what vehicle to tow?

[bradinseattle]

Any ideas or feedback about what kind of truck/van/SUV works or doesn't work for towing an oven around? I'm thinking of buying a 3,000 lb oven from Fire Within when I'm ready. I don't know much about towing etc. and people say its more complicated than just getting a V6. My budget is under $10,000

I'm new to the forum. So thanks!

[Muscats]

Re: what vehicle to tow?

if you were in Australia I would say get a Holden Adventra - 5.8 liter V8 with self leveling suspension plenty of power and plenty of torque

[nissanneill]

Re: what vehicle to tow?

A good 4WD should suffice for a number of reasons:
? It will have the power and torque to handle a heavy load,
? It will also have Hi and Low ratio gearbox for that tricky but slow manouvering of the oven trailer into place,
? Being 4WD, it will have the grip to get your oven where it needs to be
? It will be heavier than other vehicles so it will safely handle the load,
? It will give you a firm ride so that you will experience what your over is going through.
Have a look around but you should get a good Nissan for that money!

Cheers.

Neill

[Nic The Landscaper]

Re: what vehicle to tow?

3000lbs is really an insignificant amount of weight to tow. Almost any Japanese SUVs and Trucks and any compact American Trucks and SUVs will have a tow rating of 5000lbs, even the Mercedes ML class can tow up to 5000 lbs. A half ton pick-up truck (f-150, Silverado1500, Ram1500, Tundra or Titan) will have tow ratings from 7000 to 12,000 lbs depending on brand, engine size, and how old it is. Anything more than a half ton is going to be overkill and start to cost a lot more in fuel.

So my advise is just go start test driving vehicles and pick a couple you like then return to this post and ask for pros and cons to your options.

[Wiley]

Re: what vehicle to tow?

Brad, one thing to be sure to be checking when you look into the tow ratings for any given vehicle is whether the rating is for a braked trailer or an unbraked trailer. For example, my Toyota Previa is rated to tow 3500lbs when the trailer has brakes, however, that capacity drops to only 1000 lbs if the trailer does not have brakes.

This can get to be an interesting equation as often the ratings include parameters which reduce capacity of the tow load by the load the tow vehicle is carrying as well as the tongue weight. Unfortunately they are not consistant so you have to read the owners manual for the vehicle you are looking at (and not the generic specs for the model/brand). Often they change for whether the vehicle has the factory tow package (transmission cooler for automatics, size of brake discs and hitches etc. etc.) I am a member of an RV forum and this matter is often discussed. Capacity also changes with something as simple as wheel size (a truck with oversize wheels actually has less braking than the same truck with factory spec'd wheels).

I would suggest that you don't fall into the tow ratings conundrum of a given vehicle's tow capacity in other countries. And so even though the rating may be significantly higher elsewhere (for any given vehicle), you are towing here.

Here is a link to a site listing unbraked trailer towing limitations for the USA. Limits vary a great deal state to state.
Trailer Brake Requirements For Towed Vehicles

Hope this helps,
Wiley

[JAG]

Re: what vehicle to tow?

Brad,
Any thought of a diesel Suburban, GMC or Chevy. I have had diesel Subs for many years now, with my current 87' 6.2L at 400K miles that I am actually selling since I just bought a GMC 6.5 Turbo diesel Sub. The 87 gets 23 MPG and diesels are actually very easy to work on, mostly bolt on stuff if ever needed. The 6.5 is 4WD and gets 20MPG. It is a 2500 series. A lovely ride.

Plus, with a diesel you can get green and start making your own biodiesel from used veggie oil. This will also lead to many other home made items from glycerin, a byproduct of biodiesel,, not to mention once you get into the bio thing you can produce biofuel for around $.70 a gallon, then you can tell the petroleum industry to kiss your butt. That is my favorite part.

John

[PizzaPolice]

Re: what vehicle to tow?

Nothing like a good old American truck to do the job.
This is a 1948 Ford F1 with a 351 Cleveland engine and C6 3 speed Auto Transmission. It does the job.

You will certainly need to hook up an electronic brake controller that activates the brakes on the trailer. A MUST.

Like the others have said, a simple V6 truck with a tow package should do ya.

Good luck.