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Joined: 17 Jan 2013
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Posts: 20 		Direct Link To This Post Topic: suv tow vehicle
    Posted: 02 Apr 2013 at 12:24pm
I tow my 182G with an Acura MDX - 300hp and a 5000lb tow capacity.  I haven't towed a bunch yet, only a few hundred miles.  I'm happy with the power and torque.  While I can easily tow at 65mph+, I typically don't; the mileage is terrible and I don't think the time saved is worth the risk to me and my family.  Also, as others have stated, you can really feel the Rpod pulling at higher speeds.

The tech who hooked up the trailer when I bought it took it for a drive to help me get the brake controller set.  He was surprised and impressed at the towing ability of the MDX.

Another nice feature - the MDX has a setting to keep from shifting into 6th, which prevents a bunch of extra shifting.
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Posts: 1950 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Apr 2013 at 12:39pm
The MDX sounds pretty good.  I used to tow with a 2005 Jeep Liberty 4X4.  It had the tow capacity and I never had a problem.  One thing that helped though was that I set it up for off roading:  lower gears, bigger tires (stock were 28", changed to 32") and beefed up suspension.  That thing weighed 1/2 ton more than stock.  It also had steel skid plates covering everything underneath and a heavy duty steel front bumper with a winch.  It pretty much would go anywhere I wanted to go!

Terry
RP-175 W/Lift Kit 2011 Ford F-150 4X4
Saint Augustine, FL: The first permanent European settlement in the USA: 1565
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Joined: 25 Feb 2013
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Posts: 171 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Apr 2013 at 4:12pm
I am towing with Nissan Pathfinder 2013.  Tow rated at 5000#.   Tows like a dream. Getting 12 -13 at 60 MPH.  The new to Pathfinder CVT transmission is super.  No hunting for gears then upshifting and downshifting.  Just one big long smooth continuously variable gear. 
 
Your mileage may vary.
Tow Vehicle: 2013 Pathfinder 4WD R-POD Model 171
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Posts: 9059 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Apr 2013 at 5:55pm
Didn't know CVT had made it to heavy-duty vehicles yet, nice.  Our Prius has CVT and I would love it in a TV!
Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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Posts: 10 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Apr 2013 at 8:33pm
I tow with my 09 Toyota FJ Cruiser.  While I've never towed any travel trailers besides this one, I've towed a Buick, and a utility trailer.  I towed that Buick through the mountains in So.Cal. on I10 and it was great.  

I tow my r-pod with it and it seems like a breeze.  My first major outing was at 75mph with major headwinds and I had no troubles while the other TTs on the road were swerving and having issues.

The 4runner is basically the same vehicle, same drive train, almost identical frame.  The only difference is the creature comforts.
2009 FJ CRUISER (ARB BUMPER, Rear Airlift 1000, and some other stuff)
2013 Forest River R-Pod 177HRE (Mods)
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Posts: 171 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03 Apr 2013 at 9:46pm
Originally posted by techntrek

Didn't know CVT had made it to heavy-duty vehicles yet, nice.  Our Prius has CVT and I would love it in a TV!
 
We had a Prius.  Put about 180,000 miles on it.  Loved it, but got worried about the high cost of big battery replacement.  It was a 2005 model.  We sold it in 2010.
Tow Vehicle: 2013 Pathfinder 4WD R-POD Model 171
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Posts: 672 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03 Apr 2013 at 10:28pm
We have the 5.7 Hemi in the Jeep, way better than the 3.3 we had in the Caravan. No longer struggle up the long grades out west. The 4 wheel drive does pull down the fuel mileage some what.   Goose
Mother Goose's Caboose..2011 RP171..07 Grand Cherokee
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Posts: 2 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04 Apr 2013 at 3:22pm
Thanks to everyone for their input on tow vehicles.

Burt, you mentioned the winds from the gorge and using gas without ethanol.
It sounds like you had anti sway tow connection. Please indicate and comment on stability in cross winds. Also, comment on who/where you find gasoline without ethanol. Around here I haven't seen any "real" gas for years.

Thanks,
Roger
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Posts: 62 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05 Apr 2013 at 10:27am
Roger:

We find non-ethanol gas in The Dalles, Oregon.  It's also available in most rural cardlock pay pumps as well.  It is always ethyl which also helps.  It seems that the bureaucrats are imposing city rules on rural living as fast as they can, so look in rural areas for non-ethanol gas.

As an aside, if you have any small engines, i.e. mowers, etc.... use only non-ethanol gas.  If the engine sits for more than a few weeks, water will develop in the gas and cause failure, especially in carbureted engines.  This is fact, not fantasy or conspiracy theory.

Now, yes, we do have an anti-sway bar installed on the pod for safety.  We do get some unexpected gusts of wind in the Columbia river gorge.  The cascade mountains and foothills can cause downdrafts that one wouldn't expect.  Large semi's passing can also give you a fair "bump."  It only made sense out here in country where a large storm blows over semi's occasionally and the gorge can be closed to truck traffic, to have both a weight transfer hitch and a sway bar.

The anti-sway bar does make a difference in stability, especially when you are on a 2 lane highway and a semi goes the other way next to you.

Just look harder for real gas, you will find it.  The cardlock places usually have it.  A gas station that has it will also usually put out an additional sign indicating that they have it.

If you can't find it, just carry a bottle or two of some ethanol reducer and gas booster if you know you are travelling over some mountain passes.  Sea Foam is good as well as the good old sta-bil.

Burt
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Posts: 62 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 11 Apr 2013 at 3:00pm
Roger:

As a follow up to your question about non-ethanol gas (real gas), I just found out from a friend about this website:

www.pure-gas.org

Smart phone will put out address and coordinates

You can search by city/state or location for it.

Burt
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