Towing Vehicle for R-pod 178?

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   Howdy!

I'm new to the Forum and new to trailering, so please be 
gentle...  My wife and I retired from tent camping last year and bought a
 new (2015) R-Pod 178.  We took six trips last summer, using her 2006 
SAAB wagon to pull the R-pod.  It has a stated towing capacity of 3,500 
lbs, which we thought would work out with a lightly-loaded, 2,500-lb 
R-pod.  It performed pretty well, but we have some pretty steep, long 
climbs out of the Salt Lake Valley (our home) to get to a lot of our 
favorite places.  With the SAAB, we just kissed the "H" a few times, but
 never had to pull over to let the engine cool.

The SAAB is 
probably getting too old for this and there are many places we'd like to
 go that are higher and steeper than we've gone.  We'd like to get a 
vehicle that we'll have confidence in.  Also, this would also be my 
wife's commuting vehicle, so she'd rather not have a pickup.

In
 talking to friends who pull R-pods, we've gotten all kinds of often 
conflicting information.  For example, one friend has an Xterra with a 
tow rating of 5,000 lbs, but he's unhappy with the power.  Another 
swears by his Ford 150 truck.  I've learned over the years to simply not
 believe dealers, so, coupled with my very limited knowledge of cars, 
trucks, etc., I'm in sort of a pickle.

Ideally, we'd like to get a
 lease-return, low-mileage SUV (my wife's really not a truck person) 
that doesn't drive like a tank around town and has more versatility than
 a pickup.

So, I thought I'd take a survey, of sorts, and see what experienced owners use to pull their R-pods.  Any suggestions?

Thanks,

thegarrs

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thegarrs@xmission.co Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 09 Feb 2016 Location: Utah Online Status: Offline Posts: 3	Topic: Towing Vehicle for R-pod 178? Posted: 09 Feb 2016 at 7:35pm
	Howdy! I'm new to the Forum and new to trailering, so please be gentle... My wife and I retired from tent camping last year and bought a new (2015) R-Pod 178. We took six trips last summer, using her 2006 SAAB wagon to pull the R-pod. It has a stated towing capacity of 3,500 lbs, which we thought would work out with a lightly-loaded, 2,500-lb R-pod. It performed pretty well, but we have some pretty steep, long climbs out of the Salt Lake Valley (our home) to get to a lot of our favorite places. With the SAAB, we just kissed the "H" a few times, but never had to pull over to let the engine cool. The SAAB is probably getting too old for this and there are many places we'd like to go that are higher and steeper than we've gone. We'd like to get a vehicle that we'll have confidence in. Also, this would also be my wife's commuting vehicle, so she'd rather not have a pickup. In talking to friends who pull R-pods, we've gotten all kinds of often conflicting information. For example, one friend has an Xterra with a tow rating of 5,000 lbs, but he's unhappy with the power. Another swears by his Ford 150 truck. I've learned over the years to simply not believe dealers, so, coupled with my very limited knowledge of cars, trucks, etc., I'm in sort of a pickle. Ideally, we'd like to get a lease-return, low-mileage SUV (my wife's really not a truck person) that doesn't drive like a tank around town and has more versatility than a pickup. So, I thought I'd take a survey, of sorts, and see what experienced owners use to pull their R-pods. Any suggestions? Thanks, thegarrs
	John Garr