Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 
 


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 03-29-2015, 05:32 PM   #1
New Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2015
Posts: 5
Default Used Class B that can pull a small car?

I have a small car with front wheel drive, that has a curb weight of 3400 lbs. I was thinking about getting a Class B that could tow this vehicle, if the small car was on a dolly. I found an old Roadtrek 190 Popular with a 318 engine, but I've heard that is not good for towing another car. I've also heard that if I want to tow a car, I should not look at Class B's at all. Are there any Class B's that I should look for? I am looking for something less than $30k used. I would occasionally tow the car on a 2000 mile trip, so it would be for long trips. I would also be staying in the Class B "full time".
imconfused is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-29-2015, 05:55 PM   #2
Platinum Member
 
markopolo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: New Brunswick, Canada
Posts: 8,828
Default Re: Used Class B that can pull a small car?

I think there will be a lot of Class B vans that can tow that weight.
I've put the data from my van into towing calculators and think 3600 lbs or so would be OK for my van.

I suggest looking for a van with an external transmission cooler and a 4.10 rear axle ratio. The '04 Chevy based Roadtrek I owned had both. I'm not that up-to-date on used Class B pricing but think your budget should be enough to buy something like that.

My current van has a 3.73 rear axle ratio and that was a factor in settling on the 3600 lbs tow weight for it.

This topic has some good info: http://www.classbforum.com/phpBB2/vi....php?f=9&t=615 I towed a car behind my Class C. Your setup would be a bit different if you use a dolly. I towed the SUV with 4 wheels on the ground (no dolly).
markopolo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-29-2015, 07:26 PM   #3
Platinum Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: PHX, AZ
Posts: 2,648
Default Re: Used Class B that can pull a small car?

as above, look at the manufacturers brochures for older models- roadtrek has all their stuff available on their website.

Pleasure way will send you .pdf brochures.

I have a 2006 pleasure-Way Lexor TD- built on a 2005 Chev 3500 chassis.
this has the 305hp 6.0 L vortec, 3 spd + overdrive tranny and a 4:10 rear end.
this is rated for pulling 5000 # with a 500# tongue weight

I "think" that the chev based van will give better tow rating than a dodge or ford.

I also "think" that my tow dolly weighs about 600~700 pounds- guessing just from having to move it around and jack it up from time to time- it's a big tex. no aux brakes

Mike
__________________
Mike
2006 Pleasure Way Lexor TD on a Chev 3500
Previous: tent strapped to Electra-Glide
mkguitar is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-30-2015, 02:45 AM   #4
Platinum Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: SoCal
Posts: 792
Default Re: Used Class B that can pull a small car?

3400 lbs for the car and 1200 lbs(?) For the tow dolly is 4600lbs give or take. I think it would be more closer to 5000lbs because inevitably the car will have extra stuff placed inside. Does the tow dolly have auxiliary braking?
stanw909 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-31-2015, 02:13 PM   #5
Platinum Member
 
markopolo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: New Brunswick, Canada
Posts: 8,828
Default Re: Used Class B that can pull a small car?

Good point re: adding in the tow weight of the dolly.
markopolo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-31-2015, 02:37 PM   #6
Platinum Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 2,058
Default Re: Used Class B that can pull a small car?

can your car be towed 4 down?
gerrym51 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-06-2015, 02:30 AM   #7
Bronze Member
 
slipbobber's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: White Bear Lake MN
Posts: 39
Default Re: Used Class B that can pull a small car?

I have a 99 Leisure Travel on Dodge 3500 chassis and a 360 engine. It is a pulling machine. It has air bags on the rear axles and torsion bars front and back. I pulled a Lexus RX300 1000 miles with a tow dolly with no problem. I now have a 2700lb 1992 Geo Tracker that I tow 4 down on a tow bar. We bought the B for many short trips but there are trips that we stay a while and that's when the Tracker comes in very handy. It takes about 3 minutes to hook up and go. We did run into some big wind a couple of weeks ago and i did slow down to 60 mph on the freeway. IMHO the heaver Lexus might have pulled better in the wind. Keep in mind the tow dolly has a wider track and very stable, but is a hassle. I could not pull the Lexus 4 down so the dolly was necessary.
__________________
When you retire from fishing, then what?
slipbobber is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-07-2015, 03:47 AM   #8
Silver Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2014
Posts: 61
Default Re: Used Class B that can pull a small car?

It's not just what weight you can tow, but also the GCWR. You will have to weigh the fully loaded RV, the toad and dolly, to get this number.
The GCWR is the maximum allowable weight of the tow vehicle and any towed vehicle combined.
Caped Crusader is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3

All times are GMT. The time now is 08:37 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.