Tow Vehicle Opinions...

[shadet]

Honda pilot 2004 is the vehicle. I will be towing my new Jay Feather Ultra Lite x20e with it. 4500 is the max for the TV. Dry weight of TT id 3690. Now I did get a WDH and a good brake system and I never tow with the fresh water filled. Dealer/salesman (whom I know) said I really shouldnt have a problem. I am also putting in a tranny cooler for the honda. Thots?

[Rustic Eagle]

My initial thought was that you might be pushing, even possibly exceeding, the weight limits of the Pilot..., but then again I don't know your loading habits.

Here are some items that ran through my mind when I read your post:

* The published tow rating of 4,500lbs for your Pilot unfortunately doesn't represent your "actual" tow rating, this thread will explain: http://www.jaycoowners.com/showthread.php?t=3866

* Think in terms of "loaded weights", not UVW or dry weights. Loaded weights will represent real life towing conditions.

* Check for the actual "ship weight" that is noted on the X20E's yellow weight sticker (UVW is 3,610lbs per Jayco web site). This may add another 100lbs - 250lbs to the published UVW weight (depends on Jayco model).

* I would add another 600lbs - 800lbs to the ship weight to reflect the added weights of the WDH, battery, cargo, and stuff (no fluid in tanks)......, the added weight is based on "my" loading habits if I owned an X20E.

Hypothetical scenario: Assuming the "actual" tow rating of your Pilot is 4,100lbs, and lets assume the loaded X20E is (3,610 + 100 + 600) = 4,310lbs, so this assumption would tell us that we are exceeding the Pilot's tow rating. The GVWR of the X20E is 4,750lbs.

Just some food for thought.

Bob

[shadet]

Admittedly, I am a newbie at the HTT philosophy for sure especially after only towing an Series 806 for 4 years. My first major question to the salesman when we sat down was safety in towing, and he crunched all the numbers. He said when it came down to it he would tow this with a pilot. Now - I do know he's all about selling units, but I sure hope wouldnt breach my safety concerns.

[Rustic Eagle]

Shadet,

I understand and appreciate your concern. I would be curious to see what weight figures and under what conditions (unloaded, loaded, etc.) he used when he crunched all the numbers. He stated that "he" would tow with the Pilot, but without knowing his math you don't know if you would be comfortable under the same conditions.

As I mentioned, everyones loading habits and camping styles are different. But, when I looked at the published tow weight rating of your Pilot and the published weights of the X20E, without even crunching numbers it raised a caution flag of a "possible" weight limit compromised TV/HTT combination.

Again, this is only my opinion. Feel free to take a copy of the information I provided, along with a copy of the tow rating data that my reference link provided to your sales person and see what he says.

Nothing wrong with towing at a TV's weight limits, that's what it was designed to do. But it's good to know if there is a real possibility of one approaching, or at their TV's weight limits, thus appropriate measures can be taken to insure the safety of the TV/HTT combination, if required, to stay within the weight limits.

The bottom line is that until one visits a CAT scale under loaded TV/HTT conditions, we have to rely on as much factual based weight data as possible thus minimizing assumptions. When assumptions are utilized they should be clearly defined and made with some degree of confidence.

Bob

[shadet]

All awesome points Rustic and thanks so much for the suggestions!!! I will definitely follow up up on this. Being the fairly light travelers (even with 2 daughters-lol) I'm hoping to make it work. Thanks again....

[29BHS ECO]

shadet-- If nothing else you will take the life out of the pilot. Larry

[Rustic Eagle]

Originally Posted by shadet

snip.......Thanks again....

Your welcome. It's great that you are taking the time to understand the application of your TV & HTT weight limits, because with this knowledge I'm sure your first camping trip will be a safe adventure.

Bob