Pull popup w/dodge grand caravan minivan

[msdldavies]

I am looking for advice pulling a popup with a 2003 Dodge Grand Caravan. I like the Fleetwood Niagara or Arcadia but am concerned about the weight load. The dealer for my Dodge says I can pull a max of 3500 lbs and the camper is 3300lbs. Does anyone have any advice or experience pulling with a minivan?

[sewserious]

Well, yeah, and you can't pull a camper than heavy. You have to subtract any options on your van, passengers, and cargo in the van from the tow capacity. Then you have to remember that the weight the dealer gave you is the "dry" weight.  That is what the camper weighs without any options.  If you add air conditioning or anything else that is optional equipment it makes the camper weigh more.  Just adding air would add 100 to 150 lbs and would make the camper weigh 3400 to 3450 lbs and that is BEFORE you pack anything in it.

You will need to stick to something under 2000 lbs or LESS for dry weight and around 2500 GVWR depending on how much stuff and how many people you are going to have in the van.

[Eric Sass]

Just don't tow it up hill.
I have a Niagra that I tow with an Explorer. By the time you load your van & the camper with equipment and supplies, you will be way over the tow limits.

[austinado16]

And when you do get serious about towing something, make sure to add the largest transmission oil cooler you can fit, and I'd personally spend the extra money and have a mechanical trans oil temp gauge installed too.

To give you an example of what trans oil temps can do, I rarely see my trans oil temp gauge over 175*F. That would be pulling a long grade, with a car on a car trailer and in 85-90*F outside air temps.  Normally, it sits at 150-160. During a recent super steep and long grade with the 2,100lb PUP, we got stuck behind a big rig, on a 2 lane rural road.  There was no passing him, it was way to steep.  The outside air temps were 100+ and we were crawling along at maybe 35mph.  The gauge topped out at 215*F and that's with my HUGE oil cooler and a finned cast aluminum pan that holds 5 extra quarts of ATF.  Survived it just fine, but had I been all bone stock, I would have been pushing tow truck back to the nearest shop!

[cndbanks]

We have a 2000 Dodge Caravan and just bought a Jayco model 1206.  We had to have a bigger transmission cooler installed.  We haven't actually towed the PUP yet, though, but the dealer told us this was fine!

[Miller Tyme]

The last person I would listen to about towing would be the RV salesman...he's looking for the quick buck. Check the various camping forums of people who have actually towed campers with different vehicles for advice.

[GeneF]

I am looking for advice pulling a popup with a 2003 Dodge Grand Caravan. I like the Fleetwood Niagara or Arcadia but am concerned about the weight load. The dealer for my Dodge says I can pull a max of 3500 lbs and the camper is 3300lbs. Does anyone have any advice or experience pulling with a minivan?

Yes, I have pulled four popups with five minivans and although this did work, I would not do it again.  I pulled a 98 Coleman Mesa which had a max weight of about 3000 pounds.  I had a sway bar because I could not tow at 30 mph without sway.  Three of the minivans were Dodge or Plymouth products.

Yes, you can pull a popup with a minivan but I would suggest a light weight one and no longer than a ten foot box.  You minivan will be comfortable with that one.

I towed a 1995 Rockwood 10 footer with a 96 Ford Windstar (no tow package (I didn't know better)) and it worked fine.  By the way, I have owned 6, 8, 10, and 12 foot popups.  Best all around size for me was the 10 footer.

Do some research before the salesman tells you that you can pull a 30 foot tt with your minivan.

Safety for yourself and your family should be your first concern.

If you do a search for minivan, you should find a lot of different opinions.

[msuclan]

I just bought a 2004 Fleetwood Tacoma.  I pull it with my Town and Country.  I have the transmission coolant and a V6 3.4 L engine.  I was VERY nervous about pulling the camper but have been assured by the Chrysler dealership that I will be ok.  I weighed it at the local garden center and I weigh in under the 3500 weight limit.  I have 4 bikes on top, AC and a car top carrier.  I used a sway control bar, too.  I also needed to have a break connection installed on my van for the breaks on the camper.  

Towing the  camper in Ohio and Michigan was no problem.  I still have concerns about towing in the mountains, though.

You'll probably need to go with a lighter camper.  Something under 2500 so that when you get loaded up you wont go over 3500.

I'd hate to give my minivan!  I love it for it's versatitility.  I don't like SUV's so, I'm hoping I can stick with what I have.

[unicorn]

I am looking for advice pulling a popup with a 2003 Dodge Grand Caravan. I like the Fleetwood Niagara or Arcadia but am concerned about the weight load. The dealer for my Dodge says I can pull a max of 3500 lbs and the camper is 3300lbs. Does anyone have any advice or experience pulling with a minivan?

I have a 2003 Dodge Grand Caravan with the 3.8 liter engine and the factory installed tow package which includes the trans cooler oil cooler and high amp alternator and load leveling suspension. I pull a 2005 clipper popup that weighs about 3200 lbs loaded for camping and with 4 adults and 2 small kids have never had a problem towing even thru the  Tennessee Kentucky WestVirginia  Virginia  and North Carolina Mountains. The lowest my speed has ever dropped to was 45mph going up some of the steeper grades. I also have a sway bar and trailer brakes.
That still leaves me about 600 lbs under the  limit for towing. The Dodge owners manual says I can tow 3800 lbs and the gross  rating is 8650 lbs The van weighs 4250 lbs to that still leaves me with 4400 lbs for passengers and trailer weight.

[flyfisherman]

I always try to side with safety and here's something to consider when you have a loaded vehicle and PU ... what happens when something unexpected comes up ... will the TV be able to handle the manuvering?

As an expample of my experience, I had a leaf spring break on my PU while I was headin' on down the road, maybe doing something between 65 and 70 mph. What happens when you break a spring is that the PU body comes down on the wheel of that side and locks it up. Bad enough that your caught by surprise, but believe me, the camper will not want to go straight! Lucky for me my TV was a pick-up with enough towing capacity to handle twice the load it was pulling but my point is that could have been enough for a lesser rated TV to maybe lose control.

I like a safety margin just for just such unexpected happenings.




Fly

[thabull]

Being a trucker obviously those of you that even consider pulling anything with a inadequate TV that just was not designed to tow anything to start with or rated to tow what they want to tow have not seen the consequinces. RV's and TV scattered all over the highway and the passengers of the TV being hauled off in ambulances and body bags. Sure going down a flat/straight road everything may seen fine but you haft to ask yourself what would happen if you find yourself in a emergency/panic situation having to stop real fast or swerve real quick ,can you do it safely. I can tell you what will happen in most cases what ever is being towed will toss around that inadequate TV like a rag doll before you have anytime to react.  Personally I would like to see a law passed that would require anybody wanting to tow any kind of combination vehicle ( boat,rv,horse trailers) haft to pass a skills and on road driving test to be allowed to tow anything. They would also haft to go to there local DMV and have there TV certified by a officer to tow what ever they want tow. I am sorry if I have offended anybody but in my 20+yrs of driving I have seen way to many hurt/killed because they where towing with a inadequate TV and not having the skills it takes to pull a combination vehicle.

[ldgregory]

I am sorry if I have offended anybody but in my 20+yrs of driving I have seen way to many hurt/killed because they where towing with a inadequate TV and not having the skills it takes to pull a combination vehicle.

Don't be sorry about it. Then again, I happen to agree with you.

We all had to take a drivers test, most motorcycles also require a driving test, why not a trailering test? Not just for proving you can drive one practically, but that you know the ins and outs concerning loading, tow ratings, GCVWR, GVWR, dry weight, wet weight etc.

I've seen too many TVs nose up because they're hauling a trailer too heavy (or just too much tongue weight), or doing 15MPH on a steep hill on the freeway because the TV hasn't got the guts to pull the trailer any faster. Just because something can be physically mated up to the TV doesn't mean it's appropriate or safe to tow it.

Pulling a PU down a nice easy highway is nothing.. It's when someone cuts you off, a deer runs out in the road, you hydroplane, or any other of a hundred possible things requiring an emergency stop/slowdown or swerve is when you'll learn just how important it is to have a TV designed to safely tow whatever it is you're pulling.

Said it before, say it again. My wife has prosecuted people who've crashed resulting in a fatality or great bodily injury due to improper or illegal towing. Believe me, they will do all the math to find out if you were over the limits anywhere. Even if the thought of being prosecuted for it by the DAs office doesn't faze you, at least consider you're putting your family's life on the line. All it takes is a split second for everything to go wrong.

[abbear]

I towed with a Dodge Grand Caravan (3.3 v6)for several years and many thousands of miles all over the west.  My Coleman Westlake was right about 2750lbs and I never had any problems towing.  That being said - I weighed everything to be sure I was within limits.  I never trusted either the RV or the car dealer - read the flippin owners manual!  All the info is there.

That said - I think the trailer you are looking at is too big.  If you need a 12' box there are others that are lighter.  Read your van's owners manual, calculate out weights, and use that weight as your starting point.  If you start with the trailer without considering what you have now you'll end up buying a new vehicle to tow with.