Towing a travel trailer, weight question?

Question

I have a 21' travel trailer recently purchased. The guy I bought it from said it weighs 1900lbs. My tow vehicle is a 2002 Suzuki XL7. The manual says it will pull max 3,000 lbs. Should I be worried? Thanks ahead of time

Answer 1

i wouldnt be worried about the trailer weight, it sounds ok for your vehicle, make sure to check the maxium tounge weight for your vehicle though.

Answer 2

Pulling it is not the worry,   stopping it is.     You need a quality hitch,  proper weight distribution,   anti-sway bars,   trailer brakes need to be working,  you need electric brake connection on tow vehicle.   Check with a dealer about your alternator output,  it may not be enough for trailer lights too.

Answer 3

Yeah, I would. Just because of your short wheelbase of the XL7. The trailer may weigh 1900#, but that is distributed along 21'. That is a 21' lever that could start to sway back and forth and you could end up on the side of the road on YOUR side. The XL7 is definately not my tow vehicle of choice, not for that length of trailer.

Get a hitch that is load-distributing with a sway control system. These will be life savers for your set up. I'm assuming your going to be getting an electric brake controller for the trailer brakes... RIGHT?!

Also, weigh the combination with your fresh water tank filled and all your other stuff (food, clothes, bedding, ect) to make sure that your not over-weight.

Answer 4

Make sure the total weight of the trailer is under 3000 pounds, that is fully loaded for a trip, (gear, water, food etc.)  make sure you have a quality hitch, (Reese makes a good one) as well as a good functioning set of trailer brakes) and probably most importantly , make sure you have adequate weight on the trailer tongue.  by this I mean don't put all your heavy stuff in the back of the trailer trying to keep weight off the tongue, doing this will cause the trailer to sway violently, KEEP THE WEIGHT FOREWARD.  a good rule of thumb is to have a minimum of 20 - 25% of the loads weight on the tongue.

Happy Camping.