Help! I am new to this (NV 3500 SL) towing a Huge Trailer?

[istich27]

Hello everyone, totally new here, and I really need your help. I am looking to buy an NV 3500 SL and tow a Keystone Bullet 330BH. Dry weigh is 7000, fully loaded is 8,600. Is it possible or am I gonna kill the NV? Thoughts, Experience, Ideas Welcome 

 

Thanks a Bunch,

Ian

[radin2son]

Check Cargo, Hauling & Towing to get a general idea what you can tow and what you need to tow safely. You also should check Introduce Yourself... for posts asking the same question.

Edited April 7, 2019 by radin2son

[istich27]

I already checked. Towing Capacity is 8700 but that leaves 100lbs for room. Thats what I'm really asking I guess

[ASD Dad]

Are you new to towing?  Maxing out specs is not a great way to introduce yourself to towing anything.

 

You need to look at combined weight of Camper and NV - cant be over 16,000 lbs for both.

 

Can the NV tow that camper?  Yes.  Provided you dont overload anything - rear axle, total weight, payoad of NV, etc...

 

It all depends on your NV honestly.  We dont know anything about you, your family or what it will be loaded with.  Do you have no kids?  9 kids?  Lots of "stuff" or pets?  I assume you at least a couple kids looking at a bunkhouse camper.

 

Every pound you add to the NV takes away that much towing capacity for the camper.  If you have 500 lbs of kids then remove 500 lbs from your towing capacity.  

 

If you travel light and dont load the camper up too much (most people pack around 1000 lbs of "stuff" in a camper, it adds up quickly!), get a really good WDH hitch and brake controller AND set them both up properly (dont rely on dealer to do it right) then - Yes - you should be really close to being able to tow that camper.

[Mark Rogers]

Every pound you add to the NV takes away that much towing capacity for the camper.  If you have 500 lbs of kids then remove 500 lbs from your towing capacity.  

 

Except that when you run into the axle weight limits, every pound you add to the NV reduces your towing capacity by much more than a pound.  Depending on your hitch type and weight distribution, you may need to remove 10 pounds from the trailer to reduce the NV's axle load by 1 pound.  So, if you have 12 adults in the van, your towing capacity will be minimal because the van won't support much trailer tongue weight, even though you'll be far below the max combined weight.

Edited April 8, 2019 by Mark Rogers

[ASD Dad]

What Mark said is true.  I was trying to keep things short and simple.

 

Honestly - dont go over 16,000 lbs combined and you should be OK unless for some weird reason all your weight is over the rear axle, too heavy or light tongue on trailer, etc.

 

The ONLY way to know your weight is... to go weigh it.  Seriously.  Just do it.  It is cheap, fast and painless.  Any CAT scale at truck stops everywhere can do it.  A lot of stone yards also have scales you can call about using.  Even some larger farm and fleet type stores have scales.

 

There are many sites that will explain exactly how to measure the weights needed (you need 3 separate weights on the scale).  This will also tell you how well your weight is loaded and how well your WDH hitch is set up.