Thoughts on towing with minivan?

If you special order it (or maybe a dealer has one lying around) the Dakota is available with AWD. I have a 4.7L Quad-Cab 4x4 (without the AWD transfer case) with the towing package (including 3.91 gears). It is a very capable and comfortable vehicle towing ~6K, and it makes a nice daily driver. The only downside is that the fuel economy on the "modern" 4.7L engine is no better, IMHO, than it was on the "ancient" 5.2L (I get 14/17 and ~13 towing). The upside is that it seems to have about the same performance and a lot higher redline.
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In any event - one of the most critical things is that you have adequate trailer brakes. That means having a GOOD controller and adequate wiring to handle the current. Additionally, plenty of tongue weight (~15% of total trailer weight) and a good equalizer / sway control hitch will help keep you out of trouble. I've seen the consequences of not observing those rules, and they are not pretty.
 
AWD Astro/Safari if you want a mini-van with a total payload and trailer under 5,000#. Mine towed an open trailer, gear and crew fine.

A FWD vehicle makes for a poor towing platform in general.
 
Vaughn,

We haven't met, but I run Waterford as well. With the SpecNeon guys. I would have introduced myself at the awards tonight if I read this post first. I have a 2005 Town & Country w/ 3.8 and tow package. I tow a 2700 pound car and a 1100 pound aluminum open trailer. I don't disagree with the principles of the above posts, but I couldn't be happier with my setup. In fact, I'll have it hooked up this week prepped for Beaverun next weekend if you want to check it out. I'm close to Royal Oak.

First, you have to use a load leveling hitch. The tongue weight on the minivan can't get too large, so you'd have to watch that. While you won't be able to pull hard from a stop, I've had great trips all over the Midwest and also down to the ARRC last year. Does fantastic on the highway, and can get 17.5 mpg at about 68 mph.

Please feel free to contact me and we can talk about it.

Kevin Fandozzi
[email protected]
 
Haven't read this whole topic yet, but on the trip home from Summit Point to CT today, we saw a jack-knifed setup.

On a downhill section of PA (4% grade) we came upon stopped traffic. As we crawled along we saw them over to the side of the road up against a guardrail (protecting them from a very iwcked fall). Guy was pulling a Mustang Mach 1 on a typical small open-deck car trailer behind a Nissan XTerra. You could see the scallop tire marks where the trailer obviously got out of shape and started swinging. From there you could see the beginnings of the truck's slide, leading right up to a very big dent in the guardrail.

The trailer with Mustang was slid up hard against the fence and the Nissan was jack-knifed backwards into the guardrail extneding into the road. Looked like both rear tires were blown and the rear bumper and trailer hitch were now folded into one piece. I coulda sworn I smelled fecal material as I taxied slowly to get by.

Don't try to tow wrong. There are good deals out there. - GA
 
Originally posted by fandozzi:
First, you have to use a load leveling hitch.
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Once you are exceeding 50% of towing capacity, I don't care what the set up is, with Level III and up weight distributing hitch is the single biggest contribution to any safe and effective trailering right after the driver attitude and awareness. I have always used WD and have had half the towing issues of people who complain with nearly identical capabilities and load.

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Ed.
240SX ITA
 
We have used my Safari (RWD) a couple of times to pull the race car short distances (to get painted, etc). And maybe to Gateway (~20miles) once. But it's not something we do on a regular basis.

We came soooo close to a lose-your-life trailer incident that this is something that we take very seriously.

I really don't care what the Brits do. I know that I would never feel comfortable pulling a small trailer loaded with car and stuff at 60-70 mph down the interstate with other traffic to contend with. Because you all stay under the speed limit, right? And you know, for sure, how much your whole rig weighs, right? Don't guess---weigh it. You might be unpleasantly surprised, but more aware because of it.

We have all seen enough and read about enough trailer accidents....don't be another statistic.

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Lesley Albin
Over The Limit Racing
Blazen Golden Retrievers
 
There is no way I would tow anything but Jet Skis with a mini-van. I have a Dakota with the bigger engine and the tow package and it struggles a little. (For instance the brakes are warped right now from towing.)

Next time around I'm getting a turbo-diesel full-size van.

jpd
 
Followup on this - yeah, I've got the minivan, and am lovin' it! Very happy to be able to drive this daily instead of the Burb - at least, till my daily-driver 924 Turbo is back and fully operational (nearly there, now).

No worries about stability or brakes anymore... put it this way, I get to test trailer stability issues and the like at the day job, so not scared off by any of that... it was more a hauling capacity concern, but that's been answered.

Of course, I'm lucky living in the Midwest, no question; if I actually had to drag my rig up a hill, I'd have to have a Burb!

Thanks, guys!

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Vaughan Scott
Detroit Region #280052
'79 924 #77 ITB/GTS1
www.vaughanscott.com
 
I tow with one, it tows fine but I worry about the tranny on it. I modified it to tow though, Gabriel Hi-Jacker air shocks, tranny cooler, and regular tranny flushes. It tows great, a little slow, but I also am light on the go pedal while towing for the tranny's sake. When I am towing I try to keep it in cruise control becasue the computer is programmed to never go above a certain throttle amount, so while towing the tranny is always locked, and all I have to do is drop it in 3rd approaching a hill and shift back up before cresting (the tranny will delay the upshift until it's good and ready to shift). My total weight is very light though, the trailer only weighs 1200lbs, the car 1900, and add a few hundred in spares and gear. I wouldn't recommend towing much more than this but as long as the weight is properly distributed there will be no sway problems. If I detect even a hint of sway I pull over and reposition the car forward (this only happened once).

It's the shocks that make all the difference, they are wonderful. I run 25lbs in them empty, and about 80 loaded. The ride is smooth, no sway. In the future when my budget allows I will buy a better tow vehicle, but unless I start getting really serious and need an enclosed trailer it will be another minivan (with a RELIABLE transmission) Or something nice like an XC90, or Pacifica AWD. I would love to have a Duramax diesel pickup or even better...A diesel van but I could not tolerate driving one every day. Or the payments because right now no payments beats payments (started a new career recently)

The tow rig, notice the level van, no sag here. No sway either, tows much better than some trucks I borrowed in the past.

bunday.jpg
 
A good set of bakes on the trailer and a good controller are key on a setup like that.

Nothing scares me more about a race weekend than running up on a sudden emergency stop...and going long.
 
The thing is - yeah you CAN tow with a minivan, but if you don't have to - avoid it.

I towed for a while with a Jeep Cherokee. It worked, just barely. I did have one moment with it, but never a disaster. I had this truck for the reason many here are giving for using the minivan - I did not want a giant vehicle to drive every day.

Then I realized how much easier my race weekends would be if I just got and appropriate tool for the job, and that a full size van is so cheap it can be an extra car that I only drive when going racing. Picked up a 3/4 ton GMC conversion van with towing package and air shocks, installed a brake controller, and never worry much when towing anymore. It was $4200. I have no desire or need to drive it every day (unless one of the cars is in the shop - in which case it is very convenient to have a back up in the stable).
 
The thing is - yeah you CAN tow with a minivan, but if you don't have to - avoid it.

I towed for a while with a Jeep Cherokee. It worked, just barely. I did have one moment with it, but never a disaster. I had this truck for the reason many here are giving for using the minivan - I did not want a giant vehicle to drive every day.

Then I realized how much easier my race weekends would be if I just got and appropriate tool for the job, and that a full size van is so cheap it can be an extra car that I only drive when going racing. Picked up a 3/4 ton GMC conversion van with towing package and air shocks, installed a brake controller, and never worry much when towing anymore. It was $4200. I have no desire or need to drive it every day (unless one of the cars is in the shop - in which case it is very convenient to have a back up in the stable).
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Yeah, but there is a difference there, a Cherokee only weighs ~3100lbs, while my van weighs about 4000. When your trailer exceeds the weight of the tow vehicle things can get hairy. I bet that Cherokee gets pushed around a bit while my van tows nice and steady.
 
eMKay,
Glad it's working for you. However, I wouldn't be surprised if your trailer and gear weighs more then you think it does. It behooves all of us to know what the situation is, and have realistic expectations from our tow vehicles. Around here it costs about $7 to weigh at a truck stop on our way out of town. It's a good, cheap investment.
 
eMKay,
Glad it's working for you. However, I wouldn't be surprised if your trailer and gear weighs more then you think it does. It behooves all of us to know what the situation is, and have realistic expectations from our tow vehicles. Around here it costs about $7 to weigh at a truck stop on our way out of town. It's a good, cheap investment.
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BTDT, I know what every piece I tow or put in the van weighs
 
Since everone is chiminging.
Dude. DUDE.
If you have a 15 foot trailer and a 12 foot rig with lack of brakes and shocks. It is a problem. Like the guy said things are fine then Oh Sh*t stopping. You cant fool around with it. You spend more time in it than the car.
I was racing Go-carts with the Idea to do cars I bought a extened cab and tow package for that reason. Hills you need the power. A Large van would work better. 150,250 .
As to the thread you can see its not a good Idea.
god luck and leave after me please. :cavallo:
Scott CRXsi F150 2000 Black with tow package. Breakes change this year boy tht helped.
 
Maybe there should be two sticky notes on towing. One with questions you should ask yourself, and maybe one with do's and don'ts.

It's been pointed out that people tow with what appears to be minimal vehicles in England. First off, England is a very small country without many real hills, much less mountain ranges. Second, just because someone has towed a Sprite with a Morris Minor doesn't mean they are sane and others should follow their example.

So I would ask these questions before determining if a Mini Van, a Camaro, or a Dually is required:

What distance are you planning on going?
---Is it 50 miles or less? Do you plan the occasional 200+ mile journey with the same tow vehicle?

What is between you and the track(s)?
---Will you be driving over mostly flat terrain, on highways, or taking a Road Rally course thru the Rockies or Death Valley?

What are you towing?
---An open trailer with no overhead tire rack or other storage requires less than an enclosed trailer of any size.

How much weight are you towing, how much are you carrying?
---Not the same as what you are towing, you need to know both what weight you are pulling and what you are carrying - including passengers, to determine if the vehicle is designed for each individually and combined. And by vehicle, I include tire rating, brakes, shocks, etc. It's a package. Upgrading shocks does nothing for tires, etc. But being motorheads you all know that, right?

Does the trailer have brakes, and does the tow vehicle have a quality brake controller?

What type of hitch, do you have sway control, weight equalizing, etc?

I'm sure others could add to this list, but it's a start. I think without knowing the answers to these questions, it would be impossible to answer the question Can I tow with this?
 
Nobody has brought up HOW you drive.

Perhaps it's maybe a good thing to feel the trailer. I've witnessed some of the worst driving by people in F350's towing a large trailer...75-80mph, tailgating, etc. I guess they don't realize that even a big truck and diesel engine doesn't help you stop any faster when you have 10-20k lbs. of combined weight.

When I towed wih my Explorer V8, it definitely had the grunt to pull my SM and 16' 1600lbs trailer (way too much trailer for a 2200lb car + spares), but I could feel it behind me (though to me it felt like the combo with trailer brakes stopped better than the truck by itself!!). I definitely kept my distance and looked way ahead of the next guy. I think a better engineered trailer to match what you tow (my guess is it could be 1000lbs lighter) would work great on a lighter minivan.

I now pay someone to store and haul my car. Since I didn't want the Explorer as a daily driver, and a 3rd car was not an option, it just works out better for me this way.

How about alternative vehicles for towing?

I was always curious about a Caprice Wagon or maybe a Magnum wagon. I think they would make more practical daily drivers if you had to drive them, and they are way more aerodynamically efficient (who decided trucks had to look like bricks?!!)
 
I've been looking at Trailblazers lately... the extended version (EXT) has a longer wheelbase. They also come in 2wd versions, they can also be had with a 4.2 straight 6 or a 5.3 v8.

http://www.chevrolet.com/trailblazer/specifications/

with the inline 6 the "max trailer weight" depends on the "axle ratio" and the two wheel drive version can handle about 200 more lbs.

4.10 = 6,400 and the max GCWR is 11,000

Just something I've been considering since the suburban is absurd to use as a second "car".
 
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