The owners manual of your vehicle will tell you what you can tow. Look for your GCWR. That is the maximum
weight of your vehicle, passengers, cargo, trailer and trailer contents. It will also give the maximum trailer
weight you can tow. Keep in mind that the maximum trailer
weight is calculated with one 150lb driver, with an empty vehicle and empty trailer. Everything you add above that is deducted from your maximum trailer weight. Most trailer weights are given before options like
fridge, AC's, full
propane tanks etc.
For example: The
axle ratio in our Aerostar 4.0 liter is 3.27 (stated on the tag on the drivers door) This means we can tow from 0 - 3800 lbs with our GCWR being 7,500 lbs. So our
Trillium weighs 1000 lbs (icebox, no AC, no furnace). In it we carry about 300 - 400 lbs of stuff. This is common for most people and includes clothes, dishes, lawnchairs, full
propane tank, icebox full of food, basic camping necessities. In the van is probably about 2-300 lbs of gear, kid stuff, a 60 lb canoe on the roof and 2 adults with 3 teens. So assuming each passenger weighs 150 lbs, with all this combined we are only slightly more than 1000 lbs under our GCWR. But then if we take the bikes etc..... it adds up really quickly.
So right now with the number of people and the cargo we carry, our 1000 lb
Trillium is about the maximum we would feel comfortable towing and still give us some margin for safety.
Suz , Sorry, I hate to disagree with you but having a tow rateing of 15% above your trailer weight doesn't come close to covering what your actual traveling weight will be.
I guess what I am trying to say is that your trailers empty weight is not the only thing you have to consider in this. Read the owners manual thoroughly.
Another consideration that someone on one of the sites mentioned is: if you are in an accident and the insurance company can prove you were overloaded then you probably will not be covered.
So now that I've totally confused everyone, dinner calls.
Nancy