? Do you think that people who drive more than 50 miles in a day have gone beyond the limits of human endurance? Have a few traffic violations or speeding tickets? Then don’t tow it.

Are you a confident driver that knows what a weight-distributing hitch is (and how to properly adjust it)? Do you know that you have to load a trailer for proper tongue weight? Do you own a tongue weight scale? If so, you’ll be fine.

If you do decide to tow, decide on your limit and drive within it. If weather, winds, traffic, vehicle condition etc gets outside your personal limit, pull it over until things change. Driving past your limits will get people and equipment hurt.

Something to consider: in a study of people self-assessing their driving skills, 80% of them put their skills as above- or well-above-average. Mathematically, only 50% of them can be above average: most people grossly overestimate their skills. If you get tickets, drive aggressively or are always nervous, please don’t tow anything - you will not suddenly drive competently just because you hook up a trailer. Perhaps your spouse can tell you what kind of driver you are

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I want to buy a 2020 Dutchmen Coleman Lantern LT 202RD. Says dry weight is 4383, hitch 586, payload 3217. I

Forget the dry weight and work with the GVWR, which is dry + payload. That's 7600 lbs. The trailer may end up a bit lighter than the 7600 max, but it will be a lot closer to that than the dry weight.

GM site says towing capacity 6300 but when I pull up the info by Vin it’s says Wt. distribution Hitch Max trailer Wt is 8200. GCW is 14000 and curb weight is 2772 front ans 2773 back

A 4WD Yukon is rated to tow 6300 lbs with the standard 3.08 rear axle and 8200 with the 3.42 axle. If the VIN-based look-up was able to detect the rear axle spec, then it's probably right. You should be able to verify that from the placards on the door post or maybe in glove box, but a GM dealer could help you if needed. This is critical, since the lower rating is obviously insufficient for that trailer. Even the higher one is little more than marginal once you make some allowance for passengers and gear inside the Yukon and the weight of a WD hitch (nearly 100 lbs).

"Safe" isn't a binary thing - it's a continuum of more safe to less safe. The longer and heavier the trailer relative to the tow vehicle, the greater the susceptibility to outside factors and the less "safe" it becomes. Crosswinds and the "bow wave" of air from a passing truck are the most common things that can increase driver stress and the risk of losing control. That's also where the driver skill factor comes in.

 

[JayArr]

I get confused with the 6300 then 8200, which is true?

Both, if you just drop the trailer on the ball it's 6300, if you buy and install a weight distribution hitch you can haul 8200. the WDH are great for stability and ease of driving so I'd recommend it.

 

[alan6051964]

You deff want a good WDH. just make sure which ever brand wdh you purchase ?, it will match your trailer tongue weight, and carrying weight to the truck. the sticker on my hitch above my plug say's one number '' as is '', then it also goes way up when using a wdh, in my case, i can pull up to 12k pounds. but !!. there is a huge difference between 12k flat pounds ?, and 12k bill board going down the freeway !.

 

[CharlesinGA]

Rear axle ratio should be found on the inside of the glove box door on GM and RAM products. Its good to have a build sheet anyhow, the dealer's parts department can most likely run a build sheet using the VIN and that would include the axle ratio.

Even in the best of configurations, you will be near the limits towing that trailer and in mountains, I would not consider it at all.

Charles

 

[SuwanneeDave]

OK, I get that specs should be checked and adhered to. But people were hauling trailers in the 40's, 50's 60's etc. with vehicles that had nowhere near the capabilities of modern trucks. I don't think trailers were any lighter, although most were not as big as people seem to prefer now. My assumption is that there were not as many interstate highways, and people were content to travel at lower speeds. I should add that I also prefer to travel secondary routes where feasible.

 

[steveblonde]

OK, I get that specs should be checked and adhered to. But people were hauling trailers in the 40's, 50's 60's etc. with vehicles that had nowhere near the capabilities of modern trucks. I don't think trailers were any lighter, although most were not as big as people seem to prefer now. My assumption is that there were not as many interstate highways, and people were content to travel at lower speeds. I should add that I also prefer to travel secondary routes where feasible.

Sorry i dont understand your point ???? How does it relate to the posters question?