Need Advise - Tow Vehicle

[Bero]

I am new. I've never owed an RV so suggestions would be appreciated.
We intent to purchase a Casita SD next spring. We own a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee 3.6 liter Altitude model but no tow package and 3500# tow capacity. The least costly avenue I can go down is to trade for a Grand Cherokee Limited with a 5.7 Hemi and tow package. I think the tow capacity is 7000# or so.
I have not seen Grand Cherokees mentioned much in my reading of forums and that worries me. We intend to travel the entire USA and also Canada so I need something that is up to the job. If the Grand Cherokee is not adviseable please let me know.
I welcome any advise from those of you who may now have or did have Grand Cherokees but all input is appreciated.
Thanks.

[John in Santa Cruz]

I am not familiar with the specific submodels of the G.C, but I bet if you added a aux transmission cooler to your existing vehicle, a class III hitch (from Draw-Tite, etc), and maybe beef up the rear suspension a bit....

...oh crap, I just googled, those have air spring suspension? ugh. nice for highway riding, not easy to upgrade.

[steve dunham]

Which Casita SD are you considering 16 ft SD or 17 ft SD ?
The 16 ft Casita has a much lower tongue weight
My 17 ft SD has a tongue weight around 425 lbs when loaded for travel
and a total weight of approx 3200 to 3300 lbs
Your present vehicle would be able to tow the 16 ft but the 17 ft has too much tongue weight IMHO
A vehicle rated to tow 5000 lbs and rated for 500 lbs of tongue weight should work just fine with either the 16 or 17 SD

[stevebaz]

if you really want a Grand Cherokee then wait until the end of the year when everything gets severely discounted you will save a big chunk of money.

[Steve Outlaw]

Originally Posted by stevebaz

if you really want a Grand Cherokee then wait until the end of the year when everything gets severely discounted you will save a big chunk of money.

They HAVE a 2015 GC. Apparently, they would like to use it as their TOW.

[Jon in AZ]

Originally Posted by Steve Outlaw

They HAVE a 2015 GC. Apparently, they would like to use it as their TOW.

The OP mentioned trading it for another GC with the V8 drivetrain and a higher tow rating. So yes, the timing of the trade is of some importance.

I personally think it would be a better choice for extended towing than the 3500# rated version if they are in fact looking at a Casita 17SD. It would also leave open some options for a larger trailer in the future.

Another factor to consider, since the OP mentioned traveling "the entire USA and also Canada," is cargo capacity. The longer you stay on the road, generally the more stuff you bring, and the Casita doesn't have a lot of storage. A truck with a cap is like a rolling storage shed, although you still have to watch your payload limits.

[steve dunham]

Originally Posted by Jon in AZ

The OP mentioned trading it for another GC with the V8 drivetrain and a higher tow rating. So yes, the timing of the trade is of some importance.

I personally think it would be a better choice for extended towing than the 3500# rated version if they are in fact looking at a Casita 17SD.

Another factor to consider, since the OP mentioned traveling "the entire USA and also Canada," is cargo capacity. The longer you stay on the road, generally the more stuff you bring, and the Casita doesn't have a lot of storage. A truck with a cap is like a rolling storage shed, although you still have to watch you payload limits.

Exactly the reason why I tow my 17ft Casita with a full size pickup with a fiberglass topper. We have made several trips of 6 to 8 weeks duration and the truck with topper allows us to bring along what we want and need securely .

[WizWid]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

....... truck with topper allows us to bring along what we want and need securely .

Sounds just like my SUV.....

[thrifty bill]

We like taking long trips (4 weeks or more) and we found the storage capacity in the Casita to be quite lacking. First, a lot of the lower cabinet and bench areas are not storage, they are full of utilities such as water tank, hot water heater, battery, water pump, electrical panel, and furnace. So what looks like quite a bit of storage really isn't.

Now on shorter trips, the Casita storage was more than enough.

Our Escape 19 probably has 3X to 4X the storage. First, a ton of storage under the bed. Secondly, water tank is below the floor so its not taking up storage space. Third, battery is in the box on the tongue (an option). So no lost storage to a battery. Fourth, the optional tongue box has lots of storage, great for stuff you don't want inside the camper. We have yet to have totally filled all of our storage even on our month long trips.

On longer trips for us, its not unusual to see large swings in weather and temperature. Our trip out west last year, we saw 25F weather at Yellowstone, and 105F in St George, Utah.

We do laundry once a week, so we don't carry four or five weeks of clothing. But depending on the route, we will take winter weather clothing, and hiking gear too.

[Spongelander]

Having a vehicle with 5000# tow rating / 500# tongue weight rating gives me peace of mind.

[hts1190]

Get cherself a Touareg diesel. Rated to tow 7700 lbs. We've towed our '13 Casita SD17 all over the country. Touareg tows flawlessly with excellent MPG. Great torque. Mountains no problem.

[J Ron]

Check out consumer reports on a number of vehicles before buying anything.

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by hts1190

Get cherself a Touareg diesel. Rated to tow 7700 lbs. We've towed our '13 Casita SD17 all over the country. Touareg tows flawlessly with excellent MPG. Great torque. Mountains no problem.

and it hasn't been recalled due to the dieselgate scandal ?

[floyd]

Originally Posted by J Ron

Check out consumer reports on a number of vehicles before buying anything.

That gives some folks peace of mind too!

[John in Santa Cruz]

CU's car tests are mostly oriented towards comfort and economy, and don't pay much or any attention to towing or payload. If they had their way, we would all be driving Prius and Camrys.

[Glenn Baglo]

All true, but frequency of repair stats are useful.

[Glenn Baglo]

Phil Edmonston's LemonAid is extremely useful resource.


https://www.dundurn.com/books/Lemon-...7%E2%80%932018

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by Glenn Baglo

All true, but frequency of repair stats are useful.

to a limited degree. I have tended to own 20-30 year old european cars, well maintained Volvos and Mercedes, all of which CU would have badly knocked for expensive maintenance when new, yet all of which are /far/ more solid than a 20 or 30 year old Toyota with 250K plus miles.

[Glass House]

I love my 2014 Jeep GC! With tow package it hardly knows my 1988 Bigfoot B-17 is there. The trailer weighs 2800 dry. It barely slows down on just about any hill. It also has a 220 amp alternator. Love that hemi!

[floyd]

Originally Posted by Glenn Baglo

All true, but frequency of repair stats are useful.

Yeah... that works...
I had 24 new trucks come in to fleet at the same time, 12 each of two different nameplates.


They had the same frequency of warranty repair stats... 6 each in the first 90 days.
One had 6 defective dome light switches in the doors.

The other varied... from failed transmissions to computer problems, to fuel injection (nothing minor)


Useful? Maybe,but satisfaction is subjective and statistics are always false.