Xterra tow vehicle

[Capeteacher]

In my last thread labeled Camplite I asked about towing the Camplite 21rbs with an Xterra. I got great feedback with lots of information. So I took that information and went back to searching for a TT that I can tow safely with the Xterra. I took into account the hitch weight, the GVWR and the length and these are the ones I came up with.

Flagstaff 19FBS: hitch 442, length 20'4", GVWR 3942
KZ Escape Mini: hitch 310, length 20'11", GVWR 3500
Rockwood Geo Pro: hitch 378, length 20', GVWR 3800

These all have a sofa instead of a dinette which I like and a slide which I'm waivering on getting. Xterra has a hitch weight of 500 and towing of 5000.

Comments and other suggestions are welcomed thanks.

[Capeteacher]

Acdii wrote:
In case you haven't read it, 2015 tow guide.

On the trailer, keep it small, keep it light, or you will be one of those drivers I see occasionally white knuckling it down the highway with a look of abject fear on their face.

If you did not get the Nevada tow package with the vehicle, then you will need to run a complete wiring harness from the dash back, along with a heavy gauge 12v positive from the battery to power the trailer brakes. You will also need a heavy duty transmission cooler.

One other thing, crawl under and look at the tag on the hitch and see if it is dual rated, meaning you can use a WDH for tongues above 500 pounds. In either case, it is a good idea to use one, if only for the sway control. That little wheel base does not make for a good towing platform. I used to tow a 17' horse trailer with a GVWR of 7500# with a 97 Explorer, and even with a WDH it tended to be pushed around a lot by semi's. It didn't sway, but the push pull from the trucks passing did keep me on my toes, making me one of the aforementioned white knucklers. It did not make for a relaxing towing experience.

NOTE: the 97 Exploder had a 9600# tow rating.

Thanks. I have the tow guide to read through. Not purchasing now, still researching.

[Acdii]

In case you haven't read it, 2015 tow guide.

On the trailer, keep it small, keep it light, or you will be one of those drivers I see occasionally white knuckling it down the highway with a look of abject fear on their face.

If you did not get the Nevada tow package with the vehicle, then you will need to run a complete wiring harness from the dash back, along with a heavy gauge 12v positive from the battery to power the trailer brakes. You will also need a heavy duty transmission cooler.

One other thing, crawl under and look at the tag on the hitch and see if it is dual rated, meaning you can use a WDH for tongues above 500 pounds. In either case, it is a good idea to use one, if only for the sway control. That little wheel base does not make for a good towing platform. I used to tow a 17' horse trailer with a GVWR of 7500# with a 97 Explorer, and even with a WDH it tended to be pushed around a lot by semi's. It didn't sway, but the push pull from the trucks passing did keep me on my toes, making me one of the aforementioned white knucklers. It did not make for a relaxing towing experience.

NOTE: the 97 Exploder had a 9600# tow rating.

[jimx200]

We had a 2008 Xterra with Auto trans, pulled a 2010 Coleman Avalon pop up tent trailer, 21' full length, dual axel, with GVWR of 4,600lbs. After three trips in our Sierra's, we sold it. I would not tow with
one since the short WB has too much sway and the engine is a dog at altitude. Sold it for a 2006 Lincoln Navigator and the difference is night and day. The Nav is a towing dream, up or down steep Mt grades, no problem.

[Capeteacher]

Well I might be able to make the Hershey RV show in Sept. to see the TT in person. I would like to compile a list of questions to ask the dealers, things I should be looking for. Maybe things that would affect towing or look at certain things in the construction of TT. Any information is appreciated. Thanks

[danimal53]

Capeteacher wrote:

rbpru wrote:
My WD hitch weighs about 50 lbs. it transfers that much or more forward to the front axel and back to the TT axel.

The WD hitch does not change the tongue weight, is just redistributes it, giving a bit less on the hitch and a bit more on the TT axels than without it.

Form experience you can easily add 200 lbs. to the dry tongue weight with the TT loaded for the road.

What I do not know is if the OPs hitch weigh rating is the same with or without a WD hitch. Nor do we know the max cargo capacity of the vehicel.

Cargo for Xterra is about 1000. How do I find out if the hitch rating changes with WD hitch?

my personal experience, towing a 17foot TT (about 21feet ball to bumper) with my Jeep liberty (has factory tow pkg), i think your closest limit will certainly be the payload of the xterra. TT is about 3500lbs fully loaded, and that's about the limit I'd tow comfortably with this TV (though the towing capacity is 5000). I've been to New England area a few times, and to Black Hills and Colorado with this setup, and it was very manageable. Certainly not as capable as bigger trucks on climbs, but gets the job done.

I use the E2 WDH, it has 2pt friction sway control, and it has been just fine.

[mgirardo]

Capeteacher wrote:


Tranny cooler? Brake controller?

In NJ, you will need a brake controller for any trailer over 2,000 lbs., it's the law. The Xterra's brakes are only sufficient for the Xterra and a trailer up to 2,000 lbs. If your Xterra has the tow package, it comes with a 7 Pin connector. I do not know if it is wired for a brake controller. My 1st generation X came with a 4 pin connector and I wired in a 7 pin connector for the brake controller. You can check out the forums on The Xterra Owners Club or the forums on TheNewX.org for Xterra info. The TheNewX.org is specifically for the 2nd generation Xterra, so it may be more useful. They can tell you whether or not the 7 pin is pre-wired for a brake controller. Most Travel Trailers will come with electronic brakes. They are a must for towing even with heavy duty trucks.

Like a lot of trucks, the Xterra has a small tranny cooler built into the Radiator. It is small yet sufficient when towing light loads, but towing over 3,500 lbs, get a transmission cooler. They are simple to install. I purchased a B&M cooler for like $65. It attaches to the front of the radiator and then just connect the transmission fluid lines from the stock cooler to the new cooler. Since we live in GA, I used both coolers. In NJ you don't want to do that, because in cold weather the transmission may have trouble getting up to operating temperature when not towing.

Edited to add: A new tranny for the Xterra will be in excess of $3k, so a tranny cooler is cheap insurance!

-Michael

[Capeteacher]

mgirardo wrote:
We owned a 1st Generation Xterra with the 3.3l V6. It had a towing capacity of 5,000 lbs. It had a Class 3 Hitch. I added a tranny cooler and setup the 7 pin wiring and brake controller. We also had a 6,000lb Equal-i-zer Weight Distribution Hitch with 4 point sway control. We towed an almost 5,000 lb Rockwood Roo 233. It was a Hybrid Travel Trailer with 3 fold down beds. With the beds closed, the trailer was about 19 feet long.

The Xterra towed very well on flat land. We towed from PA to GA and GA to TX with it and the Xterra did very well. Your 2015 Xterra has a much larger engine 4.0l V6 with 265 HP vs the 170 HP on our 3.3l V6. You should have no issues towing on flat land. Head west and you might have some issues climbing mountains. We towed into some of the small mountains of Eastern PA and the Xterra did well, but it was no speed demon. I would just get behind the big rigs and slowly climb up.

You should be able to tow all three of the campers you listed without a problem. Most weight distribution hitches allow you to carry a little more weight on the tongue. Our Equal-i-zer hitch bumped our tongue weight capacity to 600 lbs.

Tranny cooler? Brake controller?

-Michael

[Capeteacher]

Lwiddis wrote:
Regarding a slide, it really opens up a smaller TT. Glad I have one.

All I'm ever hearing is horror stories about slides. I agree it opens up the smaller TT that's why I'm leaning that way.

[Capeteacher]

IdaD wrote:

Capeteacher wrote:

Harold Fairbanks II wrote:
Are you referring to the older real truck Xterra or the newer car-based Xterra?

The Xterra is built on the same frame as Frontier.

Yeah, I don't think there was ever a car based Xterra. Maybe confused with a Pathfinder?

I had a first gen Xterra that was based on the old Hardbody. Great vehicle. The 3.3 VG was a little down on power but the manual tranny helped. I got close to 200,000 miles out of it before I sold it for $5000 and it never gave me a bit of trouble aside from a corroded battery clamp that killed it in an intersection on a nice 100 degree day a few years back. My fault, though.

The newer generation Xterra should be a decent tow vehicle within limits. The older ones were way too down on power to tow much of anything.

I had a 2000 Xterra with 141,000 miles and traded it in for the 2015 Xterra when I retired.

[Capeteacher]

rbpru wrote:
My WD hitch weighs about 50 lbs. it transfers that much or more forward to the front axel and back to the TT axel.

The WD hitch does not change the tongue weight, is just redistributes it, giving a bit less on the hitch and a bit more on the TT axels than without it.

Form experience you can easily add 200 lbs. to the dry tongue weight with the TT loaded for the road.

What I do not know is if the OPs hitch weigh rating is the same with or without a WD hitch. Nor do we know the max cargo capacity of the vehicel.

Cargo for Xterra is about 1000. How do I find out if the hitch rating changes with WD hitch?

[Capeteacher]

Rovito wrote:
Be careful towing with the Xterra. We towed our KZ 19BH for the first summer with our Xterra and it tended to have a lot of sway. My guess is because of the very short 106 inch wheelbase.

Yes. Someone posted a chart on the last thread that has 104" wheelbase towing about 20'

[Capeteacher]

Lwiddis wrote:
Cape, hitch, bars, chain, brackets...100 pounds.

So if you add that with the weight of propane and stuff stored in the front you have to figure an extra 175-200 on the hitch. Correct?

[Rovito]

Be careful towing with the Xterra. We towed our KZ 19BH for the first summer with our Xterra and it tended to have a lot of sway. My guess is because of the very short 106 inch wheelbase.

[rbpru]

My WD hitch weighs about 50 lbs. it transfers that much or more forward to the front axel and back to the TT axel.

The WD hitch does not change the tongue weight, is just redistributes it, giving a bit less on the hitch and a bit more on the TT axels than without it.

Form experience you can easily add 200 lbs. to the dry tongue weight with the TT loaded for the road.

What I do not know is if the OPs hitch weigh rating is the same with or without a WD hitch. Nor do we know the max cargo capacity of the vehicel.