RV Camping; Tips, tricks & repairs

[Darell_n]

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Anyone using any special software for backroads/ATV trail maps? We've been using BRMB Maps from the App Store and it's ok. Just wondering if we're missing some better software.

I use Avenza with downloaded government maps of whichever area I’m riding in. Free app and maps.

[ExtraSlow]

New horizon mall is a nice spot to adjust your WDH and do other trip prep.

[jampack]

Hey guys,

So our family is planning to, maybe, get a trailer soon and I, having to study all these terms about towing just gives me pretty bad headache lol. I am wondering if anyone could shine some light on our towing capacity. Here are the info of our vechicle.

2015 Nissan Pathfinder rated for 5000 lbs maximum towing capacity
GVWR 5986 lbs
Maximum tongue load 500 lbs
153,000 km and never been used to tow (only to haul heavy stuff up to 500 lbs at the back).
Max GCWR 10,000 lbs

We are planning to get a Geo Pro G20BHS. Details as follow:
Hitch Weight - 455 lbs
Dry Weight - 3513 lbs
Gross Weight - 4355 lbs
Cargo Weight - 842 lbs

On paper it appears like it can tow it easily but I wonder about the age of our vehicle especially it was never used to tow anything. It is well maintained vehicle and I could say 50% of the miles on it are highway.

Another that sort of confuses me is the tongue weight. If we put a Anti-sway hitch, it will be more than the tongue weight if we talk about the weight on the hitch (Andersen hitch appears to be around 52.5 lbs). But from what I read, As long as you are between the 10-15% of the Gross Weight of the trailer, you are "good".

I see people saying tongue weight and hitch weight are the same.

Thanks in advance.
(and sorry if it was discussed before, there's just a lot of pages to scan lol)

[Brent.ff]

You’re going to be so close to overweight once you add gear, people and food. Google says hitch weight of that model is 495. 5lbs isn’t much to play with

[sxtasy]

I'd say it depends on the kind of camping you want to do. If you're towing through the prairies and the flats, staying close to home, it should be just ok. If you want to head through the mountains on longer trips you're going to want more tow vehicle (and tandem axles on the trailer).

[jampack]

Thanks guys for the input.

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You’re going to be so close to overweight once you add gear, people and food. Google says hitch weight of that model is 495. 5lbs isn’t much to play with

I based the hitch weight from the dealer's website and information provided to us. It's kind of weird though because some trucks maximum tongue load is also 500 lbs. After looking in to some websites for information, this appears to be the 10-15% rule weight which we are within. Please correct me if I am wrong as there are multiple google searches and readings I've done that makes me confuse more lol.

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I'd say it depends on the kind of camping you want to do. If you're towing through the prairies and the flats, staying close to home, it should be just ok. If you want to head through the mountains on longer trips you're going to want more tow vehicle (and tandem axles on the trailer).

So we plan to do close and flat camping for the first year or two. No mountains yet until we trade in our other vehicle with a truck which I anticipate would be either early or late next year. I guess we'll be "minimal" in terms of the things we need and staying close means we can go home or go to the store while camping. We're new at this and want to learn and be comfortable first before going far (and ensure we have a better tow vehicle lol)

[ExtraSlow]

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Hey guys,

So our family is planning to, maybe, get a trailer soon and I, having to study all these terms about towing just gives me pretty bad headache lol. I am wondering if anyone could shine some light on our towing capacity. Here are the info of our vechicle.

2015 Nissan Pathfinder rated for 5000 lbs maximum towing capacity
GVWR 5986 lbs
Maximum tongue load 500 lbs
153,000 km and never been used to tow (only to haul heavy stuff up to 500 lbs at the back).
Max GCWR 10,000 lbs

We are planning to get a Geo Pro G20BHS. Details as follow:
Hitch Weight - 455 lbs
Dry Weight - 3513 lbs
Gross Weight - 4355 lbs
Cargo Weight - 842 lbs

On paper it appears like it can tow it easily but I wonder about the age of our vehicle especially it was never used to tow anything. It is well maintained vehicle and I could say 50% of the miles on it are highway.

Another that sort of confuses me is the tongue weight. If we put a Anti-sway hitch, it will be more than the tongue weight if we talk about the weight on the hitch (Andersen hitch appears to be around 52.5 lbs). But from what I read, As long as you are between the 10-15% of the Gross Weight of the trailer, you are "good".

I see people saying tongue weight and hitch weight are the same.

Thanks in advance.
(and sorry if it was discussed before, there's just a lot of pages to scan lol)

Paging @nzwasp for real world advice about towing with too small of a vehicle.

Long story short, find your payload sticker in the door, add up how much your family and gear in the cargo area of rhe suv and 15% of the gvw of that trailer is (hint its a lot more than that "hitch weight").
Good chance you are overloaded.

[killramos]

If you need to tow 1 time of year in a pinch, coming close to the tow rating for the vehicle probably makes sense.

If you need to pull every weekend all summer, it’s time to rethink your vehicle choice, especially if you don’t have much experience towing.

If trailer camping is something you are genuinely interested in it’s time to start think of towing with a full size truck/SUV. It’s really the only correct vehicle for the job.

[suntan]

Nope. Can’t pull that trailer with that SUV. You will blow out the transmission.

Not to mention your fuel economy will be so miserable you’ll be lucky to make it to Kananaskis.

Do not trust anything the dealer says in regards to tow capabilities.

[ExtraSlow]

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Do not trust anything the dealer says in regards to tow capabilities.

This is good life advice. RV dealers are NOT a reliable source of information on towing. One the scale of reputation, RV salespeople are several steps below used car dealers with a Z in their name.

[AndyL]

Car specific forums - there's almost always a what can I really tow with this... And some enthusiasts who've been through 4-5 trailers to see what works.

[nzwasp]

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Paging @nzwasp for real world advice about towing with too small of a vehicle.

Long story short, find your payload sticker in the door, add up how much your family and gear in the cargo area of rhe suv and 15% of the gvw of that trailer is (hint its a lot more than that "hitch weight").
Good chance you are overloaded.

Story is:

Towed a 2900 dry weight trailer with a Toyota Highlander rated 5000lbs. Broke my rear axle in the middle of sundre on way back from camping. I now have an Infiniti QX80 rated for 9000lbs

[Brent.ff]

My GVWR for my rockwood Roo is 4700, and towing it with a 6500 lb capacity Tacoma is pretty damn shitty. I’m ‘that guy’ on highway 22 going 98 km/hr the whole way. And my gas mileage is beyond poor. I can’t imagine trying to tow a 6000 lb GVWR with it. It works for now, is safe, but I still hate it every time I’m towing…zero chance I’m taking it out of province

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Imo I’d get at minimum something that’s got at least 1000lbs headroom over your loaded weight when towing, but more is better to a point.

[jampack]

Amazing guys. Thanks for advice. We will delay getting a trailer and get a truck first.

Thanks again.

[killramos]

Not sure if it’s been done.

But a cool thread would be a “black sheep” tow vehicle thread. Basically post vehicles you wouldn’t think of that are surprisingly great at towing. Basically anything but half ton trucks.

I have been trying to solve that “problem” myself for a while.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

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Not sure if it’s been done.

But a cool thread would be a “black sheep” tow vehicle thread. Basically post vehicles you wouldn’t think of that are surprisingly great at towing. Basically anything but half ton trucks.

I have been trying to solve that “problem” myself for a while.

X5D with air suspension. Even better if you can find a X5 50D (triple turbo 3L diesel, 376HP/546lbft) from the US. Really interested in getting one when we need a second family vehicle down the road.

Make sure you get a good warranty too

[sxtasy]

First trip of the season.

[Tik-Tok]

V8 4runner towed 5500+ lbs nicely in the prairies, Coquihalla sucked balls having to keep the RPM's fairly high, but it did it like a champ several times.

I would honestly hate to tow with anything that didn't have body on frame and 300 ft-lbs. I don't care how "ultra super duper special lite" the trailer is.

[killramos]

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X5D with air suspension. Even better if you can find a X5 50D (triple turbo 3L diesel, 376HP/546lbft) from the US. Really interested in getting one when we need a second family vehicle down the road.

Make sure you get a good warranty too

I’ve actually been looking at those! Might meet my perfect level of interesting and capability.

Wasn’t the most recent one a quad turbo?