Anyone Else towing with a Saturn Vue?

[flat_lander]

We have a 2004 Saturn Vue. It's a 3.5L FWD V6.  Its towing capacity is 3500 lbs.   Our new PU (to be picked up soon) has a dry weight of just over 2000 lbs.  The new PU has a max loaded weight of 3400 lbs.  I've seen several posting talking about TV add ons such as oil and transmission coolers.  What's the general concensus on these?  How do I know if I need on of these for my TV?  

Anyone one else towing with a Vue?  Any problems or difficulties?

Thanks,
flat_lander

[Billy Bob]

Hi there. We owned a 2002 Saturn VUE for 2 weeks and took it back and got a full refund. Of course the '02 models had a 3.0 engine but was also rated for 3500 lbs. I had to wait until it had more than 500 miles to tow my boat (didn't have a heavier PU back then) and that is when I decided to take it back under then Saturns full refund policy. Now I think you just can get credit for different Saturn vehicle.

Here's what I didn't like about the Saturn and they may have made some changes so some or all of these concerns may not affect you.

1)  The electric steering made the VUE seem to sensitive even without towing. One I hooked up my boat it increased that so much I was afraid to tow with it and I have been towing most of my life for LOTS of miles.

2)  The owners manual recommended that the tranny be put into I or intermediate gear which locked out 4th and 5th gear leaving you in 3rd gear on the highway. The rpm's increased to 3600 rpm's and I was only going 60 mph. I thought that would just KILL my gas mileage.

3) I noticed that the VUE has front end drive torque on the passenger side. So if you floored the gas pedal from a start or even when going slow you better hang on to the steering wheel with BOTH hands or your going hit the curb or go into a ditch on the right side of the road.

As far as add on's, I have added a EXTRA tranny cooler to my Ford Escape that replace the VUE and I say extra because the Escape already comes with a external tranny cooler. So YES I would recommend you adding that. I also added a tranny temp gauge because I want to monitor the tranny temps while towing in the mountains. If you have no plans going out west to say Yellowstone or any where in the Rockie Mountains I wouldn't spend the bucks on this add on. Engine cooler came with my Escape because it came from the factory with the towing package. But in your case if you don't have one don't bother to add it but change your engine oil sooner when towing a lot. I would say don't go over 2000 miles between oil changes and maybe get better oil like Mobil 1 instead of the dino oil most folks use. The synthetic oils are a bit more expensive but if you can change it yourself it will still be cheaper than getting dino oil at a oil change place.

Your last concern would be tongue weight. I believe the VUE has a softer suspension than the Escape giving you a better ride overall but it might sag in the rear end with too much tongue weight. Did you get the factory installed class II hitch. How much is your hitch tongue weight rated for. It should say right on the hitch.

Good luck with your PU and VUE (sounds a little funny) and let us know how things work out for you.

[flat_lander]

BB thanks for the info.  

We had a Class III hitch (2'' receiver) installed by Master Hitch
last year.  It wasn't much more than the Class II, not to mention it was immediately available.  Anyways, the htich rating and TW exceed the Saturn's towing capacity so I', covered on that end.  

I really don't imagine us every loading and towing more than 3000 lbs with the trailer.  As the stated the dry weigth is just over 2000 and I  I'm a lite camper.  Not one of those take the whole house with you types of campers....No offense to those who are

Thanks
flat_lander

[Billy Bob]

I wasn't concerned with the hitch capacity but rather how much tongue weight your VUE can handle. As I said the VUE is softer in the rear end than my Escape and my Sante Fe pulls the Escape down almost 2 inches when fully loaded.

You say your a light camper and I don't doubt you but things add up VERY fast. Remember to check your Gross Combined Weight that the VUE is rated for. If your VUE has say a combined gross weight of 7000 lbs and the VUE weighs 3500 lbs, the PU weighs 2300 lbs loaded that only leaves you with 1200 lbs for passengers and other gear loaded into the back end of the VUE. Now if your planning on towing in the mountains you must deduct 2% of total weight for every 1000 feet of elevation. So going into the Rockie Mountains that would mean you should lessen your load by a whooping 1400 lbs.

How much does your old PU weigh. Can you load it up with everything under the sun plus fill the water tank and take it for a test run to get a idea how a heavier PU will tow. That is what I would do before buying something that "might" be a bit to heavy to tow except locally.

[flat_lander]

Billy Bob,
   This is our first owned PU. In the past we have rented and they have never been anything fancy.  Bare bones, no fridge, heater, air...etc.  As such, I wasn't as concerned as I should have been or am now.  

I'm trying to learn as much as I can so that I can safely tow and enjoy our new family toy.  

That said I did some checking.....The Vue GVWR is 4894.  Its' max tow rating is 3500.  The Vue's max cargo capacity is 1308.   Doing the math the Vue itself must weight 3586.  

So a couple of questions..

1)  When towing, I must factor in the tongue weight into my vehicles max cargo capacity correct?  
2) How do I determine the CGVWR?  Is it as simple as adding the GVWR plus the Vue's max trailer rating?  This would be 8394.  Is that correct?

If I do the math correctly I think that we're going to be ok.  At least for the flat midwest towing.  

Vue GVWR 4894
====
max cargo 1308
minus         450 (occupants)
minus         350 (max tongue weight - hopefully more like 280 to 300)
====
leaves        500 for cargo in the Vue

Thanks...

[wynot]

Billy Bob,
 
That said I did some checking.....The Vue GVWR is 4894. Its' max tow rating is 3500. The Vue's max cargo capacity is 1308. Doing the math the Vue itself must weight 3586.
 

You do realize that the tow rating drops by the occupants in the car and cargo?

[jacbyrne]

My two cents...we tow our pup with a Honda Odyssey, which has a tow rating of 3500.  We did add a tranny cooler, and I would highly recommend that you do as well..  We've had great luck towing with the minivan.  It's not like our old V8 Durango where you couldn't even feel it, but we sure haven't had any problems.

[Billy Bob]

The CGVWR should be listed in your owners manual. And NO you can't just add the two up. Each auto manufacture has a different method to determine the weight rating. Since your probably still in warranty you don't want to exceed any of Saturn's ratings. Call Saturn or your dealer and pin them down on the CGVWR if it's not listed in your owners manual.

I Googled up this article on your Saturn. Sounds like they address all the concerns I had with the 2002 Saturn that I returned and boosted the horse power by 69 ponies and that a lot of extra power for towing compared to the earlier models. With 250 hp I am thinking your looking good towing that PU even in the mountains. But remember the tranny will still be your week link especially on a cross over vehicle like the Saturn because it is front wheel drive and those trannys are not built as well as the old rear drive vehicles.

Here's the article.  http://www.automotive.com/2004/12/saturn/vue/reviews/index.html

OK so what PU did you buy.

[flat_lander]

Thanks for all of the good info.  We will pick up our new Viking 2308ST in a few weeks. Hopefully mid May. Fingers are crossed.  

http://www.vikingrv.com/2006/epic/2308st.htm

I guess, I'll start researching oil and tranny coolers now.   I'm beginning to see that this list of things to do and add ons could be never ending.  Better to spend the money now than to ruin my TV and pay more later.  

I looked all trhu my manual and didn't see the CGVWR. I will call Saturn and have them send me documentation or a spec sheet if they have one.  I'd like to see it in writing.

My manual did mention that I could tow in the "Intermediate" gear as you Billy Bob had talked about.   However it did not state that I must tow with this gear.   What could happen if I tow using my regular "D"rive shift position?  

-flat_lander

[tknick]

If you use "D" the transmission may hunt between the gears to try to find the right gear.  Using the "Intermediate" gear locks out you top gear and elimnates the hunting problem.  Shouldn't think that would be a problem unless you are pretty much fully loaded (car and trailer) and driving on uneven terrain.  If you are cruising down the highway, "D" should be fine.

travis

[Billy Bob]

flat_lander,

When towing in "D" or OVERDRIVE watch your tach and pay attention if the VUE is downshifting to a lower gear like 4th or even 3rd gear. If this is happening even when the VUE is climbing a small incline your MUCH better off putting the gear shifter in "I" and this locks out your tranny from going to OVERDRIVE gears. This will PROTECT your tranny from heating up which is the culprit of destroying trannys. Yes your mileage will suffer but that's a lot cheaper than a $3000.00 tranny repair and if your still in warranty I would always be in "I" while towing.

As far a a ENGINE OIL COOLER - SAVE your money, use a synthetic oil (Mobil 1 is the one I recommend) and change it every 2000 mile if you were towing a lot during that period, if not it's good for at least 5000 miles. Engine oil coolers are OVERRATED in IMHO. But a good tranny cooler is a wise decision. Expect to pay about $125 to have it installed.

[abbear]

OK Let's put this puppy to bed.  I have over 10000 miles towing a popup with my 04 v6 honda engined Vue with NO PROBLEMS.  I towed our old Coleman Westlake (2750 actual weight) over 5000 miles all over the western US and Canada.  No Problems. Now I tow our Fleetwood Colonial/Santa Fe (1800 #) and its like nothing is back there.

The 02 Vue had a different engine and was rated only to 3000 lbs.

With my Vue - unlike most manufacturers - as long as the vehicle is under its GVWR I can tow 3500 lbs.  That means 2 adults or 4 adults the towing capacity does not change.  Let me say that again: 2 adults or 4 adults the towing capacity does not change. I leave the tranny in D unless I'm climbing or descending a fair grade.  Then I'll drop it into I.  If the tranny is searching I'll drop it into I as well.  As far as gas mileage I have gotten between 18 - 20 while towing (and that includes time spent with the tranny in I).

The 04 and onward  v6 Vues all have the same honda engine that the Odyssey, Pilot, Ridgeline, and Acura MDX have.  The only difference is the computer chip in each vehicle.

For my money, the Vue is a top notch small SUV.  It does what I bought it for and then some.  Reliability is not an issue for this model - but stay away from the 4 cylinder VTI transmission Vue.

More Vue info can be found here:
http://www.saturnfans.com/

Pictures of my Vue with our old trailer are here:
http://www.saturnfans.com/photos/showgallery.php/cat/500/ppuser/7880

Flat lander - you'll do alright.