towing capacity

[ecabot]

Hello, so I read all the forums to see if I could tow a "winnebago micro minnie" that has 3760 pounds of dry weight and in theory I think I am ok with my SUV but it's super close to the limit (5000 pounds) so I'd like to hear your feedback.

My SUV is a volkswagen Atlas V6 with 5000 pounds of towing capacity.
In the table below I assumed I will aways empty my black and gray water tanks but I left like 10% just to play safe.
I assumed only me as a driver and my wife as a passenger.
I assumed a half tank of fresh water.
The total is 4900 pounds so I'm just 100 pounds below the limit.
I am planning to go in places with mountains so I need to also consider this.

Last year I rented a trailer and had no problem but it was smaller so it was weighing 1000 pounds less than this Winnebago.

So do you think it's too risky ?

winnebago micro minnie 1808FBS dry weight	3760
extra for anti sway, charge repartition bars, etc	75
batteries	50
fresh water	154.105
gray water	20.825
black water	20.825
propane	40
food+wine	100
dishes	35
clothes+linings	80
2 humans in car	310
2 bikes	100
1 kayak	100
bike rack	50
total	4895.755

 

[SpencerPJ]

The towing weight does not take frontal winds into consideration. If you go to places with mountains, I would say that is too much trailer. What does the Payload / Carry Capacity sticker (yellow sticker) in your drivers door say. That often is the deal breaker.

 

[steveblonde]

Like Spencer said look for that yellow and white decal drivers side b pillar like the one attached. @5000 lbs loaded 15% hitch weight would be 750lbs wife and gear in the Atlas @250 would add up to 1000lbs in the car. My guess is your payload is less than 1000lbs

 

[steveblonde]

Like Spencer said look for that yellow and white decal drivers side b pillar like the one attached. @5000 lbs loaded 15% hitch weight would be 750lbs wife and gear in the Atlas @250 would add up to 1000lbs in the car. My guess is your payload is less than 1500lbs

 

[ecabot]

Here it is

 

[ecabot]

So 1213 pounds is the max I can carry in the car including me and my wife.
The kayak would be on top of my car
The bike rack and the bikes would be on the hitch

 

[ecabot]

So if understand your math:
I have about 560 pounds for humans+bikes+kayak that would not be in the trailer.
So the total of the trailer is 4340 pounds not 4900 pounds
At 15% this is 651 pounds on the hitch.
With the 560 pounds of humans+bikes+kayak that makes a total of 1211 pounds...
I'm 2 pounds under the limit... yikes
BTW the trailer has 2 axels, does it help ?
Also I would have the usual anti sway and weight distribution bars, I heard these help balancing the weight between the back axel of the car and the front axel of the trailer...

 

[steveblonde]

That puts you at your max capacity as you stated.
No your vehicle is not going to collapse into a million pieces, lol. Under idesl conditions ie not too hot not too windy or hilly you will notice your struggling to keep up with traffic, your engine temps will rise and mileage will drop. Braking and ride comfort will be seriously compromised and you will find the entire experience tiresome and irritating. You partner will be agrivating and you mood testy. Kidding-sort of, a slight exaggeration but not that far off.

But the vehicle wont break - on the first trip.

Its doable but your going to want to upgrade the tow vehicle sooner rather than later.

 

[grashley]

You are basically correct. Add the WD hitch wt to what the SUV will carry. You will be right at capacity. Remember that 5000# trailer referred to in the specs is a flat bed carrying bricks, not a TT with a HUGE frontal area that acts like a parachute. You may be okay in Kansas flatlands, but any significant hills will probably become very uncomfortable.

Since you have the Atlas, you can 1) choose a smaller (lighter) camper or 2) give this setup a try, understanding you MAY need to upgrade your tow vehicle to handle the TT.

 

[Oldgator73]

We have a Nissan Quest van. Tow rating is 3500 lbs. we purchased a Winnabego Winnie Drop which has a GVW rating of 3500 lbs. towed it with the van on several trips then told the wife I didn’t think the van was handling it as well as I would like. Purchased a Nissan Frontier with a 6200 lb tow rating and all was good in our tow world.

 

[ecabot]

Thank you!
I wonder if 15% is too much to use for the calculation of the hitch weight.
I mean in the specs the dry weight is 3760 pounds while the dry hitch weight is 390 pounds. That is 10.37% So 15% seems to be a lot. I know some have use 12.5% instead which makes a huge difference.
Another thing is I could probably move the bikes in the trailer (properly attached of couse) to reduce the weight on the hitch...

 

[steveblonde]

Thank you!
I wonder if 15% is too much to use for the calculation of the hitch weight.
I mean in the specs the dry weight is 3760 pounds while the dry hitch weight is 390 pounds. That is 10.37% So 15% seems to be a lot. I know some have use 12.5% instead which makes a huge difference.
Another thing is I could probably move the bikes in the trailer (properly attached of couse) to reduce the weight on the hitch...

Sorry to burst your bubble but now your just trying to justify what you know in not doable, you need to rethink- diff trailer or diff car sorry

 

[SpencerPJ]

Sorry to burst your bubble but now your just trying to justify what you know in not doable, you need to rethink- diff trailer or diff car sorry

Yup,
If you do it, you'll want a bigger vehicle after the first adventure. Then you'll wish that if you knew that, you would have gotten a bit more trailer since you already need to upgrade the tow vehicle. Your VW is simply not a Travel Trailer hauler, if someone sold you on that concept, shame on them. You need to be thinking pop-up trailer, or smaller Pod type.

Below is a link to a discussion about towing with your Atlas. There is a video in there that will say what you are doing is fine. There are many comments from real users that will disagree with the salesperson in the video. Your choice, I wouldn't do it with that trailer. I highly encourage you to spend more time on VW Atlas forums and Google Searches.

Towing a trailer

I’m trying to finalize whether or not to purchase an Atlas to replace our Mercedes GL350 and I’m curious if any of you have any experience pulling a trailer with your Atlas? Our trailer is a camper trailer with electric brakes...about 3,800lbs. Our Benz with the diesel engine pulled it without...

www.vwatlasforum.com

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

You probably won't be at 15% tongue weight, but each 1% is only 45-50 lbs so getting down to 12% is better but not a huge difference. The key is that you are going to be near the Atlas max capability and few cars or SUVs do well at max load. They function and the vehicle doesn't break down on the roadside, but the ride and handling usually makes it apparent that it is under stress. And an emergency maneuver may become problematic.

 

[ecabot]

ok good to know. Last year I had no issue at all with a trailer (rented) that was weighing 1000 pounds less than the one I want to buy today (dry weight was 2800 pounds as opposed to 3760 pounds). I went in the mountains with it etc and all was good. My fuel consumption went up by 70% (compared to a flat highway) but I was not surprised by it given there were some hills to climb and a trailer to tow! Besides the fuel consumption I really felt the Atlas had not issue at all with this trailer, the driving experience was perfect so I was hoping to get a heavier one but remain under the limit. With all your feedback it seems I should really stay with a trailer around 3000 pounds... 3500 pounds could be fine but above this is looking for trouble...

 

[Rob&Deryl]

Really, stop with the dry weight. You will never have a trailer that weighs that. Even brand new on the dealer lot it will likely weigh more. Use either GVWR or after you own, a scaled weight all loaded for travel.