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SUV Off-Road Tow Vehicle Question
- Thread starter Mayalie
- Start date
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- Tags
- suv package tow vehicle
As long as you don't exceed the car's towing capacity it doesn't matter what you tow with.
As for ride height this is from the Camp-Inn FAQ page...
Camp-Inn trailers use a 2" Ball for the hitch.
The standard ball height for a Street model is 14 inches.
The standard ball height for an SUV package model is 17 inches.
Ideally, the tow vehicle's hitch should be at approximately the same height. Add about 150 lbs to the trunk or rear of the tow vehicle to simulate the tongue weight before measuring hitch height. If your hitch is within two inches of the ride height, (12-16 inches Street, 15-19 inches SUV) it will be close enough to make the trailer look level. More or less will make the trailer ride nose high or nose low, respectively. This doesn't hurt the trailer, but it doesn't look as good.
We recommend setting it either level or nose high by about one inch. Then, if you want to sleep in the trailer without unhitching it, you won't be sleeping "downhill".
Camp-Inn Teardrop FAQ
As for ride height this is from the Camp-Inn FAQ page...
Camp-Inn trailers use a 2" Ball for the hitch.
The standard ball height for a Street model is 14 inches.
The standard ball height for an SUV package model is 17 inches.
Ideally, the tow vehicle's hitch should be at approximately the same height. Add about 150 lbs to the trunk or rear of the tow vehicle to simulate the tongue weight before measuring hitch height. If your hitch is within two inches of the ride height, (12-16 inches Street, 15-19 inches SUV) it will be close enough to make the trailer look level. More or less will make the trailer ride nose high or nose low, respectively. This doesn't hurt the trailer, but it doesn't look as good.
We recommend setting it either level or nose high by about one inch. Then, if you want to sleep in the trailer without unhitching it, you won't be sleeping "downhill".
Camp-Inn Teardrop FAQ
The TD will most likely be a little taller than your TV, so the TD will maybe have a little more wind resistance than if being pulled by and SUV, but your TV has more than enough towing capacity, so like others have said it's more a matter of matching up the hitch height with the tongue height. I also added some airbags into the coil spring suspension in the back of my VW Passat TDI when I found that the trunk full of supplies would sometimes make the hitch hit the pavement when going in or out of places with steep entrance/exit driveways. The airbags can lift the rear end a couple inches, back to it's normal height to avoid this, and are relatively inexpensive (https://www.etrailer.com/Vehicle-Su...n2bc-PbM5vCjHSBB2wDtaYYA_3P0WUsxoCqFgQAvD_BwE). I had to take the inside measurements of the rear coil springs, and then call Firestone to determine which model I needed, since my vehicle was not listed for these airbags on etrailers website, but they have been in for 5 years now with no problems, and do the job fine.
Sweeney
Administrator
Think long and hard. Research the make and model specifically about transmission problems….towing puts extra stress, and if the tranny you’re looking at is already problematic, another 1500 lbs won’t make it better.
German engineering is code word for expensive to fix. VW, Benz, BMW. I’ve had bad luck with all 3.
German engineering is code word for expensive to fix. VW, Benz, BMW. I’ve had bad luck with all 3.
I had heard similar info on the automatics, so both my Jetta and Passat TDI's TV's have been manuals, which have had no towing associated issues.
I'm sure they are getting harder to find now, but our TV when we first got our 2007 CI550 ultra in 2013 was a 2005.5 VW Jetta TDI with a 5spd manual. I sold that in 2016 with 165K miles when I replaced it with 2015 Passat TDI 6 spd manual. I flew from Mpls to St.Louis, MO to pick that one up. Got there at 8am out of the dealers door at 10:30am home for dinner by 7pm, and 52 mpg on the trip home. Tow mileage 30-34 mpg. depending on terrain.
Jerry Kemp
Junior Ranger
that joke seems to be a US thing.
Last time I went to Europe, the only way to rent a vehicle with an automatic transmission was either to be handicapped or be from the States.
Jerry Kemp
Junior Ranger
Ex-VW diesel Jetta owner here. I've also frequently heard that about the automatic. The story I've frequently been told regarding poor transmission reliability is that the automatic wasn't a VW or even of European origin. I've been told that it was from an asian source, but I can't remember the brand.
Sweeney
Administrator
I see a trned here. Jetta TDI owner here too -- can't recall year, but mid/early 2000's. Before the blue-tec debacle. Great car, manual transmission -- which seems to be pretty solid. But every person I knew who had an automatic had trouble.
A friend at work went through 4 transmissions --- fortunately, all warranty. 'Dub was like "we've never seen this before!" -- he was in the "Oh yeah? Go to this forum...."
The only trouble I ever had with it, was randomly it would not start...Had to open the hood, and I found a silenoid that didn't open reliabley --- on the firewall, on the passenger side...flip it and the car would start right up. Every time. To this day, I don't know what the name of the part was...but it worked, I knew about it....
Loved that car until the timing belt broke...left me in the middle of nowhere. Quite literally. County road, top of an off-ramp in a wide area where trucks sometimes park overnight. 1 street light, very weak cell service (1 bar, if I stood on teh roof of the car, and put my right hand into the air kind of service) at 10:00pm on a friday night.
Had enough "juice" in the cell battery to make 1 call --- fortuntaely a B&B I knew about was about 10 miles away, I called and pleaded for help....they came and got us. But it was sketchy.
Loved that car
A friend at work went through 4 transmissions --- fortunately, all warranty. 'Dub was like "we've never seen this before!" -- he was in the "Oh yeah? Go to this forum...."
The only trouble I ever had with it, was randomly it would not start...Had to open the hood, and I found a silenoid that didn't open reliabley --- on the firewall, on the passenger side...flip it and the car would start right up. Every time. To this day, I don't know what the name of the part was...but it worked, I knew about it....
Loved that car until the timing belt broke...left me in the middle of nowhere. Quite literally. County road, top of an off-ramp in a wide area where trucks sometimes park overnight. 1 street light, very weak cell service (1 bar, if I stood on teh roof of the car, and put my right hand into the air kind of service) at 10:00pm on a friday night.
Had enough "juice" in the cell battery to make 1 call --- fortuntaely a B&B I knew about was about 10 miles away, I called and pleaded for help....they came and got us. But it was sketchy.
Loved that car
Sweeney
Administrator
Still a few out there though: 2005 Volkswagen Jetta GLS For Sale in Cincinnati, OH - TrueCar
Yes, changing the timing belts at the recommended interval is something that you really don't want to put off, since a broken belt on an interference engine pretty much ends the life of the engine.I see a trned here. Jetta TDI owner here too -- can't recall year, but mid/early 2000's. Before the blue-tec debacle. Great car, manual transmission -- which seems to be pretty solid. But every person I knew who had an automatic had trouble.
A friend at work went through 4 transmissions --- fortunately, all warranty. 'Dub was like "we've never seen this before!" -- he was in the "Oh yeah? Go to this forum...."
The only trouble I ever had with it, was randomly it would not start...Had to open the hood, and I found a silenoid that didn't open reliabley --- on the firewall, on the passenger side...flip it and the car would start right up. Every time. To this day, I don't know what the name of the part was...but it worked, I knew about it....
Loved that car until the timing belt broke...left me in the middle of nowhere. Quite literally. County road, top of an off-ramp in a wide area where trucks sometimes park overnight. 1 street light, very weak cell service (1 bar, if I stood on teh roof of the car, and put my right hand into the air kind of service) at 10:00pm on a friday night.
Had enough "juice" in the cell battery to make 1 call --- fortuntaely a B&B I knew about was about 10 miles away, I called and pleaded for help....they came and got us. But it was sketchy.
Loved that car