How much to tow!

[Tom-NC]

Hi,

This is for the forum administrators.

I think that an article or forum regarding towing capacities is needed for all the newbies that just want to do what they want without checking things first and having a total disregard for other people on the road when they cause an accident.

The manufacturers know what their chassis are capable of and list that information, such as GVWR, GCVW, etc. They put that on the RV for a reason and that is to keep you within the specs and to tow.

Hitches have their own ratings and that doesn't mean that a hitch rating of 5000 lbs can tow a 5000 lb vehicle behind a motor home, yes the hitch itself is rated for 5000 lbs but the RV may only be able to tow 3000 lbs. Also if you tow with a tow dolly you must consider the weight of the dolly and have it configured with brakes.

Lastly I will give you an example: a motor home that weighs 22000 lbs has a GCVW of 24000 lbs which means it can tow 2000 safely. A motor home with a 24000 lb chassis has a gcvw of 28000 which means it can tow 4000 lb. As the chassis GVWR goes up so does the towing capacity.

Now there will be those that disagree and will tow anything anyhow and that is wrong. Be safe out there

[NLOVNIT]

Thanks for the suggestion. We do have separate towing forums under each of the main types of RV forums...motorized & towables. I'm thinking what you're requesting is some sort of sticky in each of those covering towing specifics for those 2 types of RV's.

There are SO many variables & individual circumstances are different, so trying to cover such a broad topic in just 1 article post might not suit every situation. Both new & experienced RV'rs come here for advice from our members. It can be difficult, especially for someone new, to sort out the good advice from the bad. However, it's something for us to think about.

Lori-