Tow Mc26

[Mac26Mpaul]

Mast raised and car hooked up in a moment of pure stupidity - no, not that stupid though That photo was taken for my For sale add in that moment of stupidity when I thought about selling the M....

Trust me Rob, there was ample distance between the power line and my boat

[Mac26Mpaul]

I believe the Pajero is named the Montero in the US because Spanish is quite popular there and in Spanish, Pajero apparently means "one who likes to play with ones own willy".

Yeah, but they did sell the Chevy Nova at one time. In Spanish that means "doesn't go"!

[Tomfoolery]

Does Highlander use a Toyota Highlander?

Having just met Highlander for the first time a few weeks ago, I can tell you that him driving a Highlander would be like Jack Nicholson telling folks that he's an actor. I think he tans in a tartan pattern, for goodness sake.

[jimbo]

Jumbo...ive got my eye on one of those Tauregs for towing when the present tow vehicle dies..how does that TDI sip fuel when towing?

That I cannot say yet. Have not towed the yet. Will advise when I know.

Towed the from Brighton to Raymond island over the weekend. 14ltr per 100 km. Stuck to speed limits all the way. Ie 100 or 110kph where possible.

Overall the Touareg towed just fine. Issues with the factory VW trailer plug wiring I have to get to the bottom of though.

[Catigale]

16.8 miles per gallon if I did the calculation right, nice!

[Jeff L]

I picked up my Mac from the factory in Costa Mesa. Went over the Cahon (sp) Pass to Hwy 395
and all the way up to Carson City. Got 12.7, which isn't bad for 4 major passes to go over, and
a couple minor ones. Pulled the Mac with a 2005 GMC 3/4 ton van, just under 5 liter V8.

[Herschel]

As I read through this thread, I don't think I saw a discussion about Gross Combined Weight Rating (GCWR), which, If I understand it correctly is the maximum weight the tow vehicle is rated to carry including its own loaded weight and its tow's loaded weight. I tow my Mac 26X with a Ram 1500 pick up with a 5.7 HEMI. My GCWR is 13,000 lbs. The loaded truck weighs in at about 5,200-5,400 lbs and the boat rig, loaded up, (with dual axle trailer) at about 4,600-4,800 lbs. That totals around 10,000 lbs, well below the GCWR, and it does, in fact tow very well for long distances. But, when I tow my travel trailer that weighs about 6,800 lbs, it gets a little tighter, and it tows accordingly. But I did tow the travel trailer all the way from Florida to California and back with no problems. Just saw a lot of the country at 55-60 MPH! I mention this because I am curious what the GCWR of some of the SUV's and other vehicles under discussion are. My experience is that the actual towing capability listed in the specs assumes a virtually empty tow vehicle. When you get in the "real world" and load up the tow vehicle with fluids, passengers, and gear, the GCWR becomes the driving number, if the tow is close to the maximum for that vehicle. I have looked at these numbers carefully for a couple of reasons. One, my daughter-in-law is an automotive engineer for GM, and she assures me these vehicles are engineered for certain specifications and not more! Secondly, I don't want to ruin a perfectly good truck and have to start making payments on a new one! And, I want to be safe; got 69 years under my belt and would like a few more for self and family! Lastly, if I were in an accident, and found at fault, would being overloaded (over GCWR) give the other guy's lawyer that much more rope to hang me with. Or, if the tow vehicle is under warranty, and I had drive train problems, would the dealer nix the coverage if he suspected I was over GCWR.

[1st Sail]

Specs for the Highlander it looks like a will have to consider something else. Curb wt. 4200+, GVW w/v6 6000lbs. Pulling a Mac would definitely be out of spec. Ford Explorer GVW 9980 max trailer 5000 would make the grade.

[beene]

Specs for the Highlander it looks like a will have to consider something else. Curb wt. 4200+, GVW w/v6 6000lbs. Pulling a Mac would definitely be out of spec. Ford Explorer GVW 9980 max trailer 5000 would make the grade.

That does not make any sense

Why would any vehicle manufacturer state a specific vehicle is rated to tow 5000lbs if it were not.

Using your statement above, you are saying GVW rating is 6000 and when you include the weight of the vehicle, that leaves 1800lbs.

I do not think you are looking at it properly

The Highlander is capable of towing 5000lbs, which for most peoples macs, that would do it.

Other Suv's rated at 5000 or better for example...

Dodge Durango
Nissan Pathfinder
Hyundai Santa fe
Jeep Cherokee
Ford Explorer
VW Toureg
BMW X5
Audi Q7
BMW X6
All full size Suv's like Tahoe, Yukon, Suburban etc

From wiki
The gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR), or gross vehicle mass (GVM) is the maximum operating weight/mass of a vehicle as specified by the manufacturer[1] including the vehicle's chassis, body, engine, engine fluids, fuel, accessories, driver, passengers and cargo but excluding that of any trailers

Gross combined weight rating refers to the total mass of a vehicle, including all trailers.

Easy to confuse GVWR with GCWR.

Herschel has it right with his 1500, like my Durango with 5.7 v8 hemi rated tow cap at 8900lbs.

Well within the specs

[Tomfoolery]

Specs for the Highlander it looks like a will have to consider something else. Curb wt. 4200+, GVW w/v6 6000lbs. Pulling a Mac would definitely be out of spec. Ford Explorer GVW 9980 max trailer 5000 would make the grade.

The Gross Combination Weight Rating (GCWR), which Toyota doesn't publish, is the weight of the vehicle, passengers, cargo, AND the trailer combined. The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) is the vehicle plus passengers and cargo and tongue load, but doesn't count the trailer weight that's on it's own wheels. Some internet chatter suggests the number, from Toyota (but they had to ask), is 11,000 lb GCWR. I have no idea if that number is correct, as it's just the 6k + 5k trailer rating (with factory tow prep), and it's common for the GCWR to be less than the GVWR + tow capacity, but that's what's out there, FWIW (it's on the internet, so it must be true ).

[Sea Wind]

My experience is that the actual towing capability listed in the specs assumes a virtually empty tow vehicle

You are right. When I was looking to replace our tow beast I looked up online owner’s manuals for different SUVs, most of them assume two passengers and two carry-on luggage. I posted this table sometime ago for a 2009 Honda Pilot with 4500lbs towing capacity:
occupants trailer weight tongue weight
2 4500 450
3 4300 400
4 4100 330
5 4000 270
6 3800 190
7 2000 100
It assumes that passengers are 150lbs and 15lbs of cargo per passenger

[BOAT]

The GVWR is just what it says - total weight on the vehicle allowed.

What the poster is missing is that the MAC on it's trailer does not add 2000 pounds of weight to the the weight of your vehicle. The MAC on it's trailer only add 300 pounds of weight to the weight of your vehicle.

If there is still room for two more people in your car, the MAC will not surpass your GVWR - the boat adds about the same weight as adding two more passengers in your car.

Sure, if a VW Bug is rated to carry 4 passengers, and you only carry 2 and hook up the MAC to the back of the VW Bug you are not exceeding the Bugs GVWR but your are WAY over-exceeding the Bugs rated towing capacity (which I believe is like 1200 pounds). And any car can have a towing capacity but that does not mean it has the HORSEPOWER to tow that same capacity up a hill, or even worse, up a launch ramp.

GVWR is something you need to watch if your load up a lot of your gear in the front of the boat -

[Highlander]

The GVWR is just what it says - total weight on the vehicle allowed.

What the poster is missing is that the MAC on it's trailer does not add 2000 pounds of weight to the the weight of your vehicle. The MAC on it's trailer only add 300 pounds of weight to the weight of your vehicle.

If there is still room for two more people in your car, the MAC will not surpass your GVWR - the boat adds about the same weight as adding two more passengers in your car.

Sure, if a VW Bug is rated to carry 4 passengers, and you only carry 2 and hook up the MAC to the back of the VW Bug you are not exceeding the Bugs GVWR but your are WAY over-exceeding the Bugs rated towing capacity (which I believe is like 1200 pounds). And any car can have a towing capacity but that does not mean it has the HORSEPOWER to tow that same capacity up a hill, or even worse, up a launch ramp.

GVWR is something you need to watch if your load up a lot of your gear in the front of the boat -

U R Forgeting one or two other things r ur tires matching ur towing cap. ur braking system is calulated into that tow cap , tow cap is up too ! so maybe not included if not purchased with tow package which may include trans cooler, heavier suspension , bigger brakes , bigger wheel bearings , larger rims & tires , sway bars , beefer trans , diff drive ratio , its not just about throwing on a hitch !!!!!!!, ford F150 comes standard with #5000 tow cap. they have bigger tow options up to about #11500 avail to puchase , my F150 has a #9600 tow cap so will tow my mac in overdrive no problem thats a big Gas saver !! & if my trl brakes should fail I've still got lots of stopping power in the trk

[BOAT]

Right, what Highlander said - your car may have the towing capacity but not the HORSEPOWER - to me that includes not only the engine but the tranny and all the rest of the drive train. That's why I used the Volkswagen Bug as an example - the Bug has the GVWR to tow a MAC, but that does not mean it CAN tow a MAC.

There are so many other things involved - but your suspension and tires (the GVWR) does not need to be large enough to hold the entire weight of your car AND the MAC. I think that was what the poster was saying, and that is not really true. If it were true we would all need to drive 22 foot Sprinter Vans like I do that are rated to hold 15 people. (15 people is in excess of 2300 pounds) and the GVWR of the Sprinter is enough so that you could put the MAC on the roof of the Sprinter and drive away, but that really is not necessary to tow a MAC, but if that is what you want I suggest getting a Sprinter Van or some other equivalent 3/4 ton rated vehicle.

[Herschel]

Boat said:
your car may have the towing capacity but not the HORSEPOWER - to me that includes not only the engine but the tranny and all the rest of the drive train. That's why I used the Volkswagen Bug as an example - the Bug has the GVWR to tow a MAC, but that does not mean it CAN tow a MAC.

I think we are all pretty much saying the same thing, but using slightly different terms. I thought I would venture into the "troubled waters" of trying to express this a little differently with a view toward using what I think is a slightly more accurate technical language more apt to be found in other threads and sources. I think BOAT is right, but his use of the term HORSEPOWER is actually getting at the Gross COMBINED Weight Rating (GCWR), the max weight of tow vehicle and tow that ought to be moving down the road. Using the VW Bug example, if, perchance, the tongue weight of the Mac and trailer doesn't put the Bug over its Gross VEHICLE Weight Rating (GVWR), then you can hook it up and sit there safely in the driveway, but you can't actually TOW it anywhere. As soon as you do you start moving, you exceed the GCWR for the vehicle, and the trouble starts. And I saying what you are saying, BOAT?